He regularly does solo work, and returns again and again to bands he has formed like The Soft Boys and The Egyptians. Hitchcock is an avid and able collaborator with people like director Jonathan Demme, actor Alan Rickman, country/folk duo (and longtime Hitchcock fans) Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, The Venus 3, R.E.M.'s Peter Buck, Young Fresh Fellows' frontman Scott McCaughey, Andy Partridge of XTC, Nick Lowe, former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, Jon Brion, and Grant-Lee Phillips, as well as Ministry's Bill Rieflin.
Hitchcock's musical and lyrical styles have been influenced by his appreciation of Bob Dylan, Gregory Corso, The Byrds, Country Joe & The Fish, and Syd Barrett.
Hitchcock's lyrics are an essential component of his work, and tend to include surrealism, comedic songs, characterisations of English eccentrics, plant roots, insects, trains, dreams, and melancholy depictions of everyday life. His themes include what many psychologists view as the roots of modern neurosis - namely, death, sex, and eating. (As if in recognition of these themes, he released an EP in 2007 called "Sex, Food, Death and Tarantulas".)
Furry Green Atom Bowl
Robyn Hitchcock Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In a furry, green, hole;
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Furry, green, eye
In a furry, green, bowl;
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Spread-dud-dust, spread-dud-dust,
As the dead bug flares, dead bug flares,
Dead bug flares, in a swollen glow.
Furry, green, mole
In a furry, green, hole.
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Um...
Um...
Verdigris, verdigris.
Verdigris, verdigris.
Verdigris, verdigris.
Um...
Um...
Um...
Um...
The lid comes off like a casserole.
(The lid comes off like a casserole.)
The steam comes up the devil's nose;
He knows, he knows, he always knows.
He sits there, in a silver cone,
Drumming his fingers on a golden throne.
He loves that smell.
He loves that smell.
Um...
Um...
That swollen bowl - it blew up whole.
(That swollen bowl - it blew up whole.)
And the black was hungry when it came down,
So it ate the world for miles around.
Sticky, black, meat, (sticky, black, meat,)
Will flood your street, (will flood your street.)
Sticky, black, oil
Will boil your soil.
Furry, green, eye
In a furry, green, hole;
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Furry, green, eggs
On furry, green, legs.
Big ones, small ones; out they roll.
Gonna shake my pie; gonna bake my soul.
It's a crusty, old, pie, (it's a crusty old pie,)
But it's a crusty, old, world, (it's a crusty old world.)
And underneath, (underneath,)
There's roots and bulbs, (roots and bulbs;)
Gonna mix 'em all up, (gonna mix 'em all up)
In the atom bowl.
Big ones, small ones; out they roll.
Big ones, small ones; out they roll.
Big ones, small ones; out they roll,
In a new formation.
In a new formation...
In a new formation...
Spell a brand new world with the same old letters.
Um...
Um...
Um...
Um...
There's roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body.
Roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body.
Roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body.
And that's the way to stay.
There's roots in the earth and kidneys in the body.
There's roots in the earth and kidneys in the body.
There's roots in the earth and kidneys in the body.
And that's the way to stay.
There's roots in the earth and kidneys in the body.
There's roots in the earth and kidneys in the body.
There's roots in the earth and kidneys in the body.
And that's the way to stay.
The song "Furry Green Atom Bowl" by Robyn Hitchcock is a psychedelic, surrealistic piece that uses animal imagery to describe a potentially catastrophic event. The opening lines "furry, green, eye in a furry, green hole" and "furry, green, mole in a furry, green hole" create an unsettling, mysterious tone. The repetition of the phrase "it's a furry, green atom bowl" adds to the strange, dreamlike quality of the song.
The lyrics continue with references to spreading "dud-dust" and a "dead bug" that flares up in a "swollen glow." These images suggest a nuclear explosion or some other kind of disaster. The image of a "furry, green egg" and "legs" further contributes to the animalistic theme of the song.
Later, the lyrics describe a lid coming off "like a casserole" and a "swollen bowl" that explodes, causing a flood of "sticky, black, oil." The image of the devil sitting atop a golden throne, drumming his fingers and loving the smell of the oil, adds to the sinister undertones of the song.
Overall, "Furry Green Atom Bowl" is a surrealistic trip of a song that uses animal imagery and unconventional lyrics to create a sense of unease and uncertainty.
Line by Line Meaning
Furry, green, eye
In a furry, green, hole;
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Robyn Hitchcock describes a furry, green object, resembling an eye that resides in a space resembling a hole. He identifies this object and space as an 'atom bowl'.
Spread-dud-dust, spread-dud-dust,
Spread-dud-dust, in a reaching way.
As the dead bug flares, dead bug flares,
Dead bug flares, in a swollen glow.
The singer urges others to rapidly spread the substance, 'spread-dud-dust', in every direction, using a reaching motion. The glow of a deceased bug intensifies, appearing swollen.
Furry, green, mole
In a furry, green, hole.
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Robyn Hitchcock once again describes a furry, green object resembling a mole, occupying a similar space resembling a hole. This object is identified once again as an 'atom bowl'.
The lid comes off like a casserole.
(The lid comes off like a casserole.)
The steam comes up the devil's nose;
He knows, he knows, he always knows.
The lid of the atom bowl is removed, revealing the contents within. Steam emanates from the object and reaches the nostrils of the devil, who is aware of its presence.
He sits there, in a silver cone,
Drumming his fingers on a golden throne.
He loves that smell.
He loves that smell.
The devil is depicted sitting in a silver cone and drumming his fingers on a golden throne. He loves the scent that is released from the atom bowl.
That swollen bowl - it blew up whole.
(That swollen bowl - it blew up whole.)
And the black was hungry when it came down,
So it ate the world for miles around.
The atom bowl explodes entirely, and the black substance that is released from it grows ravenous and begins to consume the world for miles around.
Sticky, black, meat, (sticky, black, meat,)
Will flood your street, (will flood your street.)
Sticky, black, oil
Will boil your soil.
The substance that was released from the atom bowl is compared to sticky, black meat and oil, which will flood the streets and boil the soil.
Furry, green, eye
In a furry, green, hole;
It's a furry, green, atom bowl.
Furry, green, eggs
On furry, green, legs.
The artist again identifies the furry, green object that resembles an eye and identifies it as the 'atom bowl'. He then describes furry, green eggs on furry, green legs.
Big ones, small ones; out they roll.
Gonna shake my pie; gonna bake my soul.
It's a crusty, old, pie, (it's a crusty old pie,)
But it's a crusty, old, world, (it's a crusty old world.)
And underneath, (underneath,)
There's roots and bulbs, (roots and bulbs;)
Gonna mix 'em all up, (gonna mix 'em all up)
In the atom bowl.
Big and small objects roll out from the atom bowl. The artist intends to shake his 'pie' and bake his soul using these contents. Though the world is old and crusty, there exist roots and bulbs underneath which can be mixed in the atom bowl.
In a new formation...
In a new formation...
Spell a brand new world with the same old letters.
The objects which emerged from the atom bowl can be used to create a new formation and spell out words to form a brand new world.
There's roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body.
Roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body.
Roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body.
And that's the way to stay.
The singer emphasizes the importance of roots in the Earth and kidneys in the body as a means of sustainability and survival.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: ROBYN HITCHCOCK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind