Described by critics as “surreal, modern folk tales” (VILLAGE VOICE), Dudley’s performance art told stories about strange, haunted characters, usually the social rejects who congregated in New York's East Village during the 1980s. The pieces were told in an evangelical mixture of text and song, much like a southern "tent-revival meeting," but with the aggressive surrealism William Burroughs. As the years passed, his Jeff Buckley-like voice and emotive folk melodies began to attract a non-art-world audience.
Dudley recorded his debut, RESTORE, for Fang Records in the mid-90’s, with art-funk artist Chris Cochrane producing. The sound, subject matter and feel was a precursor to the as-yet-undefined “New Weird America” or “Freak Folk” category, moving from surreal acappella songs like BY THE WATERS OF BABYLON I DROVE MY CAR (detailing, in quasi-Biblical terms, a man’s descent into dementia, blindness and death) to driving Neil-Youngish country songs like GUTTER BROKE (about a woman losing her mind in a rainswept truckstop). Reviews were strong but Fang Records lost its distributor just before release, keeping RESTORE largely under the radar (although it received a GLAMA nomination for “Best Debut Recording”).
Together, Cochrane and Saunders also recorded a band record as SUCK PRETTY for Knitting Factory Works. All those songs were written by Cochrane and the band broke up.
Midway through his second album, Dudley abruptly moved to California and started to re-record the songs all over again. These tracks slowly made their way out on Fang as THE BILLY WHITE ACRE SESSIONS in 2005. The release had a hard time gaining attention, although one track THE UNDOING (EVERY DAY) was included in his addiction-themed documentary, THE PROCESS.
During this same period, Dudley kept exploring his fascination with American characters in other fields, not only THE PROCESS documentary, but also in his collaboration with performance artist Heather Woodbury. They worked on two epic multi-character pieces, the ten-hour WHAT EVER (parts of which were featured on Ira Glass’ THIS AMERICAN LIFE) and the merely six-hour TALE OF 2CITIES: AN AMERICAN JOYRIDE ON MULTIPLE TRACKS, which went on to win an Obie Award in 2007. Both were published in book form by Faber & Faber and Semiotexte, respectively.
Afterwards, Dudley recorded his most intricate and disturbing record, THE EMERGENCY LANE, with Duncan Sheik stalwart Milo Decruz as producer and arranger. For the first time, Dudley had access to a number of famous musicians, many of whom came out of the bands of MARIANNE FAITHFULL, DAVID BOWIE, SUZANNE VEGA, RUFUS WAINWRIGHT and LEONARD COHEN. Like a lot of independent releases, it had little coverage in the print press, but ended up a favorite among music bloggers and online publications. It was featured on several “Ten Best” lists and, in December 2009, won "Best Album" at the Outmusic Awards.
His fourth album MONSTERS, is scheduled for release in October 2012 on his newly formed label, Strange Troubadours. Produced by Ed Tree, the album features six songs inspired by the novels of William Gibson, Mary Gaitskill, Martin Amis, Sarah Schulman, Sharyn McCrumb - and one by Saunders himself (forthcoming).
Shotgun
Dudley Saunders Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
watching eddies watching trees
in the water something floats
turns a drowning face to see
puts its rotting stare on me
and then he sleeps on by the bough
and there's a man who points his rifle out at me
aiming through the reeds
the brambles on the bank
is the hair that's on his chest
hold my face against his belly
and I will get to rest
moonlight on my rifle glows
I am sweating in my clothes
or maybe just starting to bleed
gunpowder in my throat
I've been poised since I don't know
I still feel his spit on me
and there's a man who points his rifle out at me
between the branches his barrel
aiming through the reeds
the brambles on the bank
is the hair that's on his chest
hold my face against his belly
and I will get to rest
The lyrics of "Shotgun" by Dudley Saunders tell a haunting and intense story of someone on a riverboat, watching the scenery go by, when they come across a floating body that briefly makes eye contact with them. The imagery in these lines is chilling, with the rotting stare of the floating corpse creating a sense of unease and foreshadowing the violence to come. Soon, the singer also encounters a man with a rifle who is aiming at them from the riverbank. The singer describes running toward the man and pressing their face against his chest in the hope of finding a moment of respite from the fear and tension of this encounter.
The lyrics use vivid sensory details to convey a sense of the singer's fear, panic, and physical discomfort. From the sweat on their clothes to the gunpowder in their throat, every sensation is heightened in this moment of danger. The final lines reveal that this encounter may not be the first of its kind: the singer says they still feel the man's spit on them, suggesting a past trauma or ongoing cycle of violence.
Overall, "Shotgun" is a haunting song that explores themes of fear, power, and vulnerability. Through its vivid imagery and intense storytelling, the song creates a sense of tension and unease. The final lines leave the listener with questions about what has happened in the past and what will happen in the future.
Line by Line Meaning
riding shotgun on the riverboat
I am sitting next to the driver on a boat that travels across the river.
watching eddies watching trees
I am observing the swirling currents and the trees waving on the riverbank.
in the water something floats
I see something floating on the surface of the river.
turns a drowning face to see
As it rotates, I recognize that it is a corpse that looks like it drowned.
puts its rotting stare on me
The deceased's eyes, now decomposed, are gazing at me.
and then he sleeps on by the bough
The corpse continues to float past me and disappears by the tree's branch.
and there's a man who points his rifle out at me
A man is aiming his weapon at me.
between the branches his barrel
The man's gun barrel is sticking out from behind a group of trees.
aiming through the reeds
He is directing his gun through the tall, thin plants along the edge of the riverbank.
the brambles on the bank
The thorny bushes are growing on the riverbank.
is the hair that's on his chest
The man has a hairy chest visible through his unbuttoned shirt.
hold my face against his belly
I move my face towards his stomach for comfort and peace.
and I will get to rest
I will finally find rest and calmness.
moonlight on my rifle glows
My instrument is shining under the moonlight.
I am sweating in my clothes
I am nervous and sweating profusely.
or maybe just starting to bleed
I might have a wound on my body and be bleeding.
gunpowder in my throat
I have swallowed some gunpowder, which was blown from the gun.
I've been poised since I don't know
I have been in this uncomfortable position for some unknown period of time.
I still feel his spit on me
I can still feel the man's saliva all over me.
Contributed by Anthony H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.