Jandek plays a very strange and frequently atonal form of folk and blues music, often using an open and unconventional chord structure. Jandek's music is unique, but his lyrics closely mirror the country blues and folk traditions of Eastern Texas.
Barely a handful of people claim to have contacted Jandek, whose steadfastness in anonymity is legendary. Without any conventional attempts at promotion, he releases albums through his own record label Corwood Industries, which is addressed at a Houston post office box. Fans can write to Corwood for a typewritten catalogue and order Jandek’s albums, usually at inexpensive prices. Jandek’s work has been available on vinyl and on compact discs. Many of his albums feature pictures of the same young man (seen above) at various ages; in light of Jandek's live performances it is almost entirely certain that the person featured on the album covers is Jandek himself.
Jandek’s first album, Ready for the House (1978), was first accredited to a band called “The Units” but it was obviously a solo work. Jandek presumably plays acoustic guitar and has recorded much of his work apparently unaccompanied (assuming that the person singing is also the person playing guitar). However many other songs feature female vocals and/or different male vocalists. Others feature bass guitar, electric guitar and/or drums, presumably played by collaborators. No proper credits list has ever appeared on an album, but song titles have included "Nancy Sings" and "John Plays Drums".
Some of Jandek’s allure stems from his small but devoted fan base which has included Sonic Youth frontman Thurston Moore, Kurt Cobain, Indian Jewelry, and K Records founder Calvin Johnson.
The mystery of Jandek's identity was partially resolved in October 2004 when Jandek performed live in Scotland, at the Instal 04 music festival in Glasgow. This was Jandek's first known live appearance and performed with Richard Youngs (bass) and Alex Neilson (drums). The man on stage was obviously the same man who appears on the album covers. Corwood stipulated that the performance was not publicized in advance. Since then, "The Representative of Corwood Industries" (as Jandek sometimes insists on being called) has played a lot of concerts and recorded all of them for future releases. The last years have seen an even higher release frequency, even for Jandek.
For more information, you may go here:
www.tisue.net/jandek
www.jandekoncorwood.com
forgive me
Jandek Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The tree gave up its fruit at once
Ah! My hand it burns
Scarred with these prints
They will live when I die, that is a fact
The blood will drain
Infection will mix with the blue corpse
But you have it here
At your back and at your face
Leaves drop or aching branches creak
You walk alone down boulevards
I take you to the sky
Take you to the sky [Repeat: x3]
In Jandek's song "Forgive Me," the lyrics reflect on the theme of evil and its consequences. The opening line, "You know evil, know it well," sets the tone for the song and suggests that the singer has experienced evil and its effects in a significant way. The following line, "The tree gave up its fruit at once," alludes to the biblical story of Adam and Eve and their temptation by the forbidden fruit. The singer's hand burns, scarred with prints of the evil that they have encountered, and they recognize that these scars will remain even after they die. The following lines reference blood, infection, and a blue corpse, conjuring up images of death and decay as a result of the evil that has been experienced.
However, the song's tone shifts in the final lines, as the singer takes the listener "to the sky" three times in repetition. This can be interpreted as a metaphorical ascension, as the singer seeks to rise above their experiences with evil and find a higher perspective. In this sense, the song could be seen as a lamentation for past mistakes but also a call for forgiveness and transcendence.
Line by Line Meaning
You know evil, know it well
You are familiar with evil, you have experienced it intimately
The tree gave up its fruit at once
The tree quickly surrendered its fruit to be taken
Ah! My hand it burns
My hand is in pain, it's as if it's on fire
Scarred with these prints
These marks have left permanent scars on my skin
They will live when I die, that is a fact
The things I have done will continue to exist even after I am gone
The blood will drain
Blood will leave my body
Infection will mix with the blue corpse
Infection will combine with my lifeless body
But you have it here
But you possess it in the present
You see how it is like the wind
You understand how it is similar to the wind, in its unpredictable nature
At your back and at your face
Blowing against you from behind and in front of you
Leaves drop or aching branches creak
Leaves are falling or the branches on trees are groaning with pain
You walk alone down boulevards
You travel alone through the streets
I take you to the sky
I elevate you to great heights
Take you to the sky [Repeat: x3]
Repeating the previous line that the singer is going to lift you up high
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BERT KAEMPFERT, HERBERT REHBEIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Virgo Sagittarius
You know evil, know it well
The tree gave up its fruit at once
Ah! My hand it burns
Scarred with these prints
They will live when I die, that is a fact
The blood will drain
Infection will mix with the blue corpse
But you have it here
You see how it is like the wind
At your back and at your face
Leaves drop or aching branches creak
You walk alone down boulevards
I take you to the sky
Take you to the sky
michaelslowmin
Get some serious sonic youth vibes from this guy. He always has that eerie glare in all his pics. Truly unsettling shit tho. I like it!