The Rock Turtleneck/R.E.M. countdown continues
#4: “7 Chinese Bros.”
No. 4 in our historic countdown of favorite R.E.M. songs is a spin on an old folk tale from the band’s second LP, Reckoning.
In many ways, “7 Chinese Bros.” is the quintessential early-R.E.M. song: jangly, plangent Rickenbacker guitar, melodic bassline, quirky drumming and a hearty dose of Athens eccentricity courtesy of RT honoree J. Michael Stipe.
Peter Buck’s single-string guitar line anchors “7 Chinese Bros.” somewhere between the Antebellum South and the Middle East. The lyrics, however, are more difficult to pin down. Fortunately, an all-night search of the Rock Turtleneck collegiate archives has dug up an out-of-print Cliffs Notes summary of the song's narrative arc:
"A boy enters some sort of tavern-like establishment. Smelling his sweet, short hair, a woman who is already seated suggests to the boy that he pull up a set so as to sit next to her. In a freewheeling conversation, there is talk of taking in a symphony at some point. Wrapping one’s heel in bones of steel is also discussed as a possibility.
At the same time, presumably on the other side of the world, seven Chinese brothers ingest huge amounts of ocean water – so much so that 7,000 years of bedrest are required undo the immense discomfort.
As the Chinamen tend to healing themselves, we discover that the woman has left the tavern, and the well-groomed boy is confident, or at least hopeful, that she will return. "
I can proudly attest that in its heyday, “7 Chinese Bros.” caused a roomful of Gen-X’ers to dance and sweat and sing at the top of their lungs as if this story was torn straight from the pages of their own lives. I saw these fine gentlemen play this and many other songs at the Agora in Hartford, CT on July 20, 1984 and it was literally a life-changing experience. Dozens of concerts later, it’s still the best night of music I’ve ever seen.
Herewith, a dynamite clip of the band several weeks before the Hartford show. This is from the Capitol Theatre, in Passaic, NJ, which I hear is lovely this time of year. Thereafter, you are directed to enjoy mp3s of “7 Chinese Bros.” and its doppelganger “Voice of Harold,” from the outtakes comp Dead Letter Office, wherein Mr. Stipe eschews his lyric sheet for a Southern Methodist church program. Both are... a must.
YouTube: R.E.M., "7 Chinese Bros." Passaic, NJ June 9, 1984
mp3: R.E.M., "7 Chinese Bros.", Reckoning
mp3: R.E.M., "Voice of Harold," Dead Letter Office
I always heard this as
ReplyDelete"wrap your healing bones of steel".