I like watching the puddles gather rain song lyrics

Koch 1

Koch 2

Stephanie Koch

September Hinkle

En-100

23 November 2013

Music videos are a way for artists to depict their lyrics and give their audience an idea of the song’s meaning. Music videos may contain all different types of hidden meanings and interpretations of the song lyrics. When visual concepts are bonded with lyrical concepts it creates a better way to convey a message, idea, or story. Blind Melon creates a story about a young girl in a bee costume, transmitting a strong message about how important it is to have someone there for you, in their music video for “No Rain.” The video starts with hopelessness and ends with acceptance and happiness.

The music video for “No Rain” starts with a young girl assumingly around the age of 12 standing on a small stage. She is wearing a homemade bee costume. The costume consists of a black tutu, yellow leotard, and striped arm coverings with a matching hat. She is also sporting thick black frame glasses on her freckled pale skinned face. It seems as if she is at some kind of talent show. She starts to tap dance, spinning around in her little tutu with a big smile on her face. As she finishes her little jig, she bows to the audience. As she is bowing a man in the audience starts laughing. Multiple people in the audience begin to join him, taunting her. The young girl on stage begins to rub her eyes, mortified and sad, clearly crying. She stands there for a moment before she runs off the stage. Pathos is demonstrated in this scene of the video. A lot of people can relate to feeling rejected and bullied. This creates a connection to the audience by displaying a feeling they can relate to. The first part of the video is a representation of how it feels to be unaccepted. The girl is dancing which is a form of self-expression. She is doing something she loves and is taunted and rejected for it. It makes the audience sympathetic towards the bee girl.

The girl leaves the stage and the music starts playing. The first lyrics are “all I can say is that my life is pretty plain, I like watching the puddles gather rain.”(AZlyrics) This lyric’s meaning is that when someone is sad they enjoy things like puddles gathering rain. It could also be a symbol, their eyes being the puddles and the rain being tears. After she leaves the stage she starts to walk around town, alone and with her head down. The girl is even running at one point, symbolizing that she is running from her problems while not knowing where she is going. This suggests the fact that she is alone and lost. Every person she meets she dances for them, just being herself and hoping they will accept her. None of the people seem to really be interested in what she’s doing.

Another prominent lyric in the song is “I just want someone to say to me, ‘I’ll always be there when you wake (AZlyrics).’” The meaning behind it is that the bee girl just wants someone to be there for her whenever she needs them. She is feeling lonely and can’t find a place where people are like her and accept her for who she is. The girl is searching for some place that she can call home, and where someone who loves her resides. At one point walking around the town she is standing in front of a bulldozer looking defeated. In dream interpretation a bulldozer symbolizes one being held back in life from their goals (Dream Moods). It symbolizes feeling helpless and bullied and the need to clear clutter from his/her life. Also, when the girl is running up to a market, a pigeon flies by. A symbol of a pigeon is the desire to return home (Dream Moods). In the next scene the girl is very dirty and looking distressed as she dances. The lack of cleanliness reinforces the idea that she is homeless, and is desperately looking for her home. In this part of the video all of the logical reasons are established. It’s nice to have a home and someone to be there for you, humans are prone to sticking together in groups or pairs.

During the video it flashes to the band, which is playing in a green field. The lead singer of the band is wearing a necklace with an upside down horseshoe pendant. The horseshoe is a symbol of good luck if it is right side up. If the horseshoe is upside down all the luck will run out. It denotes that all of the effort one puts into something may not be worthwhile. The bee girl finds the field and walks up to a rod iron black gate. The gate represents a new phase in her life, new opportunities and possibilities. The gate is covered with flowers which signify a feeling of joy and happiness. Flowers also denote one’s hidden potential and talents (Dream Moods). As the girl opens the gate her face is agape as she sees the scene behind it. There are about 20 people all wearing homemade bee costumes dancing in the center of the field. She runs to them, joining them in their dance.

In this video the most dominant symbol is the bee. The bee is a symbol of accomplishing anything, because bees have too large of a body for their wings. In Celtic symbolism the bee is a sign of hidden wisdom (Dream Moods). The group of dancing bees lifts up the girl like she is special, or the queen bee. Her costume is more elaborate than the rest indicating that she is. Honey bees are a symbol of resurrection. The bee girl is starting a new life in her little dream world, surrounded by her companions. A community of bees is a denotation of human society, showing that society is accepting her (Dream Moods). At the very end of the video the bee girl is holding a waving blue flag. A flag is a symbol of the end of a battle, a victory. The flag also represents perseverance and success. The bee girl has found her home, where she belongs.

The video, without paying much attention, is just a happy sounding song accompanied by a visual of a silly story. The video seems to be light hearted and sort of funny. When paying attention to all of the little things that happen, and realizing what these things could mean, a profound idea is planted in the viewer’s mind. The lyrics and the video give an example of what it’s like to have no one in the world, to be completely alone. It expresses the sadness and defeat that one feels when alone or excluded from society. So behind all of the happy tunes and dancing, there is a dark and depressing interpretation.

Works Cited

AZ Lyrics. AZlyrics.com, 2000-2013. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

Dream Moods, Inc. Dream Moods. Us Library of Congress, 2000. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.