Long way to the top

[carrroline]

This deserves it's own thread, doesn't it?
Thanks Marti, for the video!
I wish I could hug this song. absolutely love it.

Lyrics go something like this:

long long way to the top
long way down if you fall
It’s a long way back
if you get lost

long way out to the air
It’s a long way to go
to lose your friends
It’s a long way to haul
all the traps you've trawled (or: traps you thrall?)
when you could just
stop and let go

and you say not now
maybe later
but not now
maybe later
but not now
you’re only in your way
maybe later
but not
you’re only in your way
maybe later
not now
you’re only in your way
maybe later
not now
you’re only in your way
maybe… wait

‘cause love is tough
when enough
is not enough
it’s not enough
not enough
not enough
not enough
not enough
not enough
not enough
it’s not enough
not enough
not enough
...

[blower'sdaughter]

I love it
and the introduction speech brings chills down my spine

[verenita]

it was hard for me to get into the song at first... now (close to the end), i´m just weeping

[Spamlet]

"...If You Wanna Rock N' Roll" -AC/DC

The inro banter was the most interesting part and hopefully it will lead him to go back to the song to make it more about what he was discussing. In this seemingly unfinished state, the lyrics are overall pretty "meh" to me. Musically, I also wish it wasn't SO disappointingly similar to "Cold Water" and/or "Sleep, Don't Weep".

The sole line that I do think is up to his standards of excellence is the only one you transcribed incorrectly, as I'm 99.99% certain it should read "...traps you've trawled".

Still, anything new that Damo releases can't help but feel like an early Birthday gift so I do thank you greatly for that!

[carrroline]

Well, I don't agree, I hope that's okay.

As you are a native speaker and I'm definitely not, you're probably right about the 'trawled' thing, i actually wrote that in an earlier version and I wasn't really sure about it anyway.

I really love the opening lines of this song. I agree that it's probably unfinished, but it just sounds so heartfelt, so honest. I adore this song and I can't wait to hear this with some extra strings (a cello perhaps?) and a second voice.

Oh, and it might sound good on the piano too.

[ElephantMan]

Originally Posted by Spamlet

"...If You Wanna Rock N' Roll" -AC/DC

The inro banter was the most interesting part and hopefully it will lead him to go back to the song to make it more about what he was discussing. In this seemingly unfinished state, the lyrics are overall pretty "meh" to me. Musically, I also wish it wasn't SO disappointingly similar to "Cold Water" and/or "Sleep, Don't Weep".

The sole line that I do think is up to his standards of excellence is the only one you transcribed incorrectly, as I'm 99.99% certain it should read "...traps you've trawled".

Still, anything new that Damo releases can't help but feel like an early Birthday gift so I do thank you greatly for that!

Yap same as Cold Water and SDW.." 'Never' too....and same patterns as professor , aimee, eskimo, lonely soldier in many places , and im sure a few ohers....but mostly Cold water

[carrroline]

The video has been removed from youtube.

[borneoman]

I know, got an official complain from Damo´s Mondo Management

[carrroline]

:/
Oooooops.
I get that he (or maybe just his management) wants to protect unreleased songs, though.

[glo32]

that's a bad bad choice, the worst thing that his management can do.

[carrroline]

They probably don't realise that it's because of recordings like this one that he still has people looking forward to a new album.

[borneoman]

I guess it´s his management´s decision, not his... but still

what´s even worst, I got also a complain from James Vincent McMorrow´s about an old live video from like 5 years ago, not even an unreleased, a random album track wtf not even Beyonce cares about that

[eva_arg]

I don't get why management do that. I know intelectual property and rights, etc, but it's not like you're profiting from the video, you're doing free publicity!

There are tons of videos on youtube that are full albums, from start to finish. Why would people buy an album -or listen to them via 'legal' sources such as spotify- when they can listen to it for free on youtube? Why don't they complain about that??

[glo32]

I understand that they want to protect "new songs". Remember when we didn't like 9 that much because we already knew all the songs and kept saying "the live version was better"?
But well, I guess it's all part of the music world these days... it would be great to go buy an album and find out songs you've never heard. But we, Damien Rice fans, wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the internet, file sharing, video sharing, bootlegs, new songs, unreleased songs, live songs...
so... they can keep them off youtube if they want but I hope they will not do more than that... otherwise they'll kill this community and this community doesn't deserve that, after all these years patiently waiting...

[carrroline]

Maybe it's because it's an unfinished song. He seems to be somewhat of a perfectionist.

He knows about this community, I think he's probably aware that we occasionally share unreleased songs here (and properly buy everything that gets released), and there's still a link to EF on his website, so I can't imagine that he's upset about that.

[verenita]

i haven´t been to whelans (saldy), but i remember when he was touring during summer 2012, trying new songs and doing after gigs, whenever he asked "no youtubes", people was very respectful... so, if marti or whoever posted something on youtube this time i presume it was because there was no advice from damien nor anyone else...

i pretty much agree with you have said, glo. but i don´t think this could happen. damien knows and loves emmett, so he would contact him directly himself.

[glo32]

no no, wait, I'm not saying Damien himself is doing this, and I'm not saying that it's done directly to the EF community. I'm talking about the entire Damien Rice community... and I'm sure this thing comes from Mondo Management, they're obviously changing the way they approach fans, I just thought that in 2014 we'd go towards a policy that allows sharing and being "social"... taking off youtube videos is the opposite direction... this is the way you don't make new fans and you lose old ones, for me.

[rachlanee]

I'm not sure what is going on with youtube, and I may not know what the hell I'm talking about, but I wonder if it has anything to do with youtube dropping videos from independent artists? Also, managers do a lot, without the consent of the artists, and deleting these videos makes me wonder if it is because there is something (new album) coming up. But this is just speculation, I really have no idea what the music business does.

[carrroline]

I don't know. But maybe we're reading too much into this. It's just this one song, right? There never were any complaints about other recordings. (As far as I know)

[verenita]

Originally Posted by glo32

no no, wait, I'm not saying Damien himself is doing this, and I'm not saying that it's done directly to the EF community. I'm talking about the entire Damien Rice community... and I'm sure this thing comes from Mondo Management, they're obviously changing the way they approach fans, I just thought that in 2014 we'd go towards a policy that allows sharing and being "social"... taking off youtube videos is the opposite direction... this is the way you don't make new fans and you lose old ones, for me.

got you

[SisterMidnight]

Originally Posted by Spamlet

"...If You Wanna Rock N' Roll" -AC/DC

This is what I always hear every time I see this title!

I would go further, I think this is an on the spot improvisation, not just an unfinished song. He's done it many times before with audience input, Happy Green Joe, Fear, etc. This time it seemed like he was trying to express something about his own personal experience of fame and it's costs, and then just started singing about it. It doesn't bother me if there are strains of Cold Water in there, life is a reprise of recurring themes. To me it seems organic when he does this.

The reason it's significant is he was trying to share something personal in an intimate way with the audience. I respect him for that, but it may be why he (or his management or whatever) doesn't want it out there, it was meant for that time and place and audience, not to be held up as an example of his song writing in development or posted for critique or analysis. Which we (this community) can't seem to help doing.

[carrroline]

I wasn't going to share this at first, but since it was probably my favourite moment at Winterthur, I just have to...

During the sound check he played part of this song... on the piano.

[InspirationDestination]

This is such a great song! I love the lyrics even if it sounds similar to others.