Harbor Lights

All Music review: Leaving behind the Range, Bruce Hornsby trades heartland rock for a cooler, jazzier sound with Harbor Lights, an album that nonetheless retains his affinity for sincere portraits of American life, love, and heartache. The title track is a humid, celebratory song that evokes a romantic summer evening in the South, setting the stage for a collection of humanistic songs. If the album has an underlying theme, it’s the necessity of seeing yourself and the ones you love through the hard times as well as the good. The purely upbeat songs, like “Rainbow’s Cadillac” and “What a Night,” are counterbalanced by the sober “Fields of Gray” and “Tide Will Rise,” and the cultural commentary of “Talk of the Town.” The music is uniformly excellent, with Hornsby’s piano work blending seamlessly into the rich arrangements. Each song usually ends with an extended instrumental section, but these flow naturally instead of feeling like tacked-on jam sessions. And Hornsby isn’t just showing off here, as he lets other voices, like Branford Marsalis’ sax and Pat Metheny’s guitar, get their say. In later albums, Hornsby’s focus on music would tend to overtake his lyrical content, but Harbor Lights marks the point at which he found the right balance between virtuosic playing and personal storytelling.

Harbor Lights

The song starts with one of those mellow piano ditties that are so characteristic of Bruce (Song C, Song D, beginning of “Show Goes On” etc…). However, with a few quick notes, the song bursts into action. It’s a surprisingly erotic song by Hornsby standards, in which the guy is suggesting that he and his partner go down to the beach for some floodlit action – “Whatever you want I want more” – and I don’t think we’re talking about beach volleyball here…

The main point about this song is a musical one – with elaborate and expanded electric guitar and drum solos, it’s clear that this album will be different to anything that we heard with “The Range”.

Carwyn Fowler

China Doll

Again, note the expansive roles played by both electric guitar and drums, giving the song a more “jazz” than “pop” feel. I believe there’s an interview by drummer John Molo, which you can enter from Si’s site, suggesting that this song represents a high point in Molo’s recording career. Clearly, these songs may have come as a shock (pleasant or otherwise) for those Bruce “traditionalists” reared on the 4/4 rhythm and “Bonehead” sound (see “Scenes from the Southside” lyric views).

Lyrically, the song is not really one of my favourites. However, it is based on that old Bruce theme of reaching out a hand to a more vulnerable person (Carry the Water; I Will Walk With You; Lost Soul etc.). In this case, the subject is a woman in a fragile life situation. I believe the more sophisticated ambience of the song, including the title, suggests a darker theme, perhaps more akin to the subject of that old Police favourite, “Roxanne”.

Carwyn Fowler

Fields of Gray

I think this song is beautiful. Thematically, we might link it to “I Will Walk With You” on Scenes from the Southside. Indeed, browsing through the set lists available on Si’s site, it seems that both songs have occasionally been played by Bruce linked up into one. No matter, this song does stand out on its own, as testified by a couple who had this song played at their wedding (See Hornsby’s official guestbook)

The title of the song seems to be resembled to Sting’s “Fields of Gold”. Furthermore, the themes are remarkably similar, in that they are about a loving relationship. However, there is a massive contrast between the two. While Sting’s song paints a vivid, sensual relationship, Bruce focuses on the everyday side of life, and the general importance of “getting through” average days together. At first glance, this might seem a resigned, pessimistic theme. As one part suggests:

“When I was younger I saw things in black and white/ now all I see is a sad hazy gray”

However, Hornsby finally makes it clear that there is indeed something special in itself about just being there for one another:

Carwyn Fowler

Elyce Turner adds:

Carwyn mentions that the song is about a ‘loving relationship’, and I think it’s important to note that this is not just any loving relationship, but more about the amazement of parenthood. While romantic love can be intense and all consuming, parental love goes to a whole different level. He talks of how the entire world shifts into a different mode when a person becomes a parent, and how the mere site of one’s children can be a reminder of all parenthood means. The song is like his promise to forever be a presence in the lives of his children – regardless of the circumstances.

The Tide Will Rise

It has already been shown throughout “lyric views” how Bruce Hornsby has demonstrated a concern for general social and human issues. This song is clearly another case in point. In fact, we might link this song with “Look out any window” from Scenes from the Southside. In that song, Bruce hinted at the plight of the man “sitting in a boat, pulling lines from the water, just trying to stay afloat, filling nets is getting harder.”

“The Tide will Rise” develops the plight of the small fisherman. Again, Hornsby has probably based this song on a theme from his native Virginia. In this case, the Chesapeake Bay tidal water. However, as with most of his songs, they can be applied to situations all over the world, (as the beleaguered cockle pickers (and Hornsby fans) of the Carmarthenshire coastline in south west Wales will testify!).

There is very little to develop in terms of the lyrics, it’s quite straightforward. However, one point to note is that in almost all of Hornsby’s songs of social interest, he tends to concentrate on the human aspect, rather than overtly attack any specific political individual or administrative organisation, as he did once in “Defenders of the Flag”.

So in “The Tide Will Rise”, we get a sense of perpetual struggle, both against the elements and the changing environmental conditions.

“Sometimes I get lucky, most times I come up short…” “..Red sky in the evening, better times are coming, they say, but why do I feel like it’s all coming to an end?”

However, there is an equally strong emotion, that is the pride and independence of the small fisherman.

“Never bowed to no one, always went my own way…Broke down, run aground, but I won’t run away”

I’m not too keen on the synth instrumental at this point. I think there was a chance here for one of those brief but sweet guitar solos from Marinelli (see “The Show Goes On”, Scenes for the Southside.) However, this is splitting hairs. This song is an inspiring one for me, as I am entirely dependent upon the sometimes equally precarious occupation of busking for a living.

Carwyn Fowler

Long Tall Cool One

This song has taken a while to grow on me, but now I could listen to it all night. No real message to the song, it’s just a song about a guy who gets involved in some shady dealing. A great gangster-style scene which involves driving “out about 13 miles” to a bar to discuss a deal – half expect Robert de Niro to make an appearance in the song. I suppose the main attraction of the song is the sax/clarinet solo which goes on throughout. However, listen carefully and you’ll also spot some pretty nifty bass guitar playing, which I believe is the key to the song.

Carwyn Fowler

Rainbow’s Cadillac

This song is right up there in my all time Hornsby top ten – it probably stands at about #3, having listened to some fairly funky live versions of it. Can’t wait for the Noisemakers version. The steady drum sets the rhythm – I think it’s meant to represent a bouncing basketball, as the character is some sort of playground basketball hero, renowned for his wild dress tastes. Apparently he dresses in “Fancy shirts and shorts of Plaid”. For the UK listener, this could connotate either a Scottish or Welsh connection: I assume that it’s a reference to his tartan-style clothing. It would surely be stretching the boundaries a bit if I were to suggest that this guy had an underhand connection with Plaid Cymru, the Welsh national party.

I could point to several notable aspects of this song: The piano/guitar/brass section solos, the contribution of Debby Henry/Bonnie Raitt to both recorded and live performances of this song. There’s also a strong southern feel to the song. This is represented by the organ background which characterises so many of Bruce’s songs (“Shadow Hand” being one recent example). There’s one particular passage, however, which is both extremely funky but totally incomprehensible to me in terms of its meaning:

“Take a quarter from the collection plate

Every night he would dominate

Jump to the top and pick off a dime

Throw it down at the proper time”

????????

If anyone could illuminate me I would be very grateful. Indeed, you would be contributing at least a small part to my daily life, as I tend to listen to this song almost every day on my (private) travelling compilation.

Carwyn Fowler

Elyce Turner adds: First, to answer Carwyn’s question about the lyrics:

“Take a quarter from the collection plate

Every night he would dominate

Jump to the top and pick off a dime

Throw it down at the proper time”

I think Bruce is referring to the fact that this character was thought of as a neighborhood ‘god’ – so the ‘collection plate’ reference relates to a church thing. Like the people who came to watch this guy work his magic on the court were coming to worship each time.

In addition, while I know that this song IS about this neighborhood basketball god… I always got a sense that there might have been some reference to Grateful Dead summer tour. Lyrics like: “Fancy shirts and shorts of plaid, and a coat of more colors than Joseph had” could be applied to the wild, tie-died circus of people who traveled around with the Dead.

Of course the lines, “Every night about a quarter to ten, from the middle of June to the Summer’s end/people would travel from miles around/ to see the mighty Rainbow knock ‘em down”. At a typical dead show, the 2nd set was probably starting right around 9:45…. and people DID come from miles around, and of course in this case, the ‘mighty rainbow’ was not only the colorful fans, but Jerry’s mighty music.

While this is certainly not what Bruce was thinking when he wrote the song, I think many artists DON’T tell what they were thinking when they wrote a song, so listeners can come up with their own versions…. this is mine.

The interpretation of the verse you quote on this song is as follows:

Take a quarter from the collection plate – is money taken from the tray/basket that is passed around churches for the collection of money from the parishioners or it could me the money that the players maybe used for betting on the games between themselves.

Every night he would dominate = he was a basketball stud

Jump to the top and pick off a dime = this is a phrase that was popular about 20 years ago. Basketball players that could really jump high could touch the top of the backboard. If memory serves me correct, there may have been players that could put money on the top of the backboard (a quarter). Then others would say that a certain player could jump up, get the quarter and make change (two dimes and a nickel). Anyways, it just means that the player was one of those special players who could really jump high.

Throw it down at the proper time – means that some one would throw the ball up in the air and over the basket and he would jump up very high, grab it with one hand and slam dunk the ball.

Best Regards,

From a former basketball player wannabe that could never jump

Tim K

What a Time

Obviously, this song is about an incident that happened in a city somewhere, I would be grateful to anyone who could fill me in on when and where this happened. What seems to have happened is that “…round about midnight..the city went as black as coal” after what seems like a big power failure. Naturally enough, Hornsby would view this occurrence as occasion to celebrate some good times with the “Thousand people singing in the dark”. A reference in the song to a “landlord” cursing after the water tank burst in the back yard, suggests that Hornsby was in a pub at the time.

Carwyn Fowler

Talk of the Town

Elyce Turner writes: About the first interracial couple in a more ‘traditional’ southern town (aka – racist). This song discusses the turmoil this couple causes for the simple town folk. Everyone from their families to the town government are having problems with this couple, but they don’t care. They flaunt their relationship to the world because they know that their love is more important and stronger than any amount of racism.