Starting with 2001's brilliant day darkener, Here's Luck, the band charted a course of, as Paste magazine said, capturing "the Zeitgeist of this anxious era." The follow-up, 10,000 Years, was hailed as the bands' masterpiece—a concept album based on Levy's experiences in social work telling the story of a poor urban test tube kids’s rise and fall during a genocidal apocalypse in the not-so-distant future. In 2006 the band released Amygdala, a record thematically exploring fear in its varied forms—abandonment, losing children, war & death, aging, social decay.
In 2009 the band emerges with an offering considerably more hopeful in these desperate times. The tracks on Sunshine Committee reflect a complex, often nuanced intersection of art and humanity while marking a return to a more live, rocking sound.
Once featured guests, Matt Darling on trombone and Steven Kung on trumpet have now become integral core members of the band, adding a vintage Stax/Volt-Muscle Shoals unctuousness to the record. Bass player Trent Norton’s writhingly hooky parts almost singularly define the new improved sound. Levy and Brian Halverson have further perfected their guitar matrimony, playing off each other and swapping leads and obbligatos. Peter Sands, given extra real estate space, layers clavinets, harpsichords, pianos, Hammond organs, Chamberlains, and various odd keyboards from his museum of myriad electronic instruments. Drummer Peter Anderson directs traffic like an empathic inner city principal, alternately slamming and playing with great economy, sensitivity and restraint.
As always, the band refers to the traditional soul and rock touchstones while creating something interesting, unpredictable, insightful, and moving: shades of the Stones' Exile on Main Street, Fresh-era Sly Stone, twilight Hendrix and Revolver-esque Beatles, all with Levy's surreal, evocative and enigmatic lyrics winding sinuously through the savory mix.
Sunshine Committee is the band’s first truly self-produced effort, with the entire band involved in the conception, engineering and editing of the record. Granted permission to record this and his children’s record (Bunny Clogs) at the Institute of Production and Recording where Levy is a teacher, the EP's production provided top students with a “laboratory” environment in which to experiment with various mics and recording techniques, comment on arrangement and performance, and assist in the editing process.
Capping off the roster of contributing talent, friend and mainstay John Fields, freshly finished with recording the Jonas Brothers, offered up his mixing expertise to the band.
On the eve of this, the Honeydog's 10th release, with solo projects and new records percolating, the band emerges confident in their ability to reinvent their sound while keeping alive the best musical and thematic features that have been their trademarks for nearly 15 years.
The Crown
The Honeydogs Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Or hot water
You're going down
And easy, lies the head
That wears the crown
You forgot your [peas and cubes]
Because you paid your dues
And there's a bug at your window
That will not leave you alone
Tonight
And heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Easy as the egg strikes the stone
It's the one that finds the bone
You too shall pass
And easy lies the head
That wears the crown
And heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Head's a penny
Are a broken mirror
You can have them all
We don't need them here
We worship the ground, you trip on
want to stay but you've got to get out
Feeling sure but you have your doubts
And easy lies the head
That wears the crown
And heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
Heaven looks after
Fools and thieves
The Honeydogs' "The Crown" is a song that blends themes of power, arrogance, and the inevitability of downfall. The opening lines "Come hell or hot water, you're going down" sets up the tone with a warning to the listener that no matter how powerful or invincible they may seem, their eventual downfall is inevitable. The phrase "easy lies the head that wears the crown" then follows, referencing the idea that despite the weight of power and responsibility that comes with leadership, it also comes with a certain level of ease and comfort.
The following lines "You forgot your [peas and cubes]/ Because you paid your dues/ Doesn't make it alright" point out that just because one has worked hard and achieved success, it does not necessarily mean that they are in the right. This is further emphasized by the line "And heaven looks after fools and thieves" which suggests that even those who make mistakes and engage in immoral behavior will receive some form of protection or salvation.
The song's chorus repeats the notion that heaven looks after fools and thieves three times over, suggesting that this is a theme that is central to the song's message. The final verse talks about the worthlessness of material possessions such as a broken mirror or a head's penny, and the idea that they are not of value in the grand scheme of things. The repetition of "Heaven looks after fools and thieves" in the song's conclusion drives home the message that no matter how high one's position, they are still vulnerable to the consequences of their actions.
Line by Line Meaning
Come hell
Despite any hardships
Or hot water
Or difficult circumstances
You're going down
You are headed towards failure
And easy, lies the head
It is easy for the one
That wears the crown
Who is in charge and has power
You forgot your [peas and cubes]
You overlooked something important
Because you paid your dues
Even though you have worked hard and earned something
Doesn't make it alright
It does not justify any wrongdoings
And there's a bug at your window
There is a problem that is bothering you
That will not leave you alone
And refuses to go away
Tonight
At this moment
And heaven looks after
The divine watches over
Fools and thieves
Those who make foolish decisions or commit crimes
Easy as the egg strikes the stone
Something difficult but possible to accomplish
It's the one that finds the bone
Only the right person will succeed
You too shall pass
You will also face challenges and overcome them
Head's a penny
A mindless thing of little value
Are a broken mirror
Something shattered and useless
You can have them all
These things offer little value
We don't need them here
They are unwanted
We worship the ground, you trip on
We value something you ignore or take for granted
want to stay but you've got to get out
You desire to remain, but circumstances require you to leave
Feeling sure but you have your doubts
You have confidence, but still feel uncertain
And easy lies the head
It is simple for the one
That wears the crown
Who holds the power and authority
And heaven looks after
The divine watches over
Fools and thieves
Those who make foolish decisions or commit crimes
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ADAM L. LEVY, NOAH LEVY, THOMAS BORSCHEID, TRENT NORTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind