Throwing Stones

Grateful Dead

About Throwing Stones

"Throwing Stones" is a song by the Grateful Dead. It appears on their 1987 album In the Dark. It was also released as a single, with a B-side of "When Push Comes to Shove". The first live performance of "Throwing Stones" was on September 17, 1982 at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine.


Year:
2004
7:20
95 

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Picture a bright blue ball
Just spinning, spinning free
Dizzy with eternity
Paint it with a skin of sky
Brush in some clouds and sea
Call it home for you and me
A peaceful place or so it looks from space
A closer look reveals the human race
Full of hope, full of grace, is the human face
But afraid, we may lay our home to waste

There's a fear down here we can't forget
Hasn't got a name just yet
Always awake, always around
Singing ashes to ashes all fall down
Ashes to ashes all fall down

Now watch as the ball revolves and the nighttime falls
And again the hunt begins and again the blood wind calls
By and by again, the morning sun will rise
But the darkness never goes from some men's eyes

It strolls the sidewalks and it rolls the streets
Staking turf, dividing up meat
Nightmare spook, piece of heat
It's you and me, you and me

Click, flash blade in ghetto night
Rudie's looking for a fight
Rat cat alley roll them bones
Need that cash to feed that jones
And the politician's throwing stones
Singing ashes to ashes all fall down
Ashes to ashes all fall down

Commissars and pin-striped bosses role the dice
Any way they fall guess who gets to pay the price
Money green or proletarian gray
Selling guns instead of food today

So the kids they dance, and shake their bones
And the politician's throwing stones
Singing ashes to ashes all fall down
Ashes to ashes all fall down

Heartless powers try to tell us what to think
If the spirit's sleeping, then the flesh is ink, yeah
History's page, it is thusly carved in stone
The future's here, we are it, we are on our own
On our own. On our own. On our own.

If the game is lost then we're all the same
No one left to place or take the blame
We will leave this place an empty stone
Or that shinning ball of blue we can call our home

So the kids they dance, they shake their bones
And the politicians, throwing stones
Singing ashes to ashes all fall down
Ashes to ashes, all fall down

Shipping powders back and forth
Singing "black goes south and white comes north"
And the whole world full of petty wars
Singing "I got mine and you got yours"
And the current fashions set the pace
Lose your step, fall out of grace
And the radical he rant and rage
Singing "someone got to turn the page"
And the rich man in his summer home,
Singing "Just leave well enough alone"
But his pants are down, his cover's blown

And the politicians throwing stones
So the kids they dance they shake their bones
Cause its all too clear we're on our own
Sing ashes to ashes, all fall down
Ashes to ashes, all fall down

Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free
It's dizzying, the possibilities

Ashes to Ashes, all fall down (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down) [Repeat: x4]
Wo, fall down, (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down)
Wo, fall down (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down)
Ashes, Ashes all fall down (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down)
Wo, fall down, (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down)
Wo, fall down (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down)
Ashes, Ashes all fall down (Ashes to Ashes, all fall down) [Repeat: x3]

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Grateful Dead

The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long musical improvisation. "Their music," writes Lenny Kaye, "touches on ground that most other groups don't even know exists." These various influences were distilled into a diverse and psychedelic whole that made the Grateful Dead "the pioneering Godfathers of the jam band world." They were ranked 57th in the issue The Greatest Artists of all Time by Rolling Stone magazine. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 and their Barton Hall Concert at Cor… more »

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Written by: John Barlow, Robert Hall Weir

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind


11 facts about this song

Song Background
"Throwing Stones" was composed by Grateful Dead's principal lyricist Robert Hunter and vocalist/rhythm guitarist Bob Weir. It was first released in the band's 1987 studio album, "In the Dark."
Debut Performance
The live debut of "Throwing Stones" occurred on September 17, 1982, at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine.
Fan Reception
Despite performing well live and featuring prominently in their sets, some Grateful Dead fans did not initially embrace "Throwing Stones," considering it overly political compared to the band's other works.
Live Performances
The Grateful Dead performed "Throwing Stones" over 250 times before they disbanded in 1995, following the death of Jerry Garcia, their lead guitarist, and vocalist.
Message
The song's lyrics contain strong political commentary, expressing frustration with the state of the world and cynicism towards politicians. The chorus ("ashes, ashes all fall down") alludes to the nursery rhyme "Ring Around the Rosie," which has royalist/political undertones.
Album Success
"In the Dark," the album in which "Throwing Stones" was featured, became one of the band's most commercially successful releases and the only one to be certified double platinum.
Song Structure
"Throwing Stones" has a verse-chorus structure with a distinct bridge, differing from many other Grateful Dead songs known for long improvised instrumentals.
Pairing Song
The band often performed "Throwing Stones" in tandem with another song, "Not Fade Away," as part of a two-song set.
Cover Versions
Other music artists such as Bruce Hornsby and Joe Russo's Almost Dead have performed cover versions of "Throwing Stones."
Notable Concert
"Throwing Stones" was one of the final songs performed by the Grateful Dead in their final concert before Jerry Garcia's death at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois on July 9, 1995.
Cultural Impact
The song has been cited for its relevant social commentary, even inspiring the title and theme of a 1991 book about the Grateful Dead's relationship with their fans, written by Steve Silberman and David Shenk.

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