The Pernice Brothers -- "Baby in Two"
Variants of the lyric "hey kids, rock and roll" have a long and storied history, dating back at least to the 1973 David Essex hit "Rock On," a standard of the classic rock genre that lost its freshness a long time ago. R.E.M. picked up the lyric for its early 90s hit "Drive." And a decade or so later, Joe Pernice picked it up again for this song. Pernice's treatment of the lyric -- sardonic, literate, with a wry nod back in Essex's general direction -- makes clever use of stale material: rock and roll is a bullseye hung on your soul.
This song seems to be about a failed attempt at stardom, or a failed attempt at a relationship, or both -- typical Pernice Brothers, then. A life of failure kept afloat, just barely, by the powers of cynicism and irony. "I wish I knew a sure simple way to reach you," Pernice sings. The song functions as just that -- sure, simple way to reach an audience -- the only problem being that not enough people were listening.
Too bad. Stardom may have eluded Pernice, Solomonic wisdom as well. "I'd be the king if I could say to you / Cut the baby in two": at least he knows what he'd be doing if he were the king.
No comments:
Post a Comment