..:S...P...I...D...E...R...B...I...T...E...S:..

Monday, September 08, 2003

"My shit's fucked up? i don't see how.
You see, the shit that used to work?
It don't work now..."

-Warren Zevon 1947-2003


He died Sunday and i didn't hear about it until this afternoon. i've been listening to him since Jr. High, got all of his albums except The Envoy (impossible to find) and Stand In The Fire (a concert record that isn't half as good as Learning To Flinch) his new album, The Wind, i haven't cracked open yet. not ready for it. Warren Zevon and Nick Cave and Tom Waits are my big three, my triple threat, my hat trick. it's all about the lyrics for me and these guys are the kings.

so this is bad news. other people can talk about his life and his legacy and i'll just quote some lines from his songs that i can remember. words from songs that my life has attached meaning too. maybe later i'll go through and say where and why. so here you go. it'll be just a taste, whatever i can remember without stopping my fingers. if they're wrong, that's too bad cause that's how i remember them. it's not like he's going to correct me:

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"Buddy's real talent was beating people up, his heart wasn't in it but the crowd ate it up, from pee-wees n' juniors 'n midgets 'n mites, he must have racked up about 600 fights..."
-The Hockey Song (a bootleg until...)

"She's so many women, but he can't find the one who was his friend. and he's hanging on to half her heart cause he can't have the restless part..."
-Hasten Down the Wind

"You said you were an actress, yes i believe you are..."
-The French Inhaler

"Blood on my hands and my hands in the till, down at the 7-11...we contemplate eternity under the vast indifference of heaven..."
-The Vast Indifference of Heaven

"I can saw a woman in two. Just don't look in the box when i'm through..."
-For My Next Trick I'll Need A Volunteer

"Well, he's dreaming about an intruder or two, and the promise of burglar blood. He's yearning to chew on a gangster tattoo and to hear the proverbial sickening thud. If you come calling he'll be mauling with intent to main...don't knock on my door if you don't know my Rottweiler's name..."
-Rottweiler Blues

"You didn't want her hanging around...so you drove off and left her there...because..."
-You're A Whole Different Person When You're Scared

"He took little Suzy to the Junior Prom, and he raped her and killed her when he took her home, excitable boy they all said..."
-Excitable Boy

"Patty Hearst. . .heard the burst. . .of Roland's thompson gun. . .and bought it."
-Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner

"They say love conquers all, you can't start it like a car, you can't stop it with a gun..."
-Searching For A Heart

"When the light came up i caught a glimpse of you, and your face looked like something death brought with him in a suitcase...another pretty face...looked so wasted..."
-The French Inhaler

"She don't have time for love, can't she see i'm burning up, burning down, burning out. She only sleeps on planes..."
-Suzie Lightning

"Better stay away from him, he'll rip your lungs out Jim!"
-Werewolves of London

"Well i met a girl in West Hollywood and i ain't namin' names, she really worked me over good she was just like Jesse James...these young girls won't let me be..."
-Poor Poor Pitiful Me

"Saturday night i'd like to raise a little harm, i'll sleep when i'm dead..."
-I'll Sleep When I'm Dead

"Don't the sun look angry through the trees, don't the trees look like crucified thieves."
-Desperados Under The Eaves

-"Took a little vacation! Spent it down Root Canal!"
-Ain't That Pretty At All

"When the sky is gray, the way it was today, i remember the times i was happy..."
-The Vast Indifference of Heaven

"With their fingers on their triggers, knee deep in gore..."
-Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner

"After ten long years they let him out of the hole, and he dug up her grave and built a cage with her bones, excitable boy they all said."
-Excitable Boy

"...twenty seconds left and the puck took a roll and suddenly Buddy had a shot on goal, the goalie committed and he picked his spot, twenty years of waiting went into that shot. Buddy jumped up and the Fin did too. and cold-cocked Buddy on his followthrough..."
-The Hockey Song

"We made mad love, shadow love, random love and abandoned love..."
-Accidentally Like A Martyr

"I went home with a waitress, the way i always do. how was i to know, she was with the Russians too..."
-Lawyers, Guns and Money

"Big gorilla at the L.A. zoo snatched the glasses right off my face, took the keys to my BMW and left me here to take his place..."
-Gorilla You're A Desperado

"Grandpa pissed his pants again, he don't give a damn, brother Billy's got both guns drawn, he ain't been right since Vietnam..."
-Play It All Night Long

"The night was cold and rainy down by the borderline, i was riding out to meet her, when a shot rang out behind. as i lay there in the darkness with a pistol by my side, Jeanie and her father rode off into the night."
-Jeanie Needs A Shooter

"I called up my friend Jerry on the phone, i said i'm afraid to be alone, cause i got some weird ideas in my head...about things to do in denver when you're dead..."
-Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead

"When they asked who was responsible for the death of Du Ku Kim, he said someone should have stopped the fight, told me it was him. they made hypocrite judgements after the fact but the name of the game is get hit and hit back."
-Boom Boom Mancini

"How are you going to make your way in the world when you weren't cut out for working and you just can't concentrate...and you always show up late..."
-The French Inhaler

"I'm going down to the Dew Drop Inn to see if i can drink enough, there ain't much to country livin', just sweat, piss, jeers and blood..."
-Play It All Night Long

"First words i ever heard were, 'Nobody move and nobody gets hurt...'"
-The Long Arm of the Law.

"I'm very well aquainted with the seven deadly sins, i keep a busy schedule trying to fit them in...i'm proud to be a glutton and i don't have time for sloth, i'm greedy and i'm angry and i don't care who i cross..."
-Mr. Bad Example

"I met a girl at the Rainbow Inn, she asked me if i'd beat her...i don't want to talk about it..."
-Poor Poor Pitiful Me

"I got a .38 Special up on the shelf...if i start acting stupid i'll shoot my self..."
-I'll Sleep When I'm Dead

"Still waking up in the morning with shaking hands, and i'm still trying to find a girl who understands me..."
-Desperados Under The Eaves

"...the big man crumbled but he felt alright, 'cause the last thing he saw was that flashing red light."
-The Hockey Song (finally released in 2001)

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thanks for the old shit. i'll miss the new shit, brother.

::: david - 8:30 PM [+] :::
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