Friday, March 11, 2016

O Say, What'd He Sing?

This song has been blowing through my mind for the last several weeks. Why? I don't know. I mean, yes, I used to love it but hadn't thought about it for years. Like most of Smokey's song catalog it is about love, falling in love, being in love, loving - - - L O V E. And that is not where I am or have been. Well, except with . . well, that's another post.

Anyways . . . I always thought I knew this song like the back of my hand. For while I hadn't thought about it for years and years until a few weeks ago, I used to listen to it often.  Blow, baby.  And so, as I couldn't get the song off my mind, I decided to build a post around it. And even thoughI felt I knew the song backward and forward, I checked lyric sites none-the-less.

And now, I'm thrown.

The first stanza after the chorus: When you sigh, weak am I, A butterfly caught up 
in a hurricane, hurricane. Lucky me, umbrella free. Suddenly I'm caught up in your summer rain

Those lyrics are in my bones. I've listened to the song again and again and again in the past several weeks and that is what I hear.

Or is it that I have always believed those lyrics to be true and refuse to hear it any other way?

Most of the lyric sites have the lyrics to that stanza as follows:

Windy sigh, weaken my Butterfly caught up in a hurricane, hurricane
Lucky me, I'm better free, Suddenly I'm caught up in your somber rain

I mean, I listen to the song and try to hear those lyrics....but, I can't. In my mind it is fairly obvious what he's singing and it anything about being better free (WTF?) or somber rains.. idiotic. Really.

So, I don't trust the site. I trust what I hear/d.   It is in my bones.


PS. Good golly I miss albums and liner notes with song lyrics.



  


6 comments:

  1. Either way, your lyrics are soooo much better!

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    1. I thinkd it was that stanza (the way I heard it) that pulled me all in. :-)

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  2. I absolutely agree with your interpretation except for "summer rain." I think he said "somber rain." But anyway, Smokey Robinson! Damn. What a treat.

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    1. Yes, I know. Smokey. The turn of phrase, the lilt . .

      Yes the summer is dragged where it does sound like somber. I was almost convinced. ;-)

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  3. I agree with both of your commenters: yours are the better lyrics. And they may be the 'correct' lyrics as well. Those sites are notorious for inaccuracies. Ever gone to sing karaoke and been brought up short by the clearly wrong lyrics on the monitor?

    And, Smokey Robinson is a national treasure.

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  4. Let me take a moment to contemplate karaoke. . .

    Yes, over the years I have run into a few sites with less than accurate renditions/lyrics.

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