Meaning Of Songs

[dan4vols]

yes it was waylen jennings

 

[9296potsguy]

Originally posted by volinbham@Apr 22, 2005 10:02 PM
Anyone know the meaning behind the 80's song "Turning Japanese"? (Vapors).

Hint: it's been mentioned already in this thread.

I always thought they should play Turning Japanese and Cindi Lauper's "She Bop" back to back, so that way there would be something for both audiences. Women don't "turn Japanese" :lol:

 

[orangetd88]

Originally posted by milohimself@Apr 22, 2005 9:11 PM
Maybe. The people did what needed to be done, though.

Either way, we got left with some great music. McLain, CCR, later-period Beatles, just all around good stuff.

For youngin', you sure do have good taste. :lol:

 

[TigersTalons]

OK what about the "oatmeal cookie underneth your pionty boot"song by southern culture on the skids?!

 

[allvolinky]

Originally posted by LadyinOrange@Apr 22, 2005 9:51 PM
:gone:

I can just imagine your face after reading that post. I spit my coke out all over the place.

 

[9296potsguy]

Originally posted by TigersTalons@Apr 23, 2005 7:13 PM
OK what about the "oatmeal cookie underneth your pionty boot"song by southern culture on the skids?!

I posted earlier about SCOTS, man I got to find that CD.

 

[U-T]

Today's pop song lyrics are so.....odd....I try to just sing without really trying to understand the meanings

 

[JohnsonCityVol]

Hotel California is rumored to be about the Charles Manson Cult, but I don't buy that. It sounds more about the high society drug house parties that went on frequently in the 70's.

And if you like Stairway, take my advice and DON'T ever play the song backwards because you'll never be able to listen to it again.

 

[duckman398686]

Originally posted by JohnsonCityVol@Apr 24, 2005 11:15 PM
Hotel California is rumored to be about the Charles Manson Cult, but I don't buy that. It sounds more about the high society drug house parties that went on frequently in the 70's.

And if you like Stairway, take my advice and DON'T ever play the song backwards because you'll never be able to listen to it again.

gonna explain that one? i play that song all the time on guitar

 

[milohimself]

Which part? That song has like 7 guitars used in it.

 

[duckman398686]

first part

 

[JohnsonCityVol]

I read it a long time ago. I'll have to look it up, it's only slightly credible.

 

[JohnsonCityVol]

Lyrics for: Hotel California

On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
There she stood in the doorway
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself,
This could be Heaven or this could be Hell
Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way
There were voices down the corridor,
I thought I heard them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year, you can find it here

Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes bends
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys, that she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.
Some dance to remember, some dance to forget

So I called up the Captain,
Please bring me my wine
He said, "We haven't had that spirit here since nineteen sixty nine"
And still those voices are calling from far away,
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
They livin' it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise, bring your alibis

Mirrors on the ceiling,
The pink champagne on ice
And she said "We are all just prisoners here, of our own device"
And in the master's chambers,
They gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely knives,
But they just can't kill the beast

Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back
To the place I was before
"Relax," said the night man,
We are programmed to receive.
You can checkout any time you like,
but you can never leave!


I know I mentioned it about Stairway, and the same goes for this song also. DO NOT PLAY IT BACKWARDS. It will seriously mess with your head.

Here's what the guys in the band have to say about it:

Don Henley: We were all middle-class kids from the Midwest. Hotel California was our interpretation of the high life in Los Angeles. Actually, I was a little disappointed with how the record was taken, because I meant it in a much broader sense than a commentary about California. I was looking at American culture, and when I called that one song "Hotel California", I was simply using California as a microcosm for the rest of America and for the self-indulgence of our entire culture. It was, to a certain extent, about California, about the excesses out here. But in many instances, as California goes, so goes the nation. Things simply happen out here or in New York first; whether it's with drugs or fashion or artistic movements or economic trends; and then work their way toward the middle of America. And that's what I was trying to get at. We were also enamored with hotels. Hotels were a big part of our lives. The Beverly Hills Hotel had become something of a focal point, literally and symbolically. I've always been interested in architecture and the language of architecture, and, at that time, I was particularly keen on the mission style of early California. I thought there was a certain mystery and romance about it. Then, there are all the great movies and plays in which hotels figure prominently, not only as a structure, but as a dramatic device. Films such as Grand Hotel, The Night Porter, and even Psycho motels count too. There are plays like Neil Simon's Plaza Suite and California Suite, which Glenn and I went to see while writing the song. We saw it as homework or research. We were looking for things that would stimulate us and give us ideas. Sometimes it was just driving around. We would still take trips out to the desert. At one point, Glenn and I rented a little red house up in Idlewild, way up in the San Bernardino Mountains. We'd drive out there sometimes just to clear our heads, sleep on the floor in sleeping bags. We didn't have any furniture. We were just on the quest.


Glenn Frey: The song began as a demo tape, an instrumental by Don Felder. He'd been submitting tapes and song ideas to us since he'd joined the band, always instrumentals, since he didn't sing. But this particular demo, unlike many of the others, had room for singing. It immediately got our attention. The first working title, the name we gave it, was "Mexican Reggae." For us, "Hotel California" was definitely thinking and writing outside the box. We had never written any song like it before. Similar to "Desperado," we did not start out to make any sort of concept or theme album. But when we wrote "Life In The Fast Lane" and started working on "Hotel California" and "New Kid In Town" with J.D., we knew we were heading down a long and twisted corridor and just stayed with it. Songs from the dark side—the Eagles take a look at the seamy underbelly of L.A., the flip side of fame and failure, love and money. "They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can't kill the beast" was a little Post-It back to Steely Dan. Apparently, Walter Becker's girlfriend loved the Eagles, and she played them all the time. I think it drove him nuts. So, the story goes that they were having a fight one day, and that was the genesis of the line, "turn up the Eagles, the neighbors are listening" in "Everything You Did," from Steely Dan's The Royal Scam album. During the writing of "Hotel California," we decided to volley. We just wanted to allude to Steely Dan rather than mentioning them outright, so "Dan" got changed to "knives," which is still, you know, a penile metaphor. Stabbing, thrusting, etc. Almost everybody in my business can write music, play guitar, play piano, create chord progressions, etc., but it's only when you add lyrics and melody and voices to these things that they take on an identity and become something beyond the sum of the individual parts. I remember that Henley and I were listening to the "Hotel California" demo tape together on an airplane, and we were talking about what we would write and how we wanted to be more cinematic. We wanted this song to open like an episode of The Twilight Zone, just one shot after another. I remember De Niro in The Last Tycoon. He’s got this scene, and he's talking to some other people in his office. He speaks to them: "The door opens . . . the camera is on a person's feet . . . he walks across the room . . . we pan up to the table . . . he picks up a pack of matches that says "The Such-And-Such Club" on it . . . strikes a match and lights a cigarette . . . puts it out . . . goes over to the window . . . opens the shade . . . looks out . . . the moon is there . . . what does it mean? Nothing. It's just the movies." "Hotel California" is like that. We take this guy and make him like a character in The Magus, where every time he walks through a door there's a new version of reality. We wanted to write a song just like it was a movie. This guy is driving across the desert. He's tired. He's smokin'. Comes up over a hill, sees some lights, pulls in. First thing he sees is a really strange guy at the front door, welcoming him: "Come on in." Walks in, and then it becomes Fellini-esque; strange women, effeminate men, shadowy corridors, disembodied voices, debauchery, illusion. . . . Weirdness. So we thought, "Let's really take some chances. Let's try to write in a way that we've never written before." Steely Dan inspired us because of their lyrical bravery and willingness to go "out there." So, for us, "Hotel California" was about thinking and writing outside the box.

For anybody that ever went to college and ended up at 4am talking with their friends over beers, shots and other inebriating devices, you probably know that there's 3 main conspiracy theories about what the song is REALLY about (listed in the most believable order):

1. Drugs and the fast lifestyle (as previously hinted to by the authors)
2. A near-death experience and/or purgatory
3. The Charles Manson cult
4. A satanic cult living in an abandoned Spanish Mission

Another possible explanation of the song is that it's lyrics are abstract, and that the only thing actually written in the song that is relative to reality is the actual "Hotel California" located in Baja California, Mexico.

Below are some quotes I ripped off of a site dedicated to figuring out what the song is about. To use my college reference earlier, Some of this will sound very familiar to arguments you may have heard then.......

alrighty, i know everyone has different opinions as to where the song is referring to, but the truth is "hotel california" is about Baja California. The southern tip of mexico has the hotel located in Todos Santos, it is not more than an hour from popular vacation spot Cabo San Lucas. also, The Eagles have a shop across the street entitled "Tequila Sunrise", they sell their authorized clothing and assc. there. well hope that clears stuff up.
- Laura, Ellicott City, MD

Made a recent trip to the Hotel.. very remote.. grew up listening to the group..not much question now that Henley was at the hotel in Todos Santos.. the Mission of Santa Rosa de Todos Santos is right down the street... not much else out there between La Paz and Los Cabo. Dark desert.. cool wind.. desert right up to the Pacific at that village.. not many lights at night either...and besides not a place to travel at night.....the hotel has a history as does this peer group... think that this song is a good symbolic allusion of the interwoven threads of drug, sex and rock and roll! (The theme song of the times with California being the mecca so to speak&#33 Song also provocative in portrail of the continual tension of 'establishment' vs. 'socially conscious, self expressing'
- Bonnie, Puyallup, WA

The Mercedes Bends are the effects of Cocaine or Heroine. "in the distance, i saw a shimmering light" "My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim, I had to stop for the night" "this could be heaven or this could be helL". This suggests that he crashed on the motorway and the shimmering light was because he had died - heaven or hell is self explanatory. The Hotel California was a limbo after you have died. "you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave"
- Andy, London, England

Although it is well known that Hotel California is actually a metaphor, there are several strange internet theories and urban legends about the "real" Hotel California. Some include suggestions that it was an old church taken over by devil worshippers, a psychiatric hospital, an inn run by cannibals or Aleister Crowley's mansion in Scotland. Adam - Dewsbury, England

I have a lot of time on my hands, so I went and searched "Hotel California" on the internet. Here's what I came up with: There is this old Catholic Spanish mission somewhere in California (not sure where), that was abondoned in 1969. It was taken over by a group of devil worshipers and dubbed the "Hotel California" (hense the line "we havn't had that spirit here since 1969"). Now tells the Twilight Zone-like tale about a man who gets tricked by a beautiful looking member of this cult. He doesn't know anything about this place. He just figures it's a hotel, I need sleep, the two add up, so what the heck. The woman who leads him to his room could be someone to,you know, or someone that could do bad to him (this could be heaven or this could be hell). Guess which one. So everything just goes downhill from there.
- Joel, Royal Palm Beach, FL

This song is about Charles Manson, the Manson member and the Tate-LiBianca murders in Bel Air in 1969. The hotel on the cover is the Beverly Hills Hotel which is located right next door to Hell, Bel Air, where the murders took place. The Hotel itself, in the song Hotel California is not a real one. The Claifornia in Hotel California is the street the Church of Satan is located on in San Fransico. Read the lyrics very carefully and you will see the references to Manson, the year, being programmed, stabbing, lighting candles, as they had no electricity at Barkers ranch, and how you could check into the family but you could never leave. Dark desert highway up to Barkers Ranch. The song speaks of the last thing I remember I was running for the door, after the the stabbing, finding a paase back to the place I was before, getting back to Spnahn ranch. Warm smell of colitas, Sharon's body after the stabbing. Her mind is tiffany twisted, Tiffany's is the best stuff, and Susan Atkins wasm in Charlies mind the and most twisted. She's got Mercedes 'Bends'. The bends is not a misprint. They are referring to a curvy female body and not a car. Susan Atkins was a shapely women in 1969. Susan also danced at Anton Lavey Church of Satan on California Street in San Fransico. There is also a hidden backwards message within the song talking about Satan. Google search the title for more information. And now you know!
- don, toronto, Canada

Alrite some of you are way wrong and some of you are right. The song is about drug addiction. I have seen noone mention another thing, the spoon. sponn plus candle equals can anyone guess? HEROIN!!! You use a spoon to hold it and a candle to melt it. Which brings me to my next point, whoever said it was heroin was correct. stabbing it with their steely knives is exactly that. And Hotel California was in LA, and was exactly everything they say, a brothel, drug place, and heaven or hell. We all have our own. And those of you who have only heard the song and think research on the internet will give the answer are way way wrong. Remember people only The Eagles can say what this song is about. But everyone has found different opinions.
- Oso, LA, CA

Hotel California is the best song ever, IMHO. In order to understand it we should understand and put the song into the context of what was going on with the band at those days: Money (lots of&#33, drugs (?&#33, sex, and overall sucess to a level that was well beyond their own understanding and control. Hotel California is thus one nice and well devised interpretation for what is going on with the band at that time. Simple like this.
- Claudiano, Sao Jose Campos, Brazil

This song is about drugs,plain and simple.The part where it says "you can stab them with your steely knfe but you just cant kill the beast". That means you can shoot your self up with drugs but the beast of temptation will never die. This is a very powerful song of someone who was a herion addict. It is so clear that it is about drugs.
- debbie, winthrop, MA

The very poignant line of "Her mind is Tiffany twisted, she got the Mercedes Bends" is the best line ever written. It is a play on words that clearly means Tiffany jewelry and fancy cars are what this woman thinks is important. Enjoy the song for the brilliant masterpiece that it is both lyrically and musically and stop over-analyzing the hell out of it!
- Shea, Atlanta, GA

I was about 10 (almost 20 years ago), when I first heard interpretations regarding the underlying meanings of "Hotel California". What I heard came from Christian conservatives that supported movements to censor and ban certain music for their perverted undertones, brain-washing effects and promotion of sinful behaviour. Although I was in my "I know it all already" age, I was still stirred by their message - especially when they played this song backwards. I cannot remember exactly what I heard, but there were definitely some satanic references that were in line with Joel's comments. I know this is a great song, but you cannot deny that the lyrics are a little spooky.
- Gerald, Melbourne, Australia


The Rocky Horror Show was out in '75, this was written in '76. I never knew the dates before but I just checked now and whenever I've heard this song it has always reminded me of the afore mentioned film. If you've seen it you'll realize if you haven't seen it, then I seriously recomment hiring it and then listening to the song again and may I just say, 'Stab it with our steely knives' is exactly what the Master wants them to do in Rocky Horror. Just a thought but I guessed these two were too closely related to be over-looked.
- Matthew, Nr London, England

"Colitas," in the line "Warm smell of colitas," is often interpreted as a flower or a sexual reference. It is a Spanish word translated to Henley by The Eagles Mexican-American road manager meaning "Little Buds," and is a reference to marijuana. - Scott, Charlotte, NC

'Colitas' is the plural of 'colita' which is the diminutive of 'cola' which is a word used by people in the north of Mexico to refer to someone's behind. In center and south of Mexico some women use the same word to refer to their crotch.
- deropd, monterrey, Mexico

'colitas' means cigarette butts. simple as that.
- cosmosis, Orlando, FL

the hotel california was the name of the band's tour bus at the time the album was recorded.
- Rick, Montgomery, AL

I do think that Henley and Frey kind of blended a little of Milton's Paradise Lost with a little of their own idea. A lot of what is written in PL is very similar to this song. Refering to Satans daughter Sin as a seductress and Death as the beast. The voices down the corridor being referred to the other angels in the story that Satan took with him. Never being able to go back to Heaven. etc. If you have ever read Milton's Paradise Lost and then listen to the song. You can see alot of similarities. But reguardless it was a stroke of genius and I am sure Henley and the gang had a blast writing it.
- T, Omaha, NE

Isn't this song a tribute to Janis Joplin? I heard that somewhere, it may be an urban legend though.
- Peter, Orland Park, IL

i heard that the song is about a man joining a cult. try listening to the words with this in mind and see what i mean.
- will, mcallen , TX

My "Interpretive Texts" textbook in college (1997) said that this song was one long suicide note. And they went through and had every refernce a "afterlife" refernce.
- Chloe, Ann Arbor, MI

Lighting up a candle? Little hint there: it's not actually a candle.
- Daniel, Toronto, Canada
AND FINALLY...

When there's this much confusion, blame drugs. I reckon its a 6 and a half minute acid trip
- Louis, London, England

 

[WolfofLon]

Originally posted by LadyinOrange@Apr 22, 2005 9:47 PM
A Horse With No Name ( America) must have been written while the author was STONED.

LIO, I've actually promoted many America concerts, and have even played Horse With No Name onstage, with them, a few times.

I asked Dewey once what the song was about, and Gerry in fact joked that he must have been high at the time. Dewey laughed and said it just sounded good at the time he wrote it.

Here's a pic I have scanned of playing that song onstage.

 

[orangetd88]

Originally posted by JohnsonCityVol@Apr 24, 2005 11:15 PM
And if you like Stairway, take my advice and DON'T ever play the song backwards because you'll never be able to listen to it again.

Here's a site that has "broken" the code and gives supposed backwards lyrics

I have heard this more than once. It sounds similar to the lyrics, but it's mostly jibberish. Also, there is rumor that someone made this backwards and manipulated it a bit to sound more like his agenda. I want to say it was a religous activist in the late 70's, but I'm not sure.

 

[DrRosenRosen]

More trivia: What's the meaning of "I Will Survive"?

 

[JohnsonCityVol]

Originally posted by orangetd88+Apr 26, 2005 2:40 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (orangetd88 @ Apr 26, 2005 2:40 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-JohnsonCityVol@Apr 24, 2005 11:15 PM
And if you like Stairway, take my advice and DON&#39;T ever play the song backwards because you&#39;ll never be able to listen to it again.

Here&#39;s a site that has "broken" the code and gives supposed backwards lyrics

I have heard this more than once. It sounds similar to the lyrics, but it&#39;s mostly jibberish. Also, there is rumor that someone made this backwards and manipulated it a bit to sound more like his agenda. I want to say it was a religous activist in the late 70&#39;s, but I&#39;m not sure. [/quote]
OMG&#33; The Britney song is hysterical&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;&#33;

Lot&#39;s of good stuff on that site, but no Hotel California.

 

[orangetd88]

I haven&#39;t looked much at the other stuff on the site. I just saw the Stairway to Heaven link.

 

[orangetd88]

The Britney lyrics are hysterical, indeed.

I don&#39;t get the meaning of the Eminem lyrics. What&#39;s wrong with saying your name a bunch of times?

 

[JohnsonCityVol]

I like the Britney song "One more time" played backwards better than I do the standard way.

I&#39;m pissed that all those people asking questions about hotel California haven&#39;t even bothered to post anything back in the discussion. Last time I ever waste 20 minutes on a thread again.

 

[Freak]

Originally posted by JohnsonCityVol@May 3, 2005 12:31 AM
I like the Britney song "One more time" played backwards better than I do the standard way.

I&#39;m pissed that all those people asking questions about hotel California haven&#39;t even bothered to post anything back in the discussion. Last time I ever waste 20 minutes on a thread again.

You tell em JCVol. :lol: