horsemouth has been trying to learn astronomy by the blue oyster cult.
as a side order he listened to their album spectres. according to allen lanier, the photograph on this album's cover was inspired by NY turn of the century photographer and social campaigner jacob riis whose "how the other half lives" album depicted the classier gang members of the period in their true colors. but it's not so. how the other half lives is a document of tenement life, the poor, the homeless, the indigent.
horsemouth sees the cover of spectres (by the blue oyster cult) as an enactment of their track astronomy from secret treaties.
we are in 'the four winds' bar. 'clock strikes 12' check. 'and moondrops burst' (lasers- check), where's the map? 'behind the clockback, there you know, at the four winds bar' (good reincorporation).
the cover of spectres, BÖC’s fifth studio LP, was designed by artist and photographer roni hoffman. the cover picture was taken by eric meola, a self-taught photographer .. the laser effects were provided by laser pioneer david infante of laser physics inc. and used in the band’s laser stage show.
roni hoffman was a NY scenester (she was consistently in the right place at the right time). in her portfolio there are photos of patti smith, alice cooper, bo diddley, ted nugent, (hell patti smith and ted nugent go figure).
the lyrics to astronomy are by sandy perlman. the lines (at least initially) are accompanied with an AABA pattern of chords. the chorus (the heys) is lifted off all along the watchtower (and numerous other songs)
the four winds is the greek conception (the anemoi) and correspond to the four cardinal directions (NSWE). this kind of fits with the map theme.
from the expanse of the outside we are taken in to a controlled room with a number (four again) of doors 'four doors at the four winds bar' . two doors are locked, the windows are barred. one door is there 'to take you in' and 'the other one just mirrors it' - i.e. it's a trap, and in this room we are only told about the clock.
Out at you from their hiding place
Like acid and oil on a madman's face
His reason tends to fly away
Like lesser birds on the four winds
Like silver scrapes in May
And now the sand's become a crust
And most of you have gone away
Just out there upon the beach
I know you'll soon be married
And you'll want to know where winds come from
Well it's never said at all
On the map that Carrie reads
Behind the clock back there you know
At the Four Winds Bar
Two doors locked and windows barred
One door to let to take you in
The other one just mirrors it
The other one's a duplicate
The Queenly flux, eternal light
Or the light that never warms
Or the light that never, never warms
Or the light that never
Never warms
Never warms
Never warms
Astronomy... a star (repeats)
now the theory is that the dog is the dog star, a fixed star (from when stars were believed to be fixed unlike the planets or wanderers that seemed to move against this rotating firmament of stars) and thus of use in navigation.
wikipedia suggests the following, that "the light that never warms" is the moon, "the queenly flux" the constellation cassiopeia,.. the "four winds bar" may be a reference to the tropic of cancer.
now interpreting blue oyster cult lyrics is something of a holy blood and the holy grail type operation with arguments about track order and such things but horsemouth would like to point out the almost speculative realist interests in the consistency of materials - gravely digs, now the sand's become a crust etc.
today. bright, sunny and cold. horsemouth will go for a wander.
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