Christmas Lyric of the Day
by KevinDecember 17th, 2006
Rebel Jesus is one of my favorite Christmas songs, despite the fact that Jackson Browne is an awful musician. Despite the fact that I am still waiting for a decent version of this song, it goes on the list and I look forward to hearing it every year. If you read the Gospels and don’t come to the same conclusion as these lyrics, well, you weren’t paying attention.
All the streets are filled with laughter and light
And the music of the season
And the merchants’ windows are all bright
With the faces of the children
And the families hurrying to their homes
As the sky darkens and freezes
They’ll be gathering around the hearths and tales
Giving thanks for all god’s graces
And the birth of the rebel jesus
Well they call him by the prince of peace
And they call him by the savior
And they pray to him upon the seas
And in every bold endeavor
As they fill his churches with their pride and gold
And their faith in him increases
But they’ve turned the nature that I worshipped in
From a temple to a robber’s den
In the words of the rebel jesus
We guard our world with locks and guns
And we guard our fine possessions
And once a year when christmas comes
We give to our relations
And perhaps we give a little to the poor
If the generosity should seize us
But if any one of us should interfere
In the business of why they are poor
They get the same as the rebel jesus
But please forgive me if I seem
To take the tone of judgement
For I’ve no wish to come between
This day and your enjoyment
In this life of hardship and of earthly toil
We have need for anything that frees us
So I bid you pleasure
And I bid you cheer
From a heathen and a pagan
On the side of the rebel jesus.
Categories: Holiday, Xmas Lyric of the Day |
Jackson Browne is an awful musician? Methinks you need to stick with political editorial and leave the music criticism to others.
As penance for your grievous mistake, you shall carefully listen to Browne’s first three albums, visit the R&R Hall of Fame, write 500 words on how Browne influenced the early Eagles, and for extra credit watch Fast Times at Ridgemont High and close your eyes for the Phoebe Cates pool scene.
Ted
hee. And the fact that he helped inspire the insipid awfulness that is the Eagles does not work in favor
You missed the point about the Eagles. Browne was generally considered to be an anti-pop influence on the Eagles, “Take it Easy” notwithstanding.
I recommend you track down a copy of the Rolling Stone Album Guide (printed in 1992) and use it to sanity-check yourself before you critique music that pre-dates your personal experience. At least then you might edit your statements of fact (”Browne is an awful musician”) into statements of opinion, such as: “While Browne’s body of work has received significant critical acclaim, I have never owned or listened to any of his albums and thus have had very superficial exposure to his work - consisting mostly on Top 40 airplay and movie sound tracks. This lack of comprehensive subject knowledge leads me to the misguided opinion that Browne is an awful musician. I voice this opinion understanding that by doing so I will offend those who are familiar with, understand, and respect his work and in the process expose myself as a musical dilettante.”
Or words to that effect.