Written by: Beck Hansen
Versions:
- Diamond in the Sleaze (4:06)
Available on Beck - Super Rare! Vol. 1 and 2 other releases.
CreditsBeck Hansen: Bass, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Producer, Vocals
Roger Joseph Manning Jr.: Drums, keyboards, Percussion, Synthesizer
Tony Hoffer: Engineer
David Ralicke: Flute
Mickey Petralia: Mix
Lyrics:
Diamond in the Sleaze [Version (a)]:
A diamond in the sleaze, down on bended knees
A thousand grizzled nerves hanging loose at the ends
It's later than you think, it's gone before you blink
Out of the crosshairs, into the crowd
Do you want to see me suffering?
Do you want to see me suffering?
How could you let a good thing go?
How could you let a good thing go, go, oh?
A lion in a cage shakes his golden mane
He doesn't care who notices where he's gonna lie
He came to beg a meal, you're older than you feel
The keyboard of your memory is coming apart
It's a weight upon my shoulder
It's a weight upon my shoulder
How could you let a good thing go?
How could you let a good thing go, go, oh?
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
The doctor takes a rest inside a hornet's nest
With Polaroids of patients who refuse to be cured
A life lived under glass and stolen Cadillacs
Can you hear the saxophones peeling the paint?
Do you want to see me suffering?
Do you want to see me suffering?
How could you let a good thing go?
How could you let a good thing go, go, oh?
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
A diamond in the sleaze, down on bended knees
A thousand grizzled nerves hanging loose at the ends
It's later than you think, it's gone before you blink
Out of the crosshairs, into the crowd
Do you want to see me suffering?
Do you want to see me suffering?
How could you let a good thing go?
How could you let a good thing go, go, oh?
A lion in a cage shakes his golden mane
He doesn't care who notices where he's gonna lie
He came to beg a meal, you're older than you feel
The keyboard of your memory is coming apart
It's a weight upon my shoulder
It's a weight upon my shoulder
How could you let a good thing go?
How could you let a good thing go, go, oh?
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
The doctor takes a rest inside a hornet's nest
With Polaroids of patients who refuse to be cured
A life lived under glass and stolen Cadillacs
Can you hear the saxophones peeling the paint?
Do you want to see me suffering?
Do you want to see me suffering?
How could you let a good thing go?
How could you let a good thing go, go, oh?
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
I won't ever let you go
The Song:
"Diamond in the Sleaze" is a song Beck recorded after Mutations came out, but soon enough to be able to use it as a B-side for some of the album's singles. The song is highlighted by some very fine acoustic guitar and flute (by Beck's "Brass Menagerie" band member, David Ralicke). It is a very laidback, pleasant groove, with a very simple, breezy arrangement. Beck plays all the guitars, and even the melodic bass line.
As he often did in his early folk songs, Beck uses a host of musical images ("the keyboard of your memory is coming apart"; "can you hear the saxophones peeling the paint?") and also alludes to success ("a life lived under glass"; "a diamond in the sleaze"). The line about the lion shaking its golden mane might also refer to a performer, though he does not seem to be using it as a comment or anything, so perhaps he's just singing about a lion. And that's the biggest problem with the lyrics, there's a bunch of interesting images and stories (lions, keyboards, doctors), but I'm not sure there's a particular point.
"Diamond in the Sleaze" is a song Beck recorded after Mutations came out, but soon enough to be able to use it as a B-side for some of the album's singles. The song is highlighted by some very fine acoustic guitar and flute (by Beck's "Brass Menagerie" band member, David Ralicke). It is a very laidback, pleasant groove, with a very simple, breezy arrangement. Beck plays all the guitars, and even the melodic bass line.
As he often did in his early folk songs, Beck uses a host of musical images ("the keyboard of your memory is coming apart"; "can you hear the saxophones peeling the paint?") and also alludes to success ("a life lived under glass"; "a diamond in the sleaze"). The line about the lion shaking its golden mane might also refer to a performer, though he does not seem to be using it as a comment or anything, so perhaps he's just singing about a lion. And that's the biggest problem with the lyrics, there's a bunch of interesting images and stories (lions, keyboards, doctors), but I'm not sure there's a particular point.
Notes:
- The Carter Family has a song "Diamonds in the Rough," which may have inspired to the song to some small degree (similarly to how Mississippi John Hurt's "My Creole Belle" led to "Creole Belle" or Blind Willie Johnson's "Nobody's Fault But Mine" led to "Nobody's Fault But My Own").