We all grew up in this city Were living out a dream we could never see It was good times when I thought they were coming true But it turns into something that’s not worth doing anymore.
CHORUS But I don’t know why I should bother, my hands are tied, and I don’t know where the money goes When the money’s gone we will live again, so take me down and pour me out Pour it up, Milk and Money is all I drink Milk and money makes the world go round I’ve been doing my time for a while, now it's my turn to do some stealing And we are running away to our freedom.
But then he took my sister from me and she had something I wanted She was out of his league but I never got the chance to tell him. I don’t care anymore that you found somebody, just let me leave with my dignity. Just get it in gear because this is what we're here for, and take me down, and pour me out Pour it up, milk and money is all I drink. Milk and Money makes the world go round
(instrumental break) CHORUS 2 TIMES THEN FADING Milk and money makes the world go round (repeat in background).
It appears that the first half of this song, at least, may have been written as an after-dinner conversation at a Christmas meal between Jon and Barry, and the two men involved in "Pure Evil", and as such could be considered something like the B-side to Pure Evil. There's no reference to this on the blog, but a little searching through it for clues revealed some interesting information.
Firstly, this comment from January 2014: "We all grew up in the same city (Barry, Jon, & I). It's amazing how many memories can be brought back when you visit home after a long absence. I was actually visiting Jon over the Christmas holidays and we sat up late talking about our lives for some reason. Barry was in Australia and joined us via video call. 36 hours of drinking, eating, and sharing stories ensued and all I have is an achy body."
The video-call between Barry and the others was referenced later here: "Barry is actually going to make this trip down so it should be very interesting as there's always more material for songs. The 4 hour phone call that Barry and I had a while back was an unintentional inspiration for Pure Evil."
The whole Christmas dinner incident can be reconstructed, but I won't bore you with details...suffice it to say the three of them were having a drink in their hometown together (where else?) when a certain event came up and inspired Jon and Barry. They got to thinking about this and that, then decided to try some lyrics at 1 a.m. one morning. "Milk and Money" was born as a result, with Jon supplying the first verse and chorus while Barry helped write the other two verses (see his comment).
We were originally informed that this song was from the "Moonbeams in June" session (not the full title), but it does not appear on the set list for the April 2014 sessions, so it has to be either earlier than that, or after. Either way, it seems to be an early-ish composition; the lyrics seem fresh and spontaneous...there is nothing laboured about this track.
I think there are several possible explanations for what the title could mean. Milk of human kindness is one obvious example; so I am led to believe that "moonbeams" in June refer to a lack of affection, or possibly being cold (it does get cold at night during the summer, if you happen to be living in the UK).
A more personal reading could have it that there are no such thing as true moonbeams, since we have no real knowledge about them. Or perhaps "Milk and Moonbeams" is an affectionate reference to a girl with light brown hair? There again, maybe it is just about some guy's disillusionment with a former sweetheart he encountered on his way home...who knows for sure, eh? It sounds as if the relationship between the two people has ended on something of an anticlimactic note.
The music itself has some interesting features: it opens with just Jon's vocals and piano (acoustic guitar also present, I think), then gradually the rest of the band enter, one by one...at first only barely audible; then a bit louder, until eventually all the instruments are present (in descending order). A really clever idea for a track!
It's just too bad that we only get to hear it on this album (although, of course, some lucky fan must have it in the studio version); but we don't...or do we? For this song sounds quite similar to the final track of this CD; "If You See My Lady" - at least when compared with other tracks of that session.
"If you see my lady, won’t you ask her how she does / If she would care to write a letter and post it back to me... / The first thing on her mind, I know / is to take her hat off and go home..." Here we have another sad and disillusioned male lamenting the loss of his girl friend! However, there seems to be a greater feeling of hope in this track...I think Jon was actually getting closer to writing real songs on that day...he would be there soon enough!
For more details of these sessions, see our book - A Passion Play - The Complete Guide To Tarkus by Andy Rundall & Mike Barnes. Available from here: http://www.tarkus.co.uk/Books_CDs/passionplay_thecomp ... viewtopic.php?f=41&t=5326
Mike Barnes, London - September 2017 (edited 8 November 2017) I'll tell you what's wrong with "If you see my lady" -- it isn't finished yet. Jon says so himself in an interview he gave around the time of its release. I'm not saying I like this one either but we need to be objective when trying to determine quality, right?
That's why I think your point about Tarkus was irrelevant to my post and you know what else? I have no interest in being your buddy because you aren't one for me. You have repeatedly used abusive language towards me over the last few weeks while you say others do as well. I haven't done a thing wrong in this whole process, other than trying to help this board by adding new knowledge of Jon's work and defending the members from abusive posts that go beyond my tolerance levels. You said "I don't see your point at all" while giving no reason as to why you felt it was necessary to call me out in a personal attack, again. I won't stoop to such tactics with you but maybe that is what you're looking for from me?
You mentioned we could just "agree to disagree." Let's do that and move on without attacking each other verbally. That would be nice wouldn't it? You seem like a decent person outside of this forum but there have been times recently that your posts were beyond offensive towards the members of this board and it has really hurt the credibility of you being someone we can take seriously. I just don't want to be a part of a board where abusive behavior goes on constantly because of it. I will defend those that need defending with as much strength as I need, but I will also do everything within my means to maintain an enjoyable atmosphere on this forum, for all, myself included.
I appreciate the response but again, there's no need for name calling on my part or your's. This can and should be done civilly. Have a great day/night! I am not aware of any rules about posts. We do have a set of Guidelines that we expect people to adhere to but I would imagine that most people would find it easier if they followed those than remembering the actual rule book. You're right that it is a small board, so if you have a question and there are only three of us around at one time it is going to be harder to get an answer or any reaction. It's nice to know that people do respond on this board in general though even if I don't post every day anymore, which I suppose you know as I was out of here for almost a month recently. I also appreciate your efforts at moderating. There were times when it was really difficult with certain members being the way they were, but most of the people on here are nice and the community has grown and developed into one that I like being part of. It would be hard for me to not comment now if there was something interesting going on though and I hope you wouldn't want that either.
Thanks again for taking time out to say those things! I really don’t feel I can contribute without your feedback, especially with what we know of the situation here. If it’s ok I will continue to respond where appropriate even if there’s no reaction because at least this way it lets me have something to say about the situation when I have been reading or observing events from the sidelines for so long and just being involved has allowed my life to go on. You’re right, I probably shouldn’t let a little thing like the lack of response make me feel less involved in things here! I will try and be more active with replies when appropriate and hopefully others may also respond which would allow me to become less opinionated or just share an idea rather than waiting for someone else before saying my bit. It seems like most people don’t need help in understanding the rules, but it can be difficult not getting feedback when there are some problems so I am happy to continue contributing! The thing is that if you feel you have been misunderstood by the response then please don't take it personally because that wasn't my intention at all. Sometimes a reply just doesn't come straight away, but we will get round to reading all posts eventually so your input is still very much appreciated even without the instant reaction sometimes! Hi - I have been offline for a little bit now. What are the rules about posting in this section and why don't people answer any comments/questions posted on there? It seems like everyone has something to say about it but no-one will actually read my post or comment back (or they're not getting my email) even though I am subscribed through Mail Chimp as an RSS feed and have set up all alerts properly so should be getting the emails straight away. Is there anything you could tell me that might help make things clearer please? Thank you. Hi there - sorry to hear about your difficulties! The problem with some people who are posting in this section is that they don't take it seriously or just aren't interested. For example, someone posts on my blog asking a question but then when I answer back she doesn't respond and the only response is from someone else who hasn't actually read the question correctly. That was frustrating to deal with so it really makes sense that others will be upset when there are no answers given for their own comments or questions as well! What's also sad about this situation though is that because people don't take these things seriously then they won't be interested in trying again in the future either which means that all of us lose out on a chance for more information. In fact, many times someone else has already posted about something similar but because nobody pays attention or even responds back appropriately to any post made by others then no one else can benefit from hearing about new updates too! As frustrating as this situation may seem though I'm sure that some of you are also facing the same type of problems yourselves which makes it really important for us all to pay attention here instead. Thankfully, there are several ways that we can help ourselves when things get rough like this one so please try and keep your cool even if everything seems terrible right now. We'll be right back here tomorrow with some more tips about what you should do next!