Another album I discovered on the 500 Greatest Albums blog. I had initially bought only one song from iTunes, then found the vinyl in a record shop this summer. But in all the depression and preparation surrounding my then-imminent move to Saskatchewan, I never got to actually listen to it.
About a month ago, I randomly thought of the album again and found the video for this song on YouTube. I had seen it once before, and it had seemed unimpressive to me then. I don't know what changed, but when I watched it this time, it seemed somehow different. Perhaps, because of my restless mental wanderings since starting college, I was better able to understand the melancholy-yet-hopeful thinking, brooding mood the video was trying to convey.
When I came home for Christmas, listening to this album and adding it to my iPod was high on my to-do list. It turns out that the song's music video is not the whole sonic picture. Oh no. They edited out both the musical interlude before the third verse and the soaring melancholy hopeful ending.
I wish I could put words to the ending. There are no words. The words I used at the end of that last paragraph do not convey what it is, it's not even close. But there's nothing closer. You just have to hear it. It's so beautiful... soothing, peaceful. Close your eyes. Fly.
Title: Broken Wings
Artist: Mr. Mister
Album: Welcome To The Real World
Year: 1985
Label: RCA
iTunes here; LP version of the song on YouTube here, official video on YouTube here.
Showing posts with label broken wings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label broken wings. Show all posts
03 January 2014
20 January 2011
Broken Wings
There's a girl with wings. Let's call her Alida. She spends her days soaring through the sky, carefree, happy. Another girl comes along and befriends her.
Together they fly, best friends in the world.
One day though, the girl deliberately tricks Alida into crashing hard into the rocks. She laughs cruelly and flies away, leaving Alida caught in the rocks.
After days of struggle Alida finally gets free. She's unable to fly, her wings are torn and broken. So she wanders alone among the desolate rocks for a long, long time.
Finally someone takes her in, saying he's going to fix her wings. After some thought, she decides to give him a chance.
He earns her trust, pretending, quite convincingly, to help her. Indeed, her wings slowly begin to heal. She sees nothing but his clever disguise of tender care.
After a time though, he leads her to a cliff, pushes her roughly over the edge, and tells her to fly.
She can't, she's not ready. She falls off the edge and starts to spiral downward.
He watches her for a few moments, then turns and walks away.
She can't fly, her wings haven't had enough time to heal properly. Now she's falling, down to the sharp jagged rocks below, down to certain death.
There's no one to stop her. No one to catch her.
Found in some old papers of mine, dated 31 December 2007. How prophetic it is too. ~ Kate
Together they fly, best friends in the world.
One day though, the girl deliberately tricks Alida into crashing hard into the rocks. She laughs cruelly and flies away, leaving Alida caught in the rocks.
After days of struggle Alida finally gets free. She's unable to fly, her wings are torn and broken. So she wanders alone among the desolate rocks for a long, long time.
Finally someone takes her in, saying he's going to fix her wings. After some thought, she decides to give him a chance.
He earns her trust, pretending, quite convincingly, to help her. Indeed, her wings slowly begin to heal. She sees nothing but his clever disguise of tender care.
After a time though, he leads her to a cliff, pushes her roughly over the edge, and tells her to fly.
She can't, she's not ready. She falls off the edge and starts to spiral downward.
He watches her for a few moments, then turns and walks away.
She can't fly, her wings haven't had enough time to heal properly. Now she's falling, down to the sharp jagged rocks below, down to certain death.
There's no one to stop her. No one to catch her.
Found in some old papers of mine, dated 31 December 2007. How prophetic it is too. ~ Kate
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