Callahan started out as a highly experimental artist, using substandard instruments and recording equipment. His early songs often nearly lacked melodic structure and were clumsily played on poorly tuned guitars (possibly influenced by Jandek, whom Callahan admired), resulting in the dissonant sounds on his self-released cassettes and debut album Sewn to the Sky. Much of his early output was instrumental, a stark contrast to the lyrical focus of his later work. Apparently, he used lo-fi techniques not primarily because of an aesthetic preference but because he didn't have any other possibility to make music. Once he signed a contract with Drag City, he also started to use recording studios and a greater variety of instruments for his records.
From 1993 to 2000, Callahan's recordings grew more and more "professional" sounding, with more instruments, and a higher sound quality. In this period he recorded two albums with the influential producer Jim O'Rourke and Tortoise's John McEntire, and collaborated with Neil Hagerty. After 2000's Dongs of Sevotion, Callahan began moving back to a slightly simpler instrumentation and recording style, while retaining the more consistent songwriting style he had developed over the years. This shift is apparent in albums such as Rain on Lens, Supper, and A River Ain't Too Much to Love.
Smog's songs are often based on simple, repetitive structures, consisting of a simple chord progression repeated for the duration of the entire song. His singing is strikingly characterized by his baritone voice and a style of delivery without being over-emotional. Melodically and lyrically he tends to eschew the verse-chorus approach favoured by many contemporary songwriters, preferring instead a more free-form approach relying less on melodic and lyrical repetition. Themes in Callahan's lyrics include relationships, moving, horses, teenagers, bodies of water, and more recently, politics. His generally dispassionate delivery of lyrics and dark irony often obfuscate complex emotional and lyrical twists and turns. Critics have generally characterized his music as depressing and intensely introverted, with one critic describing it as "a peep-show view into an insular world of alienation." Despite this there is also a broad swathe of joy throughout Callahan's work and more attentive critics have picked up on Callahan's tendency to black humour, a tendency often confused with a depressed mental state or a genuine obsession with the morbid, a confusion no doubt caused by his deadpan vocals.
Cat Power (Chan Marshall) recorded Callahan's song Bathysphere on her 1996 album What Would the Community Think. She covered him again in 2000 on her Covers Record doing the song Red Apples.
Smog's Cold Blooded Old Times appears on the High Fidelity soundtrack. The song Vessel in Vain (from Supper) was also used on the soundtrack of the independent British film Dead Man's Shoes in 2004. In October 2007, Cadillac released a commercial which featured Smog's song Held and Bob Dylan driving a 2008 Escalade through the desert.
As of 2007 he lives in Austin, Texas where he released Woke on a Whaleheart. It was his first record release as Bill Callahan.
The Breeze / My Baby Cries
Bill Callahan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And said I didn't need you, but look at me now
Sometime in the summer when we're lying in the breeze
The breeze will kill me, the breeze will kill me
I tried to follow the path that you're on
Something in me is stubborn, I keep going wrong
If you can forgive me now, we'll meet up in another land
Sometime in the summer when we're lying in the grass
And the breeze, the breeze
Well my baby cries when he's tired
My puppy howls with the moon
You can never be sure of the people that you know
They don't want to show you their sadness
Yesterday I talked with my father
He said that we could never win
It's so hard to tell where I end and my father begins
So if you see me passing by
Please hold me deep in your heart
And just remember I want to help you, I don't want to hurt you
Just remember I want to help you, I don't want to hurt you
So don't tear it apart
Well my baby cries when he's tired
My puppy howls with the moon
(Kath Bloom cover)
The opening lines of Bill Callahan's song The Breeze / My Baby Cries, “I’d like to touch you, but I’ve forgotten how / And said I didn’t need you, but look at me now,” reveals the singer’s vulnerability and regret over losing someone he still longs for. He then speaks of a moment in the summer when they’ll be “lying in the breeze.” The breeze that he speaks of is perhaps a metaphor, symbolizing the time that has passed and passed opportunities. It is a reminder of how he let time slip away and his chance at love with it, hence “the breeze will kill me.”
The second verse of the song signifies that the singer tried to follow the path that his lover was on, but something about him is stubborn, and he keeps going wrong. The only way he thinks he can make amends now would be to venture to another land, a figurative or imaginary place, where they can start anew. The “breeze” is again mentioned, and here it seems to represent something that lies ahead, that he is aware of and can't escape.
The chorus of the song then transitions to something more universal, where Callahan speaks of loved ones - a baby, a puppy, memories - and how they all cry and howl, and people don't always show their sadness. The last verse speaks of the singer's father, how he is unsure of his own identity and where he ends and his father begins. Finally, the song concludes with the singer asking the person who sees him “passing by” to “hold him deep in their heart,” not to “tear it apart,” as he wants to help and not hurt them.
Line by Line Meaning
I'd like to touch you, but I've forgotten how
I want to connect with you, but I feel uncertain about how to do so, as though my past experiences with touch have faded from memory.
And said I didn't need you, but look at me now
Despite claiming not to need you, I'm realizing my dependency on you, as evidenced by my current situation.
Sometime in the summer when we're lying in the breeze
At some unspecified point in the future, we'll be together, likely in a state of relaxation.
The breeze will kill me, the breeze will kill me
The wind's calming effects may actually cause my demise, perhaps suggesting the danger of too much comfort.
I tried to follow the path that you're on
I've attempted to emulate your behavior or worldview.
Something in me is stubborn, I keep going wrong
Despite my efforts, I remain unyielding and often make mistakes that further distance me from your path.
If you can forgive me now, we'll meet up in another land
If you can accept my failures and let go of resentment, we can reunite in a figurative, perhaps spiritual domain.
When the breeze has killed me, when the breeze has killed me
Once I've succumbed to the calmness of the wind, as previously mentioned, and am unable to resist its effects any longer.
Sometime in the summer when we're lying in the grass
Another reference to a future moment of shared, relaxed peacefulness.
And the breeze, the breeze
Reiteration of the central idea of wind's ability to lull and perhaps harm.
Well my baby cries when he's tired
My child expresses emotional difficulty through crying when they're overstimulated.
My puppy howls with the moon
My pet expresses itself through vocalization, possibly in response to a natural phenomenon like the occurrence of a full moon.
You can never be sure of the people that you know
Even individuals who one believes they know well may surprise or disappoint them.
They don't want to show you their sadness
Some may hide emotional pain, ashamed to convey vulnerability to others.
Yesterday I talked with my father
I had a conversation with my male parental figure.
He said that we could never win
He expressed a pessimistic outlook on life and the possibility of success.
It's so hard to tell where I end and my father begins
I find it difficult to differentiate myself from my dad, either due to personality similarities or other factors.
So if you see me passing by
In the event that we cross paths, whether literally or metaphorically.
Please hold me deep in your heart
I implore you to retain affection for me, even when I'm not present, indicating a desire for lasting connections.
And just remember I want to help you, I don't want to hurt you
I hope to offer aid or support to you, without causing harm or distress in the process.
So don't tear it apart
Don't allow our relationship or connection to deteriorate or dissolve, potentially mentioning a sense of fragility or uncertainty in the bond.
Writer(s): Ernesto Lecuona, Al Stillman
Contributed by Jake F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.