The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by… Read Full Bio ↴The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle, despite the plural moniker. The Mountain Goats are, for all practical purposes, the endlessly clever and prolific John Darnielle and whatever musicians he surrounds himself with, which means that while the soundscape may change from project to project, the overall tone and feel of Darnielle's work remains remarkably consistent. At his best, he writes finely observed, slightly surreal, impressionistic vignettes that manage to mix life as we live it with life as we wish we could live it, and as such he has more in common with a novelist than he does with the typical singer/songwriter, which is fitting, as he's also a published author. Darnielle's early Mountain Goats releases were lo-fi, cassette-recorded efforts cut with a rotating lineup of musicians, such as 1995's Nine Black Poppies and 2000's The Coroner's Gambit. By 2005's The Sunset Tree, his recordings had become cleaner and less cluttered, but his characters studies were just as vivid, and as the Mountain Goats finally cohered into a stable lineup (with Darnielle joined by Peter Hughes, Matt Douglas, and Jon Wurster), they recorded tuneful, thematically unified albums such as Beat the Champ (2015) and Goths (2017) that ranked with their finest work.
Darnielle began the new millennium with The Coroner's Gambit for Absolutely Kosher before signing to 4AD for the release of the surprisingly polished Tallahassee in 2002. We Shall All Be Healed followed in 2004, and one year later, Darnielle was back with The Sunset Tree. Remaining as prolific as ever, Darnielle turned away from the intensity of The Sunset Tree for a calmer, more reflective set of songs on 2006's Get Lonely. The accessible and assured Heretic Pride appeared in 2008. Next up was the Bible verse-inspired The Life of the World to Come, the group's sixth album for 4AD, in 2010. Switching to Merge Records in 2011, Darnielle released All Eternals Deck, which was recorded in four different studios in Brooklyn, Boston, North Carolina, and Florida with four different producers -- John Congleton, Scott Solter, Brandon Eggleston, and Morbid Angel guitarist and Hate Eternal frontman Erik Rutan -- helming various tracks. That year the band was also handpicked by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he was curating in Minehead, England, but they were ultimately unable to appear due to scheduling issues.

California Song
The Mountain Goats Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I know you see mars in the sky tonight
I know you can see venus rising and veering off to the right.
but can you see that young star overhead?
it's the one that designed my undoing.
I know that in california the waves break on the beach.
and I know that the foam on the breaking waves
is as white as household bleach.
but do you see that particular white right now

it's the color of the young star coming on down.
I got joy joy joy in my soul tonight
I got joy joy joy in my arms alright.
although you treat me badly,
I love you madly.

you really got a hold on me.
you really got a hold on me.

Overall Meaning

In the opening verse of California Song by The Mountain Goats, the lead singer discusses the sky and specifically mentions the planets Mars and Venus. He tells the listener that they can see the planets in the sky, but he then directs their attention to a young star that is overhead. He then reveals that this particular star designed his undoing. This suggests that the star holds a deeper meaning or significance to the singer and may have played a role in his fate or misfortune in some way.

The second verse shifts the focus to California, where the waves break on the beach and the foam on the waves is white like household bleach. He then asks the listener if they can see a particular white color that he sees right now, which he describes as the color of the young star coming down. This again reinforces the importance of the star in the singer's life and suggests that it may even play a role in the California setting of the song. The final lines reveal that despite being treated badly, the singer is filled with joy and love for the subject of the song, who has a strong hold over him.

Overall, California Song is a poignant and introspective look at the relationship between the singer and his subject. The use of the stars and California as symbolic settings adds a rich layer of meaning to the song and creates a unique atmosphere that draws the listener in.

Line by Line Meaning

I know you see mars in the sky tonight
I am aware that you are observing Mars in the sky tonight

I know you can see venus rising and veering off to the right.
I am aware that you can see Venus rising and moving to the right.

but can you see that young star overhead?
However, are you able to observe the young star above us?

it's the one that designed my undoing.
That particular star is responsible for causing my downfall.

I know that in california the waves break on the beach.
I am aware that in California, waves crash on the shore.

and I know that the foam on the breaking waves is as white as household bleach.
I also know that the foam created by the breaking waves is as white as bleach.

but do you see that particular white right now
However, are you able to perceive that specific shade of whiteness at this very moment?

it's the color of the young star coming on down.
That color is similar to the shade of the young star as it descends.

I got joy joy joy in my soul tonight
I am filled with an abundance of joy in my very being tonight

I got joy joy joy in my arms alright.
I am experiencing immense joy even in my extremities

although you treat me badly,
Despite the fact that you mistreat me,

I love you madly.
I still possess an intense love for you.

you really got a hold on me.
You have a significant grip on me.

you really got a hold on me.
You truly have a hold over me.

Contributed by Taylor V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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