Imagine a shard of glass (from a broken bottle) in a gravel parking lot... when the light hits it, it glimmers and shines like a diamond, but when you pick it up... it's not what you thought you found. Now imagine a relationship. At first, it's shiny and new. She's pretty, and funny, and everything you thought you wanted... then some time later, the warts start to show. She's not so funny, and she doesn't think you're so dreamy. You each notice each other's flaws. The relationship isn't so shiny, and you realize what you actually have... a cheap piece of broken glass.
Hot dang James, I've been singing this song since John cut it. I also consider myself a philosopher and cowboy poet. But pard , in this case I'l be satisfied to do the playin and singin and tip my hat to the better man. I wish John was alive to read it. Don't you know James, it'd put a crooked grin on his face. I'd give a pretty to see that face again. He will always be an American treasure. You did his memory good James. Thanks from all of us that keep him alive.
John told the story in concerts (and a few interviews) about the line, "a broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring." John said, "It is in reference to my childhood. We were raised close to a junkyard and one of my favorite pastimes was playing in the junkyard breaking bottles. The kids always commented that the fragments of glass looked just like a field of diamonds. The majority of my songs are written from life experiences and a lot of times there is not any symbolism but just words that take me to another place and time." ~John Prine Highly recommend for your next Prine song: Hello in There
I have never been to a John Prine concert. I discovered John in my later life. I enjoy all his music and being a Canadian my favourite singer was Gordon Lightfoot. The televised concert where John sang Far from me to his song writing hero, Gordon Lightfoot who was in the audience at ,The house of strombo was one of my favourites. John sang it for Lightfoot but Gordon joined right in. I always thought the line, ,,,,,an old broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring, was in reference to Cathy viewing their relationship as something worthless. An old broken bottle, while John viewed it as something precious, a diamond ring. It would depend on how you looked at it. That was my impression anyway. Been there. Next favourite Prine song is Brused Orange. Give it a listen.
And you could make the connection that as a kid, he loved this girl, and he could imagine marrying her, until she lets him go that night. And under this realization, seeing a broken bottle on the ground, makes him think of a diamond ring he would never give Kathy.
Harri, as a fan of his for over 50 years I can tell you he is a well respected musician and beloved by so many musicians. So glad you found him, take time to indulge yourself in his music even in your own time. You won't regret it.
Every time I hear John Prine, I tear up... can't help myself!! About the broken bottle, all glass seems to sparkle, if the light hits it the tight way.
John Prine.................a true CLASSIC anyway you want to cut it ! Great people like this don't come around that often...we were soooooooooooooo............lucky to have him .
I thought maybe the broken bottle/diamond ring was a way of saying he thought she was the one (a diamond ring), or the relationship was that...but it turned out not to be a diamond, but a broken bottle (not the real thing, even though it was shiny....just something much less valuable, and flawed (broken).
Broken glass sparkles in the light just like a diamond ring. John Prine is had a unique outlook on life and found beauty even in the broken. Such an incredible story teller and songwriter and just great human being. RIP John Prine.
A lot of people have left impressions on me, but no more than the great John Prine! His songwriting is the standard of how to reach down and tell a story and deliver it with humor , passion, and heartfelt sincerity only few can come close to doing! I know there's a special place reserved for you John! RIP!
I adore John Prine he made me laugh made me cry made me feel human my entire life. We lost him to Covid💔 May I recommend IN SPITE OF OURSELVES. It’s a wonderful funny love song
Yeah, Harri, it’s all about the lyrics with John Prine. You gotta listen to him. Carefully. He’ll make you grin and he’ll break your heart. And although it may seem subtle at times, the musicianship of John and his players is extraordinary. Keep looking and listening to John Prine. He’ll make your life better, I promise.
It’s a metaphor. Broken bottles like broken relationships. It’s funny how something shiny represents love but shines just like a broken bottle. He sees the relationship has changed and so has what the shine represents.
@@jonsher7682 The line can be based on a literal happenstance and still work as a metaphor. The two are not mutually exclusive. A song, and art in general, can only be experienced subjectively. The artist releases it into the world, and cannot control its effect.
@@kinksfan9781 Harry asked what John Prine meant and in my other comment I quoted John explaining he was being literal, referring to a childhood experience, and not being metaphorical. That answers Harry’s question. If you want to attach a meaning Prine explicitly rejected, go right ahead, but the post I replied to claimed something about what Prine believed that is incorrect. We owe it to the artist to not misstate what the artist said of his own work - once we know what the artist said.
try Illegal Smile, Sam Stone, Spanish Pipedream, Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore... he's got a lot of great songs. Also, Angel From Montgomery
Bruised Orange (Chain of Sorrow) has the most astonishing lyric “ a heart stained in anger grows week and grows bitter , you become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow” !! Love John Prine, so happy I got to see him live once.
I miss this man and his music badly. One of my all time favorite singer/songwriters. RIP John, thank you for singing the stories of my life. The line about the broken bottle and a diamond ring is all about perspective and what influences it, IMO.
50 years ago as a 19 year old John’s words knocked me out for the first time. My thought about “the line” is a diamond ring is the symbol of your love of a lifetime. Or it might just be a worthless piece of broken glass. I invite you to experience his “Hello In There” I ASSURE you the meaning of that one has changed a lot now that I’m 69 years young. 👍
John was only a bit older than me. Sodas didn't come in cans or plastic bottles when we grew up. They came in glass bottles. Those bottles would be discarded here and there, and some of them would get broken. Occasionally, while driving or walking along, you would see something sparking like a diamond out of the corner of your eye on a sunny day. It was the light hitting that broken bottle. So, for that moment, "a broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring." John has a similar line in the song "Bruised Orange." "It ain't such a long drop. Don't stammer. Don't stutter. From the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter." Again, when the sunlight hits sidewalks made with certain forms of concrete, it will reflect what appears to be shiny diamonds. So, it isn't too far from that clean sidewalk to the dirt next to it in the gutter. John was so observant that way. He often said "Far From Me" was his favorite song. I think even he didn't entirely understand its subtleties.
Nice! There's not nearly enough John Prine reactions up on RUclips. Prine said this was one of his favorite songs. Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin said the same thing.
To me the broken bottle symbolizes the broken relationship. The broken glass reflects light like a Diamond ring which reminds him of the romance he once had.
I like his irony the broken bottle/diamond ring metaphor is much like his honesty about life changing suddenly. Whether she literally through his ring back, unlikely or in the still moonlight a broken bottle reminded him of how his ring now meant nothing to her. Another song of his said it again. "I've been pulled up from zero and pulled back there. Sat on the park bench, kissed the girl with the black hair, while my head shouted down to my heart 'Hey look out below! It ain't such a long drop-dont stammer don't stutter from the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter, and you carry those bruises bruises beside you wherever you go.'" Sorry carried away but I've been listening to Johns songs since 1972.
John Prine is one of my all time favorite song writers and singers. He also sings and likes others songs that are similar and his unique voice sings them well. Somehow a voice like his and similar to Dylan`s gets you involved with the story better than a beautiful singing voice. My take on the broken bottle is ,that he`s drinking the trouble away,throws the empty bottle thinking of the diamond ring. Ive done this myself.
I read somewhere how 2 people may look at one of those rohrshach blotches and see something completely different. He saw the diamond ring and she saw an old broken bottle.
I think it's a shame so many people don't who he is. They don't know what their missing! Thanks for the reaction and exposing more people to some great music.
Hello In There, Sam Stone and Spanish Pipedream are three that'll be a great introduction to his catalog. There's a video of him singing Sam Stone from The Old Grey Whistle that's as stark as it is sad, but spot on.
I think he's talking about how a piece of a broken bottle sparkles in the moonlight...just like a diamond sparkles...or so It plays in my mind. I think that's really the point...it makes you think. What's so important about material things...they all sparkle...but without someone close to you what do they matter? "But it's far, far from me..."
to me the broken bottle describes a situation where two people look at something and see different things of entirely different value - he saw the love he was still hoping would work out and she saw a broken relationship
He was a folk singer that just kept writing and releasing albums. Angel From Montgomery, Unwed Fathers, Speed Of the Sound of Loneliness were Prine songs that other artist scored hits. 6:50 His death was one the first Big Name Artist attributed to COVID.
@Julie Crane if memory serves, I first heard of John Prine in 1991 on a late night AM radio talk show while driving through Norfolk VA. He sang "Illegal Smile", "Paradis", "Sam Stone" and I was hooked. It was several years later that I found some of the hits that he wrote and other artists recorded. I saw him in concert in 2019 shortly before Covid struck. A great Singer Songwriter gone much to soon.
"A june bug flew, from the warmth he once knew, and I wished for once I werent right". I think this is such a powerful lyric. He is the June bug. so heavy, ...Dude was a genius. It is a privilege to listen to his music.
The relationship is broken and he knows it but he wishes to was not. It's over and as he looks back it looks a lot better than it really was. He was the greatest as far as I am concerned. His best songs were so good that the simple delivery he used for them was perfect. He let the song speak for itself.
I have taken that line about the broken bottle looking like a diamond ring as a man who is an alcoholic and putting that ahead of the woman he fell in love with, being married to the bottle instead. And maybe the bottle being broken is him realizing that. And seeing that broken bottle in the gravel gives him that realization. Not saying that was his intention, but that’s what it means to me anyway. And I think John had an amazing voice. Unique and maybe not a traditionally good voice, but as you said, those voices are sometimes the most beautiful and authentic.
He’s like the country version of Bon Dylan. Great stuff! To this day, I say the best John Prine song is Angel From Montgomery, but sung by Bonnie Raitt. You HAVE to check out her singing this song - it is an all time classic!
I am a new John prine fan of several years. I stumbled across your analysis and totally enjoyed it. You read my mind with your analysis. Although being rural, our dirt parking lots when you get a bunch of bottles broken outside it's a beautiful sight in the evening time. Looks just like a diamond ring 🤣 good job!
Harri, how wonderful to watch your discovering of John Prine. I'm like others here , long a fan! It is a genuine pleasure watching these videos of yours. I don't know if you've discovered Greg Brown? Another huge favorite...(Dream onn, little dreamer~ dream onnnn...the world ain't what you think it is, it's just...what it is!)
appearances deceive is my interpretation - the lady looked like his forever mate at first but on closer inspection she had decided he wasn’t that for her
John Prine, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen in no particular order. These are possibly the greatest song writers of all time however the latter two had much, much more commercial success than John. However if you asked your favorite songwriter who their favorite songwriter is there is a high probability they would say John Prine. He is most songwriters favorite songwriter i.e. Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and many more. The funny thing is that if you picked 10 random people out of a crown and asked them who John Prine was, 9 of them would say they've never heard of him. He is true Americana! You must review "Speed of the sound of lonliness", "Christmas in Prison", "Spanish Pipedream", "Angel from Montgomery" and "Donald and Lydia".
Harri, on his voice, it has always been his incredible accent. However, this session - post 2000 is post neck cancer in 1998, where he had to learn how to sing again. His voice dropped a few tones and many people (myself included) think it matured. Try this song on his album of re-records called Souvenirs.
In the last verse, I'm still trying to figure out who asks the question - it works whether John is the asker, or if she asks him and he already knows the answer he's going to give. Maybe in another 35 years I'll figure it out.
My Thinking is that although He may not be a diamond (I would argue He Is a True Diamond) his Girl used to think of him as shining bright in her eyes, (Like the broken bottles under the lights) but he no longer doe's! Just a thought? Please play "Sam Stone" John Prine at his Best!!
It's a metaphor. He gave a girl a diamond and she rejected it. So he is sitting on a curb drinking and he sees a piece of broken glass and it reminds him of that diamond. Ain't funny how and old broken bottle can look just like a diamond ring? When it's far, far from me...
Harri check out my reply to a comment made by another listener. It’s a reference to the line, ,,,,,an old broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring.
A piece of broken glass and a diamond might look the same at first glance, but they're not the same. Just like a relationship may seem great until it isn't. The shine wasn't real.
Diamond ring. Young kid. In love. Wants to marry her. Considering a ring. Get bad vibes. May not happen. Broken glass on ground reminds him of a diamond ring, a ring he planned to present to a girl he realized wasn't interested.
Imagine a shard of glass (from a broken bottle) in a gravel parking lot... when the light hits it, it glimmers and shines like a diamond, but when you pick it up... it's not what you thought you found. Now imagine a relationship. At first, it's shiny and new. She's pretty, and funny, and everything you thought you wanted... then some time later, the warts start to show. She's not so funny, and she doesn't think you're so dreamy. You each notice each other's flaws. The relationship isn't so shiny, and you realize what you actually have... a cheap piece of broken glass.
Well said
Perfect description
You got it
Aww man, you just put feeling into words, I knew that but couldn't for the life of me put it on paper. good for you,,
Hot dang James, I've been singing this song since John cut it. I also consider myself a philosopher and cowboy poet. But pard , in this case I'l be satisfied to do the playin and singin and tip my hat to the better man. I wish John was alive to read it. Don't you know James, it'd put a crooked grin on his face. I'd give a pretty to see that face again. He will always be an American treasure. You did his memory good James. Thanks from all of us that keep him alive.
John told the story in concerts (and a few interviews) about the line, "a broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring." John said, "It is in reference to my childhood. We were raised close to a junkyard and one of my favorite pastimes was playing in the junkyard breaking bottles. The kids always commented that the fragments of glass looked just like a field of diamonds. The majority of my songs are written from life experiences and a lot of times there is not any symbolism but just words that take me to another place and time." ~John Prine
Highly recommend for your next Prine song: Hello in There
I should have read this before I made my comment!
Absolutely.
"Absolutely" about "Hello In There".
I have never been to a John Prine concert. I discovered John in my later life.
I enjoy all his music and being a Canadian my favourite singer was Gordon Lightfoot. The televised concert where John sang Far from me to his song writing hero, Gordon Lightfoot who was in the audience at ,The house of strombo was one of my favourites.
John sang it for Lightfoot but Gordon joined right in.
I always thought the line, ,,,,,an old broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring, was in reference to Cathy viewing their relationship as something worthless.
An old broken bottle, while John viewed it as something precious, a diamond ring.
It would depend on how you looked at it.
That was my impression anyway.
Been there.
Next favourite Prine song is Brused Orange. Give it a listen.
And you could make the connection that as a kid, he loved this girl, and he could imagine marrying her, until she lets him go that night. And under this realization, seeing a broken bottle on the ground, makes him think of a diamond ring he would never give Kathy.
Harri, as a fan of his for over 50 years I can tell you he is a well respected musician and beloved by so many musicians. So glad you found him, take time to indulge yourself in his music even in your own time. You won't regret it.
Big thumbs up for John Prine. Please keep playing more of him. He’s the gift that keeps on giving. 👍👍
John Prine was one of Bob Dylan's favorite song writer's imagine that for a moment 😎✌️
Please do Lake Marie from same show. Amazing story telling!
An old broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring when it is far, far from you.
So grateful I got to see him live in the 80s
Every time I hear John Prine, I tear up... can't help myself!! About the broken bottle, all glass seems to sparkle, if the light hits it the tight way.
John Prine.................a true CLASSIC anyway you want to cut it ! Great people like this don't come around that often...we were soooooooooooooo............lucky to have him .
I thought maybe the broken bottle/diamond ring was a way of saying he thought she was the one (a diamond ring), or the relationship was that...but it turned out not to be a diamond, but a broken bottle (not the real thing, even though it was shiny....just something much less valuable, and flawed (broken).
Broken glass sparkles in the light just like a diamond ring. John Prine is had a unique outlook on life and found beauty even in the broken. Such an incredible story teller and songwriter and just great human being. RIP John Prine.
A lot of people have left impressions on me, but no more than the great John Prine! His songwriting is the standard of how to reach down and tell a story and deliver it with humor , passion, and heartfelt sincerity only few can come close to doing! I know there's a special place reserved for you John! RIP!
I believe he was about 21 when he recorded this. Kris Kristofferson said along the lines of a "a kid, with an old man's soul "
"Angel From Montgomery" is one of the finest songs in the English language. Prine's a national treasure.
David speaks the truth.
Broken glass sparkles like a diamond!!
I adore John Prine he made me laugh made me cry made me feel human my entire life. We lost him to Covid💔 May I recommend IN SPITE OF OURSELVES. It’s a wonderful funny love song
I second that motion 😊
Yeah, Harri, it’s all about the lyrics with John Prine. You gotta listen to him. Carefully. He’ll make you grin and he’ll break your heart. And although it may seem subtle at times, the musicianship of John and his players is extraordinary. Keep looking and listening to John Prine. He’ll make your life better, I promise.
It’s a metaphor. Broken bottles like broken relationships. It’s funny how something shiny represents love but shines just like a broken bottle. He sees the relationship has changed and so has what the shine represents.
That is incorrect as John explained that lyric in particular -- see my comment elsewhere for the details.
@@jonsher7682 The line can be based on a literal happenstance and still work as a metaphor. The two are not mutually exclusive. A song, and art in general, can only be experienced subjectively. The artist releases it into the world, and cannot control its effect.
@@kinksfan9781 Harry asked what John Prine meant and in my other comment I quoted John explaining he was being literal, referring to a childhood experience, and not being metaphorical. That answers Harry’s question. If you want to attach a meaning Prine explicitly rejected, go right ahead, but the post I replied to claimed something about what Prine believed that is incorrect. We owe it to the artist to not misstate what the artist said of his own work - once we know what the artist said.
Such a great talent! He was loved and respected by his fans and his peers.
try Illegal Smile, Sam Stone, Spanish Pipedream, Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore... he's got a lot of great songs. Also, Angel From Montgomery
Throwing the best of the bunch in as an afterthought!!! J/k John Prine is the best, RIP
From his first album to his last almost 50 years later, John was an amazing teller of tales. And one of the truly good guys.
Bruised Orange (Chain of Sorrow) has the most astonishing lyric “ a heart stained in anger grows week and grows bitter , you become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there wrapped up in a trap of your very own chain of sorrow” !! Love John Prine, so happy I got to see him live once.
Someone once characterized country music as " three chords and the truth". Love your reactions Harri!
Frank - I really enjoyed this John Prine performance, and there are so many to choose from.
Imagine an old smashed bottle in the road. Now imagine some one tosses a few small diamonds on it. Could you tell the difference?
A unique voice indeed. Like another amazing song writer... Kris Kristofferson.
I miss this man and his music badly. One of my all time favorite singer/songwriters. RIP John, thank you for singing the stories of my life.
The line about the broken bottle and a diamond ring is all about perspective and what influences it, IMO.
50 years ago as a 19 year old John’s words knocked me out for the first time. My thought about “the line” is a diamond ring is the symbol of your love of a lifetime.
Or it might just be a worthless piece of broken glass.
I invite you to experience his
“Hello In There”
I ASSURE you the meaning of that one has changed a lot now that I’m 69 years young.
👍
John was only a bit older than me. Sodas didn't come in cans or plastic bottles when we grew up. They came in glass bottles. Those bottles would be discarded here and there, and some of them would get broken. Occasionally, while driving or walking along, you would see something sparking like a diamond out of the corner of your eye on a sunny day. It was the light hitting that broken bottle. So, for that moment, "a broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring." John has a similar line in the song "Bruised Orange." "It ain't such a long drop. Don't stammer. Don't stutter. From the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter." Again, when the sunlight hits sidewalks made with certain forms of concrete, it will reflect what appears to be shiny diamonds. So, it isn't too far from that clean sidewalk to the dirt next to it in the gutter. John was so observant that way. He often said "Far From Me" was his favorite song. I think even he didn't entirely understand its subtleties.
Saddest song of his for me. Although there are so many.
Former mailman from Maywood, Illinois. A Chicago treasure. Makes me proud. Thx Harri.
"Hello in There" and "Sam Stone" will rip your heart out
Love John Prine! So many great songs.
Nice! There's not nearly enough John Prine reactions up on RUclips. Prine said this was one of his favorite songs. Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin said the same thing.
Oh cool. He has some great music. He at one time lived about a mile from me, in his younger years. Thanks. Enjoy.
The two best to me are Dylan and Prine. for what its worth.
My favorite musician
To me the broken bottle symbolizes the broken relationship. The broken glass reflects light like a Diamond ring which reminds him of the romance he once had.
I like his irony the broken bottle/diamond ring metaphor is much like his honesty about life changing suddenly. Whether she literally through his ring back, unlikely or in the still moonlight a broken bottle reminded him of how his ring now meant nothing to her. Another song of his said it again. "I've been pulled up from zero and pulled back there. Sat on the park bench, kissed the girl with the black hair, while my head shouted down to my heart 'Hey look out below! It ain't such a long drop-dont stammer don't stutter from the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter, and you carry those bruises bruises beside you wherever you go.'" Sorry carried away but I've been listening to Johns songs since 1972.
Genius
John Prine is one of my all time favorite song writers and singers. He also sings and likes others songs that are similar and his unique voice sings them well. Somehow a voice like his and similar to Dylan`s gets you involved with the story better than a beautiful singing voice. My take on the broken bottle is ,that he`s drinking the trouble away,throws the empty bottle thinking of the diamond ring. Ive done this myself.
his older stuff his voice sounds different than anything after 97 because he had Oral Cancer in 95 and was back at it in 97
I read somewhere how 2 people may look at one of those rohrshach blotches and see something completely different. He saw the diamond ring and she saw an old broken bottle.
I think it's a shame so many people don't who he is. They don't know what their missing! Thanks for the reaction and exposing more people to some great music.
Hello In There, Sam Stone and Spanish Pipedream are three that'll be a great introduction to his catalog. There's a video of him singing Sam Stone from The Old Grey Whistle that's as stark as it is sad, but spot on.
John Prine is amazing. My Mexican Home is my favorite
Saw Prine open up for the Cowboy Junkies. Who. You're right. They couldn't follow John. The crowd wanted him back. His personality was the best
Cowboy Junkies? They should have been privileged to have opened for Prine.
I loved the Cowboy Junkies as well. Have you ever heard, "If I were the woman and you were the man)???
Gotta react to “Ain’t Hurtin’ Nobody “
I think he's talking about how a piece of a broken bottle sparkles in the moonlight...just like a diamond sparkles...or so It plays in my mind. I think that's really the point...it makes you think. What's so important about material things...they all sparkle...but without someone close to you what do they matter? "But it's far, far from me..."
More John Prine please. Amazing lyrics, storytelling.
Great song
great storyteller i could've sat in a car in the driveway listening to his stories and had the time of my life. Legend RIP John
"A june bug flew, from the warmth he once knew" Such a deep lyric. Prine was simply the best. RIP.
to me the broken bottle describes a situation where two people look at something and see different things of entirely different value - he saw the love he was still hoping would work out and she saw a broken relationship
He was a folk singer that just kept writing and releasing albums. Angel From Montgomery, Unwed Fathers, Speed Of the Sound of Loneliness were Prine songs that other artist scored hits. 6:50
His death was one the first Big Name Artist attributed to COVID.
I cried when he passed and couldn't play his music for a few weeks after.
@Julie Crane if memory serves, I first heard of John Prine in 1991 on a late night AM radio talk show while driving through Norfolk VA. He sang "Illegal Smile", "Paradis", "Sam Stone" and I was hooked. It was several years later that I found some of the hits that he wrote and other artists recorded. I saw him in concert in 2019 shortly before Covid struck. A great Singer Songwriter gone much to soon.
It sure is a pretty one, and it will be so forever.
"A june bug flew, from the warmth he once knew, and I wished for once I werent right". I think this is such a powerful lyric. He is the June bug. so heavy, ...Dude was a genius. It is a privilege to listen to his music.
The relationship is broken and he knows it but he wishes to was not. It's over and as he looks back it looks a lot better than it really was. He was the greatest as far as I am concerned. His best songs were so good that the simple delivery he used for them was perfect. He let the song speak for itself.
you have the same reaction we all do when john sings
They both reflect light in a similar manner.
I have taken that line about the broken bottle looking like a diamond ring as a man who is an alcoholic and putting that ahead of the woman he fell in love with, being married to the bottle instead. And maybe the bottle being broken is him realizing that. And seeing that broken bottle in the gravel gives him that realization. Not saying that was his intention, but that’s what it means to me anyway. And I think John had an amazing voice. Unique and maybe not a traditionally good voice, but as you said, those voices are sometimes the most beautiful and authentic.
What a story-teller! Right up there with Guy Clark. Prolific catalog.
An old broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring because they are both sparkly and shiny until you are close enough to see it clearly
Love your reaction. Perfect take on his voice, so distinct. He once said he was finally getting comfortable with his voice at 70 something years old.
My favorite John Prine Song. Beautiful writing. I leaned on my left leg, in the parking lot dirt....
You ought to react to Dar Williams' "The Ocean", an astounding lyric that has John Prine coming in at the end.
I'm blessed to have seen him twice! Love this tune! Thanks Harri!
He’s like the country version of Bon Dylan. Great stuff! To this day, I say the best John Prine song is Angel From Montgomery, but sung by Bonnie Raitt. You HAVE to check out her singing this song - it is an all time classic!
Dude, an old broken bottle, at the right angle in the sun, will sparkle -- just a flash maybe -- right in your eye.
My favorite Prine song. I prefer his voice in his later years. Egg and Daughter night is a fun one
I am a new John prine fan of several years. I stumbled across your analysis and totally enjoyed it. You read my mind with your analysis. Although being rural, our dirt parking lots when you get a bunch of bottles broken outside it's a beautiful sight in the evening time. Looks just like a diamond ring 🤣 good job!
Harri, how wonderful to watch your discovering of John Prine. I'm like others here , long a fan! It is a genuine pleasure watching these videos of yours. I don't know if you've discovered Greg Brown? Another huge favorite...(Dream onn, little dreamer~ dream onnnn...the world ain't what you think it is, it's just...what it is!)
appearances deceive is my interpretation - the lady looked like his forever mate at first but on closer inspection she had decided he wasn’t that for her
I've never heard this one before. Man, he just rambles on.
John Prine, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen in no particular order. These are possibly the greatest song writers of all time however the latter two had much, much more commercial success than John. However if you asked your favorite songwriter who their favorite songwriter is there is a high probability they would say John Prine. He is most songwriters favorite songwriter i.e. Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and many more. The funny thing is that if you picked 10 random people out of a crown and asked them who John Prine was, 9 of them would say they've never heard of him. He is true Americana! You must review "Speed of the sound of lonliness", "Christmas in Prison", "Spanish Pipedream", "Angel from Montgomery" and "Donald and Lydia".
Sometimes I think John Prine was following me around making up songs …….
Hey Harri, Came across Fly me to the Moon, like you've never heard it, by Bobby Womack, Its from 1969. I think you'll Love it❤😊
Found out from JP's House of Strombo appearance that this was Gordon Lightfoot's favorite John Prine song.
Harri, on his voice, it has always been his incredible accent. However, this session - post 2000 is post neck cancer in 1998, where he had to learn how to sing again. His voice dropped a few tones and many people (myself included) think it matured. Try this song on his album of re-records called Souvenirs.
In the last verse, I'm still trying to figure out who asks the question - it works whether John is the asker, or if she asks him and he already knows the answer he's going to give. Maybe in another 35 years I'll figure it out.
what the lyric 'broken bottle looks like a diamon ring' mean is wealth and extravagance can be as simple as a broken bottle.
if your willing to look
My Thinking is that although He may not be a diamond (I would argue He Is a True Diamond) his Girl used to think of him as shining bright in her eyes, (Like the broken bottles under the lights) but he no longer doe's! Just a thought? Please play "Sam Stone" John Prine at his Best!!
It's a metaphor. He gave a girl a diamond and she rejected it. So he is sitting on a curb drinking and he sees a piece of broken glass and it reminds him of that diamond.
Ain't funny how and old broken bottle can look just like a diamond ring? When it's far, far from me...
Harri check out my reply to a comment made by another listener. It’s a reference to the line, ,,,,,an old broken bottle looks just like a diamond ring.
A piece of broken glass and a diamond might look the same at first glance, but they're not the same. Just like a relationship may seem great until it isn't. The shine wasn't real.
Check out his song, Come Back to us, Barbara Lewis, Hare Krishna Beauregard.
You think the relationship is THE one. You look at it as this is the girl I will marry (diamond ring), but she is going to end it (broken bottle).
Dear Abby is a really fun song by John Prine.
Curse you COVID!
Diamond ring. Young kid. In love. Wants to marry her. Considering a ring. Get bad vibes. May not happen. Broken glass on ground reminds him of a diamond ring, a ring he planned to present to a girl he realized wasn't interested.
I'm a big Prine fan but I couldn't hang with this one. Could be it's not a good 'first thing in the morning' song.
killed by a Bio weapon ,Thanks Faucci
He had multiple co-morbidities including a complex history of neck/lung cancer before contacting Covid. I hope you recover from your condition.
RIP John Prine. We lost a major talent to Covid. I love him.