• https://www.dead.net/features/greatest-stories-ever-told/greatest-stories-ever-told-throwing-stones
    Greatest Stories Ever Told - "Throwing Stones"

    By David Dodd

    Here’s the plan—each week, I will blog about a different song, focusing, usually, on the lyrics, but also on some other aspects of the song, including its overall impact—a truly subjective thing. Therefore, the best part, I would hope, would not be anything in particular that I might have to say, but rather, the conversation that may happen via the comments over the course of time—and since all the posts will stay up, you can feel free to weigh in any time on any of the songs! With Grateful Dead lyrics, there’s always a new and different take on what they bring up for each listener, it seems. (I’ll consider requests for particular songs—just private message me!)

    “Throwing Stones”

    Wouldn’t it be great if, someday, this song became irrelevant, an artifact of a barbaric time? But somehow, no. It hangs in there, and doesn’t recede into irrelevance.

    It’s been one of those times, these past couple of weeks, when this song just rattles around in my head.

    I’m a reference librarian by calling and trade, and it was pretty early on in my career when I was approached at the desk by a high school student with a question: “When did the Middle East Crisis start?” That was about 1984. According to a timeline hosted by BBC News, the situation dates from 1250 BCE, when the Israelites began to conquer and settle the lands of Canaan. It’s been pretty much nonstop since then.

    But, as the song notes, we’ve got a “whole world full of petty wars.” Petty or not, there always seems to be plenty worth going to war for around the world. “Throwing Stones” shows the dichotomy of “the kids”—dancing and shaking their bones, while the politicians throw their stones and it becomes clear we are on our own. On our own.

    The song debuted right around the time when things were heating up again in the Middle East, on September 17, 1982, at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine. They played it for the next ten shows in a row, for a total run of eleven, before giving it a one-night rest, and then picking it up again for two more consecutive shows in Oakland in the run up to New Year’s Eve. (The song finally appeared on a studio album with In the Dark, in 1987, and was released as a single, backed with “When Push Comes to Shove” in 1988.)

    Not to dwell on it too much, it seems worth noting that the 1982 Israeli conflict was just one of many at the time--the ongoing Iran-Iraq War, the Soviet war in Afghanistan, not to mention the Falklands War between Argentina and Great Britain. Additionally there was plenty going on in Central America, with revolutionary movements in El Salvador and Nicaragua facing opposition from US-funded military efforts.

    But the song’s focus is bigger than the “petty wars.” John Barlow’s lyric begins at the global level, or, it seems, at a cosmic level, bidding us to look at a beautiful, peaceful planet spinning in space. Or, at least, seemingly peaceful, until we encounter humanity. This is a Barlow theme of some significance, taken up in other songs—notably in “My Brother Esau,” in which the singer begins to understand, or, more feel than understand “the silent war that bloodied both our hands.” In “Throwing Stones” Barlow says that the nightmare spook is “you and me, you and me.”

    After all, where does the song’s title come from? Given Barlow’s theological background, it’s likely taken from the biblical tale of Jesus, told in the Gospel of John, defending a prostitute who is about to be stoned to death, challenging the crowd: “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” Or, maybe it derives from the folk idiom, “People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”

    Either way, it’s an admonishment to look first at yourself before criticizing the world—to refrain from hypocrisy.

    And where did that put all of us who sang the song, who relished the lines about politicians throwing stones, while we, we were on our own? Is there a little bit of irony waiting to be uncovered as we live with the song over the years? I don’t know. I like to think that one of Barlow’s tricks is to plant time bombs of exploding consciousness in his lyrics, but once again, just as with the phenomenon of hearing Hunter’s songs differently over the years, maybe it’s an internal thing, and not intentional. (Although I do think Hunter engaged in a conscious practice of writing songs that would resonate differently at different stages in our lives—part of the magic of his songwriting craft. I wouldn’t put it past Barlow, either.)

    The band played the song steadily from its introduction through the next 13 years, with its final performance coming on July 5, 1995, at Riverport Amphitheatre in Maryland Heights, Missouri. It often emerged from a Garcia ballad, say, “Stella Blue,” and dissolved via its rhythm into “Not Fade Away.” But, of course, there were exceptions, just to keep us guessing a bit.

    The song’s lyrics evolved a bit, too.

    With the fall of the Soviet Union, the lines about “money green, proletarian gray,” became “money green is the only way.” Other variants about dropping bombs for oil, or raping the earth, were sung depending on world circumstances at the time.

    As in many songs, “Throwing Stones” calls on rhymes from childhood to add something special to the soup of meaning. Barlow’s invocation of the “ashes, ashes, all fall down” nursery rhyme is eerily apt, and yet, even in the midst of all the direness, those of us listening, singing, and dancing along felt a certain innocence brought to the fore as we chanted those familiar childhood lines. “Ring around the rosie, pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, all fall down!” I have a visceral reaction, deep in my bones, to those lines, and the feeling of gleefully throwing myself to the ground along with all the other kids in the circle. It was fun—we didn’t know we were singing a song meant to remind and warn children about the dangers of the black plague. (Nursery rhymes and fairy tales can, not infrequently, serve a vital purpose of this type—carrying messages of warning, taboo, and fear down the generations in order to promote survival skills and instincts.)

    Maybe that’s what Barlow and Weir are up to with this song—crafting something extremely catchy, very danceable, appealing on the surface to our feelings of outrage at the terrible things “they” the politicians are doing, while instilling, subversively, the ideas that will save us. That we, being on our own, have to be the ones to make the world right. That unless we do that, we can’t throw stones.

    I liked it that “Throwing Stones” so often devolved into “Not Fade Away.” I know some grew tired of the combo, but in a way, they are one song. Because, at the conclusion of “Not Fade Away,” at a concert, while hoping for an encore, we would stand, often in the dark, clapping the Bo Diddley beat, singing, “No our love will not fade away,” (or is it “know our love will not fade away”?) over and over again.

    “Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free It's dizzying, the possibilities…”

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  • Default Avatar
    Sequitor
    10 years 6 months ago
    Shipping Powders
    I've always admired the cleverness of the line: "Shipping powders back and forth; black goes south, while white goes north."
  • Underthevolcano
    10 years 6 months ago
    a change...
    towards some more overtly political messages-less oblique lyrics. My thoughts about this song have alternated from enjoyment to boredom. Sometimes I love it on just a basic musical-rave-up level, although I always thought the solo was somehow echoing previous Dead in a cliche way. I really get sick of the pairing with "Not Fade Away". The message is there and is valid however and will, unfortunately, always be valid. I do think we are on our own. The question is should we shrug and shake our bones or seize the day? Dead 101 teaches the alternative of creating your own world but this song seems to caution that your world is trumped or could be trumped by larger forces or may border on selfishness in light of what is occuring on the large stage.
  • Gr8fulTed
    10 years 6 months ago
    Time to go get a beer song
    I never really got into this song, being a fan of the early 70's.
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By David Dodd

Here’s the plan—each week, I will blog about a different song, focusing, usually, on the lyrics, but also on some other aspects of the song, including its overall impact—a truly subjective thing. Therefore, the best part, I would hope, would not be anything in particular that I might have to say, but rather, the conversation that may happen via the comments over the course of time—and since all the posts will stay up, you can feel free to weigh in any time on any of the songs! With Grateful Dead lyrics, there’s always a new and different take on what they bring up for each listener, it seems. (I’ll consider requests for particular songs—just private message me!)

“Throwing Stones”

Wouldn’t it be great if, someday, this song became irrelevant, an artifact of a barbaric time? But somehow, no. It hangs in there, and doesn’t recede into irrelevance.

It’s been one of those times, these past couple of weeks, when this song just rattles around in my head.

I’m a reference librarian by calling and trade, and it was pretty early on in my career when I was approached at the desk by a high school student with a question: “When did the Middle East Crisis start?” That was about 1984. According to a timeline hosted by BBC News, the situation dates from 1250 BCE, when the Israelites began to conquer and settle the lands of Canaan. It’s been pretty much nonstop since then.

But, as the song notes, we’ve got a “whole world full of petty wars.” Petty or not, there always seems to be plenty worth going to war for around the world. “Throwing Stones” shows the dichotomy of “the kids”—dancing and shaking their bones, while the politicians throw their stones and it becomes clear we are on our own. On our own.

The song debuted right around the time when things were heating up again in the Middle East, on September 17, 1982, at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine. They played it for the next ten shows in a row, for a total run of eleven, before giving it a one-night rest, and then picking it up again for two more consecutive shows in Oakland in the run up to New Year’s Eve. (The song finally appeared on a studio album with In the Dark, in 1987, and was released as a single, backed with “When Push Comes to Shove” in 1988.)

Not to dwell on it too much, it seems worth noting that the 1982 Israeli conflict was just one of many at the time--the ongoing Iran-Iraq War, the Soviet war in Afghanistan, not to mention the Falklands War between Argentina and Great Britain. Additionally there was plenty going on in Central America, with revolutionary movements in El Salvador and Nicaragua facing opposition from US-funded military efforts.

But the song’s focus is bigger than the “petty wars.” John Barlow’s lyric begins at the global level, or, it seems, at a cosmic level, bidding us to look at a beautiful, peaceful planet spinning in space. Or, at least, seemingly peaceful, until we encounter humanity. This is a Barlow theme of some significance, taken up in other songs—notably in “My Brother Esau,” in which the singer begins to understand, or, more feel than understand “the silent war that bloodied both our hands.” In “Throwing Stones” Barlow says that the nightmare spook is “you and me, you and me.”

After all, where does the song’s title come from? Given Barlow’s theological background, it’s likely taken from the biblical tale of Jesus, told in the Gospel of John, defending a prostitute who is about to be stoned to death, challenging the crowd: “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” Or, maybe it derives from the folk idiom, “People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”

Either way, it’s an admonishment to look first at yourself before criticizing the world—to refrain from hypocrisy.

And where did that put all of us who sang the song, who relished the lines about politicians throwing stones, while we, we were on our own? Is there a little bit of irony waiting to be uncovered as we live with the song over the years? I don’t know. I like to think that one of Barlow’s tricks is to plant time bombs of exploding consciousness in his lyrics, but once again, just as with the phenomenon of hearing Hunter’s songs differently over the years, maybe it’s an internal thing, and not intentional. (Although I do think Hunter engaged in a conscious practice of writing songs that would resonate differently at different stages in our lives—part of the magic of his songwriting craft. I wouldn’t put it past Barlow, either.)

The band played the song steadily from its introduction through the next 13 years, with its final performance coming on July 5, 1995, at Riverport Amphitheatre in Maryland Heights, Missouri. It often emerged from a Garcia ballad, say, “Stella Blue,” and dissolved via its rhythm into “Not Fade Away.” But, of course, there were exceptions, just to keep us guessing a bit.

The song’s lyrics evolved a bit, too.

With the fall of the Soviet Union, the lines about “money green, proletarian gray,” became “money green is the only way.” Other variants about dropping bombs for oil, or raping the earth, were sung depending on world circumstances at the time.

As in many songs, “Throwing Stones” calls on rhymes from childhood to add something special to the soup of meaning. Barlow’s invocation of the “ashes, ashes, all fall down” nursery rhyme is eerily apt, and yet, even in the midst of all the direness, those of us listening, singing, and dancing along felt a certain innocence brought to the fore as we chanted those familiar childhood lines. “Ring around the rosie, pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, all fall down!” I have a visceral reaction, deep in my bones, to those lines, and the feeling of gleefully throwing myself to the ground along with all the other kids in the circle. It was fun—we didn’t know we were singing a song meant to remind and warn children about the dangers of the black plague. (Nursery rhymes and fairy tales can, not infrequently, serve a vital purpose of this type—carrying messages of warning, taboo, and fear down the generations in order to promote survival skills and instincts.)

Maybe that’s what Barlow and Weir are up to with this song—crafting something extremely catchy, very danceable, appealing on the surface to our feelings of outrage at the terrible things “they” the politicians are doing, while instilling, subversively, the ideas that will save us. That we, being on our own, have to be the ones to make the world right. That unless we do that, we can’t throw stones.

I liked it that “Throwing Stones” so often devolved into “Not Fade Away.” I know some grew tired of the combo, but in a way, they are one song. Because, at the conclusion of “Not Fade Away,” at a concert, while hoping for an encore, we would stand, often in the dark, clapping the Bo Diddley beat, singing, “No our love will not fade away,” (or is it “know our love will not fade away”?) over and over again.

“Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free It's dizzying, the possibilities…”

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Wouldn’t it be great if, someday, this song became irrelevant, an artifact of a barbaric time? But somehow, no. It hangs in there, and doesn’t recede into irrelevance. It’s been one of those times, these past couple of weeks, when this song just rattles around in my head.
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Greatest Stories Ever Told - "Throwing Stones"
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Wouldn’t it be great if, someday, this song became irrelevant, an artifact of a barbaric time? But somehow, no. It hangs in there, and doesn’t recede into irrelevance.

It’s been one of those times, these past couple of weeks, when this song just rattles around in my head.

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towards some more overtly political messages-less oblique lyrics. My thoughts about this song have alternated from enjoyment to boredom. Sometimes I love it on just a basic musical-rave-up level, although I always thought the solo was somehow echoing previous Dead in a cliche way. I really get sick of the pairing with "Not Fade Away". The message is there and is valid however and will, unfortunately, always be valid. I do think we are on our own. The question is should we shrug and shake our bones or seize the day? Dead 101 teaches the alternative of creating your own world but this song seems to caution that your world is trumped or could be trumped by larger forces or may border on selfishness in light of what is occuring on the large stage.
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I've always admired the cleverness of the line: "Shipping powders back and forth; black goes south, while white goes north."
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I was there the night this song had its debut. We were happy to hear new songs, although I never thought the Dead wore politics very well. That's not why we were at Dead shows. There was plenty of political commentary elsewhere. It was (and is) unavoidable, and that is important, but not while I'm expecting to get off on a sublime musical experience. I received a great audience recording of the show a few days later (with this song mis-titled "Ashes, Ashes") and after a much later transfer to digital media, I listen to it even now. One really odd thing about this show is that Brent did not have a vocal microphone at all. So it's just Jerry and Bob ably handling all vocals. I highly recommend it as an anomaly in the Dead canon.
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I would have to disagree what his song is about though. It is about the dangers of nuclear or other types of annhialation by greedy monkeys throwing stones ateach other and is especially apropo this week as the world grapples with a madman who doesn't want to let go of his chemical weapons. The Dead had recently done a "Dance For Disarmament" at the San Mateo County Fairgounds 12/12/81) with Joan Baez and the Nuclear Freeze Campaign to freeze the nuclear arsenals of both countries (the US and the USSR) was very hip at the time. There was definitely a popular movement of consciousness to take a step back (and take yet another step back) from the nuclear brink. This in turn was all a reaction to Ronald Reagan's turning up the cold war rhetoric against the USSR. So Barlow is writing this song somewhere in the last part of 81, early 82 and it gets debuted in 1982. Pefect timing, very hip. Everybody loved it at first and then it got overplayed but in the first few years, when it could appear anywhere in the 2nd set, I always loved to hear it.
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I always thought this song was about nuclear war and disarmament of nuclear weapons. No doubt conventional war is a major theme, though. I like Throwing Stones, in particular the guitar loop that Jerry plays in the middle section while Bobby does a minor rap. Anytime I hear Throwing Stones, I get taken back to my college dorm room c. 1988-9 and watching So Far with the trippy video sequences. But, that section with Jerry's loop and the buildup catches me every time. In So Far, after Bobby sings "His thoughts are gone, his cover's blown," Jerry is way into it and lets out a "Yeah" with a big grin and it's over... Just one of those moments that has stuck with me for 25 years now. We rewound that moment over and over-- Jerry groovin' like that wasn't seen so often. If you haven't seen So Far in awhile, worth seeing again. That said, I totally understand the folks who didn't enjoy it and felt it overplayed (especially with NFA back).
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The message is important, and the lyrics can be interpreted psychedelically (the darkness never goes from some men's eyes...dilated pupils, anyone?) black goes south white comes north (yin yang) But, I usually wince over it. Despite the hopefulness of the lyrics, it's simply a song that gets virtually zero play especially when paired with NFA. You know exactly what will be coming over the next 15 minutes. blah blah, and blah.
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adding another dimension, the Ashes Ashes All Fall Down originated not as a benign kids' nursery rhyme but a grim little rhyme about the Black Death.
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If I'm not mistaken, an uncredited David Gans wrote the "shipping powders back and forth" couplet, unless it was a different one. He also had a line or two in "hell in a Bucket"...
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Usually a much bigger fan of the earlier stuff too but there's just something about this song that I always loved. Maybe it's the tempo or something but I would have to put this into my top ten favorite Bobby tunes.
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okay, I like stringing the titles of songs together. Throwing Stones/Not Fade Away. Meaning the stone tossing won't fade away; ever. A few examples off the top of my head. High Time He's Gone Truckin'. Cassidy Might as Well Deal.Crazy Fingers Playin Uncle Johns Band. L.L Rain Candyman b.i.o.d.t.l. F.O.T.D Comes A Time Big River Feels Like a Stranger. Okay I'll stop. I liked when Jerry would chime in "you got yours". I grew Weiry of the Stones; yet being an in the darker/deader than thou era head appreciate the art of stone tossing.
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was played well...when they were on it, its a very powerful song. I think David got it right with the nursery rhyme bit. It definitely evokes some odd feelings in me...and I even remember from the first time I heard it, not even really knowing what the song was about.
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...on this one. I sometimes enjoy it, and other times not so much. I think it depends on whether I'm in the mood to think, or if I just want to relax? I also don't care for the pairing with "Not Fade Away". That song should always be paired with "Going Down The Road". But it's not my band, and that's why I love them. Just along for the ride.
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The song and lyrics are timeless. We still have our petty wars. The banksters own the politicians (and K-Street) with their 'money green'. Corporate interests own the media and manipulate 'current fashion'... The politicians divert everyone's attention by continuing to throw stones and divide. And, we're on our own... Fortunately, we have some collective hope and grace.
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Just as Weather Report Suite was or is something of a weather report for the spirit of the early 70s as they evolved from the 60s, so is Throwing Stones a synopsis of the all-inclusive scene as it evolved into the 80s and beyond. For the most part during the 70s we let the Grateful Dead come to us and they played in smaller venues like the old Boutwell Auditorium in Birmingham or the Fox Theater in Atlanta, and you were surrounded by a lot of people that you knew or were familiar from other concerts. And it was cooler on the band too, because they would recognize you from show to show if you took the time to smile and wave...and maybe throw a few joints on the stage for the band and road crew: our version of throwing stones, though my favorite time for that was always Playing in the Band: "...let him caste a stone at me (zing!) for playin' in the band..." Things changed a bit later on. The music was always there, but the scene definitely changed when the larger venues replaced the smaller and traveling caravans replaced the hometown crowds. You could still smile and wave all you wanted, but the larger stages and separation between band and crowd often defeated the aerodynamic capabilities of a rolled joint. But even with thoughts of "ashes to ashes all fall down" always a possibility on the playlist and otherwise, they still somehow managed to drag the old bus kicking and screaming into the 90s, where they arrived with songs like Rain, The Last Time, It's All Over Now (a personal favorite) and Baba O'Riley in tow: "...it's only teenage wasteland...". Not bad for a psychedelic garage band though, and I sure can't fault anyone who did manage to follow them all over Creation.
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One of the few truly cynical tunes they put out. Must have been the '80s!
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When I was 15 or 16 I recall explaining to my older sister that I was into Dead music, that it was different music. She was really square but mentioned, "I have a CD with the Grateful Dead on it." She handed me a two disc album put out by Greenpeace that featured many different artists and the Dead's 'Throwing Stones' was on there. I had been listening to Anthem of the Sun, AOXOMOXOA, Europe '72.... and realized upon listening to Throwing Stones that the Dead were much more than the 60's and 70's and that they had a message at times much greater than a mind altering thing. They were saying 'The time is Now!' Wake up and live! Be aware we are part of the planet and that crazy stuff is going on in the world driven by greed and recklessness. Anyway, thanks for the write up. Brought back a good memory from my youth, choosing the path less travelled and still on it. Also there was a song on that album called, "Last Great American Whale" by, I think it was Lou Reed? Anyone remember that one? Great song!
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The day the song was born 31 years ago tonight. My how time fly's. We called it ashes ashes for awhile. Band played it almost every night here after till the spring of 1983. Fun to be a part of the history of this band
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@ laughingwater -- Not sure Lou Reed's snarkiness compares to Barlow's global envelopment in Throwing Stones but Reed's lyrics are great. If you haven't listened to all of his "New York" you've missed his best. ***** ****** ****** ****** "The tribal brothers gathered in the lighthouse to sing and tried to conjure up a storm or rain The harbor parted, the great whale sprang full up and caused a huge tidal wave The wave crushed the jail and freed the chief the tribe let out a roar The whites were drowned, the browns and reds set free but sadly one thing more Some local yokel member of the NRA kept a bazooka in his living room And thinking he had the chief in his sight blew the whale's brains out with a lead harpoon Last great American whale last great American whale Last great American whale last great American whale Well Americans don't care for much of anything land and water the least And animal life is low on the totem pole with human life not worth more than infected yeast Americans don't care too much for beauty they'll shit in a river, dump battery acid in a stream They'll watch dead rats wash up on the beach and complain if they can't swim They say things are done for the majority don't believe half of what you see and none of what you hear It's like what my painter friend Donald said to me "Stick a fork in their ass and turn them over, they're done"
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I always loved this song, it really resonated for me being a kid growing up in and around Washington DC. The way this song was packaged was just perfect and the boys really took to thumbing their noses at the establishment on this one I always felt. Later in life as I realize Bob an Mickey are members of Bohemian Grove this song takes on a complete different meaning now. They are the fat cats in their summer homes screaming just leave well enough alone.
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Just because you think only rich people are members of the Bohemian Grove / Bohemian Club in Northern California doesn't mean that you understand it, what it stands for, nor the attitudes of those who are members. I am not a member, but have friends who are, and have had the fortune to enjoy the club on a few occasions. While the song is cynical, to say the least, it doesn't make its writers nor its singers hypocrites. The organization employs a lot of people and does good things for people in need too. "Throwing Stones" does not depict a world in Black and White.
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Surprised to hear that Weir and Hart are Bohemians. Just the fact that women aren't admitted would seem to be enough to keep normal people from joining. The Bohemian Club is famous for the following more than it's charity work, which isn't mentioned... In the summer of 1989, Spy magazine writer Philip Weiss spent some seven days in the camp posing as a guest, which led to his November 1989 article "Inside Bohemian Grove". He wrote about uninhibited behavior he witnessed: "You know you are inside the Bohemian Grove when you come down a trail in the woods and hear piano music from amid a group of tents and then round a bend to see a man with a beer in one hand and his penis in the other, urinating into the bushes. This is the most gloried-in ritual of the encampment, the freedom of powerful men to pee wherever they like..." Weiss noticed "hundreds of cigars whose smokers had ignited them in defiance of the California Forest Service's posted warnings." On July 15, 2000, controversial conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and his cameraman, Mike Hanson, walked into the Grove. With a hidden camera, Jones and Hanson were able to film the Cremation of Care ceremony. The footage was the centerpiece of Jones' documentary Dark Secrets: Inside Bohemian Grove. Jones claimed that the Cremation of Care was an "ancient Canaanite, Luciferian, Babylon mystery religion ceremony," and that the owl statue was Moloch. The Grove and Jones' investigation were covered by Jon Ronson in Channel 4's four-part documentary, Secret Rulers of the World. Ronson documented his view of the ritual in his book, Them: Adventures With Extremists, writing "My lasting impression was of an all-pervading sense of immaturity: the Elvis impersonators, the pseudo-pagan spooky rituals, the heavy drinking. These people might have reached the apex of their professions but emotionally they seemed trapped in their college years." The Owl Shrine covered in moss, standing among trees behind a stage at one edge of a man-made pond. Also filmed for The Order of Death was Jones' return to the entrance of the Bohemian Grove in 2005 where he filmed a protest organized by the Bohemian Grove Action Network that took place at the Grove's entrance on Bohemian Highway, only to discover a majority of the protesters engaging in an "occult counter-ritual" known as the Resurrection of Care, supposedly a counter-ritual against the Cremation of Care. Jones' narration for the film lambasted the protesters' actions and motivations from a religious standpoint. In 2005, Chris Jones (no relation) walked into the Grove when hired as an employee, and videotaped the Owl Shrine in daylight, even venturing inside the hollow statue.[26] He also got footage of effigies, the lakeside, and select camps; as well as stealing a membership list. Chris Jones said he was propositioned for sex several times by the Grovers. Alex Jones included Chris Jones' video in "The Order of Death".
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Loved your review of this song. >>Specifically<< >>I like to think that one of Barlow’s tricks is to plant time bombs of exploding consciousness in his lyrics, but once again, just as with the phenomenon of hearing Hunter’s songs differently over the years, maybe it’s an internal thing, and not intentional. (Although I do think Hunter engaged in a conscious practice of writing songs that would resonate differently at different stages in our lives—part of the magic of his songwriting craft. I wouldn’t put it past Barlow, either.)<< GD songs always answer the question of the day. For me, time goes on and I appreciate and listen to the music more as it relates to my life. >>I liked it that “Throwing Stones” so often devolved into “Not Fade Away.” I know some grew tired of the combo, but in a way, they are one song.<< Yeah, they played it a lot when I was seeing shows, but we all knew what to do and had fun. >>Because, at the conclusion of “Not Fade Away,” at a concert, while hoping for an encore, we would stand, often in the dark, clapping the Bo Diddley beat, singing, “No our love will not fade away,” (or is it “know our love will not fade away”?) over and over again. << We have had debates in our household over the exact lyrics. All I know is that I was singing, No our love will not fade away. But then again, I could see it the other way too. Ha ha thinking about this, I think I have sung it both ways. >> I have a visceral reaction, deep in my bones, to those lines, and the feeling of gleefully throwing myself to the ground along with all the other kids in the circle. It was fun.<< I remember ashes ashes, all fall down, as a kid and as a Dead Head. It made sense to me at the time. :) Thanks for this fun song review thing that you are doing Mr. Dodd. I just joined these boards and I think I will be spending a few hours now looking at what you have to say. So far, with the first one, I'm with you 100%. Thanks for making the effort. I look forward to what you have to say. Hammer
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16 years 9 months
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Wrong? isn't that an absolute? No my friend what is wrong is when the most powerful people in the world meet in secrecy every year to decide OUR fate. Good luck, I hope you wake from your slumber before its to late.
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11 years 3 months
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Just wanted to point out that it's interesting to compare this with other songs that view what's happening on Earth from outside of it. And that the visual that started all this is the incredibly enlightening Apollo 11(??) "Earthrise" picture over the moon. And speaking of the moon, for me the most interesting contrast with this song is Standing On the Moon. Hunter, later in the 80s, might be gently chiding Barlow to chill out and sing about the love that can be found on our planet rather than the evil. Another interesting contrast is Jesse Winchester's Defying Gravity, "Even the high must lie low." I agree wholeheartedly that Mr. Dodd is curating a great discussion group. I hope contributors will continue to stay on topic (hint hint)!
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10 years 6 months
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Thanks for the excellent write up David! Throwing Stones was one of the first songs I played over and over on my cassette player in my dorm to write down the lyrics which survived to be seen on a few of my apartment walls after college. Simply powerful. I had forgotten about that encore ritual until you mentioned it, wow! "Thanks, Barlow"
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16 years 9 months
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It's always good to have someone moseying around, kinda keeping an eye on things. You might be surprised to know some of the other things Dead Heads have done. We tend to get around a bit. And you just never know what you might find hiding in those old bushes deserved of such attention.
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16 years 9 months
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Thanks for the excellent discussion, everyone. This continues to be a lively and uninhibited group conversation, which is exactly the idea. Any guesses what song will be next?
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16 years 9 months
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(with arm in air) Pick me! Pick me!
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10 years 9 months
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This song gets me feeling like a Lost Boy Dancing around the Tribal Fire as my head explodes with mind expanding consciousness. It is so profound how the words resonate with the melody and resonate with the constant struggle to survive in this world. Its timelessly pertinent. Its Multi-Cultural like so much of the Grateful Dead Culture. All kinds of people can relate to this message. I happened to watch the three hour Gandhi movie last weekend. An amazing revolution in India achieved by peaceful means. Sadly the result was a civil war between the Muslims and the Hindus. That was solved by sending the Muslims to Pakistan and the Hindus to India. One sad scene had one displaced group heading south passing the other group heading north. Then someone started throwing stones. It boils my Irish Blood. How Long-How Long Must we Sing this Song? Funny how the closer you look at the human race the more you find the seedy underbelly. Us humans have a way of separating ourselves into little tribes and clashing with each other. "singing I got mine and you got yours" and a perverse justification to Deny You Your Share. Selfishness leading to Greed leading to Jealousy leading to Violence leading to Death. Is that really what us humans are racing towards? Fortunately we don't have to Dance this Kind of Dance. I think most folks are usually loving and kind. Love never Fails. We all just need Peace Love and Understanding. "Through this world of Trouble we've got to Love one another" I try to tell you but some are still intent to "Drive me Back." Theres always somebody fighting mad at somebody about something. I'd say that the conflicts began when Cain caught Abel rolling loaded dice. ( and that's my prediction David...lets discuss the Mississippi Half Step and see if we can find whats on the other side of the Black Muddy River"...) (( Is it cheating to name two songs with one prediction??)) We may leave this place an empty stone...but there are Better Possibilities. With a little Grace and and a lot of Mercy and a Whole Lotta Love I expect to arrive at a place that is Grand-Ee-O!
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16 years 9 months
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calling on Bach 2 Bach....
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16 years 9 months
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(sheepishly)nevermind....
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7 years 4 months
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So glad I subscribed! Living vicariously on what my husband reads. Was doing a little research on Throwing Stones first appearance. We just got home from a DSO show, and it was 12/26/82, blahdy, bla, bla. Anyway, this article goes a few years back, so I'm not even sure anyone will see it. Not sure that I care, just really need to get it out of my system. Very happy about the site so far, this blog is great, very smart and well written. Just one thing, did come to mind in this article, but it doesn't have to do with the band. " People who live in glass houses, should not throw stones", is more like a proverb than idiom. It's earliest use was said to be by Chaucer in the 1300's. Believe me not trying to sound like a know-it-all! I retain random, some would say "useless" information(I say ALL knowledge is useFul). Just had to let it out! 2am, no one to mention it to awake!!
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1 year 7 months
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Love all aspects of this tune. Intelligent, and rhythmic, keeps its view consistent. Gets harsh and fast and then thoughtful. Imagery is clear, and Weir's voice is strong, confident, as he and Barlow really evolved into a super songwriting team. Musically it has some muscle, power, sounds fun to play.