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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Call Your Boys
Iron & Wine Lyrics
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No one's seen any of them in many days
Call your boys they shut a buzzard on a Chrysler
And you still taste all that you swallowed before grace
And you'll forgive even the time they burned the hen house
And ran from you ran to the hills with burning hands
Several chores, surely some lessons left to tell
Setting sun was in the hills and now before you
Set your boys each with their shining silverware
They'll bury you under the wood beside the carport
They'll bury you some neon stop along the way
Radio fuzz on the fence post by the pasture
Long ago Liza and you would dance all day
Now you lay buried, the stern and sacred father
And sacred earth under the billboard in the rain
For one last toast here's to the brave who went before us
Who died in vain, died in a movie for a dream
In "Call Your Boys" by Iron & Wine, the singer tells a story of a family gathering where the father figure is preparing to meet his end. The table is set, the boys are called, and the father reminisces about the past, forgiving his sons for previous errors and mishaps. The lyrics depict the idyllic setting of a family home in the countryside, with a setting sun and memories of dancing with loved ones. However, the song also has dark undertones, with mention of a buzzard being shot and the phrase "died in vain, died in a movie for a dream" suggesting that there is a sense of hopelessness and disillusionment. Overall, the song is a poignant reflection on mortality and the complexities of family relationships.
One interesting fact about "Call Your Boys" is that it was released in 2011 on the album "Kiss Each Other Clean," which received generally positive reviews from critics. The album marked a departure from the more sparse and acoustic sound of Iron & Wine's earlier work, featuring a wider range of instruments and a more polished production. Another interesting fact is that the songwriter, Sam Beam, has cited a variety of literary and musical influences, including Flannery O'Connor, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Neil Young, and Nick Drake. He has also mentioned that his faith is an important part of his creative process, and that he often draws on Biblical imagery and themes in his music.
In terms of chords, "Call Your Boys" features a simple chord progression, with the verses consisting of an F chord followed by a G chord, and the chorus featuring an A minor chord followed by a G chord. The song also features a distinctive guitar riff that recurs throughout the piece.
Line by Line Meaning
Call your boys now that the table's set and shining
Summon your male companions since the dinner table is prepared and gleaming
No one's seen any of them in many days
It has been a prolonged time since anyone spotted any of them around
Call your boys they shut a buzzard on a Chrysler
Contact your acquaintances who killed a vulture sitting atop of a car
And you still taste all that you swallowed before grace
You still bear the memory of what you had consumed before saying grace
And you'll forgive even the time they burned the hen house
You will excuse even the instance when they burned down the chicken house
And ran from you ran to the hills with burning hands
And fled from you into the hills with scorched hands
Setting sun framed in the doorway right behind you
The sun's descent occurring as a view through the doorway directly behind you
Several chores, surely some lessons left to tell
Many tasks and potentially informative stories left to convey
Setting sun was in the hills and now before you
The sunset used to take place behind the hills but is now visible in front of you
Set your boys each with their shining silverware
Assign your friends each a knife, fork, and spoon that gleam and sparkle
They'll bury you under the wood beside the carport
They will lay your remains beneath timber situated beside the parking area
They'll bury you some neon stop along the way
They will lay you to rest at some brightly lit location during their travels
Radio fuzz on the fence post by the pasture
Radio static occurring on a pole near the field
Long ago Liza and you would dance all day
Previously, Liza and you would spend an extended period dancing
Now you lay buried, the stern and sacred father
Now you are laid to rest, the strict and revered father
And sacred earth under the billboard in the rain
And holy soil under the advertisement sign amidst precipitation
For one last toast here's to the brave who went before us
To commemorate one final time, let us drink in honor of the people who precede us and their bravery
Who died in vain, died in a movie for a dream
Who perished uselessly, expired in a motion picture for a dream
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: SAMUEL ERVIN BEAM
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind