Maybe it should have won for Best Paranoid Blues Song. The third verse could be something from a hundred years ago. To me, the song was a blues at the beginning of the twenty-first century. I’m sure that is a huge part of it. Says white: It has also been said that the song is about, no surprise, the pressures of fame and the intense scrutiny he and Meg White were under. Both stories ring true and it’s quite possible that the ‘people we were dating’ were the people with the gossip trouble. However, White stated that the song was about him and Meg (ex-wife and drummer) and the people they were dating, and also that the song was about a man who rides into town and finds out all his friends are gossiping about him, causing him to leave town, become lonely, etc. This is not surprising, as a song can have different inspirations and one particular inspiration may be foremost on a writer’s mind at any particular time, while at other times, a famous musician may feel the need to downplay how personal a song is. He has stated different things at different times, though. Although it touches on things White himself was going through, he wasn’t really trying to sing about himself. White said it was particularly inspired by two friends of his and one’s reaction to lies being spread about him. The man is so distressed and overwhelmed by this gossip and lies that he leaves town, only to feel lonely and compelled to return home. The lyrics are about a man finding out that his friends are gossiping behind his back. He came up with the riff during a soundcheck for a show in Melbourne, Australia. The songwriter himself has been generous and clear about the inspiration and meaning of the song. But what is it about? Seven Nation Army Meaning He spends too much time trying to be ‘blues.’ Confession aside, Seven Nation Army is a brilliant song. I find the drumming intolerable, and I don’t find Jack White’s guitar playing to be innovative or all that listenable. I’ll admit that I’m not a huge fan of The White Stripes. The riff, however, came first, and Seven Nation Army was a working title until White figured out what the song was about. Seven Nation army is about worry and wear. There is a clarity in innocence that gets muddied by worry and wear. Something we could all aspire to, since, as children, we understood more, at times, than we do now. The man seems to be on a quest to recapture the blues records he devoured as a child and he still may be inspired by that child as well. Jack White got the idea for the title ‘Seven Nation Army’ from his childhood mishearing of ‘ salvation army.’ And really, he does draw from his childhood a lot.
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