More stupid holiday songs
I'm not just using holiday as a euphemism here. This one is more of a New Year's song. Here are the lines that always bothered me:
She said she'd married her an architect,
Who kept her warm and safe and dry,
She would have liked to say she loved the man,
But she didn't like to lie.
First of all, I understand why Fogelberg wants to throw in that extra syllable in the first line, but couldn't he have found a more elegant way of doing it? Did she really say "I married me an architect?" Or is Fogelberg, who seems capable of standard usage, the kind of guy who would say,"Dag nabbit, she up 'n' married her an architect." [Lest anyone is tempted to jump in and remind me that the speaker of these lines is not technically Fogelberg, save your breath. I simply refuse to treat this as a poem.]
The other thing that has always bothered me about these lines is Fogelberg's assertion that "she would have liked to say she loved the man, but she didn't like to lie." Presumably the woman didn't actually come out and say anything of the sort, but it's something that Fogelberg has inferred from her words, or maybe it's something he has gleaned from her tone. But I don't believe it. His assertion strikes me as preening and self-aggrandizing and I'm not inclined to take it on trust. I think she really does love the architect, and Fogelberg has utterly misinterpreted her willingness to have a couple of beers with an old friend as a sign that she's still carrying a torch for him. She understands that that's how he has taken her friendliness, but she doesn't have the heart to puncture his illusions. He's obviously in a fragile state -- I mean, what else accounts for the stilted chivalry of his compliment, "The years have been a friend to you"? -- and it occurs to her toward the end of the conversation that he might actually be living in his car.
The song could use a Taxi-like moment where it dawns on him that he's being pitied, but Fogelberg walks away feeling beautifully melancholic, once again taking entirely the wrong message from external phenomena. When the snow turns into rain at the end of the song, Fogelberg offers it as a symbol of disillusionment and the end of innocence. What it really means is that he's all wet.
She said she'd married her an architect,
Who kept her warm and safe and dry,
She would have liked to say she loved the man,
But she didn't like to lie.
First of all, I understand why Fogelberg wants to throw in that extra syllable in the first line, but couldn't he have found a more elegant way of doing it? Did she really say "I married me an architect?" Or is Fogelberg, who seems capable of standard usage, the kind of guy who would say,"Dag nabbit, she up 'n' married her an architect." [Lest anyone is tempted to jump in and remind me that the speaker of these lines is not technically Fogelberg, save your breath. I simply refuse to treat this as a poem.]
The other thing that has always bothered me about these lines is Fogelberg's assertion that "she would have liked to say she loved the man, but she didn't like to lie." Presumably the woman didn't actually come out and say anything of the sort, but it's something that Fogelberg has inferred from her words, or maybe it's something he has gleaned from her tone. But I don't believe it. His assertion strikes me as preening and self-aggrandizing and I'm not inclined to take it on trust. I think she really does love the architect, and Fogelberg has utterly misinterpreted her willingness to have a couple of beers with an old friend as a sign that she's still carrying a torch for him. She understands that that's how he has taken her friendliness, but she doesn't have the heart to puncture his illusions. He's obviously in a fragile state -- I mean, what else accounts for the stilted chivalry of his compliment, "The years have been a friend to you"? -- and it occurs to her toward the end of the conversation that he might actually be living in his car.
The song could use a Taxi-like moment where it dawns on him that he's being pitied, but Fogelberg walks away feeling beautifully melancholic, once again taking entirely the wrong message from external phenomena. When the snow turns into rain at the end of the song, Fogelberg offers it as a symbol of disillusionment and the end of innocence. What it really means is that he's all wet.
posted by Kate Marie | 11:27 PM | Permalink
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3 comments
3 Comments:
Kate, you have done it. Now I have to write me a rebuttal to your tirade against this work. I love the song. It is story telling in the Harry Chapin mold. And since he wrote the song, he gets to invent the characters. In this story she doesn't really love the architect. Think Lyin Eyes "late at night a big old house gets lonely. I guess every form of refuge has its price".
He runs into his old girlfriend. It didn't work for whatever reason. He's still single and she's stuck in a marriage of convenience. I like the fact that these people can enjoy a drink together, think of old times, and walk away. I would be down on the song if they had an affair in the car. And maybe the snow turning into rain is a Youfumizzum for him crying, realizing that they both might have had a better life if the relationship had worked out.
So much for Fogelberg 101. What's next James Tayor honor seminar, in which we discuss Mud Slide Slim's true motivation and the origin of the blue horizon?
LOL. What can I say, Stewdog? It was late. I was a bit punchy.
As for Lyin' Eyes, just remember that that song has an omniscient "narrator"; the Fogelberg song doesn't. Besides, as you said before, you only hurt the ones you love, and I love Dan Fogelberg (sort of).
For me, Fogelberg doesn't stand the test of time with most of his songs, but I consider that one an exception.
Now, let us deconstruct Jackson Browne, starting with The Pretender. Just why did he get him a house in the shade of the freeway, as he is caught between the longing for love and the struggle for the legal tender? I have to think me some on this.
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