These works are COPYRIGHT and CANNOT be reproduced without James' permission in writing
LIFE IS STRANGE
1973
Life
is strange is the second part of a trilology, a series of life songs,
Life is a Gas, Life I Strange and finally in 1976 Life's an Elevator,
all
reflecting the period they were wrote in. At the time of Tanx it is
rumoured that Marc was pretty out of control, detached with no grip on
reality. So It's comforting to know then he could, with the aid of his
music
offer us a clear and true insight into his world, because in effect, that
is
exactly what Life is Strange does. The first thing to remember is numbers,
that might seem strange but numbers are the key behind certain beliefs
and
are tied in closely with not only spiritual beliefs but a whole host of
religions. Numbers as we shall discuss in other parts of this book featured
strongly in Marc's life. As mentioned this song was part of a trilogy,
and
as the song says three is the magic number. If you listen to that song
you'
ll get an understanding. Three is a powerful number and can be used to
describe any number of crucial things. So it is fitting Marc should write
just three life songs. They neatly bracket certain stages of Marc life.
The beginning, the middle and the end. Or to put it in simple terms, 1972,
1972 and 1976.
Two
unusual things feauture in the production of Life is Strange, the first
is that it features backwards drums, unusual for Marc, secondly it features
a backing of birds, it sounds like someone has stood in an Avery and
recorded the noises. These feature most prominently at the beginning and
at
the end of the track. The meaning to these? I have always linked them
to
nature, the natural side of life, perhaps I am looking too hard, perhaps
it
was nothing. The song starts with backwards drums and enters into a slow
acoustic almost dreamy tune. There are two acoustic guitars, which enhance
this feel further, the song has very dense production, which in fairness
could have been simplified, and the vocals have a slightly heavy sound
to
them, a typical Tanx sound. Unfortunately one, which on an acoustic number
such as this takes away some of the magic of Marc's voice. The bird noises
continue in the background with no immediate explanation. Through out
the
song Marc simply suggest that life is strange, it's not till the end of
the
song that Marc says 'Oh God my life Is strange', perhaps the backwards
drums
at the beginning simply suggest that Marc's life was back to front.
The
lyrics are not a revelation, they simply tell us of the madness of Marc'
s world, the hollowness of it and the way people were towards him. With
heavy references to the women he must have been encountering. Marc tells
us, as in Life's a Gas, that his life is still good, but it is evident
that
since 1971 his life has taken on a surreal quality. This is evident not
only in the lyrics but as mentioned earlier the production.
The
lyrics do not touch on perhaps the most in depth emotions or subjects.
But as with the rest of Tanx, it is sung with a certain amount of disdain
and sadness. Notice again though, as in Slider, Marc mentions God, as
if
some God life being will give him what he needs. The search and need for
spirituality was something that obviously was a huge part of Marc's life
Strange,
life is strange
Life is strange
Oh life is strange
Oh
God life is strange
People come and people go
Some move fast and some slow
Na na no
Oh
God life is good
Some are fat and some are thin
Some won't even ask you how you been
I suspect that at the time of recording Tanx, there were an increasing
number of hangers on in Marc's life, as Marc sings 'some won't even ask
you
how you been', it shows perhaps the shallow nature of fame.
Na na no
Strange,
life is strange
Life is strange
Oh life is strange
Oh
God life is good
Some are fat
And some are thin
Some won't even ask you how you been
Na na no
Oh
God life is strange
Some are fast
And some are slow
Some believe and don't even know
I have
always took the last line, as a reference to those who believed in
Marc, yet had no idea of his loneliness or his true feelings. They believed
in the Marc Bolan creation but perhaps not the true Mark Feld. It's like
someone saying, well you see me up here, performing, being outrageous,
doing
these songs, you think it's really me, but you have no real idea of who
I
am.
Na na no
Strange,
life is strange
Life is strange
Oh my life is strange
Oh
Bird noises (fade)
As I
said earlier it is not till the last line that Marc tells what we knew
from the beginning, that his life is strange and that it's his life he
has
being singing about. Of course all life is strange, the song could apply
to
any of us, but in a moment of madness it is Marc looking up and saying,
well
this is ludicrous but it's the way things are.
There
is some talking as the bird noises continue, a word or two but I am
not able to make it out, the way they continue after the song finishes
is
interesting, they even get slightly louder before fading.
The
production is very Tanx, lots of layering, lots of effect, vocal and
otherwise. In 'Life is Strange' they give the song the necessary surreal
effect to match and reflect the lyrics, but in the same way they take
and
edge out of Marc's voice. Marc sings with well, but somehow the song feels
a little to loose, it's a good song, but somehow it does not come together
for me as well as it should. A home demo exists, a fragment of the main
guitar part plus part of the lyrics. This leads me to believe that this
some was probably pretty much made up on the spot. It's only at the end
of
the song that Marc changes the lyric and the same basic verse chorus pattern
runs through out the song.