Beam was raised outside Columbia, South Carolina, United States where his father worked in land management and his mother was a schoolteacher. He graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a bachelor's degree and the Florida State University Film School with an MFA degree. Until the first Iron & Wine album, Beam's main source of income was as a professor of film and cinematography at the University of Miami and Miami International University of Art & Design. He had been writing songs for over seven years before a friend lent him a four-track recorder. His friends handed out copies of demos that he had made, and the owner of Sub Pop Records personally contacted Beam and proposed a deal.
Beam released his first album, The Creek Drank the Cradle, on the Sub Pop label in 2002; Beam wrote, performed, recorded, and produced every track on the album by himself at a studio in his home. The album features acoustic guitars, banjo, and slide guitar; its music has been compared, variously, to that of Nick Drake, Simon and Garfunkel, Neil Young, Elliott Smith, and Ralph Stanley.
In 2003 The Sea & The Rhythm was released, an EP collecting other home-recorded tracks along the same lines as those on the debut. Beam's second album, Our Endless Numbered Days (2004), was recorded in a professional studio with a significant increase in fidelity. The focus still lies on acoustic material, but the inclusion of other band members gives rise to a very different sound.
Beam released an EP titled Woman King in February 2005, and the EP In the Reins, a collaboration with Calexico was released in September 2005. This joint work mostly features new full-band versions of previously recorded Iron and Wine rarities.
One of his most famous songs is a cover, which was featured on a commercial for M&M’s candies and in the 2004 film “Garden State” (and on its popular soundtrack), of "Such Great Heights" by The Postal Service.
"Kiss Each Other Clean" is the fourth studio album by Iron & Wine, released January 25, 2011. The album's title is taken from the lyrics of track 10, "Your Fake Name Is Good Enough for Me". The album marks a further change in style – in an interview with SPIN magazine, Beam said “It’s more of a focused pop record. It sounds like the music people heard in their parent’s car growing up… that early-to-mid-’70s FM, radio-friendly music."
http://www.ironandwine.com/
Beneath the Balcony
Iron & Wine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Our last of days
And grace the game with a blindfold on
The cheaters came to play
And outside the soft-handed boys
Screaming cars and all their speed
Music, meth, a hero beggin change
His sword across his knees
and how he prays to find a man to blame
For every sleepless night he spends
And for every well that he warned me of
But wound up falling in
And then for the kids beneath the balcony
Who disregard the rain
To make sure the king won't grant
The dead man one more day
let's go out and see darling
What shines tonight
And temper your dream about the dying horse
With traffic, noise, and light
And somewhere the soft-handed boys,
Bleeding hearts, and worker bees
Give to the holy mother begging change
Christ across her knees
and oh how she prays to find a man to blame
For every loveless night she waits
And for every gun that she frowned upon
But still some fucker made
And then for the kid beneath the balcony
Behind the garbage can
Who waits for the king to come
And hold his sweating hand
The first stanza begins with an invitation to dance and make the most out of the remaining time they have. They are aware that they are surrounded by people who are dishonest and cheat at the game of life. They hear the noise of screaming cars and the sound of music and perceive the presence of drugs and people begging for change heroically, clinging to their swords. The singer says that he prayed to find a man to blame for his restless nights and for every warning he ignored that got him in trouble. He talks about the kids beneath the balcony who stand in the rain, looking up to the balcony, where the king resides, hoping for a way out.
In the second stanza, he urges his partner to join him in witnessing what the night has to offer. He advises her to balance her dreams with reality and learn to thrive in a world full of noise, traffic, and light. He talks about how there are people who are compassionate, sensitive, and hardworking, who give everything they have to the holy mother hoping for a better life. He says that the mother prays to find a man to blame for her loveless nights and for every gun that led to an unfortunate circumstance. He then talks about a kid behind the garbage can, waiting for the king to come and hold his sweating hand, hoping for a better future.
Overall, the song appears to be a commentary on the struggle for survival amidst chaos, noise, and corruption. It urges the listener to accept reality and strive for a better life while acknowledging that inequality and injustice exist.
Line by Line Meaning
Let's go out and dance, darling
Let's make the most of our last moments together and have some fun
Our last of days
Our time together is limited and we should cherish it
And grace the game with a blindfold on
Let's play the game of life without knowing what the future holds
The cheaters came to play
Others may not play fair, but we should not let that affect us
And outside the soft-handed boys
In the outside world, there are people who are not as strong or resilient as us
Screaming cars and all their speed
The world outside is full of hustle and bustle
Music, meth, a hero beggin change
There are vices and heroes in this world, and the hero needs help from others
His sword across his knees
The hero is prepared for battle, but still needs help from others
And how he prays to find a man to blame
The hero is looking for someone to blame for his problems
For every sleepless night he spends
He is going through difficult times and cannot sleep peacefully
And for every well that he warned me of
He warned others about problems, but still fell into them himself
But wound up falling in
Despite his warnings, he fell into the trap he warned others about
And then for the kids beneath the balcony
He thinks about the children who are watching the world go by
Who disregard the rain
The kids are not afraid of the difficulties in life
To make sure the king won't grant
The kids are taking control of their own lives and not relying on authority figures
The dead man one more day
They do not want to extend the life of someone who has passed away
Let's go out and see darling
Let's explore and experience the world together
What shines tonight
Let's appreciate what is beautiful in the present moment
And temper your dream about the dying horse
Let's not think about negative things that may happen in the future
With traffic, noise, and light
Instead, let's focus on the present and everything that surrounds us
And somewhere the soft-handed boys,
There are still people who are not as strong or resilient as us
Bleeding hearts, and worker bees
There are those who work hard and care deeply
Give to the holy mother begging change
They give to those in need, including the holy mother who is seeking change
Christ across her knees
The holy mother is leaning on the support of religion
And oh how she prays to find a man to blame
The holy mother is also looking for someone to blame for her problems
For every loveless night she waits
She goes through painful experiences and nights without love
And for every gun that she frowned upon
She disapproves of violence and weapons
But still some fucker made
But despite her disapproval, someone is still using weapons
And then for the kid beneath the balcony
The artist thinks of a child who is watching the world from below
Behind the garbage can
The child is hiding behind something that others consider to be trash
Who waits for the king to come
The child is waiting for someone who is powerful and prestigious
And hold his sweating hand
The child is hoping for support and guidance from someone who is more experienced
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: SAMUEL ERVIN BEAM
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Frantz0five
Let's go out and dance, darling
Our last of days
And grace the game with a blindfold on
The cheaters came to play
And outside the soft-handed boys
Screaming cars and all their speed
Music, meth, a hero beggin change
His sword across his knees
and how he prays to find a man to blame
For every sleepless night he spends
And for every well that he warned me of
But wound up falling in
And then for the kids beneath the balcony
Who disregard the rain
To make sure the king won't grant
The dead man one more day
let's go out and see darling
What shines tonight
And temper your dream about the dying horse
With traffic, noise, and light
And somewhere the soft-handed boys,
Bleeding hearts, and worker bees
Give to the holy mother begging change
Christ across her knees
and oh how she prays to find a man to blame
For every loveless night she waits
And for every gun that she frowned upon
But still some fucker made
And then for the kid beneath the balcony
Behind the garbage can
Who waits for the king to come
And hold his sweating hand
Frantz0five
Let's go out and dance, darling
Our last of days
And grace the game with a blindfold on
The cheaters came to play
And outside the soft-handed boys
Screaming cars and all their speed
Music, meth, a hero beggin change
His sword across his knees
and how he prays to find a man to blame
For every sleepless night he spends
And for every well that he warned me of
But wound up falling in
And then for the kids beneath the balcony
Who disregard the rain
To make sure the king won't grant
The dead man one more day
let's go out and see darling
What shines tonight
And temper your dream about the dying horse
With traffic, noise, and light
And somewhere the soft-handed boys,
Bleeding hearts, and worker bees
Give to the holy mother begging change
Christ across her knees
and oh how she prays to find a man to blame
For every loveless night she waits
And for every gun that she frowned upon
But still some fucker made
And then for the kid beneath the balcony
Behind the garbage can
Who waits for the king to come
And hold his sweating hand
The Angry Buddha Official
Or could also be about child abuse as well
The Angry Buddha Official
@Barba Ro no it’s meth. ‘For every sleepless night he spends’. It’s a very dark song for I & W dark but beautiful. It’s also talking about a prostitute and poverty. Pretty sad song. The child, Hoping waiting for death or at least for God to come and save him.
Barba Ro
Math, not meth
Bryan Sears
One of the truest forms of art ive ever witnessed in my reality
Zad Rasera
One of my favorite Iron and Wine songs.
Listening to this reminds me of vintage stuff.
ROGS
When I was 16 I heard this song and fell in love, now almost 30 and still listen with passion. Cheers from Mexico 🇲🇽 btw.
C Ramirez
I can almost taste the sweaty humidity and see the alolan exegutors dancin in the malbecian breeze
Ryan Halvorsen
I think this is my fav iron and wine jam. I almost know what it all means to me but the sword across his knees and Christ across her knees parts.... IDK what these lines mean?
Muhammad Waheed
I’ll come back here. Again and again.