Tag Archives: Pete Townshend

Song of the Week – Empty Glass, Pete Townshend

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Ignored             Obscured              Restored

Ecclesiastes was famously the inspiration for the Byrds’ massive 1965 hit “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There is a Season)”, written by Pete Seeger in 1959.  Pete Townshend’s song “Empty Glass,” the title track from his 1980 solo album, also refers to Ecclesiastes, resonating deeply with its existential musings.

Written during a turbulent period in Townshend’s life, the song’s lyrics evoke themes of spiritual longing, disillusionment, and the search for meaning amid chaos.  The “empty glass” becomes a powerful metaphor, capturing both depletion and the potential for renewal.

I don’t pretend to be a student of the Bible, but the connection between Ecclesiastes and “Empty Glass” led me to investigate. This is what I learned.

The book of Ecclesiastes in the Hebrew Bible is a poetic meditation on the human condition, marked by its exploration of life’s seeming futility and the quest for meaning.  Attributed to “Qoheleth” or “The Teacher,” the text grapples with profound existential questions, famously declaring, “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity (i.e. futile)!” (Ecclesiastes 1:2).  Themes of transience, toil, and the search for purpose thread through its twelve chapters, offering observations that oscillate between despair and tempered hope.

Qoheleth observes the cyclical nature of existence: generations come and go, the sun rises and sets, and human labor appears repetitive and ultimately inconsequential (1:4-11).  Despite its sober outlook, the text does not prescribe nihilism.  Instead, it encourages finding joy in simple pleasures — eating, drinking, and enjoying one’s toil — because these are gifts from God (3:12-13).  Ecclesiastes challenges readers to embrace life’s ephemeral beauty while acknowledging its mysteries and limitations, urging humility in the face of the divine.

Qoheleth’s declaration that “there is nothing new under the sun” (1:9) underscores a sense of futility, echoed in the opening lines of Townshend’s “Empty Glass”:

Why was I born today?
Life is useless like Ecclesiastes says.

This direct reference situates the song as a modern meditation on timeless questions.  Townshend’s lamentation of life’s emptiness mirrors Qoheleth’s reflections on the fleeting nature of worldly pursuits.  Yet, both the text and the song suggest that this acknowledgment need not lead to despair; instead, it invites introspection and openness to spiritual fulfillment.

Townshend’s lyrics are imbued with a yearning for divine connection, a theme central to Ecclesiastes.  Qoheleth acknowledges human dependence on God, stating, “He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, He has put eternity in their hearts” (3:11). While “Empty Glass” does not directly articulate this sentiment, its metaphor of an “empty glass” can be seen as a vessel awaiting spiritual replenishment — a subtle reflection of the biblical notion that life’s meaning transcends human understanding.

Despite its somber tone, Ecclesiastes ultimately encourages finding joy in the mundane.  The text’s refrain to “eat, drink, and be merry” (8:15) is not hedonistic but an acknowledgment of life’s fleeting nature and the importance of cherishing its small blessings.  Townshend’s song, while darker in tone, contains a similar kernel of resilience.  The “empty glass” may symbolize a state of depletion, but it also implies readiness to be refilled — a nod to the potential for renewal.  He says:

Don’t worry, smile and dance
You just can work life out
Don’t let down moods entrance you
Take the wine and shout

Both Ecclesiastes and Pete Townshend’s “Empty Glass” wrestle with profound existential questions, grappling with themes of futility, mortality, and spiritual longing.  Yet, neither succumbs entirely to despair.  Ecclesiastes reminds readers to embrace life’s transience with humility and gratitude, while “Empty Glass” speaks to the enduring human quest for meaning and connection.  Together, they offer complementary reflections on the human condition, bridging ancient wisdom and contemporary experience.

Enjoy… until next week.

Song of the Week – April Fool, Ronnie Lane & Pete Townshend (feat. Eric Clapton)

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IGNORED OBSCURED RESTORED

We were all very saddened to hear that B.B. King passed away yesterday. Of course I was tempted to pay tribute to him with today’s SotW, but there were so many words written about him yesterday that I have nothing new or special to add. Rest in peace B.B. (and Lucille too).

I recently finished Sound Man: A Life Recording Hits with The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Eric Clapton, The Faces . . ., written by the legendary engineer/producer Glyn Johns. It’s an insider perspective of classic rock and roll that few people can offer. He was in the room when some of the most important albums in the history of rock and roll were recorded.

When Led Zeppelin recorded “Dazed and Confused” he was in the room.

When Mick Taylor and Bobby Keys ripped off those amazing solos on Sticky Fingers’ “Can’t You Hear Me Knocking” he was in the room.

When Roger Daltrey let out that blood curdling scream toward the end of “We Won’t Get Fooled Again” he was in the room again.

As I read the book I was excited about the prospect that Johns would help me to (re)discover some gem of a record that I had overlooked or forgotten. That came in the chapter about the Pete Townshend/Ronnie Lane album Rough Mix.

I’ve always enjoyed that album but often focused on its most popular songs – the ones that got FM radio air play – “My Baby Gives It Away” and “Street in the City.” But it is a lesser known cut on the album, “April Fool”, that Johns says is “among the few moments in my recording career that I treasure.”

The track was almost finished when Eric Clapton offered to add a Dobro part to complement the song.

“I played him the track and I noticed that his foot was tapping as he ran through the song. I quickly put a mic on his foot and we recorded the next run-through. It was note-perfect and quite beautiful. Eric reacting in the most natural and emotive way to the song and Ronnie’s performance of it. Up until that moment I had paid very little attention to Eric as a musician and therefore never really understood what all the fuss was about. I thought he was just another bloody white kid playing the blues. That was very clearly my loss. In a matter of a few minutes I had been completely won over. This was a perfect example of what I have always thought about Eric’s playing. He never allows his brain to get in the way between his heart and his fingers.”

The instrumental title cut (also with Clapton on lead guitar) is pretty cool too.

Enjoy… until next week.