The band originated in the early 1990s as One Fell Swoop, but changed their name to Dispatch in 1996. Chad Urmston, Braddigan, and Pete (Francis) Heimbold, who were all attending Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont comprised the band's lineup throughout their entire career. Their music has drawn on several influences, such as acoustic folk-rock, reggae, and funk.
Dispatch gained much recognition outside of New England, without any help from a label, and stuck together long enough to release seven albums, three of which were live performances. During concerts, the band had been known to improvise upon their album releases, often resulting in a song ending in twice the length of the original. The group was also fond of switching instruments and vocal duties when playing live.
Upon the announcement of its break-up in 2002, the band scheduled one final concert. The free show was performed at the Hatch Shell in Boston on July 31, 2004. "The Last Dispatch," as it was referred, is said to be the largest concert in independent music history; roughly 110,000 fans from over 20 different countries attended the show. Parts of the performance were released as a CD/DVD two-disc set later that year, entitled All Points Bulletin, along with an earlier show in Somerville, Massachusetts.
All three of the band's members are currently still in the music industry. Urmston is now the frontman of State Radio, while Corrigan (now credited as Braddigan, a nickname by which he was known since his time with Dispatch) and Heimbold (now credited as Pete Francis, his middle name) are succesfully pursuing solo efforts.
After the song Elias, written by Urmston after his experience living and teaching in Zimbabwe, the "Elias Fund" was formed to send children from the ravaged country to college.
Dispatch came out with a movie entitled "Last Dispatch" in July 2005, which documents their final 12 days together as a band and tells the story of how they became "the band that redefined independent music history". The film was released and previewed in Boston. Chad, Brad, and Pete attended the showing and celebrated throughout the weekend with their fans.
On December 22, 2005, Corrigan helped to organize a benefit concert, known as the Relief Project, at Irving Plaza in New York, New York. Along with several other performers, Corrigan invited Heimbold and State Radio to play. The three reunited very briefly, playing the song Here We Go as an encore. Corrigan stated there that he plans further Relief Project concerts featuring all three and perhaps sometime in 2007, a major Dispatch reunion concert.
Entitled "Dispatch: Zimbabwe", Dispatch arranged for one show in Madison Square Garden, with all the money sent towards relief efforts in Zimbabwe. Originally billed as a one show deal on July 14, Dispatch was surprised how quickly this first show sold out and set two more shows for the 13 and 15. After all three shows sold out, Dispatch announced another smaller show on July 11th at Webster Hall in New York, where they made their comeback debut to great success.
Dispatch had a second set of reunion concerts beginning at Red Rocks amphitheater in Denver, Colorado on June 3, 4, and 5th, 2011. These performances launched a reunion tour around the US and the release of their Dispatch EP on May 17th.
In 2017, the band released the song, "Only The Wild Ones" from their album, America, Location 12.
Flag
Dispatch Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You call us close to dispel your fear
You painted the color of peace with your hands
As the water flows north by west they come moving
Raising up their hands, as the thunder calls
We'll come to the straightest tree
(I have seen your kind for miles)
(I have seen your kind for miles)
Great Father in the East says we'll need
Only wide like our wagon wheels
Only as long as the day holds a blessing will we pass
And not be back…
He offers to us our own hands
Painted lines upon our lands
Dog Soldiers, Dog Soldiers don't ignite the land
What flag are you, are you flying?
(I have seen your kind for miles)
(I have seen your kind for miles)
What flag are you, are you flying?
(I have seen your kind for miles)
(I have seen your kind for miles)
Oh, we huddle to the tree
And hold it with both hands
At the center we will be together as one we will stand
Frozen tears, frozen tears may raven truth of frozen tears remain
What flag are you, are you flying?
(I have seen your kind for miles)
(I have seen your kind for miles)
What flag are you, are you flying?
(I have seen your kind for miles)
(I have seen your kind for miles)
I still stand
I hold them up
I still stand
I hold you up
I still stand
To hold you up
The lyrics to Dispatch's song "Flag" are rich in symbolism and metaphors that make for multiple interpretations. The song portrays a clash of cultures between Native Americans and European colonists in the United States. From the perspective of the Native Americans, the song questions the nature of the flag being flown by the Europeans while hinting at their own predicament. The lines "what flag are you, are you flying?" express this confusion as the singer has "seen [their] kind for miles," indicating the unfamiliarity of the European culture to them.
The lyrics also suggest resistance and defiance through the symbol of the straightest tree. The line "we'll come to the straightest tree" implies that the Native Americans will not bow down to pressure from the Europeans. The reference to the Dog Soldiers can also be interpreted as this will to resist. Dog Soldiers were a Cheyenne military society that fought against the United States army in battles like the one at Little Bighorn.
Overall, the song can be viewed as a commentary on the loss of indigenous cultures to European colonialism. It highlights the attempts of the colonizers to impose their values and beliefs on the natives, often through force. The song suggests that the natives will stand firm, will resist attempts to change them, and ultimately hold on to their traditions and beliefs.
Line by Line Meaning
You warn me and keep me here
You caution me and keep me from leaving
You call us close to dispel your fear
You invite us to be near to ease your fear
You painted the color of peace with your hands
You created a symbol of peace with your own hands
As the water flows north by west they come moving
The people are coming from the north and moving westward, like the flow of water
Raising up their hands, as the thunder calls
They raise their hands up in response to the sound of thunder
We'll come to the straightest tree
We'll gather at the tallest and straightest tree
What flag are you, are you flying?
What is your symbol or representation?
(I have seen your kind for miles)
(I've seen others like you from far away)
Great Father in the East says we'll need
The leader in the east says we require something
Only wide like our wagon wheels
Only as wide as our wagon wheels
Only as long as the day holds a blessing will we pass
Only if the day is a blessing will we travel through
And not be back…
And we won't return...
He offers to us our own hands
He gives us our own tools and resources
Painted lines upon our lands
He marks lines on our land
Dog Soldiers, Dog Soldiers don't ignite the land
The Dog Soldiers must maintain peace and not start conflicts
Oh, we huddle to the tree
We come together and gather around the tree
And hold it with both hands
And we hold onto it firmly
At the center we will be together as one we will stand
At the center of the tree we will join as one and stand together
Frozen tears, frozen tears may raven truth of frozen tears remain
Our tears may freeze and linger as a reminder of our sorrows
I still stand
I'm still here, unwavering
I hold them up
I support and raise them up
I hold you up
I support and lift you up
To hold you up
To support and lift you up
Contributed by Caden O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Knüppel_Heinz
i fell in love with this song whilst listening to it on the "aint no trip to cleveland" album.
listening to it over and over again since then. even discovered the chords and played it myself as its so awesome!