Jon Spencer Blues Explosion Meets Rik Johnson Brain Explosion...

This afternoon, as I was listening to some of my go-to "concentrate on writing" music, that being the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, I found myself getting a little more immersed in the lyrics than I expected.

Part of why I am able to write during Spencer's music over many other artists is because the main thrust of his music is not the lyrics. His songs tend to be exercises in style and rhythm over saying anything even remotely profound. His music is based in rhythm and blues, but with a very punky edge, a massive dose of ironic detachment, and a wild, often non-PC sense of humor. Spencer often makes grunts and crazed noises into the microphone (a la Lux Interior) just before whipping off another frenzied run of squalling, squealing guitar notes.

When I listen to music casually, I tend to concentrate first on the lyrics over the music in most things that I listen to in my collection. But when I listen to lyric-heavy music while I write, I get easily distracted when I find myself singing along instead of focusing on my own words. This means that I needed to cultivate a certain portion of my collection that leans more towards the instrumental. And I now have a lot of options, running from Beethoven symphonies all the way to Man or Astro-Man (who have very few songs with actual singing in them), the group that is possibly my favorite all-time for this very purpose.

But Spencer also counts in that area, even though he does have lyrics in most of his songs. The thing is, Spencer's lyrics are often hard to discern, chiefly due to the wild roar he uses to shout over his most often very loud music. He growls, he grunts, he groans, he whoops, and he whines, and every third word or so on every other song, you might make out a line or two clearly, most often a joke that he really wants to sell you. I own several of his albums, and have listened to at least three of them probably umpteen dozen times or more, and I am still working my way through some of his lyrics.

Then there is History of Lies, one of my favorite tracks off his Extra Width album from 1994. (I maintain this album is probably the best entry point into his music, but others would probably point to 1996's Now I Got Worry, which featured the song "Wail" (which actually got some airplay and also some time on MTV. Or you can just listen to Spencer's wonderful song Bellbottoms, which is used in a major scene in Edgar Wright's terrific Baby Driver.)

While listening to History of Lies for what may have been the 300th time (but the first time in the Trump era), I was supposed to just let the heavy, rumbling blues riff that anchors the song wash over me and not think about anything being said while I attempted to concentrate on a piece I was writing for The Shark Film Office. But Spencer got the best of me, because History of Lies had some hidden stuff that was going to come back to bite me. And once that got started the writing stopped...

I was struck near the end of the song when Spencer invokes the number "45" in his final go at the song's brief chorus. Then I started thinking about the song's title, and then the lyrics where he says "You're still talkin' all that shit out your mouth," and then what mostly amounts to a series of insults, calling the target a "vampire," and then telling that person that he is "gonna treat you... like a stepchild."

I am still pretty certain Spencer was either putting down a past romantic partner or just somebody with whom he had a falling out or a long dispute. And the opening verse with the insults could be made worse if there something misogynistic in his threats. But there are no clues as to the gender of the target, apart from Spencer singing "between you and I, son" during the bridge before the brief guitar solo. The "son" part could even potentially make Spencer himself the target, as if this were his father talking to him. The song was released at least 23 years ago, possibly more, and so it has to either be about someone in Spencer's life or just in his imagination.

But then I got to thinking: so many of the lines in this song are almost directly applicable to "45". The constant yelling about lies over and over, having a veritable history of lies (no one lies more bigly), growing so ugly that the narrator can't even "look at you," and having bad blood within. BUT then Spencer invokes "45" right at the end of the song (though he is likely talking about a gun... or maybe even malt liquor). Whatever the "45" is, it is hard for me to not to think of the current ill wind blowing hot air in the White House.

What if, 23 years ago, Jon Spencer was actually a political prophet? Did he smell the foul stench of the rise of Trump from the distance of almost 2½ decades?

Of course not... I don't believe in that junk. I'm just having fun. But if you have never heard Jon Spencer (while knowing it was him) and his terrific band, here's the song on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctsJ3Pf8jQI

And here are the lyrics, so you can play along at home:

History of Lies
by the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

"You're still talkin'
All that shit out your mouth
Come home
I been a fool too long
There's blood within
That's bad
You grown so ugly
Vampire
I can't even look at you
Stupid child
Why do you lie?
I'm gonna treat you
Treat you
Like a stepchild
Watch it!

You and I
That's a history
Of LIES

Late night
Hollywood
You're so alone
Baby, angels
In the sand
I'm on high
Where you goin’?
Understand
Let me tell you about it
It's hot
It's cold
It's hot and it's cold
And it sucks
At the same time

You and I
That's a history
Of LIES

Our bodies
Are made up of
Like molecules
Between you and I, son
There ain't much difference
You still got to choose

Come on!

You and I
That's a history
Of LIES!!

You and I
Forty-five
Sssh…"