Food for Songs
Echoes of Struggle: Del Amitri's Reflection on Injustice
Lyrics
There's people hauling people
People are forcibly evacuating others from their homes.
Out from under their homes
Continuation of people being removed from their residences.
There's people hauling people
Repetition emphasizing the act of hauling people away.
Out through the groaning stones
People being taken away amid challenging circumstances.
You can see me tonight,
The speaker will be visible, likely distressed, during the night.
I'll be shell shocked and white in the cold light of dawn
The speaker expects to appear shocked and pale in the cold morning light.
But I ain't gonna cry just to give some guy
The speaker won't cry just to provide emotional content for someone else's songs.
Food for songs.
Rejecting the idea of emotional display solely for artistic inspiration.
People going hungry,
People are suffering from hunger.
Sand like a sackful of bones,
Describing the severity of hunger using metaphorical language.
People going hungry, feeding a billion homes
Starving people contributing to the sustenance of others worldwide.
So I put my dead child down, you put your TV on
The speaker's personal sacrifice—putting aside personal grief for the distractions of television.
Well I ain't gonna cry just to give some guy
Refusing to cry merely to provide material for songs.
Food for songs.
Reiteration of the speaker's resistance to being emotionally exploited for artistic purposes.
Yeah, there's people beating people,
People are physically harming others to maintain societal structures.
To keep the system strong.
Emphasizing violence as a means to preserve the existing system.
People beating people, to keep the illusion going.
Violence as a tool to perpetuate illusions and false perceptions.
So I'm going to fight every day of my life 'til they're gone.
The speaker expresses determination to fight against these injustices.
But I ain't gonna die to give some guy
Rejecting the idea of dying for the sake of inspiring songs.
Food for songs.
Reiterating the refusal to sacrifice oneself for artistic creation.
Yeah, there's people holding people,
People are restraining or controlling others.
Making those wailing sounds,
Describing the distressing sounds associated with control or oppression.
Yeah, there's people holding people,
Continuation of people holding others, likely against their will.
Watching them lower me down,
Imagery of a funeral or burial, possibly symbolic of societal oppression.
So I take my leave and you take what you see
The speaker leaves, and others interpret or manipulate what remains.
And you make it what you want,
Encouraging personal interpretation of events but warning of distorted perceptions.
But when I see you in hell, I will give you some
A metaphorical reference to encountering the consequences of one's actions in the afterlife.
Food for songs.
Reiterating the rejection of sacrificing oneself for the creation of songs.
Comment