The Long and Short of It
Members of BDMC’s blog team took an hour to analyze their favorite abnormally long and short songs. Read on to see their picks.
Grace Salzer, Junior
“Tea For The Tillerman” by Yusuf / Cat Stevens (1:05)
At first listen, this song might seem a little simple. There’s only nine lines, but within them is a host of symbolism. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Stevens breaks down the song, explaining that the Tillerman is meant to be a reliable figure in a chaotic, polluted world. Even though the future seems bleak, he remains optimistic, longing for a happy day where the children can play again. This folk rock song comes from Stevens’ fourth studio album Tea for the Tillerman, released November of 1970. Fifty years later, Stevens and his son Yoriyos came up with the idea to release Tea for the Tillerman 2, a reimagining of his iconic album. Although the song is half a century old, its themes still ring true to this day.
Personally, I love this song because I can feel the longing. The crescendo towards the end is so powerful, and although it is only a minute long, I feel it is a perfect song. Even though I enjoy it so much and part of me wants more of it, I would not want to change it and risk diluting the message and the feeling it gives to the listener. The perfect time to listen: on a walk at sunset.
“Christmas Unicorn” by Sufjan Stevens (12:28)
I listened to this song for the first time this year at the recommendation of a friend. At first, I perceived it as a silly song about a literal Christmas unicorn, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. This song is rife with symbolism, and honestly, you could analyze it for hours and write an entire paper about it. In quick summary, this song is a commentary on American capitalism surrounding Christmas and the holiday season in general, with lyrics such as “I’m a frantic shopper and a brave pill popper/And they say my kind are rare.” This song also contains a lot of references to Catholicism, possibly pointing out the hypocrisy of the holiday itself, as it is meant to be a charitable and giving time, but instead it is overtaken by consumerism. Symbolism and meaning aside, this is just an amazing and addictive song. I truly cannot believe it is over 12 minutes long. The song takes the listener on a journey, as the style, melody, and instrumentation continues to change over its course. Sufjan Stevens is a world builder and layers his vocals and instrumentation so perfectly. In this song, you will hear synth, a choir, guitars, strings, flutes, oboes, even a banjo.
Personally, I am addicted to this song. It scratches a part of my brain I didn’t know existed and has introduced me to an entirely new category of Christmas music. It is such an interesting song, in that there are so many components and layers that you never know where it’s going to go. It is great for both casual and serious listening, although I would recommend the first time you hear it that you really take it all in. Perfect time to listen: when the snow is gently falling as you roam downtown.
Siti Sarah Dunphy, Sophomore
“Reception” by Wings (1:07)
The piece begins with an alien-esque pitch and dialogue about a Deputy-Sherriff, quickly interrupted by a yummy baseline and drumkit. Whenever this came on my Spotify-generated rock radio I would always get so excited when I heard the baseline, so I had to save it. It’s just groovy! It makes you feel like you’re wearing aviator sunglasses with voluminous 80’s hair blowing in the wind of a moving convertible down some American highway. The synth, strings, occasional piano notes, and more make for a groove I wish was 10x longer. I was convinced from its (short) construction that it was a Pink Floyd-type of interlude between songs but turns out it’s the start of the album! To no surprise, this album, Back To The Egg, came out in 1979, a befitting intro piece for the intro to the 80’s. Ahead of his time, always, that Paul McCartney!
“Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pts. 1-5)” by Pink Floyd (13:31)
Sustained strings with celestial high pitches and a trumpet-sounding (could it be keyboard generated?) solo on top start the dramatic song. David Gilmour continues the haunting solo over more billowing, held chords on his electric guitar. It all fades away, and Gilmour plays the four notes known to all Floyd fans six times over: alluring, timeless, sorrow ridden. As Nick Mason on the drum set comes in, those four notes become chords and Roger Waters begins the bass. Space-like, the four members play out melodies and rhythms crying out to a member foregone: Syd (Roger) Barrett. Syd was the psychedelic mind who created the name of Pink Floyd, founded their sound to last a lifetime, and was adored by those who met his goofy, childlike spirit. His spiral down LSD forced the members to let him go on his own path, but his memory never left them all. This is the starting song on their first album to commemorate him. Labeled by a direct title Wish You Were Here, Syd is the “Crazy Diamond.” The following slow chords and nostalgic solos set up the beginning of Waters’ eerie lyrics.
“Remember when you were young? You shone like the sun.”
The boys initially met as students. Syd had it easy: the girls, the grades, the art (he was studying visual arts), and the music came naturally.
“Shine on you crazy diamond.”
Though lost to LSD, Syd’s diamond-like rarity and value will shine on forever through the irreversible impact his mind had on the music industry.
“Now there’s a look in your eyes/Like black holes in the sky/Shine on you crazy diamond.”
What eyes were once bright became sullen.
“You were caught in the crossfire of childhood and stardom/Blown on the steel breeze”
It was obvious that much of Syd’s frustration and pain came from the pressures that the music business placed on his shoulders. His music was the essence of his childhood (he started Pink Floyd at only 19 years old), and yet the expectations of stardom started to taint what was once pure creativity. “Steel breeze” was a phrase that meant “cold breeze”, and his guitar strings were steel- an allusion to his instrument and the cold nature he grew into.
“Come on you target for faraway laughter/Come on, you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine!”
Begging, Waters wants Syd to stand against the public laughter generated from his LSD-induced actions. Syd has become a stranger to Waters, a legend to musicians, a martyr to the industry: Pink Floyd begs him to rise out of the dark depths and shine in the light.
“You reached for the secret too soon/You cried for the moon/Shine on you crazy diamond.”
Syd’s adventure of fame was premature. All he wanted was the same as the rest, to “reach the moon”, the heights of stardom, but it was too soon, too much.
“Threatened by shadows at night, and exposed in the light/Shine on you crazy diamond.”
The only thing threatening Syd were the hallucinations from LSD and his dark, nightly struggles. His now-vulnerable nature was something too exposed in the light of normal day.
“Well, you wore out your welcome with random precision, rode on the steel breeze”
Pink Floyd didn’t just decide to leave their loved one to the dust: he wore them out with random bursts of unpredictable actions. In doing so, he rode out with his cold demeanor.
“Come on, you raver, you seer of visions/Come on, you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine!”
“Raver” is a nod to his wild side. Syd was a visionary: he saw the culture of psychedelic rock before most, dressing in a vibrant fashion and creating sounds unheard of as a piper leading the genre into the future. Despite all his greatness, he was still prisoner to the drugs. This is their final plea of the colorful, addicted, genius to rise again with them.
The piece closes out with a saxophone solo backed by guitar, drums, and keys. There are some time signature changes, and it all fades away.
Left: Syd Barrett at Abbey Road Studios when he showed up without notice while the band was mixing “Shine On You Crazy Diamond.”
Right: Syd Barrett in 1971.
Natalie Ingalls, Senior
“The Past is a Grotesque Animal” by of Montreal (11:53)
The Past is a Grotesque Animal took my breath away the first time I heard it. Nestled in the middle of of Montreal’s Hissing Fauna Are You the Destroyer, it serves as the album’s peak of desperation and mania. I had little knowledge of of Montreal the first time I listened to this album, but heard elements of LCD Soundsystem in the electronic production and Phoenix and Mother Mother in Kevin Barnes’ vocals.
The song’s minute and a half intro opens with buzzy, extraterrestrial snyths, which quickly are joined by a steady, locomotive bass line that drives the frenetic energy of the song. Soon after, the main guitar riff joins in followed by an alternating bass/snare drum part. These consistent, driving instruments allow Barnes to wander lyrically. The song is a raw depiction of their separation with their wife Nina, who they eventually divorced. You can hear the desperation as they raise their voice and let it crack at points in the song. One of my favorite lines in the song is when they sing: “Do I have to scream in your face?/I've been dodging lamps and vegetables/ Throw it all in my face/I don't care.” It’s an acknowledgement of their audience, who they characterize expressing their disapproval by throwing vegetables i.e. tomatoes, and of a potentially volatile domestic situation, or the lamps being thrown. The song culminates with an alien-like synth solo that fades beautifully into the next song in the album. It’s a striking piece of art that stands on its own but also fits perfectly into the context of the whole project.
“We Might Even be Falling In Love (Interlude)” by Victoria Monét (0:51)
This song off of Victoria Monet’s 2020 album JAGUAR serves as an interlude but packs a huge punch. It opens with a groovy guitar and bass line, sprinkles in some xylophone and horns, and then Monet’s lush vocals take over. Across JAGUAR she writes sensual lines with a wink- a notable one in this song being: “U-Haul 'cause I might let you move in it/'Cause I ain't had nobody hit it like you hit it.” She ends sweetly with the line “It's safe to say that we might even be falling in love.” And just like that, the song is over. Luckily, there’s an extended version with Bryson Tiller for those who can’t get enough.
