Somewhere a king has no wife/
And the wind, it cries Mary.

Why is the Wind crying and whispering Mary’s name and what does that mean? It sounds like a ghost from your past. You have taken care of your daily job and things are all in order but still the wind whispers Mary. People are hurrying home at night and a queen is weeping and the wind still cries out Mary. It is like the city is haunted by Mary.

So Jimi asks the wind will there be a different name tomorrow? The wind answers “no, this will be the last.” So obviously something happened to Mary and The Wind is haunting our lives by making us remember her.

The musicianship in Hendrix “Wind Cries Mary” is subtle, but what you have to realize is that Jimi is playing the lead guitar part while singing. And the two parts are not easy to perform together, but he does it effortlessly. We also get to hear his backup band “The Experience” show off their chops a bit here. Both the drums and bass play an important to the sound of the song. Jimi’s voice sounds at its most confident in this song. He feels comfortable with the material in the performance.

The Wind Cries Mary Lyrics

After all jacks are in their boxes,
And the clowns have all gone to bed.
You can hear happiness staggering on down the street.
Footprints dressed in red.

And the wind whispers “Mary”.

A broom is drearily sweeping
Up the broken pieces of yesterday’s life.
Somewhere a queen is weeping,
Somewhere a king has no wife.

And the wind, it cries “Mary”.

The traffic lights they turn a blue tomorrow,
And shine their emptiness down on my bed.
The tiny island sags downstream,
‘Cause the life that they lived is dead.

And the wind screams “Mary”.

Will the wind ever remember?
The names it has blown in the past.
And with its crutch, its old age and its wisdom,
It whispers “no, this will be the last”.
And the wind cries “Mary”.

written by Jimi Hendrix

Oh, I cut his hair myself one night…
And he told me that I’d done alright.

Regina Spektor retells the story of Samson and Delilah from the point of view of Delilah. Samson’s was a warrior—the strongest in Israel. No one could figure out the source of his strength. According to the bible, Delilah tricked him into telling her his secret: that it is his hair that gives him his strength. This leads to his demise, as Delilah cuts it into the middle of the night, and Sampson is unable to defend himself, and the whole city falls on him.

Spektor’s Delilah tells a different story. Samson and her were lovers and agreed together that he should cut his hair so that he would become a family man…not a warrior. And their boring story never made the bible, but it is the truth. And of course, the bible is written by men and for different purposes.

Spektor’s “Samson” is a great, unique concept for a song.

The song wouldn’t work without the exquisite melody and piano work by Spektor along with her voice. She tells a story that is quite spectacular, but she never uses the typical diva gimmicks. The song sounds like a genuinely sad tale told by an expert storyteller.

Samson Lyrics

You are my sweetest downfall
I loved you first, I loved you first
Beneath the sheets of paper lies my truth
I have to go, I have to go
Your hair was long when we first met

Samson went back to bed
Not much hair left on his head
He ate a slice of Wonder Bread
And went right back to bed
And the history books forgot about us
And the Bible didn’t mention us
And the Bible didn’t mention us, not even once

You are my sweetest downfall
I loved you first, I loved you first
Beneath the stars came fallin’ on our heads
But they’re just old light, they’re just old light
Your hair was long when we first met

Samson came to my bed
Told me that my hair was red
Told me I was beautiful
And came into my bed
Oh, I cut his hair myself one night
A pair of dull scissors in the yellow light
And he told me that I’d done alright
And kissed me ’til the mornin’ light, the mornin’ light
And he kissed me ’til the mornin’ light

Samson went back to bed
Not much hair left on his head
He ate a slice of Wonder Bread
And went right back to bed
Oh, we couldn’t bring the columns down
Yeah, we couldn’t destroy a single one
And the history books forgot about us
And the Bible didn’t mention us, not even once

You are my sweetest downfall
I loved you first

written by Regina Spektor

To get back to Miss Fanny, you know she’s the only one.
Who sent me here with her regards for everyone.

The Band’s “The Weight” is an unlikely hit. It isn’t really a hit, but it does get a lot of radio play on classic rock stations these days. The song is about someone named Fanny who sends the narrator around the town of Nazareth seemingly to run some errands. He is trying to help out his friend. The narrator meets several folks along the way—most of them usually have a minor favor to ask of him:

Take a load off Fanny
Take a load for free…

And it’s “off Fanny” not “off Anny”.

I mean, since he’s helping out Miss Fanny, would he mind feeding Chester’s dog? Pretty soon, what became an errand run becomes a whole affair of helping the whole town out. The moral of the story? Don’t do anything nice for anyone or people will look at you like a sucker and soon you’ll be doing things for everyone. No good deed goes unpunished.

The Band is unique in that they are able to make their songs sound about a hundred years older than they really are. The effect that has is that the songs feel like they are a greater part of our collective consciousness like “This Land is My Land” is. But that is just their unique sound.

Levon Helm has that unique voice that creates a lot of “The Weight’s” sound, but it is also the lazy pace of their music. You don’t picture any of the characters in a song by The Band ever in a hurry. They’re old-school. One of the more interesting aspects of their music is their loose harmonies. It sounds good, but some of the singers will start and stop words whenever in suits them. It helps create that lackadaisical vibe. The Band’s “The Weight” is a feel good song that almost all can enjoy.

The Weight Lyrics

I pulled into Nazareth, was feelin’ about half past dead.
I just need some place where I can lay my head.
Hey, mister, can you tell me where a man might find a bed?
He just grinned and shook my hand, “no, ” was all he said.

Take a load off, Fanny.
Take a load for free,
Take a load off, Fanny.
And (and) (and) you put the load right on me.
(You put the load right on me).

I picked up my bag, I went lookin’ for a place to hide.
When I saw Carmen and the Devil walkin’ side by side.
I said, hey, Carmen, come on let’s go downtown.
She said, “I gotta go, but my friend can stick around”.

Take a load off, Fanny.
Take a load for free,
Take a load off, Fanny.
And (and) (and) you put the load right on me.
(You put the load right on me).

Go down, Miss Moses, there’s nothin’ you can say.
It’s just ol’ Luke and Luke’s waitin’ on the Judgment Day.
Well, Luke, my friend, what about young Anna Lee.
He said, do me a favor, son, won’t you stay and keep Anna Lee company?

Take a load off, Fanny.
Take a load for free.
Take a load off, Fanny.
And (and) (and) you put the load right on me.
(You put the load right on me).

Crazy Chester followed me and he caught me in the fog.
He said, I will fix your rack, if you’ll take Jack, my dog.
I said, wait a minute, Chester, you know I’m a peaceful man.
He said, that’s okay, boy, won’t you feed him when you can?

Yeah, take a load off, Fanny.
Take a load for free.
Take a load off, Fanny.
And (and) (and) you put the load right on me.
(You put the load right on me).

Catch a cannon ball now to take me down the line.
My bag is sinkin’ low and I do believe it’s time.
To get back to Miss Fanny, you know she’s the only one.
Who sent me here with her regards for everyone.

Take a load off, Fanny.
Take a load for free.
Take a load off, Fanny.
And (and) (and) you put the load right on me.
(You put the load right on me).

written by Robbie Robertson