Bruce Kimerer wrote:
<< OK. After many years and hundreds of listens, what are the 'false
alarms' in Amelia?
In the Icarus verse I understand the false alarm to be a love affair that
didn't work out. But what about in the other verses? They all end in 'it
was just a false alarm.' What does IT refer to? There isn't an obvious
subject for the pronoun. This has been driving me a little crazy for
almost 30 years now. >>
You give me much more with your question than I can possibly give
with my answer.
In the 20 years that this has been among my very favorite songs
(all versions) I've always interpreted "it was just a false alarm" to
mean that Amelia was just decades ahead of her time.
I just noticed that "Icarus *ascending* on beautiful foolish
arms" defies the myth of Icarus actually *descending* with wings burnt by
the sun.
Perhaps Joni sees Icarus here as the Phoenix embodied by Amelia.
BTW, has anyone seen the Star Trek Voyager episode where Captain
Janeway thaws Amelia from five centuries of sleep on some distant planet?
Talk about GREAT myths.....
ET
