Lyrics:Hard to Compete [Live version (a)]:(From March 1, 1994 KCRW)
You said go, you said stay
Got so confused I tried to do both
So I broke out in a sweat
Cashed my check
And I spent it to death
And it's hard to compete
And it's hard to eat
When you're beating your teeth
On the ground and it's rude
Did you ever even think about
The first impression that you gave
To the pigs, to the kids
With the hazardous waste
And their wine and their eyes
And their gasoline hormones
Accessories accessorizing
You said go, you said stay
You said try a combination
That I didn't even know where to start
I was lost, I was beige
I was over and under my age
Like a video, like a chick
Like a dead man moving too quick
In my way, had no plan
Passing out flyers for some punk rock band
From San Diego
A freak show is purposely out of control
Soaking it like a sponge
And she's tidying up the grunge
The expectations were pulsing so pure
Over-rated bleakness
So hard, so easy to endure
'Cause it's plain and it's real
Back to the future, make a new deal
With the distortion sounding fake
And the rest of the best was a big mistake
So let's cruise, let's freak
'Cause it's payday every day of the week
Go baby, go baby, go baby go!
(From August 22, 1994 JJJ Radio)
You said go, you said stay
Got so confused I tried to both
So I broke out in a sweat
I cashed my check
And I spent it to death
'Cause it's hard to compete
It's hard to eat
When you're beating your fist
On the ground and it's rude
Did you ever even think about
The impression you gave
To the pigs, to the kids
With the hazardous waste
In their wine and their eyes
Their gasoline hairstyles
Working their magic for you
You said go, you said stay
You said try a combination
Didn't know where to start
I was lost, I was beige
I was over and under my age
Like a video, like a chick
Like a dead man moving too quick
In my way, had no plan
Dealing out papers into the wastecan
Trying hard to stay awake
And the rest of the best was a big mistake
So let's drive right into the ground
Hold it down with the garbageman crown
'Cause it's a deal, it's a noose
It's news, it's payday
The Song:"Hard to Compete" is one of those nice gems hiding in the back of Beck's catalog. He did perform it on two different radio sessions in 1994, which are fairly common. I'd assume he did it at a few shows here and there also. Nothing crazy or goofy about it, it's just a quiet, contemplative folk song. Beck himself calls it a "work in progress" and admits he never really finished it.
The song seems to be one of the many early Beck tunes to be about the struggles of working. The lyrics on the version from KCRW in Los Angeles focused a bit more on the music biz, especailly at the end of the second verse. He mentioned "passing out flyers for some punk rock band," and some of that generic grunge music ("over-rated bleakness") that was the rage post-Nirvana. Beck's ironic sense of humor keeps peeking out among the melancholy music.
A few months later, Beck was touring Australia, and he again played "Hard to Compete" on the radio. Beck removed much of the specifics about the band from San Diego and grunge, and the song benefitted from the tightening up. The song instead feels more about the more universal struggles and confusion of working. The daily grind was summed up as "It's a deal / it's a noose / it's news / it's payday."
In between these two versions, Beck recorded a follow-up to
One Foot In The Grave for K Records. This was never completed or released (though there has been some talk of it in 2009), but perhaps this was one of the songs he did record in the studio. (That's just an educated guess, I don't know for sure.)
Live:Played live 2 times:
Earliest known live version:
March 1, 1994Latest known live version:
August 22, 1994Beck played "Hard to Compete" on his March 1 1994, appearence on KCRW. Chris Ballew was with him, but did not play on this particular song. Beck played his acoustic guitar and sang a very subtle, quiet melody. It's quite pretty.
Another version of the song came a few months later in Australia. This take was a little longer, but mainly because of a longer middle break and outro. His guitar playing was much fancier, and his singing slightly more dynamic. The song had matured somewhat. Was this only played on the radio? Hard to imagine, but these are the only two versions circulating that I know about.