The band's moniker comes from a discarded coat James saw while walking through the remains of his favorite bar the morning after it burned down. The coat had the letters "MMJ" embroided on it. The band has released seven albums so far: "The Tennessee Fire" (1999), "At Dawn" (2001), "It Still Moves" (2003), "Z" (2005), "Evil Urges" (2008), "Circuital" (2011) & "The Waterfall" (2015). The band's breakthrough came when their 2003 single "One Big Holiday" became one of the most played songs on college radio that year. 2008's "I'm Amazed" was also a sizable hit, peaking at #6 on Billboard's Triple A (adult album alternative) Singles chart.
The Circuital songfacts reports that "Circuital" was recorded inside a church’s converted gymnasium in the band's hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. Said frontman Jim James: “I hate the phrase ‘going back to our roots’, but for this record we came home and made it in Kentucky. And it just felt a lot like it did when we were first starting out.”
James co-produced the record with Tucker Martine. The pair first worked together when James appeared on Laura Veirs ' album "July Flame" in 2010, which Martine, Veirs’ husband, also produced.
My Morning Jacket guest stared in the American Dad Episode "My Morning Straitjacket" where Stan Smith becomes obsessed with them and decides to become a groupie. The edisode was first aired November 22 2009.
Bermuda Highway
My Morning Jacket Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wonderin' why their bodies go to silly places
Walkin' past the carpet mills
Lookin' in and takin' stills
Your ass it draws me in
Like a Bermuda highway
Oh, don't carve me out!
Fall in between
The crack of the bed and the wall
Two times I fell asleep in a dirty basement
Snoozing in cobwebs and the cement
Sometimes I wonder why that meek guy
Got all the fame
Maybe I'm to blame
For his short bitter fucked up life
Oh, don't carve me out!
Don't let your silly dreams
Fall in between
The crack of the bed and the wall
The song Bermuda Highway by My Morning Jacket presents a unique and introspective view of the world around us. The lyrics are unapologetically cryptic and create more questions than answers. The opening lines, "Sometimes I walk around town lookin' at faces, Wonderin' why their bodies go to silly places," immediately grab the listener's attention, posing rhetorical questions that we all ask ourselves at one time or another. But then the lyrics take an unexpected turn, as the singer describes walking past carpet mills and how they draw him in, "Your ass it draws me in, Like a Bermuda highway." The metaphor is open to interpretation, but it seems to suggest how life can be so unpredictable and we are often drawn to things that we may not necessarily understand or have control over.
The second stanza takes another unexpected turn as the singer describes falling asleep two separate times, in dirty basement apartments, "Snoozing in cobwebs and the cement." The lyrics here paint a vivid picture of someone living on the fringes of society, perhaps struggling to make ends meet. The singer also expresses bewilderment as to why a meek person received more fame and success than they did, "Maybe I'm to blame for his short bitter fucked up life." Overall, these lyrics suggest a sense of frustration with life and a desire to understand the forces that shape our existence.
Line by Line Meaning
Sometimes I walk around town lookin' at faces
There are times when I take a stroll around the town and observe different people's faces.
Wonderin' why their bodies go to silly places.
I wonder why people intentionally go to places that hold little value or are of no significance.
Walkin' past the carpet mills
As I walk down the street, I pass by factories that make carpets.
Lookin' in and takin' stills
I take a snapshot of what I see inside the factories that create carpets.
Your ass it draws me in
I am drawn to you emotionally and physically, like a powerful magnetic attraction.
Like a Bermuda highway.
Our relationship reminds me of the mysterious allure of the Bermuda Highway.
Oh, don't carve me out!
Please do not abandon me or leave me behind.
Don't let your silly dreams,
Don't let your naive aspirations drive a wedge between us.
Fall in between
Don't let them prevent us from connecting with each other.
The crack of the bed and the wall.
Like something small, insignificant that drives us apart.
Two times I fell asleep in a dirty basement
I have had the experience of taking a nap in a dingy cellar twice in my life.
Snoozing in cobwebs and the cement.
I remember sleeping in the midst of cobwebs and inhaling the dusty scent of cement.
Sometimes I wonder why that meek guy
I often question why a fellow with a mild temperament.
Got all the fame,
receives far more recognition and acknowledgment than myself.
Maybe I'm to blame
Perhaps it's my fault that my lack of initiative or courage is to blame.
For his short bitter fucked up life.
Perhaps my lack of action or indifference somehow played a role in his unpleasant and brief existence on earth.
Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: Jim Edward Olliges Jr.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
D Ringo
on Librarian
Fantastic song...simple song with a huge message