Lyrical Changes from Studio to Live Versions

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Brooke - I remember us discussing this before as well, but I have no idea where or when. So maybe both of us are losing it! However, I agree that the change is fairly insignificant. I think the change that Soda mentioned in the LITFL lyrics though changes the meaning of the line a lot.

FP - in the U.S., we commonly use lay the same way that it is used in the song, so it seems very natural here. Don't want to get into an English grammar lesson but in common everyday use here, we generally differentiate between them by using lay as a transitive verb and lie as an intransitive verb. We use the word 'laid' as the past tense.

[Freypower]

OK - pedantic point. Here, I would say 'I laid the table'* but I would say 'I lay in bed yesterday' and if it's now, I would say 'I lie in bed' or more commonly 'I'm lying in bed'.

*I would in fact be more likely to say 'I set the table'. That's the only time I think I would ever consider using 'laid'.

[sodascouts]

I looked for the convo and couldn't find it, so let's start it again.

To me, the change in LITFL is very significant. The original version:

"They were rushin' down that freeway
Messed around and got lost
They didn't care, they were just dying to get off"

When I hear it in this context, I interpret it as people so focused on "getting off" - seeking pleasure - that they didn't care about the cost. Also, you can see "dying to get off" as literally killing themselves in the pursuit of pleasure, especially in terms of the hard-core drug use.

The new version:

"They were rushin' down that freeway
Messed around and got lost
They didn't know, they were just dying to get off"

Now, they're confused and it's not necessarily about not caring, it's about not understanding what they're doing to themselves or what's happening to them. You can take "they were just dying to get off" as they wanted badly to "get off" the crazy freeway and give up the destructive lifestyle but they don't know how because they're in too deep; they're addicts. That's just one possible interpretation.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

ITA with your assessment there, Soda. It's very interesting the difference that one word can make.

[TimothyBFan]

You know, I don't think I even realized that LITFL had changed? Strange!

Are there more of these that anyone is aware of?

Also, do we know exactly when they were changed?

Remember that thread we had that if you could interview the Eagles and ask them anything you wanted.... I think I just added, "why did you change the words in some of your songs from the original versions?". Really have my curiosity peaked now.

[Freypower]

In Already Gone the original lyric is 'heaven knows it wasn't you who set me free'. Glenn now sings 'it wasn't you TO set me free' which I feel uneasy about in terms of correct grammar because it doesn't sound right. I have no idea why he changed it and to me it doesn't improve the message.

[GlennLover]

Hasn't Glenn also sung, "swing"? I'm pretty sure I recall this from some LROOE videos we saw on youtube. To be honest, I don't think any of the changes are that significant.

I actually like it when he changes up or adds something. IE: In TS, when he adds the "go down to Mexico" bit... and I can't think of it now, but wasn't it in 'Ol 55 where he changes it up and makes it funner... something about getting in a Chevy... oh dang, help me out, it's escaped me!

LTL, I think I have heard Glenn sing the "Mexico" verse 3 different times & the words weren't exactly the same in any of them. Seems almost like an ad libbed verse.

Was it "Outlaw Man" that you were thinking of where Glenn sings "in a '56 Chevrolet" in a video (Seattle?)?

[sodascouts]

Ooh, I love the Mexico verse! I wonder if it was cut from the original track? He sang it pretty consistently back in the day. The lyrics are something like

I'd love to go to Mexico
Somewhere where the pace of life is slow
And there's no one there I know
It's another Tequila Sunrise
I'm wondering if I'm growing wise
Or telling lies

Here's a video from Houston 1976:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IPgJIEEc7I[/ame]



And I love the Outlaw Man bit too!

Original: "Headed for Oklahoma...I was riding night and day"

Live: "Headed for Oklahoma... in a '56 Chevrolet!"

[luvthelighthouse]

Thanks girls, that's it!!! Outlaw Man. I knew there was another song that Glenn funned up! It was driving me nuts!

[GlennLover]

Here's another version of the "Mexico" verse. The words are slightly different, e.g. "I'd love to go to Mexico".

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vuVOqpBBXE[/ame]