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It seems that a man’s white shirt is a key garment in a woman’s wardrobe: you pair it with jeans, sleeves slightly rolled up, a bracelet, and you’re all set for the day. Pair it with black pants, collar neatly closed with two or three loops of noisy necklaces on top and leave it out, perhaps with the last buttons at the bottom open, and you’re ready to go out in the evening.
I had been looking for a shirt like this for a while and finally found one that really suits me.
I’ve worn it recently: open just enough to highlight the contrast between the white fabric and the slightly tanned skin this time of year at the neckline, fitting just right where needed, never tucked into the pants. I feel really good in it.
And when I wear it and start buttoning it from the bottom, it just tightens a bit at the chest - at the heart's height - I happen to think of this song: https://youtu.be/RMTKb-pgxGI
A song about someone who leaves.
If I leave you it doesn’t mean I love you any less.
And I can’t help but feel the sweetness in the heart of this man as he sings these words with a steady and seemingly serene voice.
You know I’m tied to you
like the buttons on your blouse
Keep me in your heart for a while
He asks to be remembered but doesn’t want his memory to be a burden for her. He wants life to go on but for her to sometimes—once again—smile thinking of him.
And the image of being attached to her like the buttons on her blouse represents all this. Not a grip that holds her, but something that moves with her breath. Something she will take off but that made her feel good, accompanying her throughout her day. And that she can wear again later.
The Wind. Year 2003. Listen to this whole album. It’s Warren Zevon’s last. You certainly won’t find the sarcasm of some of his songs but neither anything pathetic. Read elsewhere about the story of this work, the names of those - the friends - he called to play and do the choruses, his irony when asked if he would manage to finish it in time.
But listen to it. It’s a beautiful album. It has moments of intimate sweetness but not only those. It is beautiful and simple. Like wearing a man’s white shirt.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
03 Knockin' on Heaven's Door (04:05)
Mama take this badge off of me, I can't use it anymore
It's getting dark, too dark to see
And I feel I'm knockin on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Mama put my guns in the ground, I can't shoot them anymore
A long black cloud is coming down
And I feel I'm knockin' on heaven's door, hey
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Open up, open up, open up, open up, open up
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
(open up for me)
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
Knock, knock, knockin' on heaven's door
It's gettin' dark, to dark to see
(open up, open up, open up, open up...for me)
04 Numb as a Statue (04:08)
I'm numb as a statue
I may have beg, borrow or steal
Some feelings from you
So I can have some feelings too
I'm pale as a ghost
You know what I love about you
That's what I need the most
I'm gonna beg, borrow or steal
So I can have some feelings too
I don't care if it's superficial
You don't have to dig down deep
Just bring enough for the ritual
Get here before I fall asleep
Ain't nothing special
When the present meets the past
I've always taken care of buisness
I've paid my first and last
I'm pale as a ghost
You know what I love about you
That's what I need the most
I'm gonna beg, borrow or steal
So I can have some feelings too
05 She's Too Good for Me (03:12)
I could hold my head up
I could say that I left first
Or I can hang my head and cry
Tell me which is worse
If you go and ask her why
She might say she's not sure
Trust me when I tell you why,
I'm not good enough for her
I want her to be happy
I want her to be free
I want her to be everything
She couldn't be with me
I'd wait here for a thousand years,
If she'd come back to me
I have every thing she wants,
And nothing that she needs
I want her to be happy
I want her to be free
I want her to be everything
She couldn't be with me
I could hold my head up
I could say that I left first
Or I can hang my head and cry
Tell me which is worse
If you go and ask her why
She might say she's not sure
Trust me when I tell you why,
I'm not good enough for her
06 Prison Grove (04:51)
An icy wind burns and scars
Rushes in like a fallen star
Through the narrow space
Between these bars
Looking down on Prison Grove
Dug in, hunkered down
Hours race without a sound
Gonna carry me to where I'm bound
Looking down on Prison Grove
Iron will hard as rock
Hold my up for the fateful knock
When they walk me down in a mortal lock
Out on Prison Grove
Shine on all these broken lives
Shine on
Shine the light on me
Knick Knack Paddy Wack
They say you'll hear your own bones crack
When they bend you back to bible black
Then you'll find your love
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