|
|
I recently received feedback about Salt from a prominent US music industry professional who said “I don’t really understand these lyrics.” While I was initially slightly disturbed by the comments, I have come to view them as perhaps the highest praise!! I personally love lyrics which are ambiguous. Some of my favourite songs are those where I am left musing about meanings, or where I suspect my own emotional responses may not have been what the writer intended, but they are real and significant for me as a listener. I particularly love lyrics in which I discover deeper layers of meaning and emotion on repeated listenings. So, yes…the lyrics of Salt are ambiguous. At one level this is a genuine “wishing you well” song, where a relationship has moved on because of fundamental differences, one partner loving fresh water (perhaps literally that of billabongs, perhaps metaphorically) and one loving the salt water (perhaps the ocean, perhaps something else entirely). At another level Salt is a protest at the “all or nothing” thinking that sometimes accompanies our relationships: the notions that a person is either “in” or “out”, either idolised or vilified. The song reflects a personal sadness that sometimes the complexities of human beings can’t be embraced or tolerated by friends, lovers or ex-lovers. At another level “tasting salt” evokes the literal sensous flavours of salty food and salty skin. Please enjoy it for what it might mean for you! Have a listen.
|
hope you find your fresh-water haven wishing you well hope you find your fresh-water haven you're moving on hope you find your fresh-water haven © v. bennett 2003
|
|||||||||
|
© 2005 The Standard Deviations |
legals | info | |||||||||
