posted
Over the course of the last couple of days, Imogen and myself have had cause to listen to the Lou Reed classic "A Perfect Day" a couple of times. Here's the problem;
What the heck is this song?
Is it supposed to be a poignant love song, (unlikely, given the composer, but supported by two thirds of the lyrics) or a dark essay about posession / obsession / general nastiness....
We really need to know. Both of us love this song, but we can't make our minds up. The first four verses + chorus are filled with lovely, poetic imagery (see below), then all of a sudden, at the end of the fourth verse, we have a touch of what may or may not be self loathing, followed by endless repetition of the darkly ambigious "you're going to reap, just what you sow."
Opinions please folks. We're confused here....
quote: Lou Reed Transformer (1972) Perfect Day
Just a perfect day, Drink Sangria in the park, And then later, when it gets dark, We go home.
Just a perfect day, Feed animals in the zoo Then later, a movie, too, And then home.
Oh it's such a perfect day, I'm glad I spent it with you. Oh such a perfect day, You just keep me hanging on, You just keep me hanging on.
Just a perfect day, Problems all left alone, Weekenders on our own. It's such fun.
Just a perfect day, You made me forget myself. I thought I was someone else, Someone good.
Oh it's such a perfect day, I'm glad I spent it with you. Oh such a perfect day, You just keep me hanging on, You just keep me hanging on.
You're going to reap just what you sow, You're going to reap just what you sow, You're going to reap just what you sow, You're going to reap just what you sow...
posted
Well, this is just a guess, but, here goes.
During that period, and as far as I know to this day, Lou Reed was writing about problems.
He has hope, but we always see the tarnish under the silver lining. Take the entire album Berlin as an example. You might think of it as an album of strung-out love songs.
Nothing goes exactly right for his songs. Much like life. At the time that the song was written, most love songs were sappy and one-sided. Lou Reed brought a brutal realism to his songs.
But this is just a guess. I am familiar with much Lou Reed, but haven't read all that much concerning his motivations.
I'm sure others will have more to offer....
Posts: 2506 | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
That's pretty indicative of his whole attitude. I can't recall any Lou Reed songs that are blatantly mushy or lovey. He's always a bit tongue-in-cheek about the rosiness of the world. My favorite song of his, Satellite of Love, has the same kind of attitude.
If you're a Lou Reed fan, you've got to see the Wenders film Faraway, So Close!. Good stuff.
Posts: 8504 | Registered: Aug 1999
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posted
I love the song. I just always figured it was about drugs. Then again, it is also hard for me to seperate it from the scene it's used in, in trainspotting.
That said, the song is what you want it to be. Whatever Lou Reed intended it to be, that is one of the songs i listen to when i'm a little down and need to be cheered up. It's a song i can listen to and automatically feel better after.
Posts: 8741 | Registered: Apr 2001
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posted
I'm with Strider on this one. I thought I had read that that song was written for that scene and that just happened to be the very same scene that all the "consulting junkies" said would NEVER happen IRL. They said at best, the dealer MIGHT drag you outside his flat just so when you died, you wouldn't stink up his/her place. But because the song was already written and everyone loved it so much, it was left in the movie. All and all, I think it just means that when love is involved, ignorance is bliss.
Edit: Oops! I'm wrong about when that song was written...but here's a little insight as to what Lou Reed was thinking as he wrote it...
posted
During the Transformer days, Lou Reed was heavily into drugs. The fact that he could string lyrics together to make a complete song is really kind of amazing when you think about it, being a heroin addict and all.
But I do believe this song is kind of a stab at what Lou was then seeing as "normal, boring existence." As in he really wanted to be off somewhere shooting up, but he was hanging around the zoo and trying to be "normal."
At least that's what I thought.
Now, the other side of this is that if you like the song and it evokes an emotional response in you, who's to gainsay that? Just enjoy and know that Lou Reed is such a musical genius that he could write timeless songs even when half his brain was turned to mush.
Posts: 22497 | Registered: Sep 2000
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posted
Thanks all - that all pretty much ties in with Imogen and my take on the song, but it's been bugging me for the last day or so, and it's nice to have some *quality* opinions to back us up.
I agree with Annie that Satellite... is one of Reed's greatest, but also hold a soft spot in my heart for Perfect Day. I haven't seen the Wenders film, but I love his work so I'll chase that one up.
Also *blushes* haven't seen trainspotting. Just one of those I've always meant to get and watch, but have never managed to. I'm not sure I want to, now...
Valentine - thanks for the link - fascinating. I must admit to being a fan of Reed without knowing too much about him, but that was an bit of an insight at least into the mind behind the song.
Anyhow, thanks again all. cheers
Posts: 466 | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Ten points to Annie for mentioning one of my all-time favorite films! Just when I think nobody has seen any good films, along comes Annie...
But!
If you're going to see Faraway, So Close!, please watch it's prequel, and actually better film *, Wings of Desire, first. It's just recently been re-released on DVD with lots of cool extras too!
And as long as we're discussing Wim Wenders, by all means, beg, borrow and/or steal to track down a copy of Until the End of the World. It may just be the most under-rated sci-fi film ever.
* Faraway, So Close probably has a better soundtrack (Of course, Wenders' films always seem to have great music -- U2, Lou Reed, Tom Waits, Nick Cave, REM, Ry Cooder, Roy Orbison, Elvis Costello, etc.) with the title song from U2 and Lou Reed's contributions -- speaking of which, the song he sings in the movie, Why Can't I be Good? is one of my favorite Lou Reed songs (an impressive accomplishment, I assure you). But has it been released on any album? It wasn't on the soundtrack and it's not on any of his albums that I own. Anybody know anything?
Posts: 1295 | Registered: Jan 2003
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posted
thanks Godric. I have a good friend who's very into Lou Reed, among others, and he might well have both films in his collection already. I'll be seeing him tomorrow to find out. Either way, They're both now well and truly on my list.
Posts: 466 | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Yes, it does for me..but if you can't see it, open your AIM window, click on the bottom of the window where it says "Launch AIM.com" (the house icon). On the left hand list click "music". Right under the banner click "Videos". Under the "New Videos of the Week" click "more videos" and THEN click on the letter "R", scroll down to "Reed, Lou". The 12th song is "A Perfect Day". Finally, click the camera icon on the right side and it will play a vid for you!
posted
well, now that you got me with this new 5.5 version, how do make it so it doesn't cut out my keyboard when the person i'm talking to sends me an IM?
Posts: 8741 | Registered: Apr 2001
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posted
Here's my interpretation of the song although I'm not familiar with Lou Reed.
Barring all implicit drug references that may be implied from the context of his life, we will take it to be sung from the point of view of a troubled man who is sort of taken in by a woman who either doesn't know about his problems, is in denial, or thinks she can change him.
The first three lines of each verse are best interpreted in hindsight of the final line of each verse. In the first two verses, some dating activities are described. This indicates that the man is reminiscing on these times, and the last line, "we go home" reveals that he doesn't want the day to end. The fact that this line is repeated in the first two verses perhaps reveals that he is rather clingy or in the best case infatuated. In any case it has sort of an eerie sense about it.
The last two lines in the chorus confirm our suspicions. Perhaps the woman is keeping him from going over the edge, but from what, we can't tell. Whether she knows it or not, the woman is not facing or helping to repress the man's darker side.
In the second two verses, we see that the man acknowledges he has problems, and says precisely that the woman is just taking him away from his problems, and keeping him in this little fantasy world in which he's "good" and his life is fantastic.
The last stanza, I think, can be easily read as being from a different speaker. This is a third person speaking to the woman. Perhaps the woman knows this man has problems, but keeps him around anyway, trying to make him "good" or any sort of variant. But in any case, these words are for her. They are telling her that if she continues to hold up this guy, the outcome can only be disastrous and tragic.
The fact that the word "perfect" is used in the first line of each stanza reveals the fragility of the situation in this relationship, and that if one stanza that this man writes doesn't start with something being "perfect," something bad is going to happen. Indeed, the fact that the last stanza doesn't start with something "perfect" quickens our breath, because we sense that something isn't right.
I hope this helps Valentine and Imogen Posts: 106 | Registered: Dec 2003
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posted
Temposs, replace "woman" and every reference to her with drugs and drug use and I think that's really what Lou Reed was singing about, and you can't say it doesn't fit perfectly with how you described it. Though I'm not Lou Reed so i can't really know.
but again, in either case, when i listen to the song for myself i make the lyrics mean whatever i want them to mean.
Posts: 8741 | Registered: Apr 2001
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