Josh Ritter - Girl in the War
Peter said to Paul, “you know, all those words we wrote…are just the rules of the game and the rules are the first to go. Now talking to God is Laurel begging Hardy for a gun. I got a girl in the war, man I wonder what it is we’ve done.”
Paul said to Peter, “you gotta rock yourself a little harder. Pretend the dove from above is a dragon and your feet are on fire.”
“I got a girl in the war, Paul, the only thing I know to do is turn up the music and pray that she makes it through.
Because the keys to the kingdom got locked inside the kingdom. And the angels fly around in there but we can’t see them. I got a girl in the war, Paul, I know that they can hear me yell. If they can’t find a way to help her they can go to hell. If they can’t find a way to help her they can go to hell.”
Paul said to Peter, “you gotta rock yourself a little harder. Pretend the dove from above is a dragon and your feet are on fire.”
“I got a girl in the war, Paul, her eyes are like champagne. They sparkle, bubble over, and in the morning all you got is rain. They sparkle, bubble over, and in the morning all you got is rain. They sparkle, bubble over, and in the morning all you got is rain.”
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Comments on Josh Ritter - Girl in the War
just a class song..nd a brill artist!..i wanted to go to his concert on Tuesday coming in Dublin only i cant…oure legend..
The music and production sound pretty. I wish he knew what he was talking about though.
Peter and Paul both healed people in Gods name. Peter himself knew Jesus. This is history. Not only were their prayers answered, they were so close to God, he gave them the power to heal.
So Josh Ritter refusing to turn to God and Acknowledge Jesus, apparently feels like praying is a joke.
Too bad he wants take out his anger on the truth. If he would turn to God and from his heart, maybe he would be healed.
You see people don’t realize that every artist that writes songs like these, are disguising the truth. Even though I don’t think most people know who Peter or Paul were.
Ralph –
I think you need to stop reading things literally. Ritter is an artist and has picked an artistic way to express his ideas. The song is not really about “Peter and Paul” any more than its about “Laurel and Hardy”.
If you could read through his songs with a metaphorical and symbolic lens (the way art should be viewed), you would see he has a pretty good understanding of faith and life.
This song expresses the frustration of a vision of the Kingdom of God not yet fully revealed in the world. Read through the rest of the album and you’ll find similar themes. A girl in the war is meant to express the idea that sometimes our best prayers for noble things still go unanswered. He doesn’t offer a theological answer for this…he’s just expressing frustration. And he does this by creating a “conversation” between himself and these two church fathers.
Not everything is literal.
Alright, in this song a girl in the war is a girl that this man is in love with, and she is fighting for her life. The war is a disease that is killing her. The song is about doubt! The man is a full christian who believes in god and reads the bible, but when the life of a person he loves comes down to it, he questions if its true or not.
Just a thought…Maybe Peter and Paul and the girl are Peter, Paul and Mary.
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