MURRAY STREET

also appears on:

• 10/07/01 "WORLD TRADE CENTER BENEFIT 2001"
• 08/17/02 "LIVE AT CABARET METRO CHICAGO, IL 2002"

Line-up:
Thurston - guitar
Kim - guitar
Lee - guitar/vocals
Steve - drums
Jim O'Rourke - bass/guitar

Lyrics   status: confirmed

Heard your name the other day
It's been a long, long time
Ancient history, some would say
Another state of mind
You smell of memory
Felt-tipped electric child

She takes a plastic pill
She plays the weatherman
She screams "Religion kills
More than it saves you, man"
She painted filigrees
She was the acid queen
She claims society
Is just a fever dream

Now you live in the trees and salty seas
Trippin' out in the blue skies
You shut the door on everything
Too busy getting high
And me, just another dream theory
Lost inside your eyes

She's not in your history books
Lost her mind and kept her looks
Down beneath the radar screen
She's lit up like gasoline
Been thru a million kix
Looking for the one that sticks
Never would've known it then
I might not see her again

Top hats and tails for thrills
Red lips and famous hands
Sidelong and glancing still
In tiny dancer land

We kissed
Time slipped
Hard edged
Tight lipped
See you
Some time
Ask me if I care

Karen
Miss communication
Karen
Karen

NOTES:

• Working title: "Dirge" aka "Karen II"
• Debuted instrumentally in 2001, first performed with vocals at the 2002 All Tomorrow's Parties festival.
• Part of the outro on the LP version is taken from the 10/07/01 debut of the song in NYC.
• The fourth of five new compositions debuted by Sonic Youth in 2001.
• Lyrics on sonicyouth.com have slight alterations: "Come home/some time" and "stuck in isolation" sang at the end.
• TITLE CHANGED POST RELEASE: after the artwork for Murray Street had been finalized (yet prior to its release, I believe), Lee decided he preferred the title "KARENOLOGY" and the song's title was officially changed for all purposes other than, uh, the album release.