The first time I heard the song 1979 by Smashing Pumpkins I thought to myself it must be a special song. That song must have special meaning for me because I was in my prime in 1979. That was the year I graduated from High School and if any song would have special meaning of course that must be the song that would pull these things together. Of course I knew that this would be so, because of the title alone. I didn't really hear the lyrics.From time to time I would meet with other people from my high school or college class; being the same age they could possibly relate to this new magical song about a time we had shared together. Perhaps they had already understood the song and they may have had some new insight into the meaning of 1979 in the grand scheme of things. Perhaps our class, the class of 1979, had contributed in some special way to forming gen X.
Even if we hadn't contributed in some great way, how does gen X look at us? What was it they see in 1979?
The following is a line by line analysis of the song's lyrics in an attempt to understand the meaning of the song, in an attempt to learn why 1979 means anything to the current generation.
1979
shakedown 1979, cool kids never have the time
on a live wire right up off the street
you and i should meet
junebug skipping like a stone
with the headlights pointed out at dawn
we were sure we'd never see an end to it all
This, being the first verse of the song must somehow introduce us to the current view of 1979. What is it that the author sees when he thinks the word 1979? First of all, it's shakedown 1979. This implies a quick change from the status quo. So, what was the status quo in 1979? It was the remnants of the late 1960's generation. The introduction of drugs and easy sex had flowed into the high schools. The next couple of words: "cool kids" affirms my suspicion that this song does indeed relate to high school, and not the disco scene that was happening in the older age group. Remember, discos were for people over 21 in most cases, and well out of high school.
Now, the author and his audience should meet someone called junebug. And Junebug skips like a stone. This illusion gives me the impression of a smooth repetitive Junebug consistently bouncing across the water. And headlights pointed out at dawn implies being parked, perhaps making out or doing drugs until the sun comes up the next day. Of course this repetition of self indulgence never looked like it would ever end.
and i don't even care to shake these zipper blues
and we don't know
just where our bone will rest
to dust i guess
forgotten and absorbed into the earth below
Well, this verse now makes it clear that we are talking about a continuous repetition of nights of making out all night in a car parked out on the road and since it is 1979, it must include drugs and alcohol as well. Now, the author can only see this fantastic continuous repetition ending in death, because what else could be more fantastic?
double cross the vacant and the bored
they're not sure just what we have in store
morphine city slippin dues down to see
that we don't even care as restless as we are
we feel the pull in the land of a thousand guilts
and poured cement, lamented and assured
to the lights and towns below
faster than the speed of sound
faster than we thought we'd go, beneath the sound of hope
Recalling high school, I am certain that the vacant and the bored reefers to the large number of students that turned to drugs as an alternative to the boredom experienced by the large middle class that suddenly had everything handed to them on a plastic platter. Morphine suggests that all of this self medication leads to apathy placed on a background of restless guilt. But, all of this supposed euphoria gave way quickly to a downward spiral that took away the dreams a life with a future.
justine never knew the rules,
hung down with the freaks and ghouls
no apologies ever need be made, i know you better than you fake it
The author goes into detail about one of these youths that had the good life taken away from him. Justine claims ignorance in order to avoid responsibility for his life.
to see that we don't even care to shake these zipper blues and we don't know just where our bones will rest to dust i guess forgotten and absorbed into the earth below
Once again the author expresses that the only future he sees is death.
the street heats the urgency of sound
as you see there's no one around
Fast forward to the present. Continuously caught up in the sex and drug scene finally looking up or standing back one sees they are alone. Everyone has gone their own way perhaps he finds himself homeless doing drugs under a bridge somewhere.
The other interpretation of this song is that back in 1979 the author got high and someone mistakenly gave him a pen and paper. He began to write some incoherent combination of words onto that piece of paper. Then sixteen years later the author hit a dry spell and he was looking for some words to set to music. He found the nonsense scribbled onto the dog-eared piece of paper and decides to set it to music. The rest is history.
You be the judge.
Copyright 1997
Michael Forbush 11-17-97
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