Gorka was born in Edison, New Jersey. He received his first guitar as a Christmas gift, though Gorka alleges that his older brother stole it from him shortly thereafter. He eventually learned, instead, to play the banjo, and began performing in a folk music group at his church.
Gorka attended Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and joined the Razzy Dazzy Spasm Band which would also include guitarist Richard Shindell. He later began performing solo at the Godfrey Daniels coffee house as the opening act for various musicians that toured there. These included Nanci Griffith, Bill Morrissey, Claudia Schmidt and Jack Hardy.
In 1984, Gorka took first place at the Kerrville Folk Festival. Since then he has toured with artists such as Suzanne Vega, Shawn Colvin, Michael Manring, Christine Lavin, Dave Van Ronk, Cliff Eberhardt, David Massengill, Frank Christian and Lucy Kaplansky.
As of 2005, he was residing in the St. Croix Valley area near Saint Paul, Minnesota.
In 2008, Gorka decided to return to Europe for the first time in fourteen years. In October that year, he played four times in the Netherlands, he played live on VPRO radio and he did a session for the John Gorka video site.
In 2009, Gorka toured in the USA and also in Ireland and the Netherlands. In October that year, Red House Records released the CD "So Dark You See". This is considered a more intimate, vocal and guitar-centered record than the last two albums.
Make Them Crazy
John Gorka Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Or do they start that way?
Go from clear to hazy
On any given sunny day
Is it how you listen
Or your gift of gab
Do you have some feature
Do their attentions
Make your features sag
Sag
Do you charm them silly
To make them track you down
Crave your willy-nilly
Consequence unbound
They leave love notes for you
When you're not at home
They call you at all hours
On the telephone
Maybe they are better off alone
Seems they form a pattern
That's been going on for years
Could they be the latest victims
Of your deepest fears?
Do you make them a promise that you cannot keep
Overstimulate them till they cannot sleep
Maybe you are getting off too cheap
Maybe you are getting off too cheap
Do you make them crazy
Or do they start that way
Go from clear to hazy
On any given sunny day
Is it how you listen
Or your gift of gab
Do you have some feature
They just have to grab
Do their attentions
Make your features sag
Sag
In John Gorka’s song “Make Them Crazy,” the listener is presented with a series of questions that hint at the possibility of the singer causing problems in his relationships. The first verse consists of asking whether the people in his life become crazy because of something he does, or if that’s just how they naturally are. Gorka paints an image of changes in perceptions, with things going from clear to hazy on a sunny day, perhaps indicating that the singer is causing confusion or stress in his relationships.
The second verse focuses on the ways the singer interacts with those around him. He questions whether it’s due to his ability to listen or communicate, or if there is something about him that draws other people in. He brings up the possibility of his charm being the cause for his partners' obsession with him, leading them to leave love notes and call him at all hours of the day. Gorka also suggests that maybe these individuals would be better off alone than in a relationship with him.
The final verse presents a possible explanation for the pattern of behavior that Gorka has been describing. He asks whether his actions could be a manifestation of his deepest fears and whether he makes promises he cannot keep, thus breaking the trust of those around him. He suggests that the singer could be overstimulating his partners, leading them to suffer from insomnia or other consequences. Gorka concludes by saying that maybe the main character is “getting off too cheap”. He’s suggesting that the singer is not fully taking responsibility for the impact he’s having on the people around him, and that he needs to be held more accountable for his role in these relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
Do you make them crazy
Do you intentionally drive people mad?
Or do they start that way?
Perhaps they have inherent issues that lead them to instability.
Go from clear to hazy
Does their behavior often go from clear to confusing?
On any given sunny day
At any moment, even when things seem bright and happy?
Is it how you listen
Could it be your listening skills that cause their distress?
Or your gift of gab
Do your talking skills make the situation worse?
Do you have some feature
Is there something about you that attracts their attention?
They just have to grab
Does this feature seem irresistible to them?
Do their attentions
Do their actions towards you
Make your features sag
Lead to your own appearance changing in a negative way?
Sag
Get worse?
Do you charm them silly
Do you manipulate them into being infatuated with you?
To make them track you down
Is your intention to have them pursue you?
Crave your willy-nilly
Do they experience a strong desire for you without any logic behind it?
Consequence unbound
Are they willing to do anything to get you, regardless of the consequences?
They leave love notes for you
Do they try to reach out to you in any way they can?
When you're not at home
Do they try to contact you even when you're not around?
They call you at all hours
Do they try to call you at inappropriate times?
On the telephone
Is this how they try to reach you?
Maybe they are better off alone
Perhaps you're not good for them and they are better off without you?
Seems they form a pattern
Do they consistently behave this way?
That's been going on for years
Has this been happening for a long time?
Could they be the latest victims
Are they just another in a long list of people you've affected this way?
Of your deepest fears?
Is your own fear driving other people to the edge?
Do you make them a promise that you cannot keep
Do you give false hopes to them?
Overstimulate them till they cannot sleep
Do you take actions that cause them to be unable to rest?
Maybe you are getting off too cheap
Perhaps you are benefiting from their desperation too easily?
Maybe you are getting off too cheap
Perhaps you are benefiting from their desperation too easily?
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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