Red right 10 Oct 2008 Ever wondered why it’s “red states”? Because it’s the “red right”. And as one of my favourite Australian lyricists has it, this is because of the red right hand: Take a little walk to the edge of town, go across the tracks Where the viaduct looms, like a bird of doom as it shifts and cracks Where secrets lie in the border fires, in the humming wires Hey man, you know you’re never coming back Past the square, past the bridge, past the mills, past the stacks On a gathering storm comes a tall handsome man In a dusty black coat with a red right hand He’ll wrap you in his arms, tell you that you’ve been a good boy He’ll rekindle all the dreams it took you a lifetime to destroy He’ll reach deep into the hole,heal your shrinking soul Hey buddy, you know you’re never ever coming back He’s a god, he’s a man, he’s a ghost, he’s a guru They’re whispering his name through this disappearing land But hidden in his coat is a red right hand You ain’t got no money? He’ll get you some You ain’t got no car? He’ll get you one You ain’t got no self-respect, you feel like an insect Well don’t you worry buddy, cause here he comes Through the ghettos and the barrio and the bowery and the slum A shadow is cast wherever he stands Stacks of green paper in his red right hand You’ll see him in your nightmares, you’ll see him in your dreams He’ll appear out of nowhere but he ain’t what he seems You’ll see him in your head, on the TV screen And hey buddy, I’m warning you to turn it off He’s a ghost, he’s a god, he’s a man, he’s a guru You’re one microscopic cog in his catastrophic plan Designed and directed by his red right hand Politics
Australian stuff Australian scientists resign from Murray-Darling Water commission due to a lack of heed 21 May 2011 I don’t usually post these announcements, but GetUp are reliable and on target. Today it was revealed that key scientists have walked away from the government’s Murray Darling Basin Authority process in protest. Right now the Murray Darling Basin Authority is in the final stages of recommending how to deal… Read More
Politics Pell may be censured by Parliament 15 Jun 200718 Sep 2017 Cardinal-Imam George Pell, who threatened Catholic politicians with excommunication indirectly (and exclusion from the sacraments directly) if they voted in favour of stem cell research being permitted in a new Bill, is liable to being held in contempt of the NSW Parliament, just as his west Australian counterpart, Archbishop-Imam Hickey… Read More
Censorship Goodbye freedom 10 Sep 201113 Sep 2011 Ten years ago tomorrow tonight I was watching an episode of West Wing, and, as I do, channel surfing during the ads. One channel showed a fire in the World Trade Centre, which less than a month earlier I had stood at the base of looking up like the Australian… Read More
interesting idea. and good song! but wikipedia sees it differently. in fact, many countries (including canada and the u.k.) follow the opposite scheme. maybe australia’s different? it does seem that some foreign news outlets that closely follow u.s. politics do it american-style….
interesting idea. and good song! but wikipedia sees it differently. in fact, many countries (including canada and the u.k.) follow the opposite scheme. maybe australia’s different? it does seem that some foreign news outlets that closely follow u.s. politics do it american-style….
The first thing I thought of when I read “red hand” was Ulster. Though the lyrics, with some minor modifications, could apply rather well to NuLabor in the UK. Are all his lyrics this interesting? If so I may have to aquire some of his CDs.
The first thing I thought of when I read “red hand” was Ulster. Though the lyrics, with some minor modifications, could apply rather well to NuLabor in the UK. Are all his lyrics this interesting? If so I may have to aquire some of his CDs.
The first thing I thought of when I read “red hand” was Ulster. Though the lyrics, with some minor modifications, could apply rather well to NuLabor in the UK. Are all his lyrics this interesting? If so I may have to aquire some of his CDs.
The first thing I thought of when I read “red hand” was Ulster. Though the lyrics, with some minor modifications, could apply rather well to NuLabor in the UK. Are all his lyrics this interesting? If so I may have to aquire some of his CDs.
That song also makes an appearance in the first Hellboy movie. I really liked the snippet of it I heard but didn’t know who sang the song, know I know so I’m going to have to go find a copy.
That song also makes an appearance in the first Hellboy movie. I really liked the snippet of it I heard but didn’t know who sang the song, know I know so I’m going to have to go find a copy.
The song is used in all the Scream movies, and in Shrek. Most of Nick Caves lyrics are good, a few are excellent, even less are so-so. /soren
The song is used in all the Scream movies, and in Shrek. Most of Nick Caves lyrics are good, a few are excellent, even less are so-so. /soren
The first I heard the Red Right Hand was on the X-Files tv show. It is a neat song. Got to get me some more Nick Cave!!
It was certainly on “Songs in the Key of X”. I had thought of it for so long as a theme for the Marlborough Man I had never considered a political meaning.
It was certainly on “Songs in the Key of X”. I had thought of it for so long as a theme for the Marlborough Man I had never considered a political meaning.
It was certainly on “Songs in the Key of X”. I had thought of it for so long as a theme for the Marlborough Man I had never considered a political meaning.
Yeah, there’s a short snippet in Hellboy – but it’s someone else singing it not Nick Cave. The use of it in Dumb and Dumber is hallarious probably one of the better jokes in the film (and probably sacriliguous to serious Cave fans). I’ve always wondered if there was something/someone specific Nick is refering to, or whether its clever peice of art that allows each admirer to perceive their own meaning. And yeah, most of Nick’s lyrics and songs are like this – dark poetic sketches.