Collective Soul
Great song by Collective Soul, it’s both rocky and melodic at the same time, and it’s called “Shine” from their 1993 debut album, “Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid”. The lyrics aren’t really introspective or anything, but the singer sings them well. I really love the guitar solo midway through the song. Unfortunately, this song kind of rises above the other songs and is definitely the stand out song – not to say that the other songs on the album are bad, they just don’t have the same punch to them.
Another favorite, this one’s “World I Know” from their 1995 self-titled sophomore album. I’m sure many people that listened to 90’s rock would know this song, “Shine”, and the “December”. Now this is a thinking man’s/woman’s song, that’s for sure. “So I walk up on high, and I step to the edge, to see my world below. And I laugh at myself, as the tears roll down, cause it’s the world I know, yes it’s the world I know”. That lyric there says it all – the song is talking about a person’s revelation that he loves this world and does not want to commit suicide, like he was thinking of. The video makes it even clearer, showing a man that’s depressed that then climbs up on a building and stands on the edge, where he decides not to jump because he realizes he loves this world (love the people walking on the sidewalk mimicking the ants scattering about). It’s a powerful song for someone who’s ever considering suicide. The music does the song justice too, with plenty of strummed acoustic guitar, melodic electric guitar that gives the song a nice edge without being bombastic, and strings. The lyrics are sung with emotion, and the video is also artful in its use of color (blue to reflect the general gloomy atmosphere, and normal colors to reflect a happier atmosphere). All and all, classic ballad of the 90’s in my book.
Speaking of “December”, here it is, and this one’s also full of plenty of acoustic guitar and some more melodic electric guitar, as well as some violin thrown in. The lyrics aren’t too happy, such as: “Why follow me to higher ground? Contagious as you think I am”. They seem to be about someone who’s been betrayed or has a lack of trust (slight cynical sound too), and the anger that comes from that. Overall, another good 90’s ballad.
Surprisingly, though Collective Soul is known mostly for their ballads, their self-titled album actually rocks pretty hard. Here’s an example of that – “Where the River Flows”:
I plan to be posting more often now, as long as I can get in the habit of doing so. Here’s some post I plan on making:
- Offspring videos (Dirty Magic, Self Esteem, Gone Away)
- Cracker (Low), Lynyrd Skynyrd (Saturday Night Special or On the Hunt), Porcupine Tree (Up the Downstair or Radioactive Toy), Chevelle (The Red)
- System of a Down (Toxicity, B.Y.O.B., Hypnotize)
- New poem (written last week) and older ones (middle period)
actually, i beg to differ. ed and dean roland were raised by an abusive preacher father. the lyrics of the song are a reflection of a young man’s journey to find god and/or faith.
the world i know, while portrayed via a video about suicide, is not necessarily about suicide. videos only represent ONE interpretation of a song, and back in the 90s, they typically attempted to follow at least a basic story arc. if you actually paid attention to the lyrics, you’d see that that’s a very superficial interpretation. this song is actually one of the most cynical ones that i have ever heard from collective soul. it’s more of a social commentary, with the chorus representing a grudging acceptance of society how it stands. this could also be interpreted as God looking down on humanity. either way, both are accurately represented in the video.
as for december, the majority of the strings are delivered courtesy of a CELLIST, not a violinist. and while i may be wrong, i believe it’s the violist on the album, not the violinst, playing the final string part that you’re referencing. and just for the record, ballads are romantic or sentimental. NOT cynical.
Well, I wasn’t aware of their background, but yeah, that explanation does make sense.
I’m not paying just attention to the video for interpretation; the lyrics seem to point in that direction too as far as interpretation goes. I guess I wasn’t able to see past the basic level interpretation, so shoot me, I’m not perfect.
I was paying more attention to the violin or viola part in the song, but yeah, I can hear the cello as well, now that you point it out. I can’t tell the difference between violin and viola too well either.
The music sounds ballad-like, the lyrics, you’re right, aren’t romantic or sentimental.