Saturday, March 02, 2024

"1979"

You know, it’s incredible how music works. 

Sometimes we’re really focused on the music; sometimes, the lyrics. Usually, the music takes precedence over the lyrics. If the tune is good, we’ll then look more deeply at the words.

Sometimes we like the tune so much that we really don’t care about the lyrics. Such was the case for the longest time with me with the song “1979” by the Smashing Pumpkins. “1979” begins with an interesting percussion-y type build up, then totally bursts into this driving force of a tune based on a catchy guitar riff and playful voice echo type thing. It just sounds awesome, so I didn’t need to know too much more. Plus, I totally understood the first few lyrics: 

“Shakedown 1979/Cool kids never have the time.”

For years, I was more or less in the dark when it came to much of the rest of “1979”’s lyrics. But finally—finally—after years, I decided to check them out.  

I was totally blown away. 

“1979” is not even a song, I discovered: it’s a poem. There were so many lines that I had gotten so wrong for so many years—so many wildly creative lines. 

Here are the lyrics to “1979.” I waited decades before reading them. But you shouldn’t delay. I think that knowing the lyrics will surely help enhance your appreciation of this strange song/poem. 

Shakedown 1979 
Cool kids never have the time
On a live wire right up off the street
You and I should meet

Junebug skippin' like a stone
With the headlights pointed at the dawn
We were sure we'd never see an end to it all

And I don't even care
To shake these zipper blues
And we don't know
Just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth
Below

Double-cross the vacant and the bored
They're not sure just what we have in store
Morphine city slippin' dues, down to see

That we don't even care
As restless as we are
We feel the pull
In the land of a thousand guilts
And poured cement

Lamented and assured
To the lights and towns below
Faster than the speed of sound
Faster than we thought we'd go
Beneath the sound of hope

Justine never knew the rules
Hung down with the freaks and ghouls
No apologies ever need be made
I know you better than you fake it, to see

That we don't even care
To shake these zipper blues
And we don't know
Just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth
Below

The street heats the urgency of now
As you see there's no one around

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