Because you think that poor is cool...

Through John Peel, I discovered the song "Common People" by Pulp. It is a track on the full-length album "Different Class" (1995).

Some of you out there must've been like "What?!? You never heard that track until recently?" (The flipside is that hopefully I've turned on a few people to this song...or maybe reminded you of its existence and reintroduced it into your life at this moment in time.) I'll admit, I know nothing. But that is what keeps me going...discovering new bands, new songs, new food, new people, new feelings. In regards to music, that's what dj's do. They play other people's music (durrrr...hahaha). So any fucking way, I'm listening to John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (2000) (I will definitely be writing a lot about John Peel in the very near future, as he is my favorite disc jockey of all time) and this song just grabs me by the balls. I literally had in on repeat for at least an hour. I don't know why it struck such a chord with me, and invariably with thousands of other people. It might be something I may ponder over sometime later in the future, but as for now, all I know is that I love the song. And you know how when you love something...and then something else about it comes down the line and makes you love it even more? Well, that's like the performance of this song I found a few weeks after having discovered the song.

So read the lyrics I've copied below...then check out the video and see how the song's performed as opposed to how you envisioned it if you're reading the lyrics for the first time. Or, fuck that and just watch the fucking video and read along (edit: how the fuck are you going to watch the video and read the lyrics at the same time??). Or fuck it altogether and twist one out. In any case...the lyrics and video of "Common People" by Pulp:


Lyrics (from pulpwiki.com):

She came from Greece, she had a thirst for knowledge
She studied sculpture at St. Martin's College
That's where I
caught her eye

She told me that her dad was loaded
I said, "In that case I'll have a rum and Coca Cola"
She said "fine"
And then in thirty seconds' time - she said:
"I want to live like common people
I want to do whatever common people do
I want to sleep with common people
I want to sleep with common people like you"

Well what else could I do?
I said "I'll see what I can do"

I took her to a supermarket
I don't know why, but I had to start it somewhere
So it started there
I said "Pretend you've got no money"
She just laughed and said "Oh you're so funny"
I said "Yeah? (heh)
Well, I can't see anyone else smiling in here
Are you sure?
You want to live like common people
You want to see whatever common people see
You want to sleep with common people
You want to sleep with common people like me"

But she didn't understand
And she just smiled and held my hand

Rent a flat above a shop, cut your hair and get a job
Smoke some fags and play some pool
Pretend you never went to school
But still you'll never get it right
'Cos when you're laid in bed at night
watching roaches climb the wall
If you called your dad he could stop it all, yeah

You'll never live like common people
You'll never do what common people do
You'll never fail like common people
You'll never watch your life slide out of view
and then dance and drink and screw
because there's nothing else to do

Sing along with the common people
Sing along and it might just get you through
Laugh along with the common people
Laugh along even though they're laughing at you
and the stupid things that you do
Because you think that poor is cool

Like a dog lying in the corner
They will bite you and never warn you: look out
They'll tear your insides out

'Cos everybody hates a tourist
Especially one who thinks it's all such a laugh - yeah
And the chip stains and grease
will come out in the bath

You will never understand
How it feels to live your life
with no meaning or control
and with nowhere left to go
You are amazed that they exist
And they burn so bright whilst you can only wonder why

Rent a flat above a shop
Cut your hair and get a job
Smoke some fags and play some pool
Pretend you never went to school
And still you'll never get it right
'Cos when you're laying in bed at night
Watching roaches climb the wall
If you called your dad he could stop it all, yeah

Never live like common people
Never do what common people do
Never fail like common people
Never watch your life slide out of view
And then dance and drink and screw
Because there's nothing else to do

I wanna live with common people like you
I wanna live with common people like you
I wanna live with common people like you
I wanna live with common people like you
I wanna live with common people like you
I wanna live with common people like you
I wanna live with common people like you, la la la la
Oh, la la la la
Oh, la la la la
Oh, la la la la lala
Oh yeah

Now check this out:



...


Something about Jarvis Cocker's voice...the frailty...the quivering...the balls out. The 'uh' he throws in. The everything.

Tell me this performance is not hot. I dare you. (And there's a whole story about the set...about how they weren't even supposed to perform and they were filling in for another band (which escapes me right now))...and yeah...history is made.



To sum up, I've heard that Jarvis Cocker's last album is pretty nice (which I'm excited about to find and buy)...which gets me thinking about how much awesomeness is out there and how it gets me high knowing how much there is to consume and share and that is what's keeping me going...