PicoBlog

Hi there!

You might remember me from Creative Pursuits, the short lived newsletter about creative hobbies we do in our downtime. For the last several months, I’ve been dealing with a creative block and thinking a lot about Taylor Swift.

I have a lot of things I want to share with you and talk about: my favourite songs from each of her eras, what I think of when I listen to these songs, (ie: is this song really about John Mayer?) AND, why isn’t anyone talking about that one time Taylor covered Carole King at the rock and roll hall of fame?

With 1989 (Taylor’s Version) out today, I thought it’d be a fun time to kick-off what I’m calling my “quiet fandom report”, little dives into the world built by Taylor Swift and where everything connects because our girl loves a call-back moment.

For this first issue, I wanna talk about the song “You’re on your own kid”, which includes some of Taylor’s best lyrics. First of all, there’s a LOT of words in this song! It’s a tough one to scream-sing along with, which is probably why it’s not on the Eras tour main setlist (*SPOILER: it’s one of the “secret songs” of the Eras Tour Movie, which makes up for it not being included). Second! This song feels like a reflection of her personal and professional journey over the last 17 years and that’s why I think it’s particularly beautiful. Ok, so let’s get into it:

Summer went away
Still, the yearning stays
I play it cool with the best of them
I wait patiently
He's gonna notice me
It's okay, we're the best of friends
Anyway

I hear it in your voice
You're smoking with your boys
I touch my phone as if it's your face
I didn't choose this town
I dream of getting out
There's just one who could make me stay
All my days

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes
I waited ages to see you there
I search the party of better bodies
Just to learn that you never cared

You're on your own, kid
You always have been

I see the great escape
So long, Daisy May
I picked the petals, he loves me not
Something different bloomed
Writing in my room
I play my songs in the parking lot
I'll run away

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes
I called a taxi to take me there
I search the party of better bodies
Just to learn that my dreams aren't rare

You're on your own, kid
You always have been

From sprinkler splashes to fireplace ashes
I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this
I hosted parties and starved my body
Like I'd be saved by a perfect kiss

The jokes weren't funny, I took the money
My friends from home don't know what to say
I looked around in a blood-soaked gown
And I saw something they can't take away

'Cause there were pages turned with the bridges burned
Everything you lose is a step you take
So make the friendship bracelets
Take the moment and taste it
You've got no reason to be afraid

You're on your own, kid
Yeah, you can face this
You're on your own, kid
You always have been

I won’t dig into the whole song, but I started thinking about the lyrics back in July when I was thinking about getting my first tattoo. I wanted something with wildflowers, particularly daisies, but I also thought it would be a cool bonus coincidence if TS had daisy imagery in her songs. When I typed “taylor swift lyrics daisies” into the google, “You’re on your own kid” came up. When she sings, “I see the great escape, So long, Daisy May” I wondered who was Daisy May and went down a little rabbithole. From PopSugar, a highly credible source (lol), Daisy May is a reference to Daisy Mae, the sweetheart of L’il Abner, the title character of a comic strip running from 1934-1977.

For the unfamiliar (me, included), I’ll give you a run down of the wikipedia page. L’il Abner was a satirical comic strip set in the fictional hillbilly town of Dogpatch. L’il Abner is described as generally a big dumb innocent dude who represents goodness in a dark world. Daisy Mae has a huge crush on L’il Abner and he shows little interest in her for literal years of the comic series and then in 1952 he finally marries her. I mean, sounds familiar, right? It’s giving “You Belong with Me”! It’s giving, “Love Story”! The other note about Daisy’s character is that she wears a polka dot blouse and cropped skirt. Sounds a lot like Taylor’s Red era where she was very into retro-inspired pin-up girl style fashion. If you still need to be convinced, here’s a visual:

Like, tell me that’s not 2012 Taylor??

So if Taylor is describing her old self as “Daisy Mae”, then “I see the great escape
So long, Daisy May” takes on an interesting meaning about growing up, shedding an old identity and embracing the person you’re becoming. By saying, “I see the great escape”, it’s like she’s searching for a way to let go of her past for good. Then, she does something I love where she uses different meanings for a word within the same verse. First, Daisy is a character, then the daisy imagery continues, “I picked the petals, he loves me not” to reference… Jake Gyllenhaal? Harry Styles? Honestly, could be any one of those Kens. And finally, “Something different bloomed, writing in my room” brings it all back to her writing as the great escape. She’s looking forward, leaving unrequited loves in the past, but playing her songs in the parking lot. I can’t find a good source for this but I remember reading on the Taylor Swift Reddit that before her big break she played shows in parking lots to promote her EP. Cute callback, Taylor!

Listen, this is just the beginning. 1989 (Taylor’s Version) just dropped and I can’t wait to listen. Taylor fandom moves fast, but it’s not going to be like that here. It will take me WEEKS to listen to the album and The Vault tracks enough times to form coherent thoughts. But, that’s kind of the point of this newsletter, it’s not the latest news, not gossip, not speculation about double albums. We’re just having fun with the music we have.

I wanna talk about some of the funnier and light-hearted lyrics and inside jokes in Taylor’s lyrics. My favourites are two bonus tracks: “I bet you think about me” a bonus from the vault track off of Red (Taylor’s Version) and “Hit’s Different” from Midnights bonus tracks (3 AM version? Technically, it was only available on the cds sold at Target but then she finally put it on streaming services).

So, for homework you can listen to those two tracks.

so long daisy may,

Gab

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