Nashvi… Read Full Bio ↴Catching Up With David Mead (In Four Scenes and Three Cities)
Nashville, TN, mid-1990s. . . After bouncing around the club scene in a few bands, David Mead takes the leap as a solo artist. A copper-topped kid with a tender heart and wicked sense of humor, he has one unfailing secret weapon - the kind of singing voice that can stop drunks in mid-drink and A & R guys in mid-schmooze. “A soaring but unshowy falsetto,” says Uncut. “Honeyed and compelling,” adds Entertainment Weekly.
New York City, NY, early-2000s. . . Mead signs a major label deal with RCA, former home to Elvis Presley and David Bowie. Aspiring to similar career longevity and variety, Mead locks in for a steady climb. Honing a songwriting gift that improbably takes in Broadway, Beatles, Prog and New Wave then ups the ante to something all his own, he releases a pair of critically-acclaimed records, The Luxury Of Time and Mine and Yours. “Infectious melodies,” says The Guardian. “A major tunesmith,” affirms MOJO.
Middle Of Nowhere, Indiana, mid-2000s. . . Mead tours from town to town, meeting crowds sparse or sold-out with equal gusto, leaving true believers in his wake. When he’s not on the road, he’s writing, recording (Indiana, Wherever You Are, Tangerine, Almost and Always) and lending songs to screens big (The Sweetest Thing, Boys and Girls) and small (Ed, Private Practice). He’s making loads of fans and friends. Some of them in high places. John Mayer says, “David Mead is one of my favorite singer-songwriters.” Taylor Swift tweets, “I can’t get David Mead’s ‘Nashville’ out of my head.” Joe Jackson, Fountains Of Wayne, Shelby Lynne, Ron Sexsmith all feel it too, enough to invite Mead to share stages and tours.
Nashville, 2011 . . . . 253 of Mead’s most-dedicated fans rally around his Kickstarter campaign to raise over $20K to
fund his new record Dudes. The yield on the investment? Pure pleasure, with humor, mystery, emotional wallop and dudes of all ages lurking behind a hundred unforgettable hooks. “There is no easy way for me to express the gratitude I feel for all the generous support,” Mead
says, “except to try to back it up with what I feel might be my best album to date.”
New Mexico
David Mead Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The city lies as the city should
Yeah, you know there's just
One place to be
New Mexico wait for me
And oh, I wanna go
Where the air is clean
When I was a boy I would dream at night
A cowboy's dream by a cowboy light
Even though I haven't got to ride in yet
New Mexico won't forget
And oh, I wanna go
Where the air is clean
And oh, New Mexico wait for me
And I'm gonna take a ride
Through the mountains gallow
Stare into the great array
Maybe take a bath in the San Francisco
This is where I'll stay
Oh, I wanna go where the air is clean
Oh, New Mexico wait for me
New Mexico wait for me
The lyrics to David Mead's song New Mexico are about a person leaving their current city to move to New Mexico. The opening lines "Soon I'm gonna leave this place for good / The city lies as the city should" suggest a sense of dissatisfaction with the current city and a desire for change. The following lines "Yeah, you know there's just / One place to be / New Mexico wait for me" suggests that the person has found their ideal place to live and is excited to make the move.
The lyrics then reference the idea of a cowboy dream, which has been a long-standing archetype in American culture. The lines "When I was a boy I would dream at night / A cowboy's dream by a cowboy light" suggest a romanticized notion of the West and a desire to live out that dream in New Mexico. The line "Even though I haven't got to ride in yet / New Mexico won't forget" suggests that he may have not yet physically been to New Mexico but that the idea of the place has already made a deep impression in his mind.
The latter half of the song is about specific experiences the person wants to have in New Mexico, such as riding through the mountains, staring into the great array (potentially a reference to the stars), and taking a bath in the San Francisco River. Overall, the song is about finding a sense of fulfillment and happiness by moving to a place that the person sees as ideal.
Line by Line Meaning
Soon I'm gonna leave this place for good
I am planning on leaving this location permanently in the near future.
The city lies as the city should
There is a typical urban atmosphere present here, as expected in a city.
Yeah, you know there's just
One place to be
New Mexico wait for me
Despite other options, New Mexico is the desired place to go.
And oh, I wanna go
Where the air is clean
And oh, New Mexico wait for me
New Mexico's clean air is very appealing and is the main draw for me.
When I was a boy I would dream at night
A cowboy's dream by a cowboy light
Even though I haven't got to ride in yet
New Mexico won't forget
In childhood, my imagination was captured by cowboy stories, and while I have not yet had the opportunity to participate in that world, I know New Mexico will always hold memories of that kind of lifestyle and spirit.
And I'm gonna take a ride
Through the mountains gallow
Stare into the great array
Maybe take a bath in the San Francisco
This is where I'll stay
I plan on exploring the mountains and taking in the breathtaking views, maybe even swimming in San Francisco Bay, and ultimately settling down there for good.
Oh, I wanna go where the air is clean
Oh, New Mexico wait for me
New Mexico wait for me
Reiteration of the fact that the clean air of New Mexico is what draws me in and that I am on my way there.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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