Annotated “Diminishing Returns”

This post is for Tracy. She likes Harvey Danger’s newest album, “Little by Little”, and one of her favorite songs is “Diminishing Returns”.

But, she’s worried that she’s missing out on the underlying message of the song.

I’ve seen “The Annotated King James Version”, which goes through and attempts to explain all the song lyrics from Harvey Danger’s first album. I thought I’d do the same for this song. Maybe that’ll help Tracy, and anyone else…

The king of the swinging moves is back in town
And everybody’s tiptoeing around him
Surround him, as he
Pounds a silver hammer1
Drops a revolutionary grammar
Concerning the burning of city hall
And urban sprawl and decay

*Farewell to the day
Of having it both ways
Hell is other people2
Some people never learn
When optimism fails
And my cooler head prevails
I will meet you at the point of diminishing returns

Down in the abstract
Looking for a concrete artifact
Something to hold on to
Not one more thing to believe in
Stuck in a fallback
And fighting off a heart attack
And you’re so tangible
Like a nitroglycerin tablet
Under my tongue

Farewell to the day
Of having it both ways
The boom’s a bust-out
But thanks for your concern
When pessimism fails and
My coooler head prevails
I will meet you at the point of diminishing returns

Progress shall be defined
By your position on the bridge
As it burns
When populism, activism, urbanism fail
My cooler head, my cooler head will prevail
When there are no more gods left to annoit
No more noses to bend out of joint
I’m gonna meet you at the point of diminishing returns

1 Reference to “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” by The Beatles.
2 Famous mis-quote from Jean-Paul Sartre’s “No Exit”.