Jarosz emerged on the scene in about 2003 as someone to watch. Jamming on stage with bluegrass icons named Grisman or Skaggs, she played her mandolin with a sure touch and real joy. It looked and sounded comfortable in her twelve-year-old hands. She started writing songs on the guitar, took up the banjo, and won a bunch of awards. While her instrumental talents are formidable, let's make one thing clear: Sarah is a singer. She's just flat got it. Her voice is velvety smooth, agile, and powerful. With subtle use of colors and effects, she inhabits her songs the way a fine actress does her role. Overall, her music feels good, avoids over reaching. Nothing's contrived.
Her schoolteacher parents have raised her well, providing the skills, support, and freedom to become the confident artist that she is. Beautiful, talented, and just a little mysterious in a wholesome, Wimberley Texas hill-country kinda way, Jarosz is at home in this world. She knows what she's about and is ready to get out there and make her mark.
The Tourist
Sarah Jarosz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like it's seen a ghost
I guess it's seen the sparks a-flowing
No one else would know
Hey man slow down, slow down
Idiot, slow down, slow down
That's when you see sparks
You ask me where the hell I'm going
At a thousand feet per second
Hey man slow down, slow down
Idiot slow down, slow down
Hey man slow down, slow down
Idiot slow down, slow down
The opening lines of Sarah Jarosz's song The Tourist evoke a sense of unease, as the singer describes a dog that barks only at them, as though it has seen a ghost. This sets the tone for the rest of the song, which explores themes of anxiety, overstimulation, and the desire to slow down and find meaning in life.
The second stanza introduces the image of sparks, which seems to represent the singer's feelings of being overwhelmed to the point of combustion. They describe feeling "overcharged" and traveling at "a thousand feet per second," implying a sense of frenetic energy and the need to slow down. The repeated refrain, "Hey man slow down, slow down / Idiot, slow down, slow down," could be interpreted as the singer's inner voice urging themselves to find calm and perspective amidst the chaos.
Overall, The Tourist seems to be a meditation on the challenges of modern life and the search for meaning in a fast-paced, overstimulating world. The metaphor of sparks and the repeated refrain of "slow down" suggest a desire to find peace and clarity in the midst of the noise.
Line by Line Meaning
It barks at no one else but me
The dog is only barking at me and no one else
Like it's seen a ghost
The dog seems scared or shocked, as if it has seen a ghost
I guess it's seen the sparks a-flowing
The dog may have noticed the sparks flying around me, causing it to bark
No one else would know
No one else would understand why the dog is barking only at me
Sometimes I get overcharged
There are times when I become too over-stimulated or overwhelmed
That's when you see sparks
This overstimulation causes sparks to fly
You ask me where the hell I'm going
Someone is questioning my direction or purpose
At a thousand feet per second
I am moving fast, as if traveling at an incredible speed
Hey man slow down, slow down
Someone is telling me to slow down and take things at a calmer pace
Idiot, slow down, slow down
The person speaking to me may be getting frustrated with my pace and is using stronger language to tell me to slow down
Hey man slow down, slow down
The person is reiterating that I need to slow down and take things at a more relaxed pace
Idiot slow down, slow down
The person is using even stronger language to try and get me to slow down
Lyrics © Sentric Music, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Colin Charles Greenwood, Edward John O'Brien, Jonathan Richard Guy Greenwood, Philip James Selway, Thomas Edward Yorke
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Peteyrob
It barks at no one else but me
Like it's seen a ghost
I guess it seen the sparks a-flowing
No one else would know
Hey man slow down, slow down
Idiot, slow down, slow down
Sometimes I get overcharged
That's when you see sparks
You ask me where the hell I'm going
At a thousand feet per second
Hey man slow down, slow down
Idiot slow down, slow down
Hey man slow down, slow down
Idiot slow down, slow down
countrypaul
Haunting, haunted. Beautiful.
Shane Rose
This is what a cover song should strive to be. Echoes the original, transcends it, makes it the artists’ own, makes you rethink the song itself. Absolute classic.
Gramps1975
Love all of her stuff  but this is probably mt favorite piece that she does...the chaos between the instruments that still manages to be in time and rythm with each other along with that harmoney of the vocals.....I cant ever explain it to someone who has never heard it before.
I love it though
James Hannagan
Have you listened to Radiodread they cover the entire album with Reggae assorted all stars it is really cool wait until you hear Let Down Thom said it is better than his version he loved it.
yvwic50
Well said.
Joshua Whitley
It continues to amaze me the realm of variety she chooses as covers. I never thought I would like folk grassroots scene, but she completely has my attention on any song she sings.
Joshua Whitley
+Sharon Mickey she's an old soul. makes me wonder if this is her first life or second reincarnation. 24 amazing
Joshua Whitley
+Sharon Mickey I listen to her and totally feel the dimensions of her talent. she has a way to make me feel like nothing else matters in that moment. she is a star and I'm in her solar system
Sharon Mickey
+Joshua Whitley it's amazing what she has accomplished at 24...
RoadwayFlo
Yes, I have chills right now listening to her rendition. Radiohead's aching melancholy can move me to tears as it is, and her honeyed touch on this tune is simply lovely. I think I have become a fan today.