| | Lather Lyrics Artist(Band):Jefferson Airplane
They took away all of his toys. His mother sent newspaper clippings to him, About his old friends who'd stopped being boys. There was Harwitz E. Green, just turned thirty-three, His leather chair waits at the bank. And Sergeant Dow Jones, twenty-seven years old, Commanding his very own tank. But Lather still finds it a nice thing to do, To lie about nude in the sand, Drawing pictures of mountains that look like bumps, And thrashing the air with his hands. But wait, oh Lather's productive you know, He produces the finest of sound, Putting drumsticks on either side of his nose, Snorting the best licks in town, But that's all over... Lather was thirty years old today, And Lather came foam from his tongue. He looked at me eyes wide and plainly said, Is it true that I'm no longer young? And the children call him famous, what the old men call insane, And sometimes he's so nameless, That he hardly knows which game to play... Which words to say... And I should have told him, "No, you're not old." And I should have let him go on...smiling...baby-wide. If you find some error in Lather Lyrics, would you please submit your corrections to me? Thank You. Review about Lather A statement about living your life 'forever young' | Reviewer: barry | 9/7/09 i agree, this song is so wonderfully vague and about many things as opposed to just a few. But there's a couple of references that can't be ignored that tie it to an interpretation involving a young at heart sole who delved to the depths and came out on the other side both changed and forever the same. "He produces the finest of sound, Putting drumsticks on either side of his nose, Snorting the best licks in town," an obvious drug reference, snorting some halucynogen of one sort or another. "And the children call him famous, what the old men call insane," Probably building on his drug exploits, framing Lather as an agressive experimenter in drugs, to the extent that he has earned accolades from the the younger generation which values the experience and the condemnation of the older generation which condemns it. BUt perhaps the most haunting line of all: "But that's all over now...." Why? Why is it all over now? First, the institutionalization imagery like his belongings being taken away and his mother sending him newpaper clippings, as if Lather were put away in somehting like an insane asylum (consistent with all the other references to his arrested development). This reading paints Lather as a casualty of his own excesses. And another interpretation is that simply Lather has crossed the thirty year old threshold into that older, unhip generation, thus ending his life of being forever young. Perhaps both interpretations are meant to be read into it. And in a gesture of beautiful poetic justice, Lather, the forever bright-eyed endlessly inquisitive experimenter is trapped in youth forever. As haunting a thought as the mysterious ballad from which the tale is spun. Lather is excellent. Disturbing, but excellent nonetheless | Reviewer: Daisuke Okuda | 7/17/09 At first I thought the song was sort of cute, then I realized what the lyrics and song was all about. I found myself shocked when all the images of the song came to my mind and I can truly say I like it more now although it's disturbing. Lather is haunting... | Reviewer: Liz | 4/4/09 Lather is 30 years old and institutionalized. His mother sends him clippings of the sucesses of his childhood friends, one who is a prominent banker. A manifestation of his illness is the freedom and excitement he feels being naked. The thrashing of his hands in the air is common with the autistic spectrum (called flapping). He is in his own world happily making noises with his nose and drawing childish pictures. This is his reality. It's a little bit freaky | Reviewer: Big Atom | 2/19/09 Like lots of good songs and poems this one takes a couple of different viewpoints as it muses on the topic of getting older. None of choices it presents are entirely satisfactory outcomes of aging or maturing. Provocative. At least it was before careerism took over as the most prevalent point of view. Of course the counterculture was a reaction to another more ancient wave of striving. Kudos to Grace for her insights captured inside of a haunting and enjoyable song. As the cockneys say, "All clever stuff." Lather, young and old | Reviewer: Mad Mary | 5/23/08 Lather is one of those songs in which, like the finest of books, one can find something new hearing it again and again as one gets older. I first heard this when I was 17 and well into the drug/hippie culture. I'm now 51 and still living in left field, and this song has been there all this time, showing me something new. For whatever reason Grace Slick wrote it, it has become something more than it was when she finished it. Kudos and gratitude to Slick for being. Watching Lather performed live | Reviewer: clayton Lee | 11/18/07 I'm 56 and Jefferson Airplane closed their show here in Houston with this song in either 1970, '71 or thereabouts. The Summit, now Lakewood Church, was not yet built, my http://www.orbiter-treadmill.com was not yet invented, and they played that night in the old Coliseum. I'd never seen a band set up with not one, not two, but three rows of police manned barricades separating then from the crowd. When they played a very intense version of White Rabbit, I got some of the picture, as the crowd, me and my girlfriend included, pressed forward and seemed close to being out of control. But the moment passed as the song ended and nothing happened. Not sure what they played next, or maybe it was Lather, but whatever, when they did play Lather, the electricity returned and you could feel it moving through every soul there. "But that's all over" began the push, and the screaming soon began - just like in the live version (is there another?). All of a sudden the entire crowd rushed forward crossing the first, second and third barricades (separated by about 10 feet between each). The police were helpless as the crowd climbed the stage, us included. Jefferson Airplane kept playing until it was impossible to continue. It was complete chaos but I do remember seeing the drummer finally give up on playing, stand up, and simply hand his drumsticks over to one frenzied fan. Not sure if any instruments were broken or how they left the stage, but I can't recall anything like it in all the years I attended concerts, which included outdoor festivals such as the Atlanta International Pop Festival (the year after Woodstock) that supposedly had over a half million attendees. And the following year, The Celebration of Life in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana. Lather is a beautifully crafted song and Grace Slick sings it perfectly. Thank you for posting the lyrics - I get chills down my back and arms almost every time I hear it and remember that night. Lather | Reviewer: madmike | 10/31/07 "Lather" was written by Grace Slick for then lover (and Airplane drummer) Spencer Dryden, on the occasion of his 30th birthday. He was the first of the bandmates to reach that lofty age. Much of the song refers to Dryden's encounter with a very strong dose of some drug, which he took and was subsequently arrested, nude on a beach in Santa Cruz, California. Remember the 60's saying... "never trust anyone over 30"? 30 was thought to be the "end of childhood" hence "Lather put away all of his toys"... "is it true that I'm no longer young?". Great song! Never grow old! | Reviewer: Bart | 10/26/07 I think (one of) the meaning(s) of "Lather" is about the virtues of staying young forever and this society's pressure on people to grow up quickly and become responsible adults with a career and a family. But many more meanings are indeed possible. It's a beautiful song and sometimes when I listen to it and read the lyrics simultaneously, I get a lump in my throat. Poor Lather... Such deep meaning | Reviewer: Anonymous | 9/19/07 I've loved this song since I was young, and I'm 56 now. I have had several opinions about the possible meanings over the years. This song sticks in my mind, with its haunting tune and the way it is sung, as well as the lyrics. To me, the best meaning still is how it reminds me of my own mentally retarded and autistic son. Acid rain | Reviewer: Me | 8/25/07 This song is all about LSD. If you have ever done lsd you would know exactly what she means. Review By Pages: 1 2 Review the song Lather The area is only for review, if you want to submit the lyrics or the corrections of the lyrics, please click the link at the end of the lyrics.  Download "Jefferson Airplane" Music | |
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