Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an America… Read Full Bio ↴Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the Stone Age and The Gutter Twins. He released 12 solo studio albums, as well as three collaboration albums with Isobel Campbell and two with Duke Garwood. He was known for his baritone voice, which was described as being "as scratchy as a three-day beard yet as supple and pliable as moccasin leather" and has been compared to Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, and Nick Cave.

Lanegan began his musical career in 1984 with Screaming Trees, with whom he released seven studio albums and five EPs before their disbandment in 2000. During his time with the band, he also started a solo career and released his first solo studio album, The Winding Sheet, in 1990. He subsequently released a further 10 solo albums, which received critical recognition but only moderate commercial success. Following the end of Screaming Trees, he became a frequent collaborator of Queens of the Stone Age, and was a full-time member between 2001 and 2005 during the Songs for the Deaf and Lullabies to Paralyze eras.

Lanegan collaborated with various artists throughout his career. In the 1990s, he and Kurt Cobain recorded an album of Lead Belly covers that was ultimately never released. He also joined Layne Staley and Mike McCready in the band Mad Season, and formed the alternative rock group The Gutter Twins with Greg Dulli in 2003, as well as contributing to releases by Moby, Bomb the Bass, Soulsavers, Tinariwen, The Twilight Singers, Manic Street Preachers, and Unkle, among others.

Lanegan struggled with addiction to drugs and alcohol throughout his life, but had been sober for over a decade at the time of his death. Encouraged by his friend Anthony Bourdain, he released the memoir Sing Backwards and Weep in 2020. He followed this up in 2021 with the memoir Devil in a Coma, which focused on his near-death experience with COVID-19. He and his wife Shelley Brien left the U.S. in 2020 and settled in the Irish town of Killarney, where he died two years later at the age of 57. No cause of death was revealed.

Studio albums
The Winding Sheet (1990)
Whiskey for the Holy Ghost (1994)
Scraps at Midnight (1998)
I'll Take Care of You (1999)
Field Songs (2001)
Bubblegum (2004)
Blues Funeral (2012)
Imitations (2013)
Phantom Radio (2014)
Gargoyle (2017)
Somebody's Knocking (2019)
Straight Songs of Sorrow (2020)

Ramblin’ Man
Mark Lanegan Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I can settle down
And be doing just fine
Till I hear an old freight
Going down the line

Then I hurry straight
Home and pack
And if I didn't go

I believe I'd blow my stack

I love you baby
But you must understand
When the Lord made me
He made a ramblin' man

Some folks may say (Got my loving arms to keep you warm)
That I'm no good (In the kitchen cooking up a storm)
That I wouldn't settle (If uncle tells me stay away from you)
Down if I could (That is something I could never do)

But when that open road (You're my baby, you're my loving man)
Starts calling me (When you're in trouble, do the best you can)
There's something over the hill (I'm naked daddy just for you)
That I've gotta see (Force of nature and you're coming through)

Sometimes it's hard (Loving you, going hot and cold)
But you gotta understand (Loving you, getting good and soaked)
When the Lord made me (How I know you hate to see me cry)
He made a ramblin' man (Happens every time I say goodbye)

I love to see (What's the use, you poor seductive man)
The towns passing by (Don't get feelings and you'll understand)
And to ride these rails (Lying on somebody just like me)
'Neath God's blue skies (Got you dancing to my melody)

Let me travel this land (God knows how I need your loving arms)
From the mountains to the sea (If you lose me baby, telephone)
Cause that's the life (Try to pieces, stay away from harm)
I believe He meant for me (You're my baby though you do me wrong)

And when I'm gone (Love your nature, though I walk the line)
And at my grave you stand (Loving dreams, you're just a waste of time)

Just say God's called (Baby please don't stay away too long)
Home his ramblin' man (Fire's burning for when you get home)

Overall Meaning

The song Ramblin' Man by Mark Lanegan is about a man who cannot stay in one place for too long. He loves his significant other, and they share a deep connection, but whenever he hears a freight train whistle, he feels compelled to hit the road again. When he hears the sound of the train, he knows that he needs to pack his things and leave because if he stays, he feels like he is going to explode. He knows that he was born to be a ramblin' man, and some people might view him as no good, but he just cannot help himself. The song is about the struggle between love and wanderlust, and how the two can often be at odds with each other.

The lyrics of Ramblin' Man speak to a lifestyle that is gone but not forgotten in America. The song is about the freedom and exhilaration that come with constantly moving, and the restlessness that drives people to hit the road in search of adventure. It taps into the same spirit of adventure that inspired Jack Kerouac to write On the Road and Woody Guthrie to hop freight trains during the Great Depression. As a result, it has become a classic of the Americana genre.

Line by Line Meaning

I can settle down And be doing just fine Till I hear an old freight Going down the line
I can live a contented life, but it doesn't take much to awaken the restless wanderer within me

Then I hurry straight Home and pack And if I didn't go I believe I'd blow my stack
I feel an overwhelming need to leave when I hear the call of the open road, or it will drive me crazy

I love you baby But you must understand When the Lord made me He made a ramblin' man
I care about you, but I'm a free-spirited individual who's always on the move because that's the way I was created

Some folks may say (Got my loving arms to keep you warm) That I'm no good (In the kitchen cooking up a storm) That I wouldn't settle (If uncle tells me stay away from you) Down if I could (That is something I could never do)
People criticize me for having a wandering lifestyle, but I couldn't change it even if I wanted to

But when that open road (You're my baby, you're my loving man) Starts calling me (When you're in trouble, do the best you can) There's something over the hill (I'm naked daddy just for you) That I've gotta see (Force of nature and you're coming through)
I feel an overwhelming urge to explore the world when I hear the call of the open road, there's always something new to discover

Sometimes it's hard (Loving you, going hot and cold) But you gotta understand (Loving you, getting good and soaked) When the Lord made me (How I know you hate to see me cry) He made a ramblin' man (Happens every time I say goodbye)
I know that my restless wanderer lifestyle is not easy for you to accept, but you need to understand that it's the way I was created and I can't help it

I love to see (What's the use, you poor seductive man) The towns passing by (Don't get feelings and you'll understand) And to ride these rails (Lying on somebody just like me) 'Neath God's blue skies (Got you dancing to my melody)
I enjoy watching the world go by as I travel from place to place on my journey, taking in the scenery and enjoying the freedom that comes with the open road

Let me travel this land (God knows how I need your loving arms) From the mountains to the sea (If you lose me baby, telephone) Cause that's the life (Try to pieces, stay away from harm) I believe He meant for me (You're my baby though you do me wrong)
I feel a deep calling to travel across this land, from the highest peaks to the deepest seas, because that's the way God intended me to live even if it's hard for you to accept

And when I'm gone (Love your nature, though I walk the line) And at my grave you stand (Loving dreams, you're just a waste of time) Just say God's called (Baby please don't stay away too long) Home his ramblin' man (Fire's burning for when you get home)
When I pass away, don't mourn me too long, instead celebrate my life and know that I lived it the way I was meant to, always on the move exploring the world

Contributed by Kaelyn O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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