Pavement, a band started by Malkmus post-Ectoslavia, pre-New York, at this point began to gain attention. This attention resulted in a record deal and a constant inferiority plague placed upon the 'Joos with Berman totally at the forefront of the group. Misinformed music fans now saw the band as a side-project and, even worse, Berman as being not good enough to play with Pavement, many band members being shared between the two bands.
The connection to Malkmus and the now blossoming Pavement was not all negative, however. Drag City, then not the bastion of American folk music it is today, agreed to release the band's debut EPs which has led to a fruitful relationship (the label continues to release the band's records, right up to album number 7 in 2008, (Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea).
The Silver Jews in their later days primarily consisted of David and Cassie Berman who contributed most of the lyrics, and a changing cast of characters. They had numerous indie stars in a rotating line up, including Willie T. of Lambchop, and Brian Kotzer of Tim Chad and Sherry.
David Berman is also a poet and has been published in numerous poetry magazines and journals. He also has a book of poetry and rants entitled "Actual Air," which was released in 1999 and received favorable reviews from The New Yorker and GQ.
On the 22nd of January, 2009, David Berman announced on the Drag City messageboard that their show on the 31st of January in Tennessee would be their last. "Can't be like all the careerists doncha know. I'm forty two and I know what to do. I'm a writer, see? I always said we would stop before we got bad." After 10 years off, Berman reappeared in 2019 as Purple Mountains.
David Berman died from suicide on August 22, 2019 after a long battle with depression.
Albemarle Station
Silver Jews Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I hope you find your concentration beneath those ceiling fans
We used to dance in this split-level ranch
when moonlight flooded the room
Now you're gone and the shades are all drawn
in my air conditioned tomb
Bad roads, bad snow, bad bridges
if thy kingdom ever comes
you better run, run run run
There must be a spanish word for this feeling
the rush I get when I am stealing
from the Dust Congress
whose dollars and dimes
say "in dust we trust"
oh yeah
the world is not ready for you
I passed an abandoned drive-in
with ivy growing over the screen
It was like I caught Hollywood sleeping-
sleep without the dreams
A magic shop in Colonial Watts
something gets pushed by the wind
The world's not ready
the world's not ready
the chimes of rabies are ringing again
Bad roads, bad snow, bad bridges
could turn a once bad man religious
if thy kingdom ever comes
you better run, run run run
There must be a pool out behind the church
cause he looked so cool in the back of a hearse
After a debutante of his trial
all the citizens began to dress in his style
oh yeah,
it's a beautiful, beautiful world
The song Albemarle Station by Silver Jews is a melancholic and reflective piece that touches on themes of loss, nostalgia, and the passage of time. The lyrics begin with a plea for someone to call from Albemarle Station, a train station in North Carolina, where the singer hopes the caller can find their concentration beneath the ceiling fans. The imagery of the split-level ranch where they used to dance in the moonlight, now a closed-up air-conditioned tomb with drawn shades, furthers the sense of loss and longing.
The second verse takes on a more philosophical tone, with the idea that bad roads, snow, and bridges can turn a once bad man religious if the kingdom ever comes. This sense of spirituality is mirrored in the final line of the verse with the plea to "run, run, run". The third verse turns to more surreal imagery, with the singer wondering if there is a Spanish word for the "rush" he gets when he is "stealing" from the Dust Congress, a symbol of the passing of time and the loss of money. The chorus repeats the idea that the world is not ready, before ending on the uplifting line that it's a beautiful world.
Overall, the song captures the bittersweet emotions that come with the passage of time and the memories that remain.
Line by Line Meaning
Call me from Albemarle Station if you can
If you're able to, call me from Albemarle Station.
I hope you find your concentration beneath those ceiling fans
I wish for you to rediscover your ability to focus.
We used to dance in this split-level ranch when moonlight flooded the room
In the past, we used to dance in this house while it was lit by the moon.
Now you're gone and the shades are all drawn in my air conditioned tomb
Since you're no longer here, I've drawn the shades and am living a cool and dark existence.
Bad roads, bad snow, bad bridges could turn a once bad man religious if thy kingdom ever comes you better run, run run run
The perils of nature can change a man's ways, even the most bad, and when the reckoning comes, they better run.
There must be a spanish word for this feeling the rush I get when I am stealing from the Dust Congress whose dollars and dimes say 'in dust we trust' oh yeah the world is not ready for you
There must be a Spanish word for this thrill I get from stealing from the Dust Congress, whose currency is designed for those who have little faith in the economy. The world is not yet prepared for what you have to offer.
I passed an abandoned drive-in with ivy growing over the screen It was like I caught Hollywood sleeping- sleep without the dreams
I saw an abandoned drive-in movie theater with ivy overgrowing the screen. It was like catching Hollywood napping – resting without an aspiration in sight.
A magic shop in Colonial Watts something gets pushed by the wind The world's not ready the world's not ready the chimes of rabies are ringing again
A Colonial-era magic shop where something moves because of the wind. The world isn't prepared for what's coming; the sound of rabies is ringing out again.
There must be a pool out behind the church cause he looked so cool in the back of a hearse After a debutante of his trial all the citizens began to dress in his style oh yeah, it's a beautiful, beautiful world
There must be a swimming pool behind the church because he looked great in the back of a hearse. After he was acquitted from his crime, all citizens started dressing like him. The world is a beautiful place.
Contributed by Declan G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.