Frail Grasp On The Big Picture

[Freypower]

Time for another 'song topic' I feel. In this track I particularly like the explicit nod to Randy Newman, who is a hero of both Don and myself. The 'good old boys' reference is the title of one of Randy's albums (and yes I do know what it means). The line 'even if one of them was to read a newspaper from cover to cover' is sung almost the way Randy would sing it with all those words being delivered in such a sardonic manner. Then of course he continues 'that ain't what's goin' on/journalism's dead & gone'. He should live in Australia, where about 90% of newspapers are owned by Rupert Murdoch.

Other Henleyisms include 'you keep on rubbing that, you're gonna get a blister' and 'you brought her here so go ahead and kiss her', not to mention the classic lines about the toothpaste.

Regarding the music it would be nice if it were Joe who were playing the funky guitar part. But as Don seems so reliant on Steuart now I honestly don't know. I like the percussion as well.

[Billy]

Interesting comments. I love the song too. Don's influence is paramount to it,but i also think that Steuart has had a lot of influence in the song, and album(I note that he co-wrote some of the songs) I suspect that that over the years, the guy's had to fit in tough schedules,so comprimises were made along the way.

anyway another A+ from me

[Maleah]

Musically.......love it. I love the funky beats and sounds to it. Lyrically.......excellent writing.......but not necessarily a big fan of it.

[EasyFeeling]

I regulary skip this song. This one and Fast Company are my last favourite Don songs on the album.

[Molly]

I regulary skip this song. This one and Fast Company are my last favourite Don songs on the album.

LOL! Frail Grasp is the 1st song I tend to listen to! I think it's my favorite on the CD's. Glad there's something there for everyone.

[Perfect Little Sister]

That's the beauty of this double album. (showing my age i know...double cd)

[Molly]

That's the beauty of this double album. (showing my age i know...double cd)

I hear ya, sometimes I feel like I'm moving at 33rmp's in an IPod world!

[Brooke]

Album is my choice word, too, so I'm with ya there!

This is not one of my favorite songs. It's ok. It's kinda funky. I probably won't skip it ..... much. I like the clanging sound in certain parts. It just fits and is kinda funny. I don't care for the organ and Jesus part at all.

Typical Don rant. But, I like him so much I can overlook some things!

[sodascouts]

I've already posted my thoughts on this elsewhere and they weren't very pretty! I'll try to be a bit more tactful, lol.

This is my least favorite song on the album, right there with Fast Company (BTW, when did "album" become an antiquated term? I thought it was just "record" that no one used anymore.)

But let me start with some positives. Here are things I like about the song:
1) The intro. When I first heard it, I thought, "this is going to be cool!" That feeling did not last, lol.
2) The way Don sings "Journalim's dead and gone"
3) The lines about the toothpaste and garbage (too funny!)
4) The guitar solo
5) The way Don sings what sounds like "hold on, hold on" towards the end at about 4:50. For some reason I really like that!

Negatives:
1) Don's "singing" during the verses mostly sounds like sing-songy talking with the occasional guitar note and beat. The worst part in this regard is the "Love-drunk friend" verse.
2) The chorus sounds like "Fast Company," my second to least favorite song.
3) The organ music during the part where he makes fun of people who believe in God - so trite!
4) And last but not least, the outrageously condescending lyrics. When I hear him sneering at the common man who discusses politics in a bar with his friends, I just shake my head. Apparently these lower-class people don't have a right to discuss world events because they do not share his high degree of enlightenment. What stupid blue-collar jerks, eh? And when Don turns his nose up at people who pray that folks won't get hurt at football games - which are usually parents of the kids playing (Don admitted this in a recent interview) - how tacky is that? I can understand his frustration at the Bush administration and the war, but I'll never understand the need to pick on everyday people who have a different set of beliefs than he does. Don't their life experiences count for anything? Maybe there is more to the Big Picture than even Enlightened Don can grasp. Maybe, in the grand scheme of the universe, even an educated and intelligent man like Don Henley "don't know much of nothin'."

"With respect to knowledge we are all children of the mist." - Henry David Thoreau.

[sodascouts]

That's the beauty of this double album. (showing my age i know...double cd)

I hear ya, sometimes I feel like I'm moving at 33rmp's in an IPod world!

LOL!!!

I also love that this album has something for everyone. They didn't let us down.