---
title: 'Nothing for Juice'
meta: Annotated lyrics for the Mountain Goats album Nothing for Juice.
---
# Nothing for Juice [^nfjjohn] [^eldalarm] #
{: .release-art}
Released: 1996 \\
Label: Ajax
*[Jump to the table of contents](#contents){: .jump}*
[^eldalarm]:
The cover of Nothing for Juice features a Swedish fire alarm with the word
"ELDALARM" around the top (which means "FIRE ALARM" in Swedish) with the
number 5 and a clapper on the bottom. John found the image on a brochure
for urinary tract infections while sick in a hospital in Växjö, Sweden.
--- February 18, 2003, Uffes Kallare, Växjö, Sweden.
[^nfjjohn]:
John calls the title "not a reference to the OJ verdict, but rather an
obscure personal reference". Argo, Denton, September 11, 1996.
### Liner notes ### {#liner}
*(inside of booklet):*
Something Emerson said about seeing through an eye which was itself unseen and
unseeable [^emerson] --- remember? Give these dreamer-types an inch and they'll
irreversibly damage the universe. Anyway, we're still the Mountain Goats, you
know, John and Rachel, and we recorded this in California at Bob DURKEE's,
except for the ones that sound like they were recorded in a room somewhere,
which were recorded in a room somewhere. There are so many people to whom we
owe our lives that were we to thank them all here the printer would run out of
ink and go bankrupt and probably the economy would become destabilized in the
aftermath and when you ran across us crawling over the badly scorched earth
you'd curse at us under your breath, but the following individuals should know
we love them for all the good turns they've done us: Lalitree Chavanothai.
Walter Zooi. Scott Carlson. Matt Blankman. Will and Tara Simon. Dan and
Danielle Varenka. Paul Lukas, who wrote the liner notes for <span
style="text-decoration:underline">Sweden</span>. Tim Adams. Dennis Callaci.
Frank van den Elzen. Dirk Hugsam. Graeme Jefferies, who plays guitar on three
of these songs, namely, "Full Flower," "Going to Kanas," and "Going to
Reykjavik." Steffi Böhm for Violins on "Full Flower." Bill and Jessica Meyer.
Peter Hughes, and Gloria for patience. Hal Looby. Pete Blackwell. Therese
Bogan. Come to think of it we put out an unholy number of records without
thanking our moms, so while we've got a minute we'd just like to send this
special thanks to our moms: thanks. Some people think that Rome will never
rise again, but to those people we can only say: yes, it will, too. Ten years
ago had you ever dreamed of being able to drink espresso whenever you wanted?
Since your back teeth came in have you ever gone a week without eating pizza?
Who were <span style="text-decoration:underline">all</span> the monkeys in the
<span style="text-decoration:underline">Planet of the Apes</span> [^apes]
named after? That's right, emperors. <span
style="text-decoration:underline">Roman</span> emperors. You just wait. Ten
more years and everybody's praenomen [^praenomen] will be Gaius. You keep
pressing me by this Emerson issue and I'll show you what an all-consuming I is
really all about.
There are 18 songs on this record and they all have names:
1\. Then the Letting Go. 2. Heights. 3. Alpha Double Negative: Going to
Catalina. 4. Hellhound on My Trail. 5. Blueberry Frost 6. Alabama Nova. 7.
Moon and Sand. 8. I Will Grab You by the Ears. 9. It Froze Me. 10. Full
Flower. 11. Million. 12. Going to Bogotá. 13. Orange Ball of Pain. 14. Going
to Kansas. 15. Waving at You. 16. Going to Reykjavik. 17. I Corinthians 13: 8
-- 10. 18. Going to Scotland.
We wrote them all except for the one that Robert Johnson wrote and the one we
found on a Chet Baker album. The Chet Baker one, written by some Italian guy
of whom we've never heard, is "Moon and Sand." If you don't know which is the
Robert Johnson one, then we can't help you.
The value and dignity of everyday words is to be as close as possible to
nothing. Invisible, not letting anything be seen, always beyond themselves,
always on this side of things, a pure awareness crosses them, so discreetly
that it itself can sometimes be lacking. Everything then is nullity. And yet,
understanding does not stop occurring; it even seems that it attains its point
of perfection. What could be richer than this extreme destitution? \\
--- Maurice Blanchot, *The Language of Fiction*; [^blanchot] \\
Translated by Charlotte MANDELL [^mandell]
*(back of CD booklet):*
You could get from the South Bronx all the way to Rockway for a lousy
dollar-fifty, but you won't: three days you've been holed up in that lousy
flophouse like nobody knows you're there. The news: everybody knows you're
there. It's just that nobody wants to talk about it. Would you, if you were in
our shoes? It was a terrible thing you did. I don't care how long ago it was.
It was a terrible, terrible thing.
*(back):*
nec minoris inpotentiae uoces propalam edebat, ut Titus Ampius scribit: nihil
esse rem publicam, appellationem modo sine corpore ac specie. Sullam nescisse
litteras, qui dictaturam deposuerit. debere homines consideratius iam loqui
secum ac pro legibus habere quae dicat. eoque arrogantiae progressus est, ut
haruspice tristia et sine corde exta quondam nuntiante, futura diceret
laetiora, cum uellet; nec pro ostento ducendum, si pecudi cor defuisset.
[^suetonius]
--- Suetonius, De Vita Caesarum, I: lxxvii.
[^emerson]:
[Ralph Waldo Emerson](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Waldo_Emerson)
was a famous poet, writer, philosopher, and member of the
Transcendentalist movement in the late 1800s. In his essay,
[Nature](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature_(essay)), he described a
transparent eyeball as a metaphor for the spiritual experience of becoming
one with all things:
"In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing
can befall me in life, --- no disgrace, no calamity, (leaving me my eyes,)
which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground, --- my head
bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space, --- all mean
egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see
all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part
or particle of God. The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and
accidental: to be brothers, to be acquaintances, --- master or servant, is
then a trifle and a disturbance. I am the lover of uncontained and
immortal beauty. In the wilderness, I find something more dear and connate
than in streets or villages. In the tranquil landscape, and especially in
the distant line of the horizon, man beholds somewhat as beautiful as his
own nature."
[Nature](http://www.emersoncentral.com/nature1.htm), Ralph Waldo Emerson,
accessed August 1, 2013.
[^apes]:
[Planet of the
Apes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_(novel)) is a famous
French novel and later, Hollywood film and story franchise, about a planet
where apes form the dominant society. In the
[film](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planet_of_the_Apes_(1968_film)), many
apes do have Roman names: Caesar, Maximus, Lucius, and Cornelius among
them.
[^praenomen]:
A [praenomen](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Praenomen) is a Roman's
personal name, used by close friends. Romans often had [three
names](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_naming_conventions), a
praenomen, nomen, and cognomen. The nomen was a clan name, similar to
modern English last names, and the cognomen was a nickname used to
differentiate people with similar names.
[^blanchot]:
[Maurice Blanchot](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Blanchot) was a
French philosopher and writer during the 20th century. The Language of
Fiction is a chapter of his 1949 book, The Work of Fire. John quotes him
in his 2008 WNYC interview, and may have named [Chanson du Bon
Chose](nbp.html#chanson) after him.
[^mandell]:
[Charlotte Mandell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Mandell) is a
famous translator of works from French to English.
[^suetonius]:
This passage is from [The Twelve Caesars][12caesars], a set of biographies
of the first twelve Roman emperors, written by Gaius Suetonius
Tranquillus. A translation is as follows: "No less arrogant were his
public utterances, which Titus Ampius records: that the state was nothing,
a mere name without body or form; that Sulla did not know his A.B.C. when
he laid down his dictatorship; that men ought now to be more circumspect
in addressing him, and to regard his word as law. So far did he go in his
presumption, that when a soothsayer once reported direful inwards without
a heart, he said: 'They will be more favourable when I wish it; it should
not be regarded as a portent, if a beast has no heart.'" Morgan, Llewelyn
(1997). ['Levi Quidem De Re...': Julius Caesar as Tyrant and
Pedant][levi]. *Journal of Roman Studies* 87: 23 -- 40.
[12caesars]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twelve_Caesars
[levi]: http://www.jstor.org/stable/301366
### Related material ### {#related}
Nothing for Juice has a number of outtakes: Etiquette Song, Flower Song, Going
to Buffalo, Going to Detroit (which later became Going to Michigan), I Meant
Every Word I Said in New Delhi, Pure Crystal, Radical Evil Song, and Something
Blue.
### Table of contents ### {#contents}
1. [Then the Letting Go](#letting)
2. [Heights](#heights)
3. [Alpha Double Negative: Going to Catalina](#catalina)
4. [Hellhound on My Trail](#hellhound)
5. [Blueberry Frost](#frost)
6. [Alabama Nova](#nova)
7. [Moon and Sand](#moonandsand)
8. [I Will Grab You by the Ears](#grab)
9. [It Froze Me](#froze)
10. [Full Flower](#flower)
11. [Million](#million)
12. [Going To Bogatá](#bogota)
13. [Orange Ball of Pain](#pain)
14. [Going to Kansas](#kansas)
15. [Waving at You](#waving)
16. [Going to Reykjavik](#reykjavik)
17. [I Corinthians 13: 8 -- 10](#corinthians)
18. [Going to Scotland](#scotland)
* [Credits](#credits)
* [Further reading](#links)
* [Footnotes](#footnotes)
{: .none}
## Then the Letting Go [^lettinggo] ## {#letting}
Down in the South Bronx [^bronx] \\
Down home \\
Saw you walking down the street again \\
Saw you looking sweet again
I saw you coming through \\
I turned my head away from you \\
Why do you come here \\
Why do you come around [^comearound] \\
Why'd you go home \\
Why'd you head on home to Rockaway? [^rockaway]
[^lettinggo]:
"Then the Letting Go" is from the final lines of a poem by Emily
Dickinson:
After great pain a formal feeling comes ---
The nerves sit ceremonious like tombs; \\
The stiff Heart questions --- was it He that bore? \\
And yesterday --- or centuries before? \\
The feet, mechanical, go round \\
A wooden way \\
Of ground, or air, or ought, \\
Regardless grown, \\
A quartz contentment, like a stone.
This is the hour of lead \\
Remembered if outlived, \\
As freezing persons recollect the snow -- \\
First chill, then stupor, then the letting go.
"The Letting Go" was also used as the title of [an album][thelettinggo] by
Bonnie 'Prince' Billy. Melani, Lilia (2009). [After great pain a formal
feeling comes][afteragreat]. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
[thelettinggo]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Letting_Go
[afteragreat]: http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/english/melani/cs6/formal.html
[^bronx]:
[The Bronx][bronxwiki] is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New
York City. Located north of Manhattan and Queens, and south of Westchester
County, the Bronx is the only borough that is located primarily on the
mainland.
[bronxwiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bronx
[^comearound]:
Possibly an interpolation of the lyrics of the Morrissey song *Suedehead*,
which contains the lyrics, "Why do you come here? And why do you hang
around?" John would later cover this track with Kaki King during the 2008
Last Happy Night of Your Life tour with Kaki King (for example, at the
[Pabst Theater][2008-10-14], the [Wonder Ballroom][2008-10-21],
[Republic][2008-11-03], [Theater of the Living Arts][2008-11-07], [Music
Hall of Williamsburg][2008-11-08], and [Webster Hall][2008-11-09]).
[2008-10-14]: http://archive.org/details/tmg2008-10-14
[2008-10-21]: http://archive.org/details/mg2008-10-21.flac16
[2008-11-03]: http://archive.org/details/mountaingoats2008-11-03.flac16
[2008-11-07]: http://archive.org/details/TMG2008-11-07.flac16
[2008-11-08]: http://www.nyctaper.com/2008/11/the-mountain-goats-november-8-2008-music-hall-flac-and-mp3-downloads/
[2008-11-09]: http://www.nyctaper.com/2008/11/the-mountain-goats-november-9-2008-webster-hall-flac-and-mp3-downloads/
[^rockaway]:
The [Rockaway Peninsula][rockawaywiki] is the name of a peninsula of Long
Island, located within the New York City borough of Queens. A popular
summer resort area since the 1830s, its relative isolation from the urban
areas of the city, especially Manhattan, has traditionally made it a
popular summer retreat.
[rockawaywiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockaway,_Queens
## Heights ## {#heights}
When the seashells crumbled in your hand \\
You looked up at me \\
And the sands shifting underneath your feet \\
Softened for you and incredibly \\
The sun went through from the sky \\
And I was certain I was going to cry \\
But then you reached up and you reached out \\
We'd been staring at the water all day \\
And then you touched me, you were golden \\
You were giving the game away
When the sand crabs ran across your face \\
You didn't even twitch \\
And a salt scent came across the water \\
Impossibly rich \\
Impossibly cold \\
We were just nineteen years old \\
But then you reached up \\
And you reached out \\
We'd been staring at the water all day \\
And then you touched, me you were golden \\
You were giving the game away
## Alpha Double Negative: Going to Catalina ## {#catalina}
Alpha Double Negative: Going to Catalina is annotated with [Songs for
Petronius](petronius.html#catalina).
## Hellhound on My Trail [^hellhoundseries] [^hellhound] ## {#hellhound}
Gotta keep moving \\
Gotta keep moving \\
Blues falling down like hail \\
Gotta keep moving \\
Blues falling down like hail \\
And the daylight keeps moving \\
There's a hellhound on my trail
If today was Christmas Eve, and tomorrow were Christmas Day [^muttering] \\
If today was Christmas Eve, and tomorrow were Christmas Day \\
And tomorrow were Christmas Day
All I would need is my little sweet rider \\
And the world would fade away
Gotta keep moving \\
Gotta keep moving \\
Blues falling down like hail \\
Gotta keep moving \\
Blues falling down like hail \\
And the daylight keeps to worrying me \\
There's a hellhound on my trail, yeah
[^hellhoundseries]:
Hellhound on My Trail is part of the [informal series of cover
songs](series.html#covers).
[^hellhound]:
[Hellhound on My Trail][hellhoundwiki] is originally the title of a blues
song recorded and released by Mississippi Delta blues artist Robert
Johnson in 1937.
[hellhoundwiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hellhound_on_My_Trail
[^muttering]:
At this point, John starts talking in the background. For the most part,
it sounds like he is just repeating the lines as opposed to saying new
lyrics, however, if you hear something to the contrary, let us know.
## Blueberry Frost ## {#frost}
When you saw the evening star [^eveningstar] \\
Shining in the freezing sky \\
I saw something dark and silent \\
Passing by
Full moon \\
Deep grass \\
Cold water
When you said your name out loud \\
Something broke inside me \\
Nothing new to take a hold of \\
No new world to hide me
Full moon \\
Deep grass \\
Cold water
Full moon \\
Deep grass \\
Cold water
[^eveningstar]:
The [Evening Star][eveningstarwiki] often refers to the planet Venus,
which after the Moon is the brightest natural object in the night sky.
Venus reaches its maximum brightness shortly before sunrise or shortly
after sunset, for which reason it has been referred to by ancient cultures
as the Morning Star or Evening Star.
[eveningstarwiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evening_Star
## Alabama Nova ## {#nova}
Your house is depressing \\
Your house is dirty \\
Why don't you come outside a little while? \\
Why don't you step out into the sun? \\
Let me take you down \\
Let me ease you around Montgomery [^montgomery]
And out there on the front porch \\
Your hair shines in the sun \\
And I can see the sun gathering on your eyes \\
What the hell are you looking at? \\
Let me take you down \\
Let me ease you around Montgomery
[^montgomery]:
[Montgomery](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montgomery_Alabama) is the
capital of the U.S. state of Alabama.
## Moon and Sand [^moonandsandseries] [^moonandsand] ## {#moonandsand}
Deep is the midnight sea \\
Warm is the fragrant night \\
Sweet are your lips to me \\
Soft as the moon and sand
Oh, when shall we meet again \\
When the night has left us \\
Will the spell remain
The waves invade the shore \\
Though we may kiss no more \\
Night is at our command \\
Moon and sand
The waves invade the shore \\
And though we may kiss no more \\
Night is at our command \\
Moon and sand
[^moonandsandseries]:
Moon and Sand is part of the the [informal series of cover
songs](series.html#covers).
[^moonandsand]:
This is the cover of a song originally recorded by American jazz trumpeter
and vocalist Chet Baker in 1987.
## I Will Grab You by the Ears [^grabyou] ## {#grab}
The wind blew in across the water \\
And the wind blew through your hair \\
And I walked around the lake's perimeter \\
And then I saw you there
I will grab you by the ears \\
I will grab you by the ears \\
I will grab you by the ears \\
And you will know something \\
You will know something
I saw the birds fly out across the lake \\
I saw the birds go by \\
And I walked around the lake's perimeter \\
And I saw the lake reflected in your eyes
I will grab you by the ears \\
I will grab you by the ears \\
I will grab you by the ears \\
And you will know something \\
You will know something
[^grabyou]:
This phrase is likely related to the Roman expression, '[have the wolf by
the ear](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/have_the_wolf_by_the_ear)', which
means to be in an inescapable and dangerous predicament. It is attributed
to Tiberius by [Suetonius](#fn:suetonius), mentioned in the liner notes.
In fact, Suetonius documents the phrase in his history, [The Twelve
Caesars][12caesars], the same source (although in a different section) as
the quote in the liner notes:
> The cause of his long demur was fear of the dangers which threatened him
> on all hands; insomuch that he said, "I have got a wolf by the ears."
Thank you tremendously to Mairead Beeson for finding and referencing this!
Suetonius (1889). [The Lives of the Twelve
Caesars](http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0132%3Alife%3Dtib.%3Achapter%3D25).
Alexander Thompson, translator. Philadelphia: Gebbie & Co. Perseus Digital
Library, retrieved March 22, 2018.
## It Froze Me [^itfrozeme] ## {#froze}
I saw you in the blazing light \\
When the lotus [^lotus] caught fire \\
In the middle of the night \\
It froze me \\
It froze me
I saw you coming closer real slow \\
You grabbed hold \\
I let go \\
Yeah I saw you in the blazing light \\
I saw you \\
I saw you all right \\
It froze me \\
It froze me \\
It froze me \\
It froze me
[^itfrozeme]:
"I'll tell you a secret --- most of the songs I used to write were just
made up stories, but then I think I wrote so many made up stories so I
could bury the real songs, nobody would catch me. This is a real love
song." --- June 13, 2006, Bottom of the Hill, San Francisco.
Other comments alluding to it being a love song can be heard at December
13, 2012, Troubadour, Los Angeles; October 12, 2005, Canopy Club, Urbana;
and February 18, 2003, Uffes Källare, Växjö, Sweden.
[^lotus]:
I don't know if John was specifically intending to reference anything
through his choice of the lotus, but the lotus is a traditional symbol of
Buddhism. Known also as the
[padma](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelumbo_nucifera), its beauty growing
from muddy swamps is often used as an allegory for purity, grace, and
other traits connoting aspects of nirvana.
[lotuswiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelumbo_nucifera
## Full Flower ## {#flower}
I saw the ceiling spin \\
And I saw the room shift \\
And I watched the television flicker \\
And I let my mind drift \\
I would give anything in the world up for you \\
But I will not stop
I saw the blossom form \\
And I saw the screen glow \\
And I let my arm fall to my side \\
And I took one step back \\
And I would give anything in the world up for you \\
But I will not stop
## Million ## {#million}
When I came back from Finland \\
The taxi took me down the street \\
I saw the red flowers growing like they used to \\
By the roadside in the smothering summer heat
You were standing out in front of the house \\
With your floral print dress on \\
And you had questions only a masochist would ask \\
Written all over your big brown eyes \\
And the moon is high over Iowa at night \\
And the moon is high over Iowa at night \\
And I brought you a blanket \\
Hand woven, hand dyed \\
The moon is high over Iowa at night
## Going to Bogatá [^bogotaseries] [^bogota] ## {#bogota}
I know what I want \\
And I know what we need \\
When the first fruits of the harvest \\
Begin to blacken and bleed \\
And the purple fruit [^purplefruit] gives way when you press it \\
Even so slightly \\
And through the thatches behind the green leaves \\
We heard the fire-eyed macaw [^macaw] sing as evil as you please \\
And his little song \\
Is a very pretty song \\
But it's something I won't stand for
And as the sun rises over Colombia \\
I know we're done for
When the holes started forming in the tent \\
And you wondered out loud where the sunlight went \\
I had a mind to tell you \\
But I didn't want to hurt you \\
And if I knew how to form the words \\
I would ask you what you'd come for
But as the sun rises over Colombia \\
I know we're done for \\
Yeah, as the sun rises over Colombia \\
I know we're done for \\
As the sun rises over Colombia \\
I know we're done for
[^bogotaseries]:
Going to Bogatá is part of the [Going to ...
series](./series.html#goingto).
[^bogota]:
[Bogatá][bogotawiki] is the capital and largest city of the country of
Colombia.
[bogotawiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bogot%C3%A1
[^purplefruit]:
This could refer to a lot of fruit. However, a common purple fruit in
areas around Bogatá is the purple [mangosteen][], also known simply as
mangosteen. This is a tropical evergreen tree which grows mainly in
Southeast Asia, and also in tropical South American countries such as
Colombia, where the tree has been introduced. The fruit of the mangosteen
is sweet, tangy, and juicy, with an inedible, deep reddish-purple colored
rind when ripe.
[mangosteen]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_mangosteen
[^macaw]:
[Macaws][macawwiki] are long tailed, often colorful New World parrots
native to Mexico, Central America, South America, and formerly the
Caribbean. Most species are associated with forests, especially
rainforests, but others prefer woodland or savannah-like habitats.
[macawwiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macaw
## Orange Ball of Pain [^orangeball] ## {#pain}
When I saw it on the bakery carousel \\
I knew I had to have it for my own \\
I eased it out \\
And I brought it home \\
Why don't you try some \\
I already had some myself
Is that the most delicious thing \\
You ever tasted in your life \\
Is that the most delicious thing \\
You ever tasted in your life
And then the cold sorrow gripped me by the throat \\
And then I felt the colder sadness taking hold \\
I knew I had to have it for my own \\
Why don't you try some \\
Why don't you try some
Is that the most delicious thing \\
You ever tasted in your life \\
Is that the most delicious thing \\
You ever tasted in your life
And then I saw the snow against the window \\
And then I saw the snow hit the window \\
And then I saw the snow brush against the window \\
And then I saw the snow in here
[^orangeball]:
Orange Ball of Pain is part of the [Orange Ball of ...
series](./series.html#orangeball).
## Going to Kansas ## {#kansas}
Going to Kansas is annotated with [The Hound Chronicles](hound.html#kansas).
## Waving at You [^jdwaving] ## {#waving}
Listen, you can tell your lawyer \\
That he can go to hell \\
'Cause I can take whatever you are offering up \\
Reasonably well \\
And if four long years come to nothing \\
That's all right \\
But it's your birthday \\
It's your birthday tonight \\
And I went to buy you something \\
But I caught myself in time \\
And nothing makes any sense anymore \\
But everything rhymes
Die hard \\
Die kicking \\
Old habit of mine \\
Die hard \\
Die kicking \\
Old habit of mine \\
Die hard \\
Die hard \\
Die kicking
[^jdwaving]:
"This is rather the best of the early divorce songs, written a good five
or six years before I got married, drawn from — what? Some imagined hurt?
A lonely Thursday night in December, maybe? Seems like it; I feel like I
was having some sort of disagreement with somebody. The main thing I
remember though is the riff, if you want to call it that. A fingered C
chord that becomes an Am7 and then some kind of modified F whose name I
don't know that resolves finally at G, this circular droning looping
process that suggested a guy who's trying to break free from a pattern
that's never going to let him go, because that pattern is exactly who he
is, down deep where all the ghosts and jackals live. He tries at the end
to shift the focus, to call his love for somebody a habit, but it's not
that: it's love. It's always going to be love. So the song doesn't really
end, it just gets stuck. And then I strum a chord for a long time really
energetically, because I used to always dig ending my songs like that.
"I can tell, listening to this song now, years removed from the night I
recorded it, that I was getting pretty into the story: not from the
strength of the strumming, but from the way I get real quiet during the
end of the vocal. To me, that's the signal that I'm getting so involved
with the plotline that I can't really tell the difference between myself
and the narrator any more. That is really the point at which I feel like
I've succeeded in getting somewhere. Everybody else assumes the louder I
sing, the more deeply I'm feeling the emotions, and I do try to oblige,
but it's the quiet moments where the shadows sort of start to flesh
themselves out." --- February 15, 2008, My Five Favorite Mountain Goats
Characters, eMusic Magazine, archived by the [Internet
Archive](http://web.archive.org/web/20080222155123/http://www.emusic.com/features/spotlight/2008_02-mountain-goats.html)
[(mirror)](./mirror/emusic-2008-02-15.txt), accessed April 16, 2013
## Going to Reykjavik [^reykjavikseries] [^reykjavik] ## {#reykjavik}
I've been drinking that coffee you sent me from Thailand \\
I've been watching the lamps burn \\
I've been listening to the wind chime \\
I've been waiting my turn
And I'm coming to you \\
I am coming to you \\
I am coming to you
And I heated the milk until it boiled and I drank it down \\
And I stepped outside and I checked my reflection in the rain \\
There were voices on the wind \\
Winter coming on in \\
And I made myself up again, brand new
And I am broken and I am tired \\
And I'm coming to you with my mouth \\
Dripping
[^reykjavikseries]:
Going to Reykjavik is part of the [Going to ...
series](./series.html#goingto).
[^reykjavik]:
[Reykjavik][reykjavikwiki] is the capital and largest city in Iceland.
[reykjavikwiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reykjavik
## 1 Corinthians 13: 8 -- 10 [^corinthiansseries] [^corinthianstitle] ## {#corinthians}
We heard the rats in the rafters scurry by \\
And we wondered about the color of the sky outside \\
In Warsaw [^warsaw] in 1939 [^1939] \\
It was all right just to be alive \\
It was good that you were mine \\
And you held your hands up \\
To form a heart in the air \\
You held your hands up with your thumbs touching \\
They formed a heart in the air
Through the piece missing from the brick wall \\
We had an excellent view of the soldiers coming down the hall \\
And you held your hands up where I could see them in the dark \\
They formed a heart in the air \\
You held your hands up \\
And they formed a heart in the air
I heard the old songs radiating from you \\
I heard the old songs radiating from you
[^corinthiansseries]:
1 Corinthians 13: 8 -- 10 is part of the [informal series of Biblical
references](series.html#bible).
[^corinthianstitle]:
"Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for
languages, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For
we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when the perfect comes, the
partial will come to an end." [1 Corinthians 13: 8 --
10][corinthians13810], Holman Christian Standard Bible, retrieved March
22, 2013.
[1 Corinthians 13: 11][corinthians1311] and [1 Corinthians 13:
12][corinthians1312], closely related verses, are referenced in Song for
John Davis and Love, Love, Love, respectively.
[corinthians13810]: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%2013:8-10&version=HCSB
[corinthians1311]: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%2013:11&version=HCSB
[corinthians1312]: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%2013:12&version=HCSB
[^warsaw]: [Warsaw][warsawwiki] is the capital and largest city of Poland.
[warsawwiki]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warsaw
[^1939]:
In 1939 Warsaw, a battle known as the [Siege of Warsaw][siege] took place
between the Polish Warsaw Army and the Nazis. It started with aerial
bombardments by the Luftwaffe on September 1, land fighting beginning on
September 8 when the first German armored units reached the city. The
initial attack was stopped, and Warsaw was placed under siege. The siege
lasted until September 28, when the Polish garrison capitulated.
Approximately 100,000 Polish soldiers were taken as prisoners of war.
October began a period of German occupation that lasted until liberation
by the Soviets on January 17, 1945.
[siege]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Warsaw_(1939)
## Going to Scotland [^scotlandseries] ## {#scotland}
There was a barn owl trapped in the rafters \\
The ground underneath us was wet and cold \\
We heard the owl thrashing about \\
Trying desperately to get out \\
We stood outside and watched the night unfold
We watched the sun go down on Scotland \\
And I watched the moon come up over you \\
When a pack of dogs went silently past us \\
We knew we'd been given fair warning \\
But that was the only thing we knew
And you threw all your luggage out onto the water \\
And I tore the shirt away from my back \\
The cold came on with a new found intensity \\
And you pressed your warm body against me \\
And I loved you so much it was making me sick
And we watched the sun go down on Scotland \\
We were glad that we'd left Oklahoma behind \\
I took your hips in my hands and I threw you down \\
To the new found rich brown deep wet ground \\
Had a vision of you burning on my mind
We watched the sun go down on Scotland \\
And I watched the moon come up over you \\
When a pack of dogs went silently past us \\
We knew we'd been given fair warning \\
But that was the only thing we knew
[^scotlandseries]:
Going to Scotland is part of the [Going to ...
series](./series.html#goingto).
## Credits ## {#credits}
Again, an unbelievably huge thanks to Thomas Fidler, also known as Drumhax on
the Mountain Goats forums. Much of these lyrics were annotated entirely by
him, and he did a phenomenal job. He can be contacted at thomasfidler at
Google's popular email service dot com. Thanks also to Caliclimber, from whose
excellent [Flickr
page](http://www.flickr.com/photos/caliclimber/sets/72157604433641001/) I
stole the album art, and who provided detailed scans of the liner notes, and
to Stephen Plummer, who transcribed almost all of the liner notes. Thank you
also to Mairead Beeson for discovering the source of the phrase 'I will grab
you by the ears'.
## Further reading ## {#links}
1. [Nothing for Juice](http://www.themountaingoats.net/music/juice.html),
Nall, retrieved April 14, 2013.
## Footnotes ## {#footnotes}