Born in Los Angeles in 1987, Robert Francis grew up surrounded by music. Hi… Read Full Bio ↴Born in Los Angeles in 1987, Robert Francis grew up surrounded by music. His father is a classical music producer and eccentric owner of one of the largest collections of sheet music in the U.S. One of Francis' earliest memories is his father "blasting music at full volume in his cluttered office under fluorescent lights until 4 a.m. while I was trying to sleep in the room next door." His mother, one of nine sisters, grew up in Mexico in a town so small that "it's just dirt, clay huts, boarded-up buildings, and a town drunk who walks around in the beating sun with a jug of Bacardi," Francis says. After Robert studied piano for several years, his mother encouraged her then seven-year-old son to learn guitar so he could play the traditional ranchera songs she grew up singing with her sisters. When Francis was nine, family friend Ry Cooder gifted him his first National Slide guitar. He also fell in love with Wim Wenders' 1984 film Paris, Texas, for which Cooder composed the soundtrack. "It inspired me," Robert remembers. "I got the idea in my head that I wanted to drop out of school and travel when I was 10 years old."

By the time he reached eleventh grade, he decided school was not for him and left. He spent a little over a year living dangerously and upsetting all those close to him until he met a girl who would then change his life. "It was a really tumultuous romantic relationship that lasted on and off for a few years," he says. "Then it just sort of fizzled out. I started writing songs the first time I figured out how to pinpoint that feeling of loss. I guess I was just waiting to make music until I had something to say. From then on, I realized I could write songs that really meant something to me."

The result was One By One, which Francis recorded at a friend's recording studio and released in August 2007 on Aeronaut Records. It didn't sell much, but it earned positive reviews from critics who compared Francis to a young Townes Van Zandt. The attention led to a record deal with Atlantic Records, which is releasing Before Nightfall.

Written over the summer of 2008 and recorded in March 2009, Before Nightfall is a snapshot of where Francis is now. "When people listen to the album, I want them to feel happy," he says. "I feel uplifted when I hear these songs; they don't bring me down. I hope people will be able to relate to them and feel as though whatever is going on in their lives is going to be okay."

!! There is other Robert Francis, author of cd: The Sitting Bull Suite

I Like The Air
Robert Francis Lyrics

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Filed down coffins in the neighborhood. A Spanish girl walking by the cemetery wood.
Five in the pan, we do what we can though it ain't right.
A fat man sitting on the side of his remote, his daughter's in the kitchen trying to clean his coat,
I bet she can't.
The rattle of a bottle on a warped wooden desk, shaking back and forth beside my bated breath.
A blind girl laughing while I stare at her chest, I'm in the zone.
I won't survive if I make it out alive.
Seven/ten split, I don't got...

Down on Main Street, I got friends waiting there.
I don't need no drop off girls.
I like the air.

Elysian Park through the dark about a mile.
A little white girl with a Bobby King smile.
Blue little bags she says she knows I'm feeling bad I'm worth your while.
But here 'tween the palette feelings I don't understand, cardboard cutouts, just be a man.
Have fun walking home in Mike Davis land.
Pull the wool over my eyes.
I don't want to understand.
I like the trees, the army and the colors that they wear, they like to scare.
A few blocks home from remembering my name, a few blocks home.

Down on Main Street, I got friends waiting there.
I don't need no drop off girls, I like the air.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Robert Francis's song "I Like The Air" paint a picture of a seemingly bleak and desolate neighborhood. The first verse describes filed down coffins in the neighborhood, and a Spanish girl walking by the cemetery. The second verse introduces a fat man sitting on the side of his remote, implying that he may be detached from the world around him. The singer observes his daughter trying to clean his coat, but doubts she can do it successfully. These observations are followed by a description of the singer's surroundings, with the sound of a bottle rattling on a warped wooden deck and a blind girl laughing while he stares at her chest.

The chorus of the song provides a sharp contrast to the griminess of the verses. The singer notes that he has friends waiting for him down on Main Street, and emphasizes that he does not need any "drop off girls." He likes the air, implying that he enjoys the sense of freedom and openness that comes with being outside.

The third verse elaborates on the singer's perspective. He describes a little white girl with a "Bobby King smile," who offers him little blue bags and tells him that she knows he is feeling bad. He also observes cardboard cutouts and speaks of being in Mike Davis land, a reference to the author and activist who wrote about issues relating to urban geography and inequality. The singer pulls the wool over his eyes and insists that he does not want to understand, preferring instead to focus on the trees, the army, and the colors they wear.

Overall, the song appears to be a commentary on urban life and the struggles of those living on the margins. The singer acknowledges the darkness and challenges present in his environment, but ultimately chooses to find solace in the company of his friends and the freedom that comes with being outside.

Line by Line Meaning

Filed down coffins in the neighborhood. A Spanish girl walking by the cemetery wood.
There are several coffins in the neighborhood that have been sanded down. A Spanish girl is walking next to the cemetery woods.

Five in the pan, we do what we can though it ain't right.
We have five resources, and we're going to use them as best we can, even though it may not be ethical.

A fat man sitting on the side of his remote, his daughter's in the kitchen trying to clean his coat, I bet she can't.
An overweight man is sitting near his television remote. While his daughter tries to clean his coat in the kitchen, he believes she won't be able to do so.

The rattle of a bottle on a warped wooden desk, shaking back and forth beside my bated breath.
My breath is held in anticipation as a bottle rattles on a desk made of uneven wood.

A blind girl laughing while I stare at her chest, I'm in the zone.
I'm in a trance-like state while a blind girl laughs and I look at her chest.

I won't survive if I make it out alive.
If I come out of this situation alive, I know that I won't be able to live with myself.

Seven/ten split, I don't got...
I'm missing something critical to my success.

Down on Main Street, I got friends waiting there.
I have friends waiting for me on Main Street.

I don't need no drop off girls.
I don't require women to be dropped off or picked up.

I like the air.
I appreciate the openness and freedom of being without someone else around me.

Elysian Park through the dark about a mile.
I'm walking about a mile through Elysian Park, which is dark at this time of night.

A little white girl with a Bobby King smile.
A young, white girl is smiling at me with a smile resembling Bobby King's.

Blue little bags she says she knows I'm feeling bad I'm worth your while.
The girl offers me small blue bags and tells me that she knows I'm feeling low but that I'm worth her time and effort.

But here 'tween the palette feelings I don't understand, cardboard cutouts, just be a man.
I'm feeling a mix of emotions that I don't comprehend, and I'm being encouraged to 'Just be a man.'

Have fun walking home in Mike Davis land.
It will be an interesting and potentially dangerous walk home through Mike Davis's territory.

Pull the wool over my eyes.
I'm metaphorically putting a blindfold on myself to ignore what's going on around me.

I don't want to understand.
I'd prefer to ignore the situation entirely.

I like the trees, the army and the colors that they wear, they like to scare.
I enjoy the trees and the army personnel, including their intimidating attire.

A few blocks home from remembering my name, a few blocks home.
I'm nearly home and about to remember my name.

Down on Main Street, I got friends waiting there.
I have friends waiting for me on Main Street.

I don't need no drop off girls, I like the air.
I don't require women to be dropped off or picked up. I enjoy the freedom of being alone.

Contributed by Henry H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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