Post by errbt on Nov 26, 2014 0:26:58 GMT -5
Reading Salvo's excellent Wedding Album 20th Anniversary article the other day here on the board in THIS THREAD, I found a little aside by Simon that finally definitively solves a mystery for me about Too Much Information's opening lyric line:
Simon comments on the idolator.com article about the album's important anniversary:
"Very interesting piece on our Wedding Album, which in case you hadn't noticed is 20 years old.
However, Idolator, in common with many past reviews, mistakenly quotes "Destroyed by MTV..." As the 1st line of Too Much Information.
What I actually sing is "Destroy my MTV, I hate to bite the hand..." Written as a reply to the then ubiquitous "I want my MTV".
Of course it doesn't convey the sense of victimization which some would want to project on to the song. But then I didn't feel victimized. I simply DIDN'T want my MTV. And believe I was not alone in that sentiment."
AHA! It used to drive me crazy that all published lyrics of the song, including the CD/LP lyrics and (to this day) lyrics on the official DD website show "destroyed by MTV" as opposed to what it always sounded to me like he was saying (and turns out he was), "destroy MY MTV". I used to doubt my ear (which has always been very good at picking out music for playing by ear, but occasionally struggles with lyrics), thinking that maybe the mix had obscured the line, making it sound somehow like "destroy my" when maybe he really did say "destroyed by" as the lyrics always show. I certainly feel vindicated now, but Simon really shouldn't chastise anyone for getting it wrong, at least not until the lyrics get corrected on the DD website, LOL!
I had wondered in the other thread whether it was a case of earlier lyrics being included on the inner sleeve/CD booklet because the change came too late or was simply missed at the time (similarly to the "What Shall We Do Now?" lyrics being included in Pink Floyd's The Wall LP inner sleeve lyrics even though the track ended up being excised from the 2 LP set due to time constraints). Revisiting the epic unofficial Four On The Floor 2 disc set just now, it's clear that this was the case, as versions 1 & 2 of the song (tracks 8 & 15 on disc 1) clearly feature "destroyed by MTV", while versions 3 & 4 (tracks 3 & 7 on disc 2) both feature the altered line (both feature the same revised vocal take that was carried through to the final released mix - in fact version 4 IS the final release mix).
So there it is! Apologies if I'm late to the party and this was already discussed here at some point while I was AWOL, but this has bugged me for 20 years, so I'm relieved that Simon has confirmed the correct final lyric!
Had anyone else here continued to be confused/annoyed by this over the years, or was it just me?
Simon comments on the idolator.com article about the album's important anniversary:
"Very interesting piece on our Wedding Album, which in case you hadn't noticed is 20 years old.
However, Idolator, in common with many past reviews, mistakenly quotes "Destroyed by MTV..." As the 1st line of Too Much Information.
What I actually sing is "Destroy my MTV, I hate to bite the hand..." Written as a reply to the then ubiquitous "I want my MTV".
Of course it doesn't convey the sense of victimization which some would want to project on to the song. But then I didn't feel victimized. I simply DIDN'T want my MTV. And believe I was not alone in that sentiment."
AHA! It used to drive me crazy that all published lyrics of the song, including the CD/LP lyrics and (to this day) lyrics on the official DD website show "destroyed by MTV" as opposed to what it always sounded to me like he was saying (and turns out he was), "destroy MY MTV". I used to doubt my ear (which has always been very good at picking out music for playing by ear, but occasionally struggles with lyrics), thinking that maybe the mix had obscured the line, making it sound somehow like "destroy my" when maybe he really did say "destroyed by" as the lyrics always show. I certainly feel vindicated now, but Simon really shouldn't chastise anyone for getting it wrong, at least not until the lyrics get corrected on the DD website, LOL!
I had wondered in the other thread whether it was a case of earlier lyrics being included on the inner sleeve/CD booklet because the change came too late or was simply missed at the time (similarly to the "What Shall We Do Now?" lyrics being included in Pink Floyd's The Wall LP inner sleeve lyrics even though the track ended up being excised from the 2 LP set due to time constraints). Revisiting the epic unofficial Four On The Floor 2 disc set just now, it's clear that this was the case, as versions 1 & 2 of the song (tracks 8 & 15 on disc 1) clearly feature "destroyed by MTV", while versions 3 & 4 (tracks 3 & 7 on disc 2) both feature the altered line (both feature the same revised vocal take that was carried through to the final released mix - in fact version 4 IS the final release mix).
So there it is! Apologies if I'm late to the party and this was already discussed here at some point while I was AWOL, but this has bugged me for 20 years, so I'm relieved that Simon has confirmed the correct final lyric!
Had anyone else here continued to be confused/annoyed by this over the years, or was it just me?