Chanson du Bon Chose

Lyrics

Saw the sycamore underneath the moon
I was waiting for something
And you were sleeping out there in the living room
And it was 5:16 A.M.
The air was sharp and cool
And I wondered where you buried our dark little jewel

And the heat rising in the room
I am digging graves
I am digging graves
And the water boiling on the stove
I am digging graves
I am digging graves

So I held you close to me
I saw the shadows start to gather outside beneath the sycamore tree
And something was changing
This was something here entirely new
Bursting into blossom inside of us both with the sun coming up
And me holding onto you

And your body breathing on mine
I am digging graves
I am digging graves
And your hands running through my hair
I am digging graves
I am digging graves

Banter

Occasionally if you're me, you go back and listen to some songs that, um, that you say, 'whoa, what was going on with me at that time?' I don't mean the ones that are actually like, you know, when I'm talking about my life, like 'Dance Music,' things like that, I know both of those stories, those are true stories. This song is a story, but we went through it in soundcheck -- wow, what was going on with you, dark little fellow? I mean, I remember, I was in college, things were generally pretty okay. Something festering in there somewhere. This is a song about festering. (2014-06-18)
I think there's one song in the catalogue prior to Beat the Champ that [modulates into a different key], and it literally only modulates on the last chord, and it's 'Chanson du Bon Chose' on Nine Black Poppies. (2017-06-06)

Live Performances

1997-11-14 - University of Wisconsin, Madison (recording)