Arthur Russell (May 21 1951 - April 4, 1992) was a prodigious talent. Class… Read Full Bio ↴Arthur Russell (May 21 1951 - April 4, 1992) was a prodigious talent. Classically trained on cello while growing up in Oskaloosa, USA, Arthur studied with Ali Akbar Khan in San Francisco in the early 1970's.

During this period he also collaborated with Allen Ginsberg, accompanying him on cello while Ginsberg read or sang. Russell also spent time in a Buddhist commune in California; he left when they decided to collectivize his cello.

By the mid-1970's Russell relocated to New York City, where he studied at The Manhattan School of Music. He formed a band from 1975-1979, The Flying Hearts, recorded by John Hammond and featuring David Byrne, Rhys Chatham, Jon Gibson, Peter Gordon, Jerry Harrison, Garret List, Frank Pagano, Andy Paley, Leni Pickett, and Peter Zummo.

In the late 1970s Russell became enamored with the disco scene in New York. At the time it represented a liberation force, particularly for the gay scene, just a few years after the Stonewall riots. (For more see "Turn the Beat Around: The Secret History of Disco" by Peter Shapiro).

'Kiss Me Again' was Russell's first dance track. Released under the name Dinosaur L by Sirerecords, it was to be the first of many innovative dancefloor tracks released under different names and with different collaborators, such as 'Is It All Over My Face' by Loose Joints, released in 1980. In 1982, Arthur Russell and William Socolov founded Sleeping Bag records and their first release was his 24-24 Music. This featured 'Go Bang' which was re-mixed as a 12" single by Francois Kevorkian.

Arthur Russell continued to release dance singles such as 'Tell You Today' (4th and Broadway, 1983) an upbeat dance groove featuring the vocals of Joyce Bowden . 'Wax the Van' (Jump Street, 1985) with vocals by Lola Blank, wife of notorious BobTreehouse aka Bob Schoolbell (Sleeping Bag, 1986) and 'Let's Go Swimming' (Upside / Rough Trade, 1986).

At the same time, he produced more meditative works on the albums 'Tower of Meaning' (Chatham Square, 1983) and 'World of Echo' (Rough Trade, 1986), which presented many of his pop and dance compositions in solo cellist form.

Arthur Russell died of AIDS on April 4, 1992, at the age of 40. The obituary in the Village Voice wrote: "his songs were so personal that it seems as though he simply vanished into his music."

In 2004 a renewed interest in Arthur Russell saw the release of "The World of Arthur Russell" on Soul Jazz records, which compiled his best-known dance hits alongside more introspective love songs such as "Little Lost" and "Keeping Up".

In the same year Audika records reissued "World Of Echo" and produced "Calling Out Of Context", 12 unreleased songs from 1985-90. The songs were taken from an album "Corn", recorded in 1985 but never released. They showcase a set of visionary pop songs years ahead of their time, minimalist and expansive, evidence that Russell's best work was perhaps never realized before his death.

In 2006 Audika released "First Thought Best Thought", compiling Russell's out of print orchestral and instrumental works with previously unreleased material.

Place I Know / Kid Like You
Arthur Russell Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Did they trap the wolves?
So they rained it out
Do I sing out loud?
Tears drop..
The high hope city
Or rags who is now
Behaving one
Is that it now?

Caught in itself, in its own
Ain’t its swell?
Being so tired is trying to be inside itself

You’ve been dead something they blew me over
Been sure good, it sure was
But this kinda did
Where I was so candid
Where we ever there?
Where we ever there?
Coz you’re friend did,
Does that mean that anyone who, me or mine?
Did I knew got nervous trying..
Man like me ..
Never understood one ..
A kid like you

Could never understand ..
Did I knew

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Arthur Russell's song Place I Know / Kid Like You are a bit enigmatic, but they are full of emotions that can be felt deep within. The cornerstones of these lyrics are despair, confusion, and a sense of being lost, which is reflected in the ambivalent and doubtful questions that are being asked throughout the song.

The first line of the song, "Did they trap the wolves? So they rained it out," seems to be a metaphor for the suppression of emotions, caging them up and drying them out. This is closely followed by the rhetorical question "Do I sing out loud?" which is a call for validation, a cry to be heard amidst the chaos.

As the song continues, the theme of alienation and disconnection is palpable. The singer of the song finds solace in the "high hope city," but at the same time feels like a rag, a piece of forgotten fabric amongst the hustle and bustle. The line "Caught in itself, in its own, Ain't it swell?" furthers this theme of being trapped in one's mind, with the singer's ambivalent feelings towards this isolation being portrayed by the phrase "Ain't it swell?"

The chorus of the song is poignant, with the lines "Being so tired is trying to be inside itself, You've been dead something they blew me over, Been sure good, it sure was, But this kinda did, Where I was so candid" highlighting the character's exhaustion with trying to hold on to his thoughts and emotions, and his frustration with having been taken advantage of.

Overall, Place I Know / Kid Like You, is a song that portrays the complexity of the human mind, and how even the simplest of feelings can be hard to fully understand.

Line by Line Meaning

Did they trap the wolves?
Were they successful in trapping the wolves?

So they rained it out
The situation was solved or ended

Do I sing out loud?
Should I express myself more openly?

Tears drop..
Crying

The high hope city
The city full of opportunities

Or rags who is now
Referring to people who were once wealthy but are now poor

Behaving one
Acting in a certain way

Is that it now?
Is that all there is?

Caught in itself, in its own
Trapped in its own limitations

Ain’t its swell?
Isn't it great?

Being so tired is trying to be inside itself
Being exhausted is just trying to cope with one's own limitations