Wicker Man
Words & Music by James Kennedy
'Wicker Man' is an Acoustic Pop Rock song & is the 1st song on the 2013 James Kennedy album 'The National Health Service'. The words, music & production are by James Kennedy.
Like much of the album, the upbeat A Minor based 'Wicker Man' has sparse instrumentation consisting of just Acoustic Guitar, percussion & vocals. The song features a rhythmic, syncopated acoustic guitar riff with a wide intervalic slide & many variations throughout. The song follows a traditional song format & includes the lyrical hook 'Its only a choice', which is a line Kennedy has used on several songs in different contexts in order to reinforce his view that many of our problems, whether personal or political, can be challenged & changed.
Lyrically, the song is exploring the mindset of a self limiting person, a negative person whose self limiting worldview has been built out of fear, maintained by cowardice & is the source of all of their other problems in life. This shows a departure from the political commentary of Kennedy's previous work - a departure in to personal themes that Kennedy explored much further over his next 3 releases.
LYRICS
Life Inside a Snail Shell
Believing you’re a Prophet living in Hell
A cynical Wicker Man
Always got a better plan
But try and find him if you can
When the walls that saved you locked you inside alone
With the ricochet of the words you throw like Sticks and stones
Drifting through your days in a blinding cloud of rage at the sun
Turning all your windows into Microscopes
It’s only a choice
Life inside his frightened mind
Filled with all the negatives he can find
To save him from saying yes
And risk disproving he’s the best
But no actions will ever speak louder than his words
When the walls that saved you locked you inside alone
With the ricochet of the words you throw like Sticks and stones
Drifting through your days in a blinding cloud of rage at the sun
Turning all your windows into Microscopes
It’s only a choice
It’s only a choice
It’s only a choice
And he’s scared of the world ‘cos he thinks the worlds like him
When the walls that saved you locked you inside alone
With the ricochet of the words you throw like Sticks and stones
Drifting through your days in a blinding cloud of rage at the sun
Turning all your windows into Microscopes
It’s only a choice