The Music of Thomas E Peterson

The Story Behind The Song

World Spin

The song "World Spin," was written in the Fall of 1998. The songs story is somewhat influenced by Astronaut John Glenn's second historic mission into outer space. The thought of being in space was brought on by being aware of this particular Space Shuttle flight (STS-95) and is what evoked the imagery of the first line in its lyric, "I look at the world spinning in space, its a world that flies solo." From there the songs direction departs this exact subject, leaping into the imagination of humankind prior to space flight or without access to personally experiencing space flight, by then saying, "I look at this world flying through space, in my mind, so slow. The only way to see this world, we know as home, is in visions of the brain." It's the human imagination that is spoken of here. Very few have actually seen our planet from a distance, yet most by now have seen the images of it. The lyric takes another turn here going toward our planet. This point of view considers a troubled perspective, one based in and due to, the human condition. "Is it the deer or the fear that we hear, driving down the road, riding on this world that's spinning around." This line speaks in its own riddle of imagery, posing yet another question as to our individual personal security. The lyric goes on to speak of human arrogance, the delusion of self importance, when reality shows that our understanding remains finite. "We know so much so, why, oh why does the world fly through the sky?" That seems a simple question, yet there remains a lack of evidence to form a conclusion. From here the topic shifts back again toward the solar system, potentially through the understanding gained from space flight yet leaving it unstated as to what the collective of humanity actually knows about human existence, where we are and what we do. The story then turns back to its own lyrical beginning as its conclusion.

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