The Tragically Hip: New Orleans Is Sinking Meaning
New Orleans Is Sinking Lyrics
Under skies all smoky blue-green
I can Forksake the dixie dead shake
So we dance the sidewalk clean
My memory is muddy what's this river I'm in
New Orleans is sinking and I don't want to...
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The fella that wrote that New Orleans is *literally* sinking (and had an avg score of one from the rocket surgeons who voted for them, oh the humanity, haha).
If you live anywhere in North America and have not heard before that New Orleans is going to be x miles offshore as an island with huge huge dikes and levees, etc., an island under the sea level as they have in Belgium and Nederland.
So, downvoters of that contributor please stop voting if you can't pass this simple skill testing piece of the most common trivia I can possibly think of that every 9th grader in the US has heard at least once!
Now, onward and upward for the figurative. It is a person vowing that their attachment to something, in this case New Orleans, is so strong and way past irrational that they would rather die than live without this societal construct ("if New Orleans is sinking man then I don't want to swim").
~~~
Now, the construct? Segregation in the Jim Crow south (and I can personally attest that it is still socially unacceptable to eat in a public restaurant at the same table if you are white and black... I just did a sales run through rural Mississippi and N. Georgia and there are *still* places that won't serve unless you sit at separate tables, I was shocked!).
Think of segregation in the US, all those fine Southern church-going bible-reading White folks who said if New Orleans (i.e. segregation/Jim Crow generally, from the extrajudicial murders being commonplace for such offenses as looking too long at a White woman, etc., everyone knows the history that wants to) then I don't want to swim, this is what Gordie was writing about.
Listen to the song a good half-dozen times thinking about what happened at Ole Miss under Eisenhower, the reactions on both sides to Emmett T. and MLK Jr.'s murder and assassination's, etc. If you have a competent workman's knowledge of this part of American history once you hear it you can't unhear it, you'll never listen to the song the same again. -
A smokey blue green . People who think they own "ovr" world .
I think Gordon was telling you a life saving , ovr world is in bigv trouble . Its our history andvthe real truth . Gordon was shown the " proof " ironic " proof " like a picture proof in thevold and newv daysv.
The white light. Gordon is was ,,, a real Angel sentvto us by a real creator .
Smokey blue green is cyan .
They dont know what shade though ???
They are notveducated enough to realize.
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People are made fun of in school . People who are pretty smart , a lot smarter than me . They are amazingly more smarter than me and I can easily admit too that .
Gordon was obviously smarter than me . He may have had a private education ... or perhaps ...like myself and so many others ... went looking for answers before it drove him nuts . I think he found the answer . He knew it would make us " scared " too. I believe he loved us " all" because he knew it was wrong not too .
Please help ...... the answer is in the music.
Sorry I told a fib ...... .v. here
am a wave, a new wave
under me will be the whole country
wait, soon will be forever
I will flood your city (x2)
I am a wave, a new wave
wait, soon will be forever
I am a wave, a new wave
under me will be the whole country
wait, soon will be forever
I will flood your city (x2)
I am a wave, a new wave
Its translated Old Russian Lanquage .
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When he looked up he couldnt see the light . They take all the Gold . Blue and Green make Cyan .
Its clues . -
I believe the world is in big trouble . That been said , Gordon is an Angel . The smokey blue green . Wow .
Its the colour of light . Gold is yellow , Us Them is a Religious war ,from Scotland . It refers to the colours blue and green .
Add " " .... go ahead look it up .... then you have the colour of light .
Its a very sad lie we live , hidden truths our for fathers left for us . Cures for deseases . Our true history of a sort . Clues .
I miss you Gordon , we played it for them in New York , they had free smokes and a studio with 1000 songs on cassete .... any song you want ... free ... vhs recorded .... with rubber guitars.... cranked ... they had no " Tragically Hip " though..... i ran back to the hotel room ... i grabbed the tape .... i cued it up to play it in a nice beamer running back to the bar ... the keys are in all the cars !!... the guy rewinded it however ... so we played " I will believe in you , or I will be leaving you " Me , my brother , his sisters , his cousins , we screamed it !! Just like you did Gordon . My brother was sweating ,,, dripping ,, shaking his head and screaming it .... they played the whole tape ... New Orleans is the third song i believe . It a true story ... i can guess .. but not 100 % when though . After Toronto Sept 1989 though ...
The Best concert so far .
I know theres 1 more though -
i believe Gord was trying to say to live life to the fullest and enjoy it. Throughout his poetic lyrics you can learn what he was trying to say. New Orleans was the party town so he said if New Orleans is going down he's going down with it!!
T H A N K - Y O U, THANK-YOU VERY MUCH -
Just a quick note. To those saying its about New Orleans literally sinking, this song was released in 1989, prior to hurricane katrina.
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I feel it's about a nostalgic feeling. Looking back at a time he really had free-to-be-himself fun and when the night was winding down ("New Orleans is sinking"), that is, when he was passing out even, he didn't wanna stop.
Maybe got so wasted, that someone pulled the socks of him up, told him to shape up, he "can't piss with the big dogs" down there, he's just gotta take it easy, enjoy..
He spent so much time partying, he didn't bring anything back but memories, so when he looks at the memories, it takes him back, "fully-completely" ;)
he's lost... :( ("pale as a lightbulb...") and in that loss, he's losing himself... :'(
but when he seen the sign in the sky, that he may not know life, but life knows him, it gave him a feeling all good, new vim and vigor...which is when he found love...and now, he's someone else... <3 -
Slipping into depression.
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This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
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