Lead songwriter and vocalist of the now reunited Pixies, Frank Black adopted a reversal of his former alias, Black Francis, and embarked on his solo career after the 1992 breakup of Pixies. He released his debut self-titled album, Frank Black in 1993. It contains his biggest rock radio hit, Los Angeles (#4 US Modern Rock). A year later came the critically acclaimed Teenager of the Year.
Frank Black's solo career covers a much more diverse range of styles and genres compared to his time with The Pixies. His works have feature a much more melodic touch, yet his lyrics are still often spiced with his quirky and inventive touch.
Frank Black regularly posts and responds to questions on the forums of his official fan site, frankblack.net, under the alias "frnck blck".
He began recording and touring as Black Francis in 2007, with the album Bluefinger, an album about the late Dutch musician and painter Herman Brood, and the mini album Svn Fngrs in 2008. On this tour he abandoned encores in favour of precores; a free mini gig at a public location earlier in the day. The gigs proper featured only current songs, the precores being more flexible.
Black Francis released NonStopErotik in March 2010.
The Pixies, minus original bassist Kim Deal, reunited for a United States and world tour in 2014 and have subsequently released three additional studio albums: Indie Cindy (2014), Head Carrier (2016) and Beneath the Eyrie (2019).
The Vanishing Spies
Frank Black Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just something I read
A couple of eyes
From out of the head
And all that was said
Was that's just how some things don't materialize
Could be they broke and swam like a bird
Or maybe the third played a joke
Give me a blip
And I'll totally flip
Say it's nothing but sky
And I'll be a lonely guy
The vanishing spies
Just something I read
Now there were two eyes
Sent out from the head
And all that was said
Was that is just how some things do not materialize
Give me one little blip
And I'll totally flip
Say it's nothing but sky
And I will be one lonely guy.
The lyrics to Frank Black's song, The Vanishing Spies, are somewhat cryptic and open to interpretation. The song starts off with the singer describing some information he read about two spies who have vanished, leaving only their eyes behind. The ambiguous language used suggests that the disappearance of the spies may be related to some secretive or covert activity. The singer then offers a couple of possible explanations - the spies may have swam away or flown off like a bird in fear of spooking people with talk of the "third," or maybe the "third" had played a trick. The reference to the third is unclear, but it could possibly be a reference to a third party or entity that was involved in the spies' mission or disappearance.
The second half of the song repeats the opening lines and the chorus, which consists of the singer expressing how he would feel if he were presented with proof that something he believed to be real was in fact, not real at all. The repeated refrain of "Give me a blip and I'll totally flip, say it's nothing but sky and I'll be a lonely guy" suggests that the singer is afraid of being left alone and vulnerable if something he believed in turned out to be false. The song's lyrics may be interpreted as a commentary on people's fear of uncertainty and the desire for something to believe in or hold onto.
Line by Line Meaning
The vanishing spies
Referring to the idea that spies can suddenly disappear without a trace
Just something I read
Black notes that he read about this phenomenon somewhere, perhaps in a newspaper or magazine
A couple of eyes
Black describes the spies as having a pair of eyes, as if they were watching or observing something
From out of the head
The eyes are separated from the head, suggesting that the spies were not alive or organic
And all that was said
The only information provided about the spies was given in passing, with no real explanation
Was that's just how some things don't materialize
The spies disappeared, leaving no trace or explanation, which suggests that there are some things in this world that cannot be explained
Could be they broke and swam like a bird
Black speculates that the spies may have escaped by breaking free and swimming away like a bird
Fear of spooking the folk with talk of the third
Black suggests that the spies may have fled to avoid scaring people with information about a mysterious third party
Or maybe the third played a joke
Black posits that the spies may have been victims of a practical joke played by the third party
Give me a blip
Black wants some kind of stimulus or distraction, perhaps to make him forget about the strange disappearance of the spies
And I'll totally flip
If given a small distraction, Black may become extremely excited or upset
Say it's nothing but sky
If someone were to tell Black that there was nothing unusual going on, he may become lonely and disillusioned
And I'll be a lonely guy
Black suggests that without any mystery or intrigue in his life, he may feel lonely and alienated from others
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CHARLES THOMPSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Barry Wooldridge
I'm a jaded old music fan who has collected vinyl and run record stores for a good portion of my life. In the rock realm, I've pretty much heard it all (no brag just fact). But, I swear to God, Lyle Workman's guitar lead in this song strikes such an inexplicable, jarring emotional chord in me, that I have to rate it in my personal top 10 guitar leads in all of rock/pop music history. It is absolute perfection. Thank you, Mr. Workman!!!!
Griff Shannon
Wow at first I thought this was Frank Black, then Joey Santiago. Thank you for letting us know. Beautiful!
Adam Wildman
I feel exactly the same. Scrapes the soul.
Stephen Burt
Love the guitar solo on this.
John Willis
Lovely song, one of my favorites to. Guess that is Lyle Workman as well. Great song from a great album. Thanks for posting.
Telecaster John.
Loic Sarrand
It is the one with the guitar solo I ve been longing for for ages - Thansk you so much !! Loic
Molly Mollinaro
As far as musician/singer/songwriters go, Great Britain has Andy Partridge and the USA has Frank Black.
RobertDoosh
yes!
starlite walker
+Molly Mollinaro Great Britain has Martin Newell! The greatest living englishman.
John stitt
Right on Molly. Arguably my two favorite musicians. You might want to check out Stan Ridgway. His album, Snakebite, is a standout, but all his stuff is great. He even produced one of Frank Black's albums.