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ANDREW LENAHAN'S
HEART OF THE SUN
A RED BOX TRIBUTE WEBSITE
SONG LISTING

Hello, He Lied

Credits

Words and music by Simon Toulson-Clarke
Produced by Alistair Gavin and Simon Toulson-Clarke

Lyrics

Hey, you, cock-a-doodle doo
You're a number-one smile
Well you bob, dip, lickety-split, 
To the top of the pile
But look out, stagger about
Did you ever dream
Your run ran out
This shell, you know the tale well
You hear the sea, smell a rat and that is that
It took me in
It took me inside
'Hello,' he lied
And he did it so well
Top dog, number-one cog
Did you ever dream
A wheel came off

All fall down
We are, we are, we go
Beating sound
We are, we are, we go
Stamping ground
We are, we are, we go
Oh dear lord
Break it down!

Big bite don't give ya no right
To the ground and the sky
Strong arm
Will do you some harm if your river runs dry
More, more, foot on the floor
Did you ever dream
You're stuck with zip
Next verse
Same as the first
You can always make it cheaper
You can always make it worse
You got a grand slam, miracle man
I could sleep in your purse
Each side, tall as it's wide
Did you ever dream
Your zip got stuck

All fall down
We are, we are, we go
Beating sound
We are, we are, we go
Stamping ground
We are, we are, we go
Oh dear lord
Put me down

Talk loud, mimicking proud
My conviction has died
Down (the) sink, rinkety-dink
Goes my cupful of pride
Sit down, if I had a pound
Do you ever dream
Your mouth fell off
Oh!

You're in, you're out
You win, and I'm happy for you
I'm big, I'm it, I'm tall
And you're looking very small
I'm gone, I'm done, I'm through
And I'm turning my back
Back, back, back, back ba-back, yeah-oh!
Put me down!

Commentary

"Easily the greatest Red Box b-side.  Hello, He Lied is excellent.  So excellent that it could even have been a single in its own right.  Hello, He Lied stylistically bridges the gap between the big sound of The Circle And The Square (note the presence of the phonetic singing) and the more personal, intense, and focused work heard on Motive.  

The message is one of the fickle curve of stardom, as told in Red Box abstract-metaphor style.  Although it maintains a generally dark tone throughout, the final verse is as furious, sinister, and exciting as one is likely to find in the entire cannon of modern music.

As a point of trivia, the title comes from a well-known phrase where writer Don Carpenter quotes a Hollywood agent.  Very appropriate, I believe.  The same quote was later used as the title of producer Linda Obst's memoir, which was recently made into a film."
-- Andrew Lenahan

Discography Information

Hello, He Lied
[four minutes,  twenty-seven seconds]
Appears on...
Train [7" and cassette]

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