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Length: 4:48
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I know what I know, if you know what I mean
Philosophy is the talk on a cereal box
Religion is the smile on a dog
I'm not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean, d-doo yeah
Choke me in the shallow waters
Before I get too deep
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what?
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are, or?
Oh, I'm not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean
Philosophy is a walk on the slippery rocks
Religion is a light in the fog
I'm not aware of too many things
I know what I know, if you know what I mean, d-doo yeah
Choke me in the shallow water
Before I get too deep
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what?
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what?
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what?
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what you are, and?
What I am is what I am
Are you what you are or what?
Don't let me get too deep
Don't let me get too deep
Don't let me get too deep
Don't let me get too deep
Choke me in the shallow water
Before I get too deep
Choke me in the shallow water
Before I get too deep
Choke me in the shallow water
Before I get too deep
Choke me in the shallow water
Before I get too deep
![](https://paulkingart.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Edie-Brickell_PWKing.jpg)
I don't even want to meet you. (nor you me, no doubt)
![cheers](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_cheers.gif)
I've re-read my post several times to see why two different people have oddly misinterpreted it; I can find no logical reason. Did I imply somewhere in my post that I could "do better" than Edie Brickell? Show me exactly where I did so. As I responded previously to another post (which also inferred something which I had not suggested), I was responding to a prior post which asserted that Edie Brickell was in her thirties and from the West Coast when this song was released. My post was merely to point out that neither of those assertions were accurate; I wasn't passing any judgment on the singer or the musicians involved in this recording. Do people just stand up their own straw-men to everything these days?
Saw them back then - fun times
Tasty and unconventional wah wah solo. Glad it's the entire and not the edited for AM radio version.
ENVELOPE FILTER (AUTO WAH)
Is it Choke, or Shove, or Chuck (me in the shallow water)?
I always thought is was chuck but you made me look
![cool](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_cool.gif)
![lol](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_lol.gif)
Bill you didn't mention her music with Steve Martin.... outstanding IMHO...
-DCO
I'm not aware of too many things
I don't know why I squat when I sing
Click the "Lyrics" button right smack dab in the middle of the page.
i always heard 'shove'. still do, are those lyrics correct? guess sometimes you hear what you want
Thanks for the education RP
![yes](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_yes.gif)
![roflol](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_roflol.gif)
That album has remained a favourite ever (1990) since and now I've got my 11yo daughter into it. Now that doesn't often happen with dad's music!
Man some of y'all take this stuff way too seriously....just tap your toes for cryin' out loud!!! It's not gonna cost you anything but about 3-4 minutes of your life and if you are on that tight of a schedule there are far better things to worry about.
How can anybody not like this comment?
![daisy](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/daisy.gif)
![clap](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/eusa_clap.gif)
![daisy](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/daisy.gif)
Yes! I was thinking the same thing. Never noticed it before. Loved this song since I was 15 - 30 years now.
I've re-read my post several times to see why two different people have oddly misinterpreted it; I can find no logical reason. Did I imply somewhere in my post that I could "do better" than Edie Brickell? Show me exactly where I did so. As I responded previously to another post (which also inferred something which I had not suggested), I was responding to a prior post which asserted that Edie Brickell was in her thirties and from the West Coast when this song was released. My post was merely to point out that neither of those assertions were accurate; I wasn't passing any judgment on the singer or the musicians involved in this recording. Do people just stand up their own straw-men to everything these days?
"If you think you can do better" is now the phrase I associate with this tune ...thanks!
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![](https://media.giphy.com/media/kQzdYesBNEeHK/giphy.gif)
Religion
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![](https://i.pinimg.com/originals/86/bc/a5/86bca5eea1a7113a72e77e290aa80f1e.jpg)
Oh, I know what you mean, Edie Brickell. I know what you mean.
I had to find out who Paul was....boy....I don't keep up on celebrity marriages at all! I think this bit from her Wiki page is sweet (except the last part) about how they first met Hope they're doing good together still.
And I'll re-re-rate (I've gone 8 to 7 to 6 and now back to 7) Long Live RP!!
Wiki: Personal life
Brickell married singer-songwriter Paul Simon on May 30, 1992.[18] Brickell was performing on NBC's Saturday Night Live on November 5, 1988, when she noticed Simon standing in front of the cameraman. "Even though I'd performed the song hundreds of times in clubs, he made me forget how the song went when I looked at him. We can show the kids the tape and say, 'Look, that's when we first laid eyes on each other.'" Brickell and Simon have three children: Adrian, Lulu, and Gabriel.[19] In April 2014, both were arrested on a domestic disturbance charge, appeared in court after which the prosecutor decided against prosecution and charges were dismissed.
You show 'em. I remember when this came out. Holy cow. Something a little different.
You need glasses then
he he. I remember when she first came out with this. Refreshing.
New Bohemians was a 3-piece art-rock band on the local club circuit in Dallas in the mid-80s. I was in a local band on the same circuit at the time. They had a small but loyal following. Edie was at a gig one night and being a bit tipsy started heckling the band, who went back at her saying something to the effect of "if you think you can do better, jump up here. She did, killed it, and the rest is history. She wasn't a professional singer at the time. She joined NB, they added a guitar player, and put out the first album, which at the time was a pretty good offering in the mix of crap out there.
So...as the band said to her...if think you can do better, get up there.
I've re-read my post several times to see why two different people have oddly misinterpreted it; I can find no logical reason. Did I imply somewhere in my post that I could "do better" than Edie Brickell? Show me exactly where I did so. As I responded previously to another post (which also inferred something which I had not suggested), I was responding to a prior post which asserted that Edie Brickell was in her thirties and from the West Coast when this song was released. My post was merely to point out that neither of those assertions were accurate; I wasn't passing any judgment on the singer or the musicians involved in this recording. Do people just stand up their own straw-men to everything these days?
![lol](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_lol.gif)
Paul Simon did Ok for himself...
"Uh, is Princess Leia taking a dump?"
Proclivities wrote:
I agree with many of the points you brought up, but she was about 21 or 22 years old (not in her 30s) when this song came out and she and this band are from Texas, not the West Coast. I don't remember the '80s sucking any more or less than any other decade, despite what a lot of people want to believe.
I never suggested that the West Coast produced better quality musicians than Texas - certainly not in my post; I'm not sure how you inferred that. I was responding to a prior post and pointing out that Edie Brickell was not from California or in her 30s when she composed this song, as that post had claimed.
I agree with many of the points you brought up, but she was about 21 or 22 years old (not in her 30s) when this song came out and she and this band are from Texas, not the West Coast. I don't remember the '80s sucking any more or less than any other decade, despite what a lot of people want to believe.
New Bohemians was a 3-piece art-rock band on the local club circuit in Dallas in the mid-80s. I was in a local band on the same circuit at the time. They had a small but loyal following. Edie was at a gig one night and being a bit tipsy started heckling the band, who went back at her saying something to the effect of "if you think you can do better, jump up here”. She did, killed it, and the rest is history. She wasn't a professional singer at the time. She joined NB, they added a guitar player, and put out the first album, which at the time was a pretty good offering in the mix of crap out there.
So...as the band said to her...if think you can do better, get up there.
I don't hate it. I just don't like it. Silly but harmless.
I agree with many of the points you brought up, but she was about 21 or 22 years old (not in her 30s) when this song came out and she and this band are from Texas, not the West Coast. I don't remember the '80s sucking any more or less than any other decade, despite what a lot of people want to believe.
Texas aka the third coast.
A lot of good music came out of the '80s. A refreshing rescue from stultifying '70s prog rock.
I agree with many of the points you brought up, but she was about 21 or 22 years old (not in her 30s) when this song came out and she and this band are from Texas, not the West Coast. I don't remember the '80s sucking any more or less than any other decade, despite what a lot of people want to believe.
Texas aka the third coast.
A lot of good music came out of the '80s. A refreshing rescue from '70s prog rock.
Click the "Lyrics" button right smack dab in the middle of the page.
Remember the 80's? Sucked in many ways. Ms. Brickell at least found a way to call it like it was. Music for the ages? Nah. But not as dreadfully useless as some might think at first glance.
I agree with many of the points you brought up, but she was about 21 or 22 years old (not in her 30s) when this song came out and she and this band are from Texas, not the West Coast. I don't remember the '80s sucking any more or less than any other decade, despite what a lot of people want to believe.
Huh, Huh. She said "Deep"
She does music with Steve Martin, quilte good stuff indeed. During the last 4 years they have released 2 albums and created an award winning musical together.
https://open.spotify.com/track/65mbF1Oaufdmx0RMoo24rG
Shove me in the shallow waters
Before I get too deep
![{#Yes} {#Yes}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_yes.gif)
me too BobbyCat!
"What I am is what I am" is the equivalent of today's often heard bullshit statement...
"it is what it is".......who the hell came up with that? I think I'll write a song entitled "It is what it is"
I agree with some of the comments below....I like this song musically, lyrically it is really bad!
Yeah, good song: the production is cool, tasty guitar solo, nice bass - but those lyrics read pretty much like middle school poetry. She's still active musically, she hasn't vanished.
Butthead: Didn't Popeye say that?
Beavis: Yeah! They ripped this off from Popeye.
![{#Yes} {#Yes}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_yes.gif)
![{#Cheesygrin} {#Cheesygrin}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_cheesygrin.gif)
Agree with you here. Nothing appeals to my ears about this. The lyrics bug.
![{#Cheesygrin} {#Cheesygrin}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_cheesygrin.gif)
Like music? Cool, do yourself a huge favor and invest a little cash in some good quality equipment. No, not that three-figure, big-box, mass market crap. I'm talkin' about the good stuff, engineered by people who care about music more than building "hi-fi" to a price. No budget? Save for it. Not an audiophile? That's fine — get your gear set up for you by people who care about making music sound incredible in your place. It's worth it — if you care about this part of your life — you won't regret it. Life is too damn short to listen to crappy audio and the artists you love who really care about what they're doing deserve to be heard on the best equipment you can afford.
malamucha wrote:
Really? Because her band was called the "new bohemians" that's what she is/was? She's about as hip as a Jeb Bush.
"As hip as a Jeb Bush" has a great ring to it. That's one to remember! All in all, this discovery was about the best part of this song ever.
Remember the 80's? Sucked in many ways. Ms. Brickell at least found a way to call it like it was. Music for the ages? Nah. But not as dreadfully useless as some might think at first glance.
This song is exactly as intended. A bohemian, hipster type ditty. It's not intended, nor does it pretend, to be anything else. If you can't dig it, well then I guess you're not a hipster....ha ha. Probably "too deep" for you.
Really? Because her band was called the "new bohemians" that's what she is/was? She's about as hip as a Jeb Bush.
I like this song musically, lyrically it is really bad!
Perhaps, except for "Religion is a smile on a dog." I still think that one's a keeper.
Musically, I think the Garciaesque guitar on the bridge may be the best bit. Of course, that's the one part that the FM edit unceremoniously hacks out of the song as if were a cancerous mole on a bulbous schnoz. Unforgivable IMO.
I would absolutely LOVE to hear "Little Miss Can't Be Wrong".
Not likely, since it was essentially banned from the radio. "Doesn't test well with women."
I'm nearly as tired of this tune as everybody else. So why does it sound so refreshing to hear even a snatch of humor on RP?
"What I am is what I am" is the equivalent of today's often heard bullshit statement...
"it is what it is".......who the hell came up with that? I think I'll write a song entitled "It is what it is"
I agree with some of the comments below....I like this song musically, lyrically it is really bad!
Maybe to Smack a Daddy across the face. Perhaps a rolled up newspaper would work better.
I have to agree, there's something nauseatingly bland about the whole affair. The fact it was covered by an ex-Spice Girl really emphasises the class of song it is.
This song is exactly as intended. A bohemian, hipster type ditty. It's not intended, nor does it pretend, to be anything else. If you can't dig it, well then I guess you're not a hipster....ha ha. Probably "too deep" for you.
That would be nice
I have to agree, there's something nauseatingly bland about the whole affair. The fact it was covered by an ex-Spice Girl really emphasises the class of song it is.
Tell me what you want.
What you really, really want.
I have to agree, there's something nauseatingly bland about the whole affair. The fact it was covered by an ex-Spice Girl really emphasises the class of song it is.
The vocals aren't really outstanding, but the music and production are pretty cool - the guitar and bass in particular. Good tune, even if I have heard it thousands of times.
carumba, total flashback to doing my homework to Dennis McNamara and John DiBella, sometimes even hearing local rock like The Good Rats...thank you! that little spurt of remembrance may help deter my alzies!
Flashback to the deck of a ferry somewhere in the Aegean...forgotten that I loved Edie and this song
I had a friend who was a DJ there, even when it was WLIR. Mid-1980s... Man that was a long time ago.
carumba, total flashback to doing my homework to Dennis McNamara and John DiBella, sometimes even hearing local rock like The Good Rats...thank you! that little spurt of remembrance may help deter my alzies!
![{#Iamwithstupid} {#Iamwithstupid}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_iamwithstupid.gif)
I enjoy the sardonic ironic tonic...
![{#Group-hug} {#Group-hug}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/group-hug.gif)
![{#Yes} {#Yes}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_yes.gif)
Everybody in my churches loves this song...
Hear! Hear!
Seriously?
WTF?
A song from 1989? It must have carved a pretty deep rut if it hasn't filled in two decades later.
There are a few songs that have worn ruts in my ears... sad because with less familiarity I would enjoy them more.
At RP the music seems to come in sets... I like the human connections and because I respect the ears of the brand I enjoy the set rather than my own precious preferences...
The competing radios seem to want to feed me an endlessly narrowing selection of -my- music... My ears and purchasing habits have grown since RP opened them to decades of unsatisfying sounds enlivened only by their paid selections into -my- choices.
Lead, I may follow.
Drive/herd and I'm gone...
![{#Iamwithstupid} {#Iamwithstupid}](https://img.radioparadise.com/emoji/icon_iamwithstupid.gif)