The one permanent fixture amidst the Fall's ever-changing line-up was Mark E. Smith (1957 – 2018). Smith's lyrics are free, unboxed and unpredictable, touching on an extremely wide range of subjects and places, and caring little for being tied down to easily digestible messages.
Smith's singing could put off some people, but others find it a uniquely expressive instrument. Smith was not a conventionally great vocalist, but his keen sense of rhythm, his energy and personality more than made up for this.
The Fall's music changed depending on the line-up at a given time. Always experimental, Mark E. Smith claimed to invent several musical genres, including house music; "we were doing that years ago" and even the internet. "He told me I didn't understand, that we were from the bleak industrial wastes of North England, or something, and that we didn't understand the Internet. I told him Fall fans invented the Internet. They were on there in 1982." One thing that is for sure is that The Fall (and their fans) always pushed the boundaries, and were never afraid to experiment.
The Fall were a favorite group of DJ John Peel, recording 24 sessions for his BBC1 radio program over the years.
The Fall's back catalogue consists of 29 studio albums, and is very fragmented with a seemingly endless number of compilations and semi-official live albums.
In 2006, British music-critic Dave Simpson published an entertaining account of a journalist's attempt to track down all 43 former members of The Fall in the Guardian. Many previous members have been fired, often with little or no notice. Simpson's ongoing effort was subsequently described at greater length in his book "The Fallen" (2008). His effort to track down the final unaccounted stragglers of at least 50 previous members of The Fall - including drummer Karl Burns - continues in his blog. Having decried Simpson's book as a "hatchet job" in the pages of Pseud. Mag., a Fall fan-mag, Mark E. Smith countered in short order with his autobiography "Renegade: The Lives and Tales of Mark E. Smith" (Viking, 2008/Penguin 2009).
Mark E. Smith died on 24 January 2018, aged 60.
Key Albums include:
# Live At the Witch Trials (debut)
# Dragnet
# Totale's Turns (It's Now Or Nevr)
# Grotesque (after the Gramme)
# Perverted By Language
# Hex Enduction Hour
# This Nation's Saving Grace
# Middle Class Revolt
# Bend Sinister
# Extricate
# The Infotainment Scan
# Country on the Click aka The Real New Fall LP
# Fall Heads Roll
# Reformation Post TLC (new)
Compilations/Singles/B-Sides:
# 50,000 Fall Fans Can't Be Wrong: 39 Golden Greats
# The Complete Peel Sessions 1978-2004
# Totally Wired: The Rough Trade Anthology (disc 1) and Totally Wired: The Rough Trade Anthology (disc 2)
# 458489 A-Sides
# 458489 B-Sides
Vixen
The Fall Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Suddenly back on its own
To sit, friendless and alone
She is friendless and alone
She is friendless and alone
And the vixen on its own
The triple gang and the throng
The vixen got no friends
She needs a poison pen
Even in Switzerland
The people cry, "vixen!"
Silver cross, all alone
The bird had flown
With the omen their bird had flown
Silver cross
All alone, all alone,
All alone, all alone (So millions were broken hearted)
All alone, all alone
All alone, with no home
WIth no home, It's all alone
All alone
And some night, the wind moves the leaves
They pick themselves up and run
Perhaps all that night possessed no ways of telling time
The vixen got no friends
The vixen got no friends
She needs a poison pen
The vixen got no friends
It had taken her a long time
Suddenly back on its own
To sit friendless and alone
To sit friendless and alone
A man's trust, apalling debt
A man's chest, appalling debt
To sit friendless and alone
With no home, with no home
The vixen's got no home
She is friendless and alone
A long time on its own
It shone around her Triple gang
The vixen's got no friends
She needs a poison pen
Even in Switzerland
The people cry, "vixen!"
The Fall's song Vixen is deeply introspective and haunting in its lyrics. The song speaks of a solitary and friendless vixen who roams alone in the wilderness, without any companionship or support. The vixen is a metaphor for loneliness and isolation, and the lyrics explore the theme of being alone and the human emotions that accompany such a state of being.
The song begins by describing the vixen sitting alone and friendless. This image is contrasted with the triple gang and the throng, who do not feel helpless or alone. The vixen is seen as an outcast, one who has no friends and needs a poison pen to defend itself. The people in Switzerland cry out for the vixen, highlighting its loneliness and the fact that it is a victim of circumstance.
As the song progresses, it takes a more introspective turn. The lyrics describe a man's trust, appalling debt and his chest, which mirrors the vixen's predicament. It is as if the vixen and the man are both alone and struggling, and the song highlights the similarities between the two.
The final verse of the song describes the wind moving the leaves and the idea that time is endless and meaningless. The vixen is still friendless and alone, and the song seems to imply that it may always be so.
Overall, the song Vixen is a deeply reflective and somber piece that speaks to the human condition of loneliness and isolation. It is a powerful reminder that despite our attempts to connect with others, we may still feel alone and unsupported at times.
Line by Line Meaning
It had taken her a long time
After a long period, she finally reached a state of loneliness
Suddenly back on its own
She is now friendless and without community
To sit, friendless and alone
She is without companionship or a place to belong
She is friendless and alone
She has lost her social connections and support systems
And the vixen on its own
The vixen is also alone and struggling to find allies
The triple gang and the throng
The crowd of people nearby
Did not feel helpless or alone
The crowd didn't experience the same feelings of isolation
The vixen got no friends
The vixen is lacking in social connections
She needs a poison pen
She's in need of some kind of weapon or tool to defend herself
Even in Switzerland
Even in a peaceful and neutral country
The people cry, 'vixen!'
People are calling her out and ostracizing her for her lack of friends
Silver cross, all alone
The symbol of Christianity, without any surrounding meaning
The bird had flown
A bird left its surroundings, may symbolize change or hopelessness
With the omen their bird had flown
The loss of the bird may be seen as a bad sign or an omen of negative events to come
All alone, all alone, with no home
Repetition of the theme of isolation and displacement
So millions were broken hearted
Many people were left feeling a sense of loss
The vixen's got no home
The vixen has nowhere to go and no place to call home
And some night, the wind moves the leaves
A picturesque scene setting of a quiet night where the wind rustles tree leaves
They pick themselves up and run
The leaves are personified into beings that are able to pick themselves up and move
Perhaps all that night possessed no ways of telling time
The setting may be a timeless place where time is undefined and not relevant
A man's trust, appalling debt
The man owed a debt that was so great it completely destroyed any trust others had in him
A man's chest, appalling debt
His chest may feel weighed down with the burden of his debt
With no home, the vixen's got no home
Repetition of the theme of displacement, showing how the singer and the vixen share similar struggles
A long time on its own
The vixen has been alone for a considerable period of time
It shone around her Triple gang
Her isolation is highlighted by the presence of a nearby crowd
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Brix Smith, Mark Smith
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind