¤ milky moon ¤

I'm sure there will be more recordings up soon, but for now, I listened from this recording of the whole show:

http://www.mediafire.com/download/plg8m ... _14+PM.mp3

Starts around 12:55

The first stanza is so hard to hear, and as much as I love my fellow Joanna fans... I will never forgive you for cheering in the middle of the song.

I got a lot of the easy stuff. I didn't mark the unsure parts because I'm unsure of a lot of it. Please contribute and fix it up. I'm editing this just so the most accurate lyrics will be on the front page. Credit goes to everyone that's helping out.

Hay and a clean stall
and ivy on the garden wall
and a sign saying sold
and no coat for the bad cold.

I believe in you.
Do you believe in me?
What do you want to do?
Are we leaving the city?

On the black road,
through the gold fields
while the fields are plowed
towards what we are allowed.

The bridle bends in idle hands
and slows your canter to a trot.
We need to stop in increments,
but can’t commit. We post and sit in impotence.

The harder the hit, the deeper the dent.
We seek out fame, we seek a name
in our credentials, paved in (painting?) glass,
trying to master incidentals.

Bleach a quarter, leech a dollar
from our sense.
The longer you leap, the higher the bend
beneath a pale sky,
beside the old barn (?),
below the white cloud
is all we are allowed.

Here, the light will seep,
and the scythe will reap,
and spirit will rend
in counting toward the end.

In December of that year,
the word came down that she was here.
The days were shorter,
I was sure if she came round,
I’d hold my ground.

I can do what they alluded to,
a change that came to pass.
Spring did range, weeping grass
and sleepless broke
itself upon the winter glass.

And I could barely breathe for seeing
all the splintered light that leaked.
A vicious/the fishes fleeing, launched in flight
but starched in light,
bright and bleeding, bleach the night
with dawn deleting in that high sun
after I have a good run,
when the spirit bends
beneath knowing it must end.

And I did all I want here,
to draw my gaunt spirit to bow
beneath what I am allowed,
beneath what I am allowed.

for the lazy among us, someone pulled this song out:

I really hope we get official pitchfork videos tomorrow. good work, priscilla!

I was so irritated by the people cheering in the middle! Yes, that part of the song was very nice, but can we please listen to the rest of it? Geez louise.

Anyway, I sort of remember something at the beginning about ivy, maybe? The earliest lines I can make out are:

-garden wall and a sign saying so
And no coat for the bad cold


And here are some notes on the rest:

On the black road,
The old fields where (I know that doesn't make much sense but I was pretty sure at the time that she said "fields" twice)
the fields are plowed
towards what we are allowed.

The bridle bends in idle hands,
and slows your canter to a trot.
We need to stop in increments,
but can’t commit.
We post and sit in impotence.
The harder the hit, the deeper the dent.
We seek and fail, we seek and win. (I heard the second part of this as "we seek a name" but am not sure)
And our credentials paved in glass
tried to master incidentals
which are --
which are --
--
the longer you leap, the higher the bend
beneath a pale sky.
---
-- the white cloud
is all we are allowed.

Here, the light will seep,
and -- will reap,
and spirit will rend
in counting toward the end.

In December of that year,
the word came down that she was here.
The days were shorter,
I was sure if she came round,
I’d hold my ground.

I can do what they alluded to
a change that came and past
swinging branch, weeping grass
and sleepless broke.
We sailed upon my window glass.

And I could barely breathe for seeing
all the splintered light that bleached (I think it might be "breached" especially since she says "bleach the night" later)
a vicious feeling (I hear "fleeing" or "fleeting" here though that makes less sense), launched in flight
what scorched the light
bright and bleating, bleach the night.
But don’t believe me in that high sun
after I have a good run,
when the spirit bends
beneath knowing it must end

And -- all I want here
to draw my gaunt spirit to bow
beneath what I am allowed,
beneath what I am allowed.

Thank you!

-garden wall and a sign saying so
And no coat for the bad cold

I think you're right for a lot of that, I edited my original post to add that in and maybe a shadow of the first line.

On the black road,
The old fields where (I know that doesn't make much sense but I was pretty sure at the time that she said "fields" twice)
the fields are plowed
towards what we are allowed.

Looking at it, it would make sense if she said "yields" the second time, wouldn't it? It just really sounds like she's saying fields.

We seek and fail, we seek and win. (I heard the second part of this as "we seek a name" but am not sure)
And our credentials paved in glass
tried to master incidentals
which are --
which are --

I can kinda hear "seek a name" too, but the way it's paired right now seems to make sense. Maybe the first one is wrong as well, though.

I'm kinda hearing a dollar/cents thing after the second "which are" (if that's even it) which fits with the "incidentals," but I'm not really sure.

I was kinda excited about that "winged mustang" line haha, too bad.

Jesus christ this song BLEW ME AWAY. I am floored here, hearing this. GODDAMN I LOVE JOANNA NEWSOM.

Oh God, this song! .............

The first line I think might be "Hay in the clean stall" instead of "stone" ...

It seems like she maybe wouldn't say "fields" twice in a row like that... does anyone else hear a "b" sound the second time around? There's an old word "bield" or "beild" or "beeld" which means a shelter or refuge or "habitation for man or beast". That might make sense...

I hear "seek a name", too, and maybe something about fame right before that? And later, something about "dollar for our sense"... but I also hear things like "fishes fleeing" and "no coal for the backhoe", so...! What a gorgeous song, even without all of the details filled in. I'm so impressed with how much and how clearly you've deciphered it thus far!

The better quality audio is up on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_LGEczLMSY

I'm still missing a couple bits (frustratingly) but here's what I come up with:

Hay and a clean stall
And ivy on a garden wall
And a sign saying Sold
And an old coat for the bad cold

I believe in you
Do you believe in me?
What do you wanna do?
Are we leaving the city?

On the black road
Through the gold fields
While the fields are plowed
Towards what we are allowed

The bridle bends in idle hands and
Slows your canter to a trot
We mean to stop in increments but can't commit
We post and sit in impotence
The harder you hit, the deeper the dent
We seek out fame, we seek a name
And our credentials paved in glass
Trying to master incidentals
Bleach out cold/coal(?)
Leech our dawn(?) from our sense(?)
The longer you ???, the higher the bend

Beneath the pale sky
Beside the ???
Below the white cloud
Is all we are allowed

Here the light will seep
And the scythe will reap
And the spirit will rend
In counting toward the end

In December of that year
The word came down that she was here
The days were shorter
I was sure if she came 'round I'd hold my ground
I can do what they alluded to
A change that came to pass
Spring did range weeping grass
And sleepless broke itself upon the winter glass
And I could barely breathe for seeing
All the splintered light deplete,
The fishes fleeing,
Launched in flight
In staunch delight
??? bleeding bleached the night

With dawn deleting in that high sun
After I have a good run
When the spirit bends
Beneath knowing it must end

And I did all I want here
To draw my gaunt spirit to bow(?)
Beneath what I am allowed
Beneath what I am allowed

I'm pretty sure the bolded bits are wrong but phonetically it sounds something like that to me. I also thought it may be something about dollars and cents/sense but I'm not so convinced after hearing the higher quality recording.

Lotsa good stuff, I edited my lyrics some. Still a work in progress obviously.

I actually think it's dollar/sense more with the good recording. It sounds like quarter, dollar and then I assume sense, not cents. Which is a play on words I could see Joanna doing. Maybe not though.

Oh and what do you think about old barn? Thought I heard it and it fits with the theme, but it's so hard to make out her voice behind the cheers.

I am stumped on the part under the cheering. I thought it sounded like a w sound on the first word, and the second word sounded like house (which would kind of fit with cloud/allowed) but I'm pretty sure it starts with a b sound. It's probably something really obvious but when I play it over and over it starts to sound like a foreign language. lol

Here is the best video of the song so far:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBfh0v1KH2Y

And my two cents about the lyrics. Although I'm not quite sure how it can be grammatically correct but is it possible that it's not "spring did range" but something like "spring derange"?

Any ideas about a possible title? What We Are Allowed (or What I Am Allowed) seems probable, though it kinda reminds What We Have Known.

Pretty song. I'm not too keen on the bridge parts though - sounds a bit twee and out of place in my opinion, but maybe I'll like it better when I hear the studio version of the song. I prefer the second song she performed; it's a simple but beautiful piano ballad in the the same vein as 'does not suffice' (one of my favourite songs on the last album) Amazing lyrics as always.

I can't wait to hear these new songs in studio form, along with The Diver's Wife and Look And Despair!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBfh0v1KH2Y

HD, yes....

gawd I've been hearing this sporadically. sooo good.

Does anyone else hear her sing "the longer you live, the higher the rent"? It would fit in with the general theme of real estate in the song.

Love the harp on this one. Can't wait to have it on an album.

I'm completely in love with this one, the harp is incredibly gorgeous.

Another great one. I don't have anything to add to the lyrics, really - the unclear bits could only really be filled in by speculation, I think.