Dogs…

Anyone who’s followed this blog long enough will know how much I love the music of Pink Floyd. And anyone who’s read my Dragged Down By The Stone post will understand why I think of their Animals album as an almost perfect metaphor for the world we live in today. If you haven’t read it, I’d really love for you to give it a try!

The thing is, although attempting to recreate the mental imagery that album inspired in my mind within that post was very pleasurable for me, the post itself fell far short of expressing the one thing about that album that I absolutely loved the most – the pleasure and sense of release I got from singing along to my all-time favorite song: Dogs!

And though I’m reluctant to post such a long video, it doesn’t really make sense to post the lyrics – probably the most compelling set of lyrics I’ve ever read or heard – without the awesome sound that makes them come alive!

You gotta be crazy, you gotta have a real need.
You gotta sleep on your toes, and when you’re on the street,
You gotta be able to pick out the easy meat with your eyes closed.
And then moving in silently, down wind and out of sight,
You gotta strike when the moment is right, without thinking.

And after a while, you can work on points for style.
Like the club tie, and the firm handshake,
A certain look in the eye, and an easy smile.
You have to be trusted, by the people that you lie to,
So that when they turn their backs on you,
You’ll get the chance to put the knife in.

You gotta keep one eye, looking over your shoulder.
You know it’s going to get harder, and harder, and harder as you get older.
And in the end you’ll pack up, and fly down south,
Hide your head in the sand,
Just another sad old man,
All alone and dying of cancer.

And when you loose control, you’ll reap the harvest you have sown.
And as the fear grows, the bad blood slows and turns to stone.
And it’s too late to lose the weight you used to need to throw around.
So have a good drown, as you go down, all alone,
Dragged down by the stone.

I gotta admit, that I’m a little bit confused.
Sometimes it seems to me, as if I’m just being used.
Gotta stay awake, gotta try and shake off, this creeping malaise.
If I don’t stand my own ground, how can I find my way out of this maze?

Deaf, dumb, and blind, you just keep on pretending
That everyone’s expendable, and no-one has a real friend.
And it seems to you the thing to do, would be to isolate the winner
And everything’s done under the sun,
And you believe at heart everyone’s a killer.

Who was born in a house full of pain?
Who was trained not to spit in the fan?
Who was told what to do by the man?
Who was broken by trained personnel?
Who was fitted with collar and chain?
Who was given a pat on the back?
Who was breaking away from the pack?
Who was only a stranger at home?
Who was ground down in the end?
Who was found dead on the phone?
Who was dragged down by the stone?

Who was dragged down by the stone!?!?

Video via Pink Floyd Remastered Songs on YouTube

Lyrics via Pink Floyd Lyrics

I want ice water.

More from the Just Vibes volume