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Jennifer - Alien Prophet.
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Jennifer / Alien Prophet Commentaries
I love all of Roger's lyrics. Most all of them have strong messages; they evoke powerful feeling and thought from the listener. I think he has a very good range in his writing... some broad lyrics - about war, politics, the music industry, insanity, and general humanity.
Then there is The Wall , the Pros and Cons of HH , and some scattered songs here and there ( Three Wishes , If , PotW , a few others,) which are more personal. Roger confronts outer as well as inner issues.
He explores all regions of life. You and I and all the other fans are aware of this... and we connect with what he says. On both levels. That's why I'm writing this, it's why we're fans. Roger Waters music isn't ear candy. It's damn thoughtful. It's not for everyone - and it's an aquired taste.
It's for people who have suffered loss, and felt pain, and have seen the inhumanities and problems of the world... it's for people who care and who think and who want a better world than the one we are living in right now. We all know this, though.
To the lyrical commentary -
And if I show you my dark side
Will you still hold me tonight
And if I opened my heart to you
And showed you my weak side
What would you do?
The first song I can think of that I truely love, truely feel... is The Final Cut . I adore the entire album, it's my favourite. But this song in particular goes straight to the bone. It's so open and raw and revealing. Totally, absolutely human. The " character " is hurt, his view is slightly distorted from this. He's effected by it. He's a very thoughtful soul. And he's breaking down. He invites someone, maybe anyone, to try to pierce his barriers and see him... hear him, listen to him, but also he is afraid to let anyone do that because of past experiences.
Though he goes on to speak, nonetheless. He tries to reach out. He's insecure... he's afraid of being left, of being used and abused and thrown away. He wonders - if he shows someone, or anyone, his true self, all the parts of him, if he will be rejected. Will anyone be a true friend or lover, or will people use him for their own agendas. Should he tear his barriers down and give it a chance? Can he afford to show weakness? Should he just give up? Does anyone care, can anyone love him?
I believe every one of us can appreciate this song. At one point or another I think we've all been in the position this " character " is in. At least we've all felt the fear and sadness and insecurity, somewhere, sometime. It seems to me almost as if this song is a very strong, concise, and even sadder version of The Wall . It lacks the humour, anger and sarcasm of The Wall. It's directly to the point. It also lacks the optimistic ending. Sure, he didn't have the nerve to make the final cut. But nothing is resolved. A decision on where to go and what to do is simply put off. He's left hanging.
* The * most painful song in his entire catalogue of lyrics. And in some way, though I can't say exactly how, it is very beautiful.
Did they expect us to treat them with any respect
They can polish their medals
And sharpen their smiles
And amuse themselves
Playing games for a while
Boom Boom
Bang Bang
Lie down, you're dead
This lyric pretty much sums up the state of the world and it's politics. To the Powers that Be, it's all a little fun game of money and power and luxury, none of them get hurt. We are the plastic green army men that they put their matches to, watching us melt while laughing like small unknowing, uncaring children. They're totally indifferent to us - a terrible thing.
They are the ones running our world and we are the ones suffering for their actions. The leaders of nations don't put theirselves in the front lines. They don't suffer the consequences of high taxes, corporate welfare, the drug wars, or any of the policies they impliment. We suffer when they don't spread money around. We suffer when they help only their close friends and not the masses. We suffer when they decide to war over oil, petty arguments, politics. They are out of control. We have poorly raised children commanding the world. And they expect us to believe them, honor them, respect them, listen to them. Hah.
Ashes and diamonds
Foe and friend
We were all equal
In the end
Self explainatory, but I don't want to neglect this lyric. We argue and fight now, in schoolyards, in relationships, climbing corporate ladders, between political parties, religious persuasians, internationally over land, etc etc etc et al... we seperate ourselves into classes and groups and bicker.
But in the end we'll all be equal. We are all flesh and blood and feelings and thoughts. We're all people. We shouldn't have to wait until the end of our lives to realize it, we should see it now.
Well I could write more on other lyrics. Perfect Sense , Amused to Death , BD/Eclipse ...
=) - jennifer / alienprophet
Jennifer
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