Tombstone

There is a lot of ambiguity in this song. Then again, the subject is death, and most people are ambiguous on that topic.

It begins by the speaker saying she like tombstones because they endure. Then she says "If it stands or if it crumbles/ Only time will tell." So... does it endure or might it erode? Unless she means, by saying that a tombstone "weathers well" that it gains character as it ages.

She continues that she wants her name carved "deep" into the stone, to make sure that if and when the stone does erode, the name will remain. So she expects visitors. Yet, she does not wish to greet them: "You must let me sleep."

She does say that the guests must comport themselves: "There'll be no dancing on my gravestone." Usually, this expression means "to celebrate a death," usually of one's enemies. But she says this as if she means there might be genuinely happy dance parties at her grave-site, and doesn't want those, either.

Then comes a line which does not seem to directly relate to death: "I don't need to see the gates of famous men." But when would someone want to do that? We want to see the men, not their gates (aside from on the actual website "Driveways of the Rich and Famous"). We really only tour their mansions once they are... oh. Hmm.

"But I do try to see the kingdom every now and then." This line sounds like something a royal personage would say, if forced to leave the palace. Unless it means "The Kingdom" as in "of Heaven." But how does one "visit" Heaven? At church? At a graveyard?

Oh, she's about to tell us: "If you ask me where it is..." Yes? "It's on a humble map." Well, an earthly king would brook no such map of his kingdom, so this must mean she is referring to Heaven. Further, "to enter in the doorway, show your handicap." Yes, before one enters the Pearly Gates, one must be prepared to confess one's shortcomings and sins.

This song sounds like it comes from a person reconciled with her mortality, but not ready to actualize it. "Time is burning... it burns away," she muses. She doesn't say she wants to fan the flames and hasten its burning, just that she is aware that it is, in fact, doing so.

She'd like to be remembered, but if that's not to be-- oh, well. She doesn't care if she meets anyone famous in Heaven as much as she simply would like to go there and see it for herself. And she is prepared to wait her turn, then come clean as she steps up.

An almost logical approach to what, for most, in a highly emotional subject.

Next Song: My Favorite Plum

Thin Man

Who is the "Thin Man"?

In the novels and movies, he's a slick playboy who still dabbles in his former line, detective work, with his wife (their names are Nick & Nora; later those names were used for another cinematic couple). To Bob Dylan in "Ballad of the Thin Man," his name is Mr. Jones, and the imagery seems to indicate that he has stumbled into an orgy, possibly a homosexual one... which is in turn possibly a metaphor for the straight-laced average American trying to make sense of the sexual liberation of the 1960s.

Neither seem to be this Thin Man, however. My feeling is that this one is Death himself, or at least Mortality.

"He is not my friend, but he is with me," and yes, we are all mortal. In what sense, though, is he "with" our speaker? He is compared to a "shadow" connected to a "foot," as seen in Peter Pan. So, a constant companion.

She especially feels his presence in scary situations, like "step[ing] from the sidewalk" into traffic, or "walking down... darkened halls."

While death is inevitable, we cannot know the exact time of its arrival. Similarly, this Thin Man has "a date for" her, "to arrive at some point/ I don't know when it will be."

She feels her life threatened by oncoming cars or an unseen assailant lingering in corridors... that's understandable. But then, other times, "I can feel his eyes when I don't expect him." Which is more unnerving.

For instance, "In the back seat of the taxi down Vestry Street." This is a real street in Manhattan, not far from the Little West 12th mentioned in Vega's earlier song, "Language." A "vestry" is also part of a church, namely, the closet for the clergy's vestments (i.e., ritual garb). While a vestry is not where a funeral takes place, a church in general certainly is.

Now we realize something more sinister going on. The Thin Man isn't just "with" her... he wants her to be with him. "His arm is around my waist, and he pulls me to him," less seducing her than assaulting her. But also, yes, seducing her: "He whispers things into my ear that sound so sweet."

Such as? "He promises a peace I never knew." Oh, dear...

Feeling seduced by Death is pretty much contemplating suicide. Death has long been seen as "peaceful." Hamlet spoke at length of death being a relief from a life of turmoil and pain. Dylan Thomas calls it "that good night." Keats speaks of being "half in love with easeful Death."

Yet, the speaker resists: "I cannot give in. No, I must refuse him." Oh, good. She has come to her senses.

On the other hand... "Could I really be the one to resist that kiss so true?" As in, the "kiss of Death." She's still tempted, and wonders if she can hold out.

Hamlet spends many lines discoursing on how miserable life is, and that it would be so much easier to just be done with it all. Here, Vega doesn't do that... she just talks about how death would be peaceful, and how this is seductive.

As of this writing, Vega is very much alive. So even if the Thin Man is still "with" her, she's let him know that she's, well, just not that into him.


Next Song: No Cheap Thrill