song of the week

once a week (maybe, i may lose interest next week) i'll declare a 'song of the week'. i'll print the lyrics, recommend that you download it (ugh), and discuss what i like about it.

this weeks song is 'dear employer (the reason i quit) by the minus 5. the minus 5 is Scott McCaughey's (of young fresh fellows and rem) band with various sidekicks. this one is with wilco and peter buck.

couple of reasons i picked this. first, always, is the fantastic melody. sung over and over in a pretty consistent laid back way. wilco shines on the track. similar in buildup to 'via chicago' there is a simple chord structure embellished by electronic gurgles, an erratic mix, drums that almost serve as a double lyric. they rush when necessary, silence when needed.

a two week notice, the song is. some guy quitting a shit job. he mentions escalators. he's like me. at a job you do and don't think about. he's moving on to something better. than the class element enters into it. 'you commanded me'. 'when you were knee high, higher than i'. i love the impersonality of it. 'dear employer', 'sir', 'mr. smith', it's all the same. you do it to somebody too, and you spent a lot more money to do it.

than it gets personal. 'cuz i'm a lost cause, causing a problem', 'i'll be long gone, long gone and rotting, long gone and ulcerous, nothing untold'. suddenly it's a suicide note. is the employer a boss or family. is there a difference?

and the music swirls. 'that's the reason that i quit'.

a beautiful song.

Dear employer I'd like to tell you It's been wonderful for all these years

But now you know I've got a new shoe And I'll be wearing it so far from here
Dear employer your escalators Are very dangerous on the way down

They rip the skin and they pull you in Spit out the boney bits and coffee grounds
Dear employer I heard a story When you were just knee-high higher than I

You built the wings and the propeller too

With balsa wood and glue you made it fly
Dear employer you commanded me Your commendations now don't mean as much

Cause I'm a lost cause causing a problem

And I promise to be way out of touch
Dear employer when you hear the news Please save the saintly words for saintly souls

Cause I'll be long gone long gone and rotting

Long gone and ulcerous nothing untold
That's the reason that I quit The reason that I quit That's the reason that I quit

The reason that I quit That's the reason that I quit The reason that I quit

That's the reason

That's the reason
That's the reason

that's the reason