Bill Callahan, born in Silver Spring, Maryland. Callahan followed the lo-fi… Read Full Bio ↴Bill Callahan, born in Silver Spring, Maryland. Callahan followed the lo-fi genre of underground rock, with homemade tape-albums recorded on four track tape recorders. Later he signed a record contract with the label Drag City.
Callahan started out as a highly experimental artist, utilizing sub-standard instruments and recording equipment. His reason for using the lo-fi approach was not so much an aesthetic choice, rather it came from his lack of knowledge of recording studios, and fear of giving up control to professional engineers.
His later work saw him overcoming his fear of studios and producers, and in this period he recorded two albums with the influential producer Jim O'Rourke and musicians from the circles around Drag City, as well as collaborating with the similar-minded Neil Hagerty.
His songs are based on simple, repetitive structures, strikingly characterized by his baritone vocal. His lyrics are often centered around themes of spiritual searching and the complexity of emotions, with the use of subtlety and dark irony in the classic sense. There is also a broad swathe of joy throughout Callahan's work (and a singular obsession with horses that he shares with Will Oldham and Mark Linkous). He is a keen storyteller using simple words to project large and deeply echoing tales.
Callahan's love life has been documented with vigor in numerous hipster publications, including his romantic relationship with Chan Marshall (Cat Power), who allegedly penned "To Be a Good Woman" in tribute to Callahan while referencing his song "To Be Of Use." It has recently been rumored that Callahan is now involved with Drag City labelmate Joanna Newsom.
Callahan is widely seen as one of the important figures of American rock in the '90s. He currently resides in Austin, TX.
On his 2007 album "Woke on a Whaleheart" he dropped the name Smog and used his real name, Bill Callahan.

There are other artists with the same name:

2. Smog was a psychedelic rock band from Perù, wich in 1971 released the single Time for the Blues

3. Sludge/doom metal from Nuremberg, Germany

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4. Black metal from Kraków, Poland

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Driving
Smog Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

And the rain washed the price
Off of our windshield

Overall Meaning

The song "Driving" by Smog is about how the rain can wash away not only the dirt but also the significance of things that we hold on to. The lyrics are metaphoric in the sense that rain can also symbolize a form of cleansing that can change our perspective on life. In this line, "the rain washed the price off of our windshield," the singer is implying that the rain has cleared their vision and made them see the world more clearly – it has also given them the realization that the price of materialistic things is not as important as they once thought.

The rain washing away the "price" could refer to the value we put on money, material objects or even social status, and how it can be washed away as easily as the dirt on a windshield. The symbolism of rain, in this case, could be a reference to the idea that we should appreciate the simple things in life and not hold on to the things we cannot take with us when we leave this world.

Overall, the lyrics to "Driving" touch on the idea that despite the struggle or hardship that life may throw our way, it is important to embrace change and allow ourselves to be cleansed by the rain.

Line by Line Meaning

And the rain washed the price
The rain cleansed the grime and dirt off our windshield

Off of our windshield
Allowing us to see the world with a clear perspective

And the sun, it shines through
With the sun's rays shining through the windshield

The water and glass make up
The water and the glass form a unison body

A lens that's watching you
A lens that monitors your surroundings and actions

And the cars on the street
The vehicles on the road

Are like little toys
Appear like miniature objects in the bigger picture

In little houses and buildings
Small establishments on either side of the road

Well they're all happy
Everyone's going about their daily lives happily

In little boxes
Living in confined spaces

And some drive by on cruise control
Some people drive without paying much attention to their surroundings