Figuring out lyrics to "My Old School"
Shawn McFarlane
question that's already been answered. I'm trying to figure out the
lyrics to "My Old School." Questions like, "What school are they singing
about?" or "What's 'the Wolverine'?" I got the lyrics from ftp.uwp.edu
(the otherwise anonymous University of Wisconsin-Parkside), and have
tried to figure out what I can (below). Any help would be appreciated.
@SONG: My Old School
From _Countdown_To_Ecstasy_, 1973
I remember the thirty five sweet goodbyes
When you put me on the Wolverine up in Annandale
(the name of a train? To a place called Annandale. There's an Annandale
in rural Wright County, Minnesota, Fairfax County, Va. (Langley and
Alexandria) and Butler County, Pa. Is there a college at any of those
places?)
It was still September when your daddy was quite surprised
To find you with the working girls in the county jail
(I've got that figured out ;) )
I was smoking with the boys upstairs
(in '73? You don't say.)
When I heard about the whole affair
I said "Oh no William and Mary won't do"
(Maybe the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va.)
Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
38 lines more (you've seen 57%)
Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
And I'm never going back to my old school
Oleander growing outside her door
(some kind of coniferous bushy plant)
Soon they're gonna be in bloom up in Annandale
(so Annandale is probably in Minn., Va. or Pa., as I mentioned, not
somewhere like California or Florida)
I can't stand her doing what she did before
Living like a gypsy queen in a fairy tale
Well I hear the whistle but I can't go
(another indicator that "the Wolverine" is a train)
I'm gonna take her down to Mexico
(Spring Break plans)
She said "Oh no Guadalajara won't do"
Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
And I'm never going back to my old school
[Solos]
California tumbles into the sea
(so are they in school in the Golden State?)
That'll be the day I go back to Annandale
15 lines more (you've seen 83%)
That'll be the day I go back to Annandale
(By exclusion, Annandale's not in California)
Tried to warn her about Chino and Buddy Gee
But I can't seem to get to you through the US mail
(I'm not surprised)
Well I hear the whistle but I can't go
I'm gonna take her down to Mexico
She said "Oh no Guadalajara won't do"
Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
And I'm never going back to my old school
[Solos to fade]
Hmmm. Suggestions? Corrections?
--
Shawn McFarlane s...@nwu.edu Northwestern Univ. Journalism, Economics and
Philosophy minor Sigma Phi Epsilon http://pubweb.acns.nwu.edu/~smcfarla
"Perhaps the most striking thing about Canada is that it is not part of
the United States." -- historian J. Bartlet Brebner
Earl W. Reed
>@SONG: My Old School
>From _Countdown_To_Ecstasy_, 1973
>
>I remember the thirty five sweet goodbyes
>When you put me on the Wolverine up in Annandale
>(the name of a train? To a place called Annandale. There's an Annandale
>in rural Wright County, Minnesota, Fairfax County, Va. (Langley and
>Alexandria) and Butler County, Pa. Is there a college at any of those
>places?)
From what I remember, Annandale-On-the-Hudson, or something like that, is
where Bard College is located (where Don and Walt met).
>It was still September when your daddy was quite surprised
>To find you with the working girls in the county jail
>(I've got that figured out ;) )
Actually, I think that they were in some sort of a drug bust at Bard, and
that's the line about her being in jail.
>
>I was smoking with the boys upstairs
>When I heard about the whole affair
>I said "Oh no William and Mary won't do"
>Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
>And I'm never going back to my old school
>
>Oleander growing outside her door
>(some kind of coniferous bushy plant)
>Soon they're gonna be in bloom up in Annandale
>(so Annandale is probably in Minn., Va. or Pa., as I mentioned, not
>somewhere like California or Florida)
Again north of NYC.
>I can't stand her doing what she did before
>Living like a gypsy queen in a fairy tale
>
>Well I hear the whistle but I can't go
>(another indicator that "the Wolverine" is a train)
>I'm gonna take her down to Mexico
>(Spring Break plans)
>She said "Oh no Guadalajara won't do"
>Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
>And I'm never going back to my old school
>
Well, I think that they want to get the hell out of the area, maybe to
Mexico. They reference jail earlier in the song, so maybe to escape the law.
>
>California tumbles into the sea
>(so are they in school in the Golden State?)
>That'll be the day I go back to Annandale
>(By exclusion, Annandale's not in California)
Well, how about if I put it in perspective. They were in CA to record their
albums. They are saying when California tumbles into the sea, they will die
and probably go to Hell, which in their minds is Bard College.
>Tried to warn her about Chino and Buddy Gee
I always thought it was Gino and Daddy G. Not sure what the significance of
that line is, but I think its a reference to someone from their college
days.
>But I can't seem to get to you through the US mail
>(I'm not surprised)
>
>Well I hear the whistle but I can't go
>I'm gonna take her down to Mexico
>She said "Oh no Guadalajara won't do"
>Well I did not think the girl could be so cruel
>And I'm never going back to my old school
>
>[Solos to fade]
>
>Hmmm. Suggestions? Corrections?
I think that it has to do with a drug bust at their college, and the trouble
they got into at Bard College. Maybe there are some other ideas, too.
>--
>Shawn McFarlane s...@nwu.edu Northwestern Univ. Journalism, Economics and
>Philosophy minor Sigma Phi Epsilon http://pubweb.acns.nwu.edu/~smcfarla
>"Perhaps the most striking thing about Canada is that it is not part of
>the United States." -- historian J. Bartlet Brebner
--
Earl W. Reed Go Bills!!!!!!!!!!!!
University of Rochester B.S. Chemistry, 1996 Go Sabres!!!!!!!!!!!
er0...@uhura.cc.rochester.edu Go Nittany Lions!!!!
gut...@roundtable.cif.rochester.edu Go Yellowjackets!!!!
Cass4Short
I assume they're talking about Annandale, Virginia.
William and Mary is self-explanatory.
"Leaving" like a gypsy queen, etc.
"Chino and Buddy Gee" . . .that's Gino and Daddy G
But why not just enjoy the song? It's certainly not the most cryptic of
S.D. compositions. Now, if you wanted to know about "Kid Charlemagne,"
those are some lyrics I could speculate about. . .
Mark D. Shevitz
cass4...@aol.com (Cass4Short) wrote:
>But why not just enjoy the song? It's certainly not the most cryptic of
>S.D. compositions. Now, if you wanted to know about "Kid Charlemagne,"
>those are some lyrics I could speculate about. . .
Speculate? That's probably one of the least obscure (lyrically, at least)
songs the Dan has put out, not to mention one of the greatest.
Michael Regoli
indeed. drugs drugs drugs. drug lab in san franscisco.
selling drugs. getting ripped off:
Kid Charlemagne
While the music played, you worked by candle light
Those San Fransisco Nights
You were the best in town
Just by chance you crossed the diamond with the pearl
You turned it on the world
That's when you turned the world around
Did you feel like jesus
Did you realise
That you were a champion in their eyes ?
On the hill the stuff was laced with kerosene
But yours was kitchen clean
Everyone stopped to stare at your technicolor motorhome
Every A-Frame had your number on the wall
You must have had it all
You'd go to LA on dare
And you'd go it alone
Could you live forever
Could you see the day
Could you feel your whole world fall apart and fade away
Get along, get along Kid Charlemagne,
Get along Kid Charlemagne
Now the patrons have all left you in the red
Your low rent friends are dead
Life can be very strange
All those dayglow freaks who used to paint the face
They've joined the human race
Somethings will never change
Son you were mistaken
You are obsolete
Look at all the white men on the street
[chorus]
Clean this mess up or else we'll all end up in jail
Those testtubes and the scale
Just get them all out of here
Is there gas in the car ?
Yes, there's gas in the car
I think the people down the hall
Know who you are
Careful what you carry
'cause the man is wise
You are still an outlaw in their eyes
[chorus]
David Steinberg
Subject: Re: Figuring out lyrics to "My Old School"
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In article <1995Dec7.2...@galileo.cc.rochester.edu>,
Earl W. Reed <er0...@uhura.cc.rochester.edu> wrote:
>>When you put me on the Wolverine up in Annandale
>>(the name of a train? To a place called Annandale. There's an Annandale
>>in rural Wright County, Minnesota, Fairfax County, Va. (Langley and
>>Alexandria) and Butler County, Pa. Is there a college at any of those
>>places?)
>From what I remember, Annandale-On-the-Hudson, or something like that, is
>where Bard College is located (where Don and Walt met).
As a Bard graduate, yep it's about good ol' Bard College. The song
Barrytown is about the Moonie camp in the next town over from Bard.
Seeing how there are other references to Bard (I haven't yet found the
song with "Stranded in Red Hook" in it, but the New Frontiers video has a
reference to Rhinebeck (or Rhinecliff, I forget which) around, I doubt at
least Fagan hates it. Besides, he has been back... to pick up an
honorary PhD.
-David "ZZYZX" Steinberg http://www.seanet.com/Staff/zzyzx
**********************************************************************
*"This must be the place *"I can't believe I'm a junior and a *
* where you learn what you * film major, when all I really *
* would not learn on Earth." * wanted in this life was to marry a *
*-Peter Himmelman * lobsterman and cook fish." *
* TIME FOR TIMER * -a letter from Christie Searing *
**********************************************************************
delia
I must say even among us normally obsessive DanFans I've
rarely seen this, um, "level of analysis".
But as most of your energy seems to be directed toward
figuring out where hell Annandale is, we can
put your fever'd mind to rest on that at least.
Annandale (actually A-On-Hudson) is a berg in NY State,
just a few miles east of the Kingston Exit off the NY Thruway.
And the Wolverine is a train that used to make a run through
those parts (don't know if it still does; haven't lived thereabouts
in a while). Bard College is very nearby, which is where Don+Walt went
to school in the late 60s.
Now get some sleep :-)
-Broadway Dutchess
Keith Mruk
Leslie Strom
er0...@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Earl W. Reed) writes:
> >Oleander growing outside her door
> >(some kind of coniferous bushy plant)
> >Soon they're gonna be in bloom up in Annandale
> >(so Annandale is probably in Minn., Va. or Pa., as I mentioned, not
> >somewhere like California or Florida)
Just to add to the mystery: Oleander grows like crazy in LA, and it's
the flowering shrub that covers the highway medians. I think the plant
needs a warm climate.
Leslie
Leslie
delia
>...but the New Frontiers video has a
>I doubt at least Fagan hates it. Besides, he has been back... to pick
>up an honorary PhD.
Independent of what DF's 'tude towards "his old school" might be,
there are other reasons why he might know and continue to
frequent the area: nearby Woodstock, Bearsville, and surrounds
are home to recording studios and musicians a'plenty--including his
collaborator (on the AIA tour and the NYR&SR) Warren Bernhardt--and
apparently the NYR&SR played some around that area. I wouldn't be at
all surprised to see The Donald himself slouching down Tinker Street
for a Sunday paper amongst the jogging gaggle of ShowFolk on any given
weekend.
And also apropos of nothing in particular, that was a very
bizarre and potent place to be around in the late 60's; any kid
possessed of that odd mix of showbiz ambition plus a congenital loathing
for cultural hubris would have found plenty in the air to nurture both.
-delia
"We've got to have some music on the New Frontier"
http://www.dartmouth.edu/artsci/psych/fac/cioffi/
Leslie Strom
Leslie
Richard Smith
honorary PhD.>>
On the radio once, he said (about getting the PhD) "Of course they
expected a big contribution...no, I'm only kidding" (He probably
wasn't though!)
Thomas Kraines
was this, during Leon Botstein's presidentship? I ask because Fagen
doesn't seem to have the kind of reputation that would make an honorary
doctorate seem logical. My impression of Steely
Dan's image is that they're hated by many, loved by relatively few,
unlike King Crimson or Zappa who seem to earn respect even from those who
don't like their music.
On another note, I always heard "dago freaks," not "dayglow freaks," in
Kid Charlemagne. The political incorrectness goes well with the rest
of the album.
David Steinberg
delia <cio...@dartmouth.edu> wrote:
>zz...@seanet.com (David Steinberg) wrote:
>>...but the New Frontiers video has a
>>reference to Rhinebeck (or Rhinecliff, I forget which) around,
>>up an honorary PhD.
>Both Rhinecliff and Rhinebeck are about 10-15 miles south of Bard.
A lot closer to 5. Grand Union (affectionately known as Gruinon) is the
local supermarket that most Bardians go to and that's in Rhinebeck. The
local train station is in Rhinecliff. The bridge about a mile south of
Bard is known as the Rhinecliff Kingston bridge. The Rhine's are an
important part of Bard life.
(rest deleted)
By the way, a few years back there were some new dorms built at Bard.
All Bard dorms are named after people, but these remained unnamed for a
very long period of time. Finally one day two official looking signs
popped up naming the dorm after the two alum's everyone knew. They were
called (Chevy) Chase and Fagan. Long after they were given their real
names, the switchboard operator still only knew those names.
Earl T. Bryant, Jr.
>zz...@seanet.com (David Steinberg) wrote:
>>...but the New Frontiers video has a
>>reference to Rhinebeck (or Rhinecliff, I forget which) around,
>>I doubt at least Fagan hates it. Besides, he has been back... to pick
>>up an honorary PhD.
>
>Both Rhinecliff and Rhinebeck are about 10-15 miles south of Bard.
If you're talking about the lyric, I believe (and liner notes back me
up on this) "are you mad about _Brubeck_" (As in the Dave Brubeck 5, a
jazz ensemble popular in the time that the young people in the song
live in).
Makes sense when you see the next line: "like you eyes/I like him,
too
He's an artist/a pioneer/we've gotta have some music in the new
frontier
Earl Bryant/ebr...@cris.com/Protecting and defending since 1987
----------------------------------------------------------------
The only red man I've ever seen had a terrible sunburn.
The only black man I've ever seen had the lights turned off.
The only yellow man I've ever seen is Homer Simpson, and
The only white man I've ever seen is Homer before the animator painted him.
Race is a social construct to facilitate subordination.
We are all different shades of beautful. --Kimberly Chapman
David Steinberg
Earl T. Bryant, Jr. <ebr...@deathstar.cris.com> wrote:
>delia <cio...@dartmouth.edu> wrote:
>
>>zz...@seanet.com (David Steinberg) wrote:
>>>...but the New Frontiers video has a
>>>reference to Rhinebeck (or Rhinecliff, I forget which) around,
>>>I doubt at least Fagan hates it. Besides, he has been back... to pick
>>>up an honorary PhD.
>>Both Rhinecliff and Rhinebeck are about 10-15 miles south of Bard.
>If you're talking about the lyric, I believe (and liner notes back me
>up on this) "are you mad about _Brubeck_" (As in the Dave Brubeck 5, a
>jazz ensemble popular in the time that the young people in the song
>live in).
No, the video for the song. He pulls out a record and you can read
something like "Rhinebeck Jazz Quartet" on the sleeve. I haven't seen it
in a while so forgive my my vagueness here.
Stephen A. Rahe
<cio...@dartmouth.edu> wrote:
Wait, I thought the "Annandale" mentioned in the song was in Virginia.
After all, isn't it close to William and Mary College? But, that wouldn't
fit with the Wolverine...
Now, what the hell is "Peg" about?
Lawrence D Andrews
In article <4ai5cb$8...@kisa.seanet.com>, zz...@seanet.com (David Steinberg) writes:
|>In article <4ahv2c$9...@spectator.cris.com>,
|>Earl T. Bryant, Jr. <ebr...@deathstar.cris.com> wrote:
|>>delia <cio...@dartmouth.edu> wrote:
|>>
|>>>zz...@seanet.com (David Steinberg) wrote:
|>>>>...but the New Frontiers video has a
|>>>>reference to Rhinebeck (or Rhinecliff, I forget which) around,
|>>up on this) "are you mad about _Brubeck_" (As in the Dave Brubeck 5, a
|>>jazz ensemble popular in the time that the young people in the song
|>>live in).
|>No, the video for the song. He pulls out a record and you can read
|>something like "Rhinebeck Jazz Quartet" on the sleeve. I haven't seen it
|>in a while so forgive my my vagueness here.
I seem to remember the cover of the "Time Out" album being incorporated into
that video at some point. I remember him pulling out a record for he
and his blonde to listen to, but it *has* been a while since!!!
Interesting video tho'.
--
Larry Andrews -- ldan...@eos.ncsu.edu or andr...@jlcl01.dnet.com
Opinions may or may not be my own, but aren't D's. Thank you,
drive thru. Primus sucks. King Crimson rules. That's about all you need to know.
Maciatus
Charmer Under Me)" mean? I really like the song, but haven't the faintest
clue as to the meaning.
zip
SteveSoto
Michael Regoli
>>Now, what the hell is "Peg" about?
According to Fagen's liner notes in "Live in America," he says about
Peg: 'Girlfriend. Narcissistic. Showbiz. Cult of self. Karmic
payback. [Georg] Wadenius plays [guitar]."
What an excellent disc, by the way. The recording/mix is one of the
best of any live recording I've heard...
--
michael regoli
reg...@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu