Lightning Crashes - Live

Artist: Live
Song: Lightning Crashes
Year: 1994
Album: Throwing Copper

There's always been something special about this song. I think that it's in the buildup. The song starts out very simple and soft and gradually grows from there until the song is full blast screaming in your ear. Then, as the song ends, it abruptly falls back to the beginning vibe.

The climbing is so gradual that you don't realize that the song is rising towards a crescendo and ultimate climax. Ed Kowalczyk's voice is superb in this song. It strikes just the right balance. It certainly isn't weak and it doesn't belt out until tomorrow, like say Michael Bolton. The singer, not the office worker.

Although this was released in 1994, my memories of it are from 1995. It seemed to be all over the radio in early 1995. The first time I heard this song on the radio, I nearly stopped the car and pulled over. I could not believe that Live could do a song like this. It seemed so passionate and relevant.

The song's subject matter is unusual for a pop song, but you never know what's going to be popular. If you did, you'd see more careers that top the charts for more than a decade. The birth of a child and the death of a mother is a very serious and poignant subject for a song. I think that the lyrics give the song the extra power that it needs to pull this off.

I liked Live's other songs, but this song struck me with the right chord and possibly at the perfect moment. It captures a mood and a feeling that both optimistic and sad. I'm not saying that this would be the perfect song to play at a bittersweet occasion, but it might be better suited for the car ride home.

Lyrics:
lightning crashes, an old mother cries
her placenta falls to the floor
the angel opens her eyes
the confusion sets in
before the doctor can even close the door

lightning crashes, an old mother dies
her tensions fall to the floor
the angel closes her eyes
the confusion that was hers
belongs now to the baby down the hall

oh i can feel it coming back again
like a rolling thunder chasing the wind
forces pulling from the center of the earth i guess
i can feel it
i can feel it

lightning crashes a new mother cries
this moment she's been waiting for
the angel opens her eyes
pale blue coloured eyes
presents the circle
puts the glory out too high, high

oh i feel it coming back again
like a rolling thunder chasing the wind
forces moving from the center of the earth i guess
i can feel it
i can feel it

ooooh i
oooooh i
oooh i

i can feel it coming back again
like a rolling thunder chasing the wind
forces moving from the center of the earth i guess
i can feel it

i can feel it coming back again
like a rolling thunder chasing the wind
forces pulling from the center of the earth i guess
i can feel it

i can feel it coming back again
like a rolling thunder chasing the wind
forces pulling from the center of the earth i guess
i can feel it
i can feel it
i can feel it