beantownbubba wrote:But if it's a "love song" as traditionally understood, I really hope you'll set your sights a little higher and i surely wish for you, as i would for anyone in these parts, a better life than those two have. They may have great sex and a pretty intense relationship, but it seems to me you've got to close at least one eye and maybe both to ignore the violence, alcoholism and fundamental inability to get along explicit and implicit in this relationship.
I see the violence and alcoholism, if you can really call them that, as a whole lot more tongue-in-cheek than you do, BTB. I think you're taking it down to a darker level that isn't really intended.
I've been wrong before and i may well be wrong this time, but as a general proposition, i'm not gonna lose too many bets taking cooley and the darker level And while I accept that i could be painting things too darkly, "tongue in cheek" doesn't resonate for me at all. That strips all the subtlety and nuance (and levels!) from the song, which doesn't leave all that much. At that point u might as well add the dog, the pick up truck and play it backwards
Ok I'm not saying you're wrong, Beantown, but I'm going to play devil's advocate here. So while Smarty Jones wanting it to play at her wedding might be taking it a bit far, isn't the love these character's have actually real from what we're told? Aren't we interjecting elitism when we say that they could do better? His job sucks, his mother in law is a serious problem, I'm guessing they live in a trailer home and generally life kind of sucks, but they have each other. Sure they fight and the occasional piece of furniture gets thrown (guessing here), but it isn't driven by hate, it's driven by love by way of frustration. I'm thinking that's a hell of a lot better than the lives they see many other people around them living. Chances are their lives aren't going to improve much over time and one takes what one can get. Now getting back to what you were saying, Beantown, this an ideal life by any means but for those of us who live in a different social strata, who the hell are we to judge?
On a completely different not it's a testament to the excellence of this song that we're able to infer the things we are in this thread? We know these people, even if only through our own life filters, and that my friends is the definition of great storytelling.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote: Aren't we interjecting elitism when we say that they could do better? His job sucks, his mother in law is a serious problem, I'm guessing they live in a trailer home and generally life kind of sucks, but they have each other. Sure they fight and the occasional piece of furniture gets thrown (guessing here), but it isn't driven by hate, it's driven by love by way of frustration. I'm thinking that's a hell of a lot better than the lives they see many other people around them living. Chances are their lives aren't going to improve much over time and one takes what one can get. Now getting back to what you were saying, Beantown, this an ideal life by any means but for those of us who live in a different social strata, who the hell are we to judge?
On a completely different not it's a testament to the excellence of this song that we're able to infer the things we are in this thread? We know these people, even if only through our own life filters, and that my friends is the definition of great storytelling.
My point was not at all to judge the lousy job, the worse mother in law and the possibility of trailers and dead ends. It was to judge the alcoholism, violence, and sense of doom and entrapment that surrounds the couple in the song. I don't think that's elitist at all, especially when I'm not so much judging them as suggesting to someone just starting out that there's more to life. I agree that the fact that they DO "have each other in spite of it all" in some traditional sense of the term is in fact the saving grace of the song and the couple. And yes all these ambiguities and inferences are a testament to the excellence of the song.
What used to be is gone and what ought to be ought not to be so hard
Tequila Cowboy wrote: Aren't we interjecting elitism when we say that they could do better? His job sucks, his mother in law is a serious problem, I'm guessing they live in a trailer home and generally life kind of sucks, but they have each other. Sure they fight and the occasional piece of furniture gets thrown (guessing here), but it isn't driven by hate, it's driven by love by way of frustration. I'm thinking that's a hell of a lot better than the lives they see many other people around them living. Chances are their lives aren't going to improve much over time and one takes what one can get. Now getting back to what you were saying, Beantown, this an ideal life by any means but for those of us who live in a different social strata, who the hell are we to judge?
On a completely different not it's a testament to the excellence of this song that we're able to infer the things we are in this thread? We know these people, even if only through our own life filters, and that my friends is the definition of great storytelling.
My point was not at all to judge the lousy job, the worse mother in law and the possibility of trailers and dead ends. It was to judge the alcoholism, violence, and sense of doom and entrapment that surrounds the couple in the song. I don't think that's elitist at all, especially when I'm not so much judging them as suggesting to someone just starting out that there's more to life. I agree that the fact that they DO "have each other in spite of it all" in some traditional sense of the term is in fact the saving grace of the song and the couple. And yes all these ambiguities and inferences are a testament to the excellence of the song.
Jeez, you're taking all the fun out of the song. Maybe Cooley should add a third verse where the guy goes to AA, the girl to anger management and they both join the mother at the family therapist's office. I still say you're taking this song to a deeper level that just wasn't intended.
Clams wrote: Jeez, you're taking all the fun out of the song. Maybe Cooley should add a third verse where the guy goes to AA, the girl to anger management and they both join the mother at the family therapist's office. I still say you're taking this song to a deeper level that just wasn't intended.
i'm taking it farther than an addiction or just marriage problem, but just an overall picture of a life from a broken man's perspective, trying to maintain normalcy..who knows if the bottle causes the problems or is his only solace, either way, i think it's meant to be taken to some deeper levels..i think Patterson's songs are straightforward and Cooley's songs are meant to be taken a few levels stripped down..(i think the songs can also be enjoyed without doing that, but in not taking it to some deeper levels, i think you'd be doing a Cooley song and yourself a disservice)
I can see bubba's POV. If Smarty J. is hooking up for life w/MR. Right, then a song about beating each other up is prolly not the best example of wedded bliss. I don't think he was trying to take the fun outta anything (in spite of his fuddyduddyness). Smarty J. only stated that she loved this song (who wouldn't) & wanted it for her wedding song. She said that she hoped she could land that kinda man. I don't think she was referring to the alcoholic, low paying job aspect of that man; but to the loves me through thick & thin aspect of that man. Since I've never been a young lady dreaming about what song I would play @ my dream wedding to Mr. Right, I'm not really qualified to say if that is or isn't a good idea. Being as I'm some older guy who has been to a hundred or more weddings, I can't recommend this as a wedding song. True it is one of the finest love songs ever written. But it is for smoky barrooms, or dark lonely drives down some road to Bumfuck, Nowhere (not the Happiest Day Of Your Life). A couple will rarely be as happy or more in love than on their wedding day. It doesn't seem the time to project how much you would love each other if shit went wrong. Smarty, if I was a chick & planning my dream wedding, I would pick Everything's Coming Our Way by Santana as our song. Since it's your dream wedding, you go on ahead & play Love Like This if means so much to you.
A thousand clusterfucks will not kill my tiny light
This is some deep stuff here. I always looked at this song as a fantastic fuckin' love song with the pitfalls and trials and tribulations of life mixed in. The everyday stresses boiling over and taken out on each other. I lived with this couple a few summers ago. The mother in law popped in too. The weekends were basically bar...head home...then more booze, followed by yelling/screaming and then loving each other like nothing ever happened. It was clockwork. My buddy's sister and I would drink beer on the porch and listen to it transpire every weekend. Two very strong personalities. They've been married since they were 22. Breakfast the next day was generally pretty cheerful.
Sub wrote:I always took it as a straight forward song about a dysfunctional relationship that just works on whatever level the people involved need it to.
Sub wrote:I always took it as a straight forward song about a dysfunctional relationship that just works on whatever level the people involved need it to.
Sub wrote:I always took it as a straight forward song about a dysfunctional relationship that just works on whatever level the people involved need it to.
Exactly. Appreciate it for the great fuckin' song that it is. No need to infer all that other stuff.
Sub wrote:I always took it as a straight forward song about a dysfunctional relationship that just works on whatever level the people involved need it to.
Exactly. Appreciate it for the great fuckin' song that it is. No need to infer all that other stuff.
What makes this song any different from all the others that get anal-probed?
“Excited people get on daddy’s nerves.” - M. Cooley
Sub wrote:I always took it as a straight forward song about a dysfunctional relationship that just works on whatever level the people involved need it to.
Exactly. Appreciate it for the great fuckin' song that it is. No need to infer all that other stuff.
What makes this song any different from all the others that get anal-probed?
To me, it's just a straight-forward account of a guy's shitty weekend and the whole "it's a shame to know most folks don't ever know love like this" is pure sarcasm. Not really wedding-appropriate, unless it's you mean it to be ironic...
Smitty wrote:To me, it's just a straight-forward account of a guy's shitty weekend and the whole "it's a shame to know most folks don't ever know love like this" is pure sarcasm. Not really wedding-appropriate, unless it's you mean it to be ironic...
I've never taken that to be sarcasm at all. I think this guy loves his woman, pure and simple and I think, given their lot in life, it's pretty good overall.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Smitty wrote:To me, it's just a straight-forward account of a guy's shitty weekend and the whole "it's a shame to know most folks don't ever know love like this" is pure sarcasm. Not really wedding-appropriate, unless it's you mean it to be ironic...
I've never taken that to be sarcasm at all. I think this guy loves his woman, pure and simple and I think, given their lot in life, it's pretty good overall.
I'm not disputing that he loves her, but given the events described in the song, it's gotta be sarcastic; who would wish a relationship like that on other people?
Smitty wrote:To me, it's just a straight-forward account of a guy's shitty weekend and the whole "it's a shame to know most folks don't ever know love like this" is pure sarcasm. Not really wedding-appropriate, unless it's you mean it to be ironic...
I've never taken that to be sarcasm at all. I think this guy loves his woman, pure and simple and I think, given their lot in life, it's pretty good overall.
I'm not disputing that he loves her, but given the events described in the song, it's gotta be sarcastic; who would wish a relationship like that on other people?
To each is own. I always felt like the relationship illustrated was filled with intense love. Big blowout arguments and utter crap but at the end of the day...love prevails.
Smitty wrote:To me, it's just a straight-forward account of a guy's shitty weekend and the whole "it's a shame to know most folks don't ever know love like this" is pure sarcasm. Not really wedding-appropriate, unless it's you mean it to be ironic...
I've never taken that to be sarcasm at all. I think this guy loves his woman, pure and simple and I think, given their lot in life, it's pretty good overall.
I'm not disputing that he loves her, but given the events described in the song, it's gotta be sarcastic; who would wish a relationship like that on other people?
Because I think HE thinks it's the best life can offer. I think, based on what we're told, to view it any other way is to view it through our own filters. I have an Aunt and Uncle who speak in bicker. She calls him stupid, he tells her not to be such a bitch, and sometimes says it while pinching her ass and kissing her cheek. Every single conversation is an argument, every day antother fight, but I'll tell you my Uncle lights up every time he talks about his wife. EVERY time. The affection between them is genuine and real and they've been married 50 years, despite the yelling, despite the name calling. The funny thing is I've heard my uncle say that he wishes every man could be as happy with a woman as he is with his wife. Through my life filter, it's an awful relationship, through their's it's perfect.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Because I think HE thinks it's the best life can offer. I think, based on what we're told, to view it any other way is to view it through our own filters. I have an Aunt and Uncle who speak in bicker. She calls him stupid, he tells her not to be such a bitch, and sometimes says it while pinching her ass and kissing her cheek. Every single conversation is an argument, every day antother fight, but I'll tell you my Uncle lights up every time he talks about his wife. EVERY time. The affection between them is genuine and real and they've been married 50 years, despite the yelling, despite the name calling. The funny thing is I've heard my uncle say that he wishes every man could be as happy with a woman as he is with his wife. Through my life filter, it's an awful relationship, through their's it's perfect.
Come Monday morning, I'll be sore to a fare-thee-well. Cussin' God and America, wishing them both just to send me off to hell. But the boss man don't want no excuses when it comes time to get on the clock. And without that paycheck, I'd lose the rest of what sweet love I got
That doesn't sound like someone who views their relationship as perfect to me - it seems like while he does love her (I can't wait to see you.. make love till dawn), between his mother-in-law and the fighting, it doesn't turn out near what he had planned, and by Monday he's wishing he could just get it over with and go to hell - but he has to work, because apparently the only way he'll keep a hold of her is with his income - I just don't see how it could be anything other than sarcastic remark
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Because I think HE thinks it's the best life can offer. I think, based on what we're told, to view it any other way is to view it through our own filters. I have an Aunt and Uncle who speak in bicker. She calls him stupid, he tells her not to be such a bitch, and sometimes says it while pinching her ass and kissing her cheek. Every single conversation is an argument, every day antother fight, but I'll tell you my Uncle lights up every time he talks about his wife. EVERY time. The affection between them is genuine and real and they've been married 50 years, despite the yelling, despite the name calling. The funny thing is I've heard my uncle say that he wishes every man could be as happy with a woman as he is with his wife. Through my life filter, it's an awful relationship, through their's it's perfect.
Come Monday morning, I'll be sore to a fare-thee-well. Cussin' God and America, wishing them both just to send me off to hell. But the boss man don't want no excuses when it comes time to get on the clock. And without that paycheck, I'd lose the rest of what sweet love I got
That doesn't sound like someone who views their relationship as perfect to me - it seems like while he does love her (I can't wait to see you.. make love till dawn), between his mother-in-law and the fighting, it doesn't turn out near what he had planned, and by Monday he's wishing he could just get it over with and go to hell - but he has to work, because apparently the only way he'll keep a hold of her is with his income - I just don't see how it could be anything other than sarcastic remark
Yeah but he's not cussing about the weekend, he's cussing going back to work on Monday. At least that's how I see it.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Because I think HE thinks it's the best life can offer. I think, based on what we're told, to view it any other way is to view it through our own filters. I have an Aunt and Uncle who speak in bicker. She calls him stupid, he tells her not to be such a bitch, and sometimes says it while pinching her ass and kissing her cheek. Every single conversation is an argument, every day antother fight, but I'll tell you my Uncle lights up every time he talks about his wife. EVERY time. The affection between them is genuine and real and they've been married 50 years, despite the yelling, despite the name calling. The funny thing is I've heard my uncle say that he wishes every man could be as happy with a woman as he is with his wife. Through my life filter, it's an awful relationship, through their's it's perfect.
Come Monday morning, I'll be sore to a fare-thee-well. Cussin' God and America, wishing them both just to send me off to hell. But the boss man don't want no excuses when it comes time to get on the clock. And without that paycheck, I'd lose the rest of what sweet love I got
That doesn't sound like someone who views their relationship as perfect to me - it seems like while he does love her (I can't wait to see you.. make love till dawn), between his mother-in-law and the fighting, it doesn't turn out near what he had planned, and by Monday he's wishing he could just get it over with and go to hell - but he has to work, because apparently the only way he'll keep a hold of her is with his income - I just don't see how it could be anything other than sarcastic remark
Yeah but he's not cussing about the weekend, he's cussing going back to work on Monday. At that's how I see it.
That may be true, but from the Come Monday morning, I'll be sore to a fare-thee-well line I take it the reason he's cussing about going back to work is 1) he's had a terrible weekend and doesn't really feel like being there and 2) he feels he HAS to work to even receive the little bit of "loving" he gets - and remember the previous weekend wasn't an isolated incident, cuz on the way home he admits he knows it's going to go bad and end up in a fight "just like we always do" - so I'm thinking he's probably wondering if it's even worth it.
Sub wrote:I always took it as a straight forward song about a dysfunctional relationship that just works on whatever level the people involved need it to.
Me too. I've never read that deep into the song. It is what it is and for all characters involved, their life is ok.
I've always found this song to be twisted. I was almost shocked that people saw this as a song about a happy couple in a somewhat healthy relationship, and a celebration of that life.
I've heard it as a dude who's completely fucking trapped. His job sucks, and his home life is a fucking mess. He has this image in his head of great times with his woman, but it's a fucking living hell. His bitch mother in law shows up, they all fight, his woman assaults him, and he just takes it because what the fuck else is he going to do?
"Last night I slept with my boots on again, one cut on my forehead and one on my chin on the hard old floor with nothing to cover up with" She doesn't even let him into the damn bed. He's passed out on the floor, drunk, bloody and freezing.
"It's a shame to know most folks don't ever know love like this" Off-Handed Sarcasm 101. I imagine Cooley saying this with a smart ass tone.
The guy in the song is miserable, but that's all he knows. It gives him a little peace of mind, but he's laying out the shitty details. He does not feel good about it, but he's content due to a perceived lack of options.
I suppose it's a testament to the band that one person have such a completely different interpretation of a song than someone else.
And while I accept that i could be painting things too darkly, "tongue in cheek" doesn't resonate for me at all. That strips all the subtlety and nuance (and levels!) from the song, which doesn't leave all that much. At that point u might as well add the dog, the pick up truck and play it backwards
