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.

Solomon Revisited
The Mountain Goats Lyrics

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you say you came to see me,
because you had nothing else to do,
but I've got a radio.
you say you'd thought you'd stop on by
and let me have a look at you,
but I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.

I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.

you say you brought some photographs,
but I don't care to see them,
'cause I've got a radio.

you say this place must get dull sometimes,
but that's not the way I see it.
'cause I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.
I've got me a radio.
I've got a radio.

you see these frogs are treacherous,
but how long has it been since you've seen my feet?
you see, I've got a radio.
you warned me about all sorts of things,
but that's not the sort of warning that I need.
you see, I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.

I've got a radio.
I've got a radio.

Overall Meaning

The Mountain Goats’ song “Solomon Revisited” speaks to a feeling of disconnection and detachment in a relationship. The opening lines of the song have the singer being visited by someone who claims to have nothing else to do and brings photos to share. However, the singer seems to have already disengaged, as they have a radio and don’t need anything else. The repetition of “I’ve got a radio” throughout the song emphasizes this point and the distance between the two individuals.

Later in the song, the singer acknowledges the frogs that they claim are treacherous, but they don’t seem to care. The warning from their visitor about the frogs is disregarded as it is not important to them. The singer is completely disinterested in the warning, preferring their radio over any other interaction.

Overall, the song speaks to the power of music as a way to disconnect from reality and create emotional distance. The singer has lost interest in connecting with their visitor or any physical surroundings, preferring to escape into the world of their radio.

Line by Line Meaning

you say you came to see me, because you had nothing else to do, but I've got a radio.
You came to visit me just because you were bored, but I am not really interested in talking with you as I have my radio.

you say you'd thought you'd stop on by and let me have a look at you, but I've got a radio. I've got a radio. I've got a radio. I've got a radio.
You thought of visiting me to show off yourself, but I am not really interested as all I need is my radio.

you say you brought some photographs, but I don't care to see them, 'cause I've got a radio.
You might have brought some pictures, but I am not interested in looking at them, as I have my radio.

you say this place must get dull sometimes, but that's not the way I see it. 'cause I've got a radio. I've got a radio. I've got a radio. I've got me a radio.
You might think this place is dull, but I see it differently. I have my radio for company and entertainment, so I am not bored.

you see these frogs are treacherous, but how long has it been since you've seen my feet? you see, I've got a radio.
You warned me about these frogs, but I am not really bothered. Besides, it's been so long since you've seen me that you don't even know the current state of my feet. I am perfectly fine listening to my radio.

you warned me about all sorts of things, but that's not the sort of warning that I need. you see, I've got a radio.
You have given me all kinds of warnings, but I don't really need them. I am content with my radio and don't need any more advice.

I've got a radio. I've got a radio. I've got a radio. I've got a radio.
I have my radio, and that is all I need.

Contributed by Micah I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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