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."
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California
Iron & Wine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blue sky churning black now, needled rain with the power
Of magnified abandon, soaking through to my moving
And vivid truth I'm doubting all the while that it's proven
Have you thought you might should be in California
Your tactile look of honesty, I know they'd love you, oh-oh-oh
A hundred thousand choices, words are stronger inside me
And wrote on angry voices spoken even and calmly
Or disregard me futile, even for to remember
Have you thought you might should be in California
An actress of your quality, I know they'd love you, oh-oh-oh
In Iron & Wine's song "California," the singer is waiting for the postman amidst a storm. The rain is coming down heavily and painfully, and the sky churns from blue to black. The singer's truth is in flux, and he is unsure of what he knows. The words written down are evidence of angry voices that have spoken even and calmly.
Amidst all this uncertainty, the singer suggests that the person they are addressing should be in California. They describe this person as having a "tactile look of honesty" that the people of California would love. The singer then begins to question their own docility and whether they were badgered into silence. Finally, the singer closes with a reminder that this person would be a successful actress in the state of California.
The lyrics of "California" are open to interpretation, as are many of Iron & Wine's songs. However, it seems that the stormy weather reflects the emotions of the singer, who is questioning their truth and their role in the situation. They long for the person they are addressing to be somewhere else, where they would be more appreciated and successful.
Line by Line Meaning
The postman passed me twice now, I have waited an hour
I have been waiting for the postman for an hour, and he has already passed me by twice.
Blue sky churning black now, needled rain with the power
The sky has turned dark and it is raining heavily with a force that feels like needles.
Of magnified abandon, soaking through to my moving
The intensity of the situation is causing me to feel abandoned and it is affecting me deeply.
And vivid truth I'm doubting all the while that it's proven
I am doubting the truth that I thought was proven, and it seems more vivid than before.
Have you thought you might should be in California
Have you ever considered that you should be in California?
Your tactile look of honesty, I know they'd love you, oh-oh-oh
The honest looks you give are so genuine that people in California would surely love you!
A hundred thousand choices, words are stronger inside me
I have so many choices in front of me, but the words inside me are stronger and more powerful than any of them.
And wrote on angry voices spoken even and calmly
Despite the anger in my voice, I am trying to remain calm and composed as I write these words.
Do you pretend I'm docile, played it hard for to badger
Are you acting as if I'm easygoing and trying to make me give in to your demands?
Or disregard me futile, even for to remember
Are you not caring about me at all, as if I am not worth remembering?
Have you thought you might should be in California
Have you ever thought that you would fit in well in California?
An actress of your quality, I know they'd love you, oh-oh-oh
You have such a great quality as an actress that I am certain that people in California would love you!
Contributed by Wyatt S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@vincentbosso4364
Good stuff