If anyone has another SDMB link, I’d appreciate it, because I am having problems sorting out the search engine. Heres the lyrix written by Bernie Taupin:
*Levon wears his war wound like a crown
He calls his child Jesus
`Cause he likes the name
And he sends him to the finest school in town
Levon, Levon likes his money
He makes a lot they say
Spend his days counting
In a garage by the motorway
He was born a pauper to a pawn on a Christmas day
When the New York Times said God is dead
And the war’s begun
Alvin Tostig has a son today
And he shall be Levon
And he shall be a good man
And he shall be Levon
In tradition with the family plan
And he shall be Levon
And he shall be a good man
He shall be Levon
Levon sells cartoon balloons in town
His family business thrives
Jesus blows up balloons all day
Sits on the porch swing watching them fly
And Jesus, he wants to go to Venus
Leaving Levon far behind
Take a balloon and go sailing
While Levon, Levon slowly dies*
Libertarian and Astorian do a pretty damn good analysis. Someone mentions Bernie Taupin was probably sipping on some sort of recreational beverage or partaking in some other chemical while writing it, and as Plato said, wine lubricates the mind.
RealityChuck, of course we know it is about Levon. But I think even you would agree with your jaded view of the world :D, the lyrics are bizarre enough to merit analysis and investigation!
Vinnie, I can’t recall his specific interpretation, but music author Thomas Ryan takes a crack at interpreting “Levon” in his book American Hit Radio : A History of Popular Singles from 1955 to the Present. This popular book can be found at any Barnes & Noble, Borders, Books-a-Million, or wherever. Stop in, find Ryan’s book, and look in the index for “Elton John” or “Levon”.
Reality Chuck has the gist of it, though. With a song like “Levon”, concreteness and lineality are not the order of the day. The verses are meant to make the listener’s “emotional mind” bend a bit in a pleasant (for some) struggle to make sense of it all.
Reality Chuck, have you spoken to Bernie Taupin and Elton John and know this for a FACT? Please cite, otherwise let us have our fun and stop trying reading peoples minds! Pull up a quote, and I’ll say, “end of argument”.