Pavlov's Daughter

[tallchick 16]

Does anyone else think this song is a masterpiece?

The grave diggers getting stuck in the machine

pickings getting slim, slimmer

I hear them say my name

regin-ah, regin-ah, regin-a-ah

yes I'm putting the boulder to my ear

and I still can't hear

whadya think I was an amateur

playin' with my temperature...

If I hear another song about angels

if I see another feather on the dumb-box

I'm gonna go to Babylon and get me some whiskey

Gonna get me some whiskey now...

If I hear another song about angels

if I see another feather on the dumb-box

I'm gonna go to Babylon and get me some whiskey now

My name is Lucille and I know how you feel

I live downstairs

I hear you taking out your garbage

I hear you loving your girlfriend

I hear you loving yourself too

I hear you turning your thoughts off

I turn mine off too

The only thing I hear is you

and you don't sound good and you don't sound nice

and you don't sound good and you don't sound right

and it get's quiet...

Pavlov's daughter woke up in the morning

Heard the bell ring

And something deep inside of her made her want to salivate

So she lay there drooling on her pillow

So she lay there, the sun skimming her skin, and drooling on her pillow

Pavlov's daughter

And it was far away and hazy like a dream

not a dream, but the ocean,

not the ocean, but forever...

The grave diggers getting stuck in the machine...

...And it gets quiet...

As quiet as an ambulance checking out the neighborhood, waiting for the blade to slip and that final blow, but nothing happens, it's a cruel joke

as ironic as a ticker tape parade over the rain forest,

as ironic as a ticker tape parade over my head,

as ironic as a ticker tape parade over my head going down stream... to where...it isn't... even... real...rain... at...all...

I mean the ending is just amazing. I love listening to this as a bunch of images merge into my head. I see two different scenes, The first one with Lucille and the other with Pavlov's daughter.

This song really can't be deciphered too much. I always wonder how it would be like to see Regina revive this and sing it live. I would probably die from excitement. I wonder how different it would be live and her singing it now in this time. I almost feel like this song would be kind of like one of those extraordinary things you do and you go back and you're like, "how did i do that?!" you know. but its regina so she can do anything

I just love how there are so many elements to this song from the rapping to the jazz to the soft angelic middle.

Also she mentions the gravediggers in this song and I remember in consequence of sounds, she says "What'd you think, all the grave diggers were gone

? Just cause one song is done, there's always another one waiting right around the bend till this one ends then it begins..." (totally from memory, probably a bit wrong)

and I remember thinking cos was the sequel to Pavlovs daughter or reading that idk.

im rambling. anyway moral of this post. pavlov's daughter is a masterpiece

[tallchick 16]

Does anyone else think this song is a masterpiece?

The grave diggers getting stuck in the machine

pickings getting slim, slimmer

I hear them say my name

regin-ah, regin-ah, regin-a-ah

yes I'm putting the boulder to my ear

and I still can't hear

whadya think I was an amateur

playin' with my temperature...

If I hear another song about angels

if I see another feather on the dumb-box

I'm gonna go to Babylon and get me some whiskey

Gonna get me some whiskey now...

If I hear another song about angels

if I see another feather on the dumb-box

I'm gonna go to Babylon and get me some whiskey now

My name is Lucille and I know how you feel

I live downstairs

I hear you taking out your garbage

I hear you loving your girlfriend

I hear you loving yourself too

I hear you turning your thoughts off

I turn mine off too

The only thing I hear is you

and you don't sound good and you don't sound nice

and you don't sound good and you don't sound right

and it get's quiet...

Pavlov's daughter woke up in the morning

Heard the bell ring

And something deep inside of her made her want to salivate

So she lay there drooling on her pillow

So she lay there, the sun skimming her skin, and drooling on her pillow

Pavlov's daughter

And it was far away and hazy like a dream

not a dream, but the ocean,

not the ocean, but forever...

The grave diggers getting stuck in the machine...

...And it gets quiet...

As quiet as an ambulance checking out the neighborhood, waiting for the blade to slip and that final blow, but nothing happens, it's a cruel joke

as ironic as a ticker tape parade over the rain forest,

as ironic as a ticker tape parade over my head,

as ironic as a ticker tape parade over my head going down stream... to where...it isn't... even... real...rain... at...all...

I mean the ending is just amazing. I love listening to this as a bunch of images merge into my head. I see two different scenes, The first one with Lucille and the other with Pavlov's daughter.

This song really can't be deciphered too much. I always wonder how it would be like to see Regina revive this and sing it live. I would probably die from excitement. I wonder how different it would be live and her singing it now in this time. I almost feel like this song would be kind of like one of those extraordinary things you do and you go back and you're like, "how did i do that?!" you know. but its regina so she can do anything

I just love how there are so many elements to this song from the rapping to the jazz to the soft angelic middle.

Also she mentions the gravediggers in this song and I remember in consequence of sounds, she says "What'd you think, all the grave diggers were gone

? Just cause one song is done, there's always another one waiting right around the bend till this one ends then it begins..." (totally from memory, probably a bit wrong)

and I remember thinking cos was the sequel to Pavlovs daughter or reading that idk.

im rambling. anyway moral of this post. pavlov's daughter is a masterpiece

[Brady 1]

My father is so crazy about this song.....he likes Regina alot, and this is his favorite by her.

[Be like the water, people. 21]

ooooooooooh, i looove this song so much! i don't know any non-reg fans who will even listen all the way through (it scared the crap out of me when i first heard it haha!)

i agree, it's a masterpiece, indeed. So Regina-y. aand, a live revival would cause a floodgate to open in my pants...

eew.

i agree that this song isn't /about/ anything, yet it produces so many vivid images when you listen to it. i love the crazy vocals on it, too.

and CoS really likely referrences this song. love that!

okay, pointless post, sorry. just a quick word of advice: singing this song is a good way to sound crazy.

[mrimarokr 0]

I don't know how anyone could decipher this song , it's just one of those songs that doesn't give away many details but you still love it all the same!

[davidh 0]

A wonderful song - the first piano chord when 'Lucy' is introduced sends chills down my spine.

For those unaware of Ivan Pavlov and his experiments, he's best known in popular culture for psychological study using animals (particularly a dog) by associating for the animal a sound of a bell and the supply of food. He found that even when he stopped giving the dog the food, just ringing the bell made the dog get ready to eat, and salivate. (Which explains at least one of the verses of the song). A 'Pavlovian' reaction is one where you do something automatically, without thinking through what or why.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Pavlov for more.

I can't find a reference to it, but there were also rumours that he did similar psychological experiments on members of his family, particularly his daughter.

As for the rest of the song ... one of those great Regina mysteries

[Anthony Minsky 18]

After I heard 'Fidelity' I researched all of Regina. I downloaded many of her songs and couldn't believe what I had found. Pavlov's Daughter took me awhile. I heard it and thought 'wow this is just too much'. Of course I have it now, and just bask in its greatness. But why not right away? I don't know. Someone earlier said it scared them. I thought that was funny. I'm not sure it was that. I just don't think I understood her yet. At that time I was just thinking songs, I didn't realize her as this magical entity that I do now. But now I know that. She's way more than just good songs. With her you just have to have the whole thing.

[Emmaline 2]

quote:

Pavlov's Daughter took me awhile. I heard it and thought 'wow this is just too much'. Of course I have it now, and just bask in its greatness. But why not right away? I don't know. Someone earlier said it scared them. I thought that was funny. I'm not sure it was that. I just don't think I understood her yet. At that time I was just thinking songs, I didn't realize her as this magical entity that I do now. But now I know that. She's way more than just good songs. With her you just have to have the whole thing.

I had pretty much the same exact reaction when I first heard Pavlov's Daughter. I didn't dislike it, but I didn't love it either. Then, after I listened to Regina a little bit more, Pavlov's Daughter become my absolute favorite song of all time. A lot of her songs grow on you like that--I think it's just an indication of how great they are.

As for the meaning, I have no idea.

But I did read somewhere (not a reliable source) that Pavlov's Daughter was based on a book Regina read. If that was true, it might explain some of the lyrics.

[allmysteriousandgiddy 1]

Something I found interesting that might explain the recurring "gravediggers" in Regina's songs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gravediggers

Maybe the gravediggers are representing a critical inner voice? Here in Pavlov's Daughter they're screaming her name, as if taunting her. And then they're back in Consequence of Sounds, where she talks about how her rhyme ain't good just yet, her brain and tongue aren't friends so far and she can't always say what she means and the gravediggers are "still getting stuck in the machine", always following her, repeating her name and reminding her of her flaws even though it's a "whole other daydream".

"Whatdja think all the gravediggers were gone? Just 'cause one song is done, there's always another one, waiting right around the bend 'till this one ends then it begins squeaky clean and it starts all over again..." I think the gravediggers are the "clowns" or "fools" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakespearean_fools) in her mind that always taunt her and keep trying to get the better of her, especially when writing songs or lyrics...