dbt # 126 - Country Cooley: Lisa's Birthday/Weakest Man

[Clams]

Week # 126 is Country Cooley! Two for the price of one!!

Everyone loves when Cooley goes country, but if I recall correctly, lots of folks don't count these two songs among their favorites. Well anyway, Cooley played Lisa's Birthday at my first DBT show in March 2008 and I've always loved it. A girl who goes out and gets drunk and tries to justify it by always saying it was her friend Lisa's birthday, plus gas-powered dancing shoes and great pedal steel by Neff. What's not to love? As for Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer, er, um, I mean Weakest Man, the live version they played on the Go Go Boots tour was fantastic - it had Jordanaire-style back-up vocals and led right into Panties in Your Purse, which is the only I time I can ever remember hearing Cooley play two songs in a row. Heard that when they played that theater in York, PA. Jay's keyboard adds a nice touch to this song.


The Weakest Man
It's a shame for you to do me the way you did babe
Making me put you down before I was through
You tempted me and tried me and I kept you right beside me
You ruined me for everyone but you
It's easy to love a thing so warm and soothing
That gets you through the night so tenderly
but after all these nights with you all I remember
Is forgetting just how cold your heart could be
Leaving you wont be any harder than walking out the door and leaving town
but I'll be leaving knowing surviving you don't make me stronger
Than the weakest man who ever turned you down
The body in that pretty dress you wore dear
Fit my shaking hand just like a glove
but trembling's for the fearful old and crying
Getting old and sad and scared ain't worth your love
so will you let me go just like I came babe?
Willful clear of mind and free to see
Clear enough to see the others like you
and mindful my will breaks so easily
Leaving you wont be any harder than walking out the door and leaving town
but I'll be leaving knowing surviving you don't make me stronger
Than the weakest man who ever turned you down


Lisa's Birthday
It's always Lisa's birthday when I get that call
She's got no money for a cab she's way too drunk to walk
Lisa's had more birthdays than there are sad country songs
about trying to love two women and only taking one girl home

It's a good thing that her dancing shoes don't run on gasoline
She could dry up Texas in one night the way she feels that beat
If I don't find them under the bed we make love on,
she's lighting Lisa's candles and they'll be burning all night long

So happy birthday Lisa Good evening Jim Beam
Goodnight all you socialites don't wait up for me
I'll be out way past the time the scene's no sight to see
Y'all don't live with Lisa
And she don't stay with me

It's always Lisa's birthday when I get that call
Her car's not where she parked it it's with her wallet and her phone
Lisa's had more birthdays than there are sad country songs
about trying to love two women and only taking one girl home

I get older and Lisa keeps on turning twenty-one

[Clams]

Hmm. No Country Cooley fans here??? I figured at least Smitty or Kudzu would've checked in by now.

[beantownbubba]

Weakest Man = weakest cooley

OTOH, Lisa's Birthday makes me smile every time I hear it. As usual, Cooley nails what he was after. So to speak.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Weakest Man = weakest cooley

OTOH, Lisa's Birthday makes me smile every time I hear it. As usual, Cooley nails what he was after. So to speak.

I'm on board with beantown here for the most part, although I might like Weakest Man a tad better than he does. Lisa's Birthday though? Top notch.

[rlipps]

Lisa's Birthday is a great country song, loved getting to hear it live a few times back when BTCD came out. Liked the older solo version of the Weakest Man better than the GGB version, same with Pulaski. Felt those cuts from Cooley's solo shows captured the emotions of the songs better than the studio versions.

[Kevidently]

I like them both. Weirdly, I thought "Weakest Man" might be the "more accessible" song around here. I've liked Country Cooley since "Love Like This."

[GuitarManUpstairs]

I never understood the disdain for The Weakest Man. Stylistically it is similar Cartoon Gold and Pulaski, which both get high praise around here and substantively, it might well be a sequel to Lisa's birthday. They're both songs about being in love with the idea of someone rather than who they actually are and the ultimate realization of how the infatuation with certain characteristics of the relationship blinded them from the aspects that were tearing them down. The anti-love song...songs about falling out of love.

It just seems like everyone just generalizes about the fact that they don't care as much for these songs as others but never really state specifically why... just curious what it is?

[Smitty]

Love the wordplay on Weakest Man - far from Cooley's weakest, don't get that at all.
Lisa's Birthday is A.M country gold, and the band makes a legitimate point for them being one of the best country bands around.
I love the fact that Cooley's country songs are country, period, no alt. required.

[Zip City]

As someone who's not an AM country fan, Lisa's Birthday has never been more than a genre exercise to me. Not my cup of tea.

Weakest Man is okay, but I've never been hooked by any of the GGB Cooley songs for whatever reason.

[Smitty]

As someone who's not an AM country fan, Lisa's Birthday has never been more than a genre exercise to me. Not my cup of tea.

Is it wrong that while reading this post, I can't help but picture Zip as looking like

just bustin ya balls, zipmeister

[Duke Silver]

As someone who's not an AM country fan, Lisa's Birthday has never been more than a genre exercise to me. Not my cup of tea.

I agree with you as far as the music goes, but the lyrics keep LB interesting for me. It's probably on the lowest tier of Cooley songs for me, but I still like it.

Weakest Man is as bland as DBT gets. Corny music and a rare set of Cooley lyrics that feel overly wordy rather than carefully phrased. One of only a few Cooley songs I skip over.

[Zip City]

Don't mean to sound like I dislike country Cooley. Love Like This is top 3 DBT for me

[beantownbubba]

So, GMU and Smitty, what are Cooley's weakest songs if "Weakest Man" is not among them?

IMO, it's bland (or maybe "ordinary" is a better term) musically and uninteresting lyrically w/ none of the Cooleyisms that make Cooley songs the legends that they are. Call it wordplay, word craft, insight into character and situation, whatever, it's all pretty much lacking in this one. I imagine Cooley coming up w/ the potentially interesting central conceit (no stronger than the weakest man who ever left you) but running out of inspiration shortly thereafter but still being determined to use the damn line. The central conceit has some typical Cooley oppositional word play (or whatever u call that) but the rest of the lyrics are just standard out of the songwriting mill stuff. "You ruined me for everyone but you." Really? What's the over/under on how many times that line's been used in song, poetry or prose; five thousand?

[Iowan]

I think Weakest Man could benefit being a little slower, and sparser. I'm not a big fan of the outro either.

I catch myself humming the chorus an awful lot.

Probably a lower tier Cooley, but I think that Eyes Like Glue and Checkout Time in Vegas are the only "skippers" he's ever written. Yes, I realize everyone else loves Checkout.

[Smitty]

So, GMU and Smitty, what are Cooley's weakest songs if "Weakest Man" is not among them?

After carefully considering his entire catalog, I concede it probably is in the lower tier, although still pretty damn good. A weak Cooley song is still pretty strong. There's nothing new or groundbreaking about the subject matter, but the fact that he can sing about such a well-treaded territory and still make a compelling tune is a testament to his genius.
While it may not have any jaw-dropping revelatory lines, that says less about the song and more about us being spoiled.
and for no other reason than I dig ranking shit:

tier 1:
One of These Days
Birthday Boy
Pulaski
Panties
Loaded Gun
Zip City
Uncle Frank
Love Like This
Women Without Whiskey
Marry Me

tier 2:
Carl Perkins
Cartoon Gold
72
Perfect Timing
Ghost to Most
Pin Hits the Shell
Sounds Better in a Song
Space City
Gravity's Gone
Shut Up
Cottonseed

tier 3:
3 DD
GMU
Little Pony
Eyes Like Glue
Weakest Man
Lisa's Birthday
Bob
Checkout Time
SDZ
Get Downtown
Daddy's Cup

[Duke Silver]

So, GMU and Smitty, what are Cooley's weakest songs if "Weakest Man" is not among them?

tier 2:
Carl Perkins

(overturns table, stomps out)

[Clams]

So, GMU and Smitty, what are Cooley's weakest songs if "Weakest Man" is not among them?

tier 2:
Carl Perkins

(overturns table, stomps out)

Not to mention daddy's cup, 3dd and self-destructive zones in tier 3. WTF Smitty?!?!

[mark lynn]

My god there are Cooley tiers? Surprised no one has mentioned the song possibly being about alcoholism.

[RevMatt]

My god there are Cooley tiers? Surprised no one has mentioned the song possibly being about alcoholism.

I never thought about that when I first heard it, always figured the song was about a destructive relationship with a pretty but narcissistic woman. But the metaphor would certainly fit with the lyric.

[beantownbubba]

I don't know if u proved my point or not, Smitty. OT1H, you clearly see that lesser cooley doesn't mean bad, it just means lesser cooley, still better than most of what's out there. But then u go ahead and bury stuff like daddy's cup, carl perkins & space city and i gotta join the WTF chorus. Proving once again that DBT fans are the Jews of rock n roll: Put 2 of 'em in a room and you'll have at least 3 opinions.

[beantownbubba]

Surprised no one has mentioned the song possibly being about alcoholism.

Seems obvious now that you mention it DOH!

[Clams]

My god there are Cooley tiers? Surprised no one has mentioned the song possibly being about alcoholism.

[LBRod]

Maybe he's gay and his babe is a cross dresser.

[rlipps]

My god there are Cooley tiers? Surprised no one has mentioned the song possibly being about alcoholism.

I just always assumed it was about alcohol, especially after Cooley introduced it as "a break-up song to drinking" or something to that effect during an old solo show.

[SouthCarolinaRed]

So, GMU and Smitty, what are Cooley's weakest songs if "Weakest Man" is not among them?

tier 2:
Carl Perkins

(overturns table, stomps out)

Love this!!!

[Gang Green]

Love the wordplay on Weakest Man - far from Cooley's weakest, don't get that at all.
Lisa's Birthday is A.M country gold, and the band makes a legitimate point for them being one of the best country bands around.
I love the fact that Cooley's country songs are country, period, no alt. required.

Love both these songs, especially Lisa's Birthday. Call me simple, but the line "Lisa's had more birthday than there sad country songs" always makes me laugh. I always thought Cooley could make a killing in country music if he wanted to. He could do AM Gold and Outlaw.

[pearlysnaps]

My god there are Cooley tiers? Surprised no one has mentioned the song possibly being about alcoholism.

I never thought about that when I first heard it, always figured the song was about a destructive relationship with a pretty but narcissistic woman. But the metaphor would certainly fit with the lyric.

I took it the exact opposite the first time I heard it on his solo boot...possibly because of the aforementioned comment on its being "a breakup song to drinking". I took it as a straight up booze tune wrapped in the personification of a scoundrel woman.

[GuitarManUpstairs]

I have heard a single selection off the boot where he mentions the "breakup song to drinking" but that commentary was included on the previous track and so i never knew exactly which song it was he was referring to. Never considered that angle to it...but listening with that in mind now makes perfect sense. I still thought it was a good song apart from that interpretation whether the subject was cliche or not...Not my favorite Cooley by far but still very enjoyable for me. What i was hearing from a few people seemed to be that they flatly did not like the song...maybe I misinterpreted that.