And not all the ideas I have about why people might do that are dark or terrible. It has always led me to think of the things that might make adults (proper citizens, perhaps) abscond from even their children in favor of living as wandering shadows (vs. I'm suggesting that The Way conveys very well a different story than that of two old senile people driving off the road. In that respect, the story of "The Way" can be compared to "Feel it Still." In the latter, "Leave her for the babystitter, momma, call the grave digger" carries a similar suggestion to the former's "The children woke up and they couldn't find them they left before the sun came up that day." Sometimes it was young women or couples on their way to Woodstock who might ditch their kids with moms & pops for way too long. The Man "Feel it Still" and tell me you don't see how it could relate very well to some themes that band's latest album (entitled "Woodstock") expresses.įor example, the chaotic social landscape of 1960's and 1970's America certainly included examples of parents leaving children behind. But even if not consciously intended, I think this song deserves high praise for its transcendent lyrics.Ĭompare it to the recent hit song by Portugal. I've read authenticated comments from the author of the lyrics that tie the song to the story of the elderly couple who drove off and disappeared to later be found dead in an auto accident (possibly dementia-related). So I posted one tonight that says the below: But I think there's more going on here poetically in terms of human mythic value for people than I found expressed in the 6 or 7 comments I just read tonight. Hey, this post was well to point and tight. They just drove off and left it all behind 'em The children woke up, and they couldn't find 'em They wanted the highway, they're happier there today, today They won't make it home but they really don't care You can see their shadows wandering off somewhere They'll never get hungry, they'll never get old and gray
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It's always summer, they'll never get cold Where were they going without ever knowing the way?Īnyone could see the road that they walk on is paved in gold They now had more important things to sayĪnd when their car broke down they started walking They drank up the wine, and they got to talking They left before the sun came up that dayīut where were they going without ever knowing the way? They’ll never get hungry, they’ll never get old and gray.They made up their minds, and they started packing They were grateful that the Howards got something larger-than-life attached to their legacies.”Īnyone can see the road that they walk on is paved in goldĪnd it’s always summer, they’ll never get cold “They never made a disparaging comment about this alt-rock guy writing about their family. In 1998 you couldn’t turn on a radio without hearing his song, titled “The Way.” Years later he met the couple’s children.
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But Scalzo didn’t change his lyrics-he preferred his version of what had happened to them. Lost and far from home, they had died the day after leaving Salado. Less than two weeks later, the Howards were found in their car at the bottom of a 25-foot cliff near Hot Springs, Arkansas. At the chorus, he switched to a major chord, to capture the fanciful triumph he imagined for the couple: they had found a way to cheat death and live on. “I was thinking,” he says, “maybe they just wanted to get away from their responsibilities and get back to that time when they were young lovers.”Īs this story unfolded in his mind, he began crafting some lyrics, pairing the words with a minor-key melody. They had almost certainly met with a terrible fate, but as Scalzo read, he was moved to imagine a romantic alternative. The story noted that both husband and wife were ailing: she had Alzheimer’s and he was recovering from brain surgery. One morning he came across a story in the Austin American-Statesman: “Elderly Salado Couple Missing on a Trip to Nowhere.” Lela and Raymond Howard, both in their eighties, had left home a few days earlier, headed for the Pioneer Day festival in nearby Temple-and disappeared. In the summer of 1997 Tony Scalzo was living in Austin and writing songs for his band Fastball’s second album. Press spacebar to see more share options.