Release Party Interpretation - SORCERER

[Stewy]

Sorcerer

Written by Stevie Nicks.


I'm tired
I'm thirsty
I'm wild eyed
In my misery
Timeless
In your finery
A high price
For your luxury

Sorcerer
Who is the master
Man and woman on a star stream
In the middle of a snow dream
Sorcerer
Show me the high life
Come over
Let me put you on ice

I'm tired
When I need you badly
Wild eyed
In the middle of your dream
Timeless
It's a mystery
All they way
Now it's never what you are

All around
Black ink darkness
Who found
The lady from the mountain

I'm tired
I'm thirsty
I'm wild eyed
In my mystery
Timeless
In your finery
A high price
For your luxury

Sorcerer
Who is the master
Man and woman on a star stream
In the middle of a snow dream
Sorcerer
Show me the high life
Come over
Let me put you on ice

[Mike B]

Since I just realized I posted an interpretation of sorts on the Stevie board, I thought I'd add it here.

I've wondered about Sorcerer forever. I first heard a demo years ago, and came up with a theory.

I thought that Sorcerer might be about selling your soul to the devil, or some dark force, to become a star. It seemed to fit with Stevie’s “dark mysticism” and some of the lyrics kind of fit.

<b>I’m tired, I’m thirsty, I’m wild eyed, in my misery</b> – I thought all of this might be about wanting to be a star, wanting fame, wanting to be on top.

<b>Timeless in your finery</b> - I was thinking of the devil, “timeless” as in “very old” and “finery” as in being seductive with his offer

<b>It’s a high price, for your luxury</b> - Obviously, selling your soul would be a high price for getting all the things you want.
<b>Sorcerer</b> - Another name for a magician, someone with powers.

<b>Who is the Master</b> - In a deal with the Devil, who is really in charge? In the end, all the power goes back to whoever made them the deal. Stevie knows this...Hmmm...maybe she's not asking a question, but making a statement....As in "You are the Sorcerer, who is the master over me..."

<b>A man and woman on a star stream</b> - This is Stevie and Lindsey on the way to stardom.

<b>In the middle of a snow dream</b> - Not sure here. I <b>believe</b> Stevie has mentioned that Sorcerer is about drugs. A "snow dream" could equal cocaine. I've also toyed with the idea of a snow dream meaning "I've obtained what I've wanted, but everything is hazy, blurry, and not what I expected."

<b>Sorcerer, Show Me the High Life</b> - Here, Stevie has made her decision. “Go ahead…I’ll sell my soul…just show me the way to stardom, fame, and success.”

<b>Come over, let me put you on ice</b> - I'm not sure about this. "Putting something on ice" usually refers to something being held onto until it is needed...you put a bottle of wine on ice...Maybe Stevie is saying, let take your deal and hold onto it??? This is the hardest line for me to interpret.

<b>All around Black ink darkness</b> - Darkness and despair, which would naturally come along with dealing with the underworld.

<b>Who found the lady from the mountain</b> - Again, like yours, this is Stevie, the Sorcerer found her and tempted her.

<b> I’m tired, I need you badly, I’m wild – eyed, In my misery</b> - Again, Stevie really, really wants fame, no matter the price. She’s tired of being miserable and unsuccessful.

In the end, I <b>do</b> think this song is mainly about drugs. But with Stevie's love of fairy tales and mysticism, I just always thought of a classic "Devil Meets Daniel Webster" kind of deal with this song. Or, maybe it's both.

Is it possible that if it <b>was</b> about a deal with the devil, sorcery, etc., that Stevie has changed its meaning? Since she is constantly battling those "Stevie is a witch" rumors, she might want to distance herself from a story of someone selling their soul to the devil. (Right...that's all we need now - "Stevie is a Satan worshipper" rumors! :rolleyes: )

Lori has also posted an excellent interpretation on the Stevie board, if someone wants to take a look there...

Mike B

[Mike B]

Okay, I knew I just read this! This excerpt is from In News Weekly, May 2, 2001:

<b>What is the song 'Sorcerer', which was originally written in 1974,about? The Title will surely make certain Stevie fans go 'oh, oh, witchery, witchery!" </b>

Stevie: " Right. Well, 'Sorcerer' was written right after Lindsey and I had taken the Buckingham Nicks ( album ) cover in Hollywood. We had been living there for three years and <b><i>it was really about how kind of scary Hollywood was, because we had just moved from San Francisco.</b></i> We were fairly prim and had lived at home - Lindsey never lived out of the house, he moved from Mom and Dad's house to Los Angeles with me! So we were these like really fresh kids from San Francisco and Hollywood was heavy. We went to go do that photograph and there were models everywhere and I was walking around proclaiming to everyone I was a songwriter and not a model! ( laughs ) Because I knew, I just knew that I better make sure I push the songwriting and not the sex symbol thing because that will fade and the songwriting will stay, hopefully.<b><i>That's as much as I can tell you what it's about." </b></i>

Hmmm...is there more to this story??? Interesting.

[Jo and Jensen]

I always thought that the 'snow dream' had something to do with a trip to Colorado like the one where she had written 'Landslide and Rhiannon...which were also songs that were going to be on Buckingham Nicks II.

I don't think this is about drugs at all. Stevie has said that they never did drugs until they joined FM and this was written a few years before.

In the first stanza she says:
"A high price
For your luxury"

I think she's saying that with all the work that they have to do, which she explains in the previous six sentences in the stanza, it's so hard but it's the price for the fame of being a 'good songwriter' or a good band.

The 'let me put you on ice' could be about how they (Buckingham Nicks) have worked in a real studio, worked with great people and then Polydor dropped them. They were shown 'the high life' and then as fast as it started they were put on ice.

That's what I think.

[Stewy]

I'm tired
I'm thirsty
I'm wild eyed
In my misery
Timeless
In your finery
A high price
For your luxury

I thought this was like she's been working hard, literally, and it's wearing her down - she's tire and thirsty, but she's happy and joyous that the album is there, even though it was a lot of work.

Sorcerer
Who is the master
Man and woman on a star stream
In the middle of a snow dream
Sorcerer
Show me the high life
Come over
Let me put you on ice

I envision the 'sorcerer' being the record company execs. They have total control over what's going on in their lives. They are shooting stars with big dreams - dreams to making it big.


I'm tired
When I need you badly
Wild eyed
In the middle of your dream
Timeless
It's a mystery
All the way
Now it's never what you are


I think this may be a throwback to LB's days with the Everly's...he's gone and she's alone. He's off trying to make it for them and she's stuck. Maybe...

I could be all off....good song though

Stewy

[Lori]

Okay, Stewy, here it is!

I've been chewing on this "Sorcerer" thing for awhile now...you know, about the song being about a drug dealer? Now, I NEVER would have come up with that myself, but now that it's been suggested to me, I've been listening to and interpreting the lyrics in that light. Honestly, if it is true that it's about a drug dealer, then I find the lyrics to be even more clever than I did when I just thought it was about a love interest or whatever...

I should probably also point out that I've never taken drugs myself, with the exception of dabbling a little in pot while in college , so my interpretations are really based on stuff I've either read or heard on tv...so forgive me if I don't get things right!

Okay, here are some of my thoughts, kind of line by line with the lyrics (and I'm going with the lyrics that are in the liner notes of TISL):

I'm tired (the person speaking is "down" and needing an "up" provided by the drug)
I'm thirsty (is this also a side-effect of a particular drug?)
I'm wild-eyed
In my misery (feeling panicky, needing a fix?)

Timeless in your finery (I'm picturing the person speaking to the dealer here...you have great stuff, expensive clothes, car, whatever)
It's a high price
For your luxury (being addicted to drugs is a high price to pay for all of the great and expensive things you have)

Sorcerer (if this is what I think it is, it is SO clever; is she using the word "sorcerer" as a play on the word "source" as in the person's source for their drugs?)
Who is the master (who is really in charge here? Is the dealer in control of the drugs, or are the drugs in control of the dealer?)
A man and woman on a star stream (here is the only part where I picture Lindsey and Stevie specifically - a man and woman on the path to stardom {star stream})
In the middle of a snow dream (surrounded by drugs? I believe "snow" is a nickname for a drug...cocaine, maybe? Possibly just being submersed in the whole drug culture which Lindsey, Richard Dashut, and others have stated was totally the norm at the time...I'm also picturing a snow dream possibly indicating the effects of a drug)
Sorcerer (again, the person is addressing the "source")
Show me the high life (person is requesting the dealer to get him/her "high")
Come over
Let me put you on ice (this is the dealer's response to the request - come over and let me get you hooked on the drug - I think "ice" is again referring to a particular drug)

All around black ink darkness (I see this as possibly representing a hopeless situation...the person is addicted, and just feels surrounded by hopelessness)
And who found lady from the mountains (I believe Stevie has stated that she's the "lady from the mountains" - so does this possibly mean who was the one who sought her out and managed to get her to try the drugs? Or, how did she find herself in this situation or atmosphere, when before she was just a "good girl" - lady from the mountains, not the 'valley'??)

I'm tired (again, "down" and needing an "up")
I need you badly (in desperate need of a fix, needs to see the dealer)
I'm wild-eyed
In my misery...etc., same interpretation as above

What do you guys think? I'm curious to know if anyone sees this interpretation as a possibility, or if I'm just completely wacked out! If indeed it IS about drugs or a drug dealer, it's interesting how she took the theme another step further in Gold Dust Woman. In both songs, to me it seems apparent that although she is writing about drugs and most likely her own use of them, it also seems obvious that she is all too aware of how detrimental they are ("it's a high price for your luxury;" "take your silver spoon and dig your grave").

I knew how early she wrote the song, and I really didn't think that she and Lindsey were into drugs then, or at least not that heavily (maybe they'd "dabbled" a bit as I did in college). That was a problem for me when I was trying to interpret the song as being about drugs or a drug dealer. If you go back and look at my interp, with the exception of the "man and woman on a star stream" and "lady from the mountains" lines, I made certain to just refer to the person speaking as just that, a person, not Stevie personally. I wanted to avoid insinuating that it was Stevie who was the drug taker in the song (although the "lady from the mountains" line almost forced me into it). I thought maybe she got to LA, saw all the drugs that were going around (the "snow dream"?), their effects, and wrote a song about a hypothetical situation, about how she imagined the drug thing might be. In this light, maybe a better interp of the "who found the lady from the mountains" line would be, "how did I find myself in the middle of all of this, surrounded by drugs" (although maybe not yet taking them herself).



Lori :wavey:

[Rhapsody]

Well...my take on it stems from the little movie that runs in my mind as I listen to it...and perhaps I'm taking Stevie too literally,
though never lightly....:^)

I think that it may be about....Merlin and Morgana...from the
King Arthur tales (celtic version). Merlin is of course a
sorcerer...very powerful...kind of running the show surrounding
Arthur, Guinivere, and Sir Lance. Enter Morgana...who only
wants the knowledge of spells and magic...from Merlin. She
causes trouble...he tries to fix it...and to placate her with little
childish incantations. She lulls him, seduces him into teaching
her what she wants...and then traps him in ice in a dark underground cave. He is only released by Arthur's love.

So I get...sorcerer...who is the master?...let me put you on ice...
black ink darkness...high price paid for the luxury of...love.

And I like my version :^) Also...now I see that Stevie includes it
in her "Rhiannon Songs".