They're Not Here, They're Not Coming by Lisa W.

Song Title: They’re Not Here, They’re Not Coming
Credits: Don Henley / Stan Lynch
Album: Inside Job
Lyrics:

From the Arizona desert
To the Salisbury Plain
Lights on the horizon
Patterns on the grain
Anxious eyes turned upward
Clutching souvenirs
Carrying our highest hopes and our darkest fears

They swear there was an accident back in '47
Little man with a great big head
Splattered down from heaven
Government conspiracy; cover-ups and lies
Hidden in the desert under endless skies

Well, it's a cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold
Post, postmodern world
No time for heroes, no place for good guys
No room for Rocky The Flying Squirrel

They're not here, they're not coming
Not in a million years
Turn your weary eyes back homeward
Stop your trembling, dry your tears
You may see the heavens flashing
You may hear the cosmos humming
But I promise you, my brother
They're not here, they're not coming

Would they pile into the saucer
Find Orlando's rat and hug it?
Go screaming through the universe
Just to get McNuggets?
Well, I don't think so, I don't think so
It's much too dangerous, it's much too strange
Here in a world that won't give Oprah no home on the range

Well, it's a cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold
Post, postmodern world
No authenticity, no sign of soul
The radio won't play George and Merle

They're not here, they're not coming
Not in a million years
'Til we put away our hatred
'Til we lay aside our fears
You may see the heavens flashing
You may hear the cosmos humming
But I promise you, my sister
They're not here, they're not coming

To this garden we were given
And always took for granted
It's like my daddy told me, “You just bloom where you're planted.”
Now you long to be delivered
From this world of pain and strife
That's a sorry substitution for a spiritual life

(Solo)

Well, it's a cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cold
Post, postmodern world
No place for sentiment, no room for romance
Bring back the Duke of Earl

They're not here, they're not coming
Not in a million years
Turn your hopes back homeward
Hold your children, dry their tears
You may see the heavens flashing
You may hear the cosmos humming
But I promise you, my brother
They're not here, they're not coming

They're not here, they're not coming
Not in a million years
'Til we put away our hatred
And lay aside our fears
You may see the heavens flashing
You may hear the cosmos humming
But I promise you, my brother
They're not here, they're not coming

Commentary: This song (oddly) was the very first song I heard from the Inside Job album. You’ll have to excuse us Brits we don’t get Don’s solo material overly publicised over here so this was the first song I heard through my aunt and uncle.

In it Don shows his sense of humour in a brilliant way. Without coming across as condescending he alludes to the fact that any alien would travel so far just to see America is ludicrous. I would neither agree nor disagree with the song because I haven’t seen every square of the globe but to me this song makes an excellent point whilst poking fun at the current popular view of culture in America in the 21^st Century using the argument of why would they travel all this way when there’s not much to see?!

Selecting popular icons from the past and common everyday items like McNuggets he makes the song speak to the young and old alike, a talent found in most of his material and, as you would expect from a man as thoughtful as Don, there is a political aspect too “Government conspiracy; cover-ups and lies”. Not as hard-hitting as some of the lyrics from Inside Job but his point is there.

Don himself finds his belief in the nature he sees around him and in my humble opinion some of this is reflected in the song “To this garden we were given and always took for granted…that’s a sorry substitution for a spiritual life” doubtless to encourage us to take more notice of the world around us.

What does it mean: (Symbols & Allusions)

The long and short of this song is that it is a study into the popular belief that extra-terrestrials visit the Earth frequently. Now an every day part of our culture reflected in shows like The X-Files and Doctor Who and films such as Independence Day and The War of the Worlds there remains a strong spiritual aspect that is common across the world, the belief that we will be “saved” by an alien abduction / invasion / the promise of a better life.

Through the course of the song Don covers the spirituality of extra-terrestrial life whilst dealing with the reality of the fact that the likelihood of aliens travelling so far, given the few things to entice them, is very slim and that perhaps turning your attentions back to more pressing matters like your children wouldn’t hurt.

All in all it’s a brilliant song that stems from a light-hearted perspective that belies a serious point about culture, spirituality and hope in the 21^st Century. Would you expect anything less from Don Henley?

What Don Says:

When talking about this song Don refers Carl Sagan’s belief that no organism could possibly survive the journey across space to the Earth and he agrees with that but his argument is more along the lines of “Why would they want to come?”  He describes this song as silly and a bit of fun but there is a message there it wouldn’t be a Don Henley song if there wasn’t meaning in there somewhere.

Your Thoughts:

This is one of my favourite tracks from the Inside Job album quite simply because it does something so few songs do these days, it makes you laugh. Too many songs these days dwell on lost love, lost anything and all that’s bad in the world, this song takes the mickey out of itself and it really works. Don’s raspy vocals and a strong drumbeat combine with the eerie intro to make this song stand out from an overcrowded market place. I don’t know exactly what inspired Don to write the song but it really works and the trick of hiding a serious message in a light-hearted track is the kind of clever behaviour I’ve come to expect from the master lyricist that is Don Henley. I love the whole Inside Job album because of the non formulaic make up of it but this one track sums that up in a nutshell because no one could say there is ANYTHING formulaic about They’re Not Here, They’re Not Coming.

Comments

[Junie]

This is my favorite song from IJ, and probably one of my top 5 Henley Songs of All Time, although that changes on a regular basis with my mood.

I was listening to this song just this morning on the way to work, and as usual, marveled at the way he was able to intertwine a little anger, humor, intelligence and good-natured chiding into a relatively simple pop song.

2 things stood out for me from the beginning when listening to "They're Not Here..." The first was the amazing bridge lyrics. Obviously lyrics are his strong suit, but this particular set of lines is among the most affecting that he's ever written. The brilliance is in the simplicity:

To this garden we were given
And always took for granted
It's like my daddy told me, “You just bloom where you're planted.”
Now you long to be delivered
From this world of pain and strife
That's a sorry substitution for a spiritual life

Secondly, IMO, it's one of Don's strongest vocal performances. His voice is strong and clear, and you can SEE him roll his eyes when singing about Orlando's Rat, McNuggets, and the concept of someone or something actually wanting to come from another world to observe or take part in this nonsense.

Finally, the fact that he was able to bring home the point that sometimes we lose track of what's important in favor of popular notions and other icons without being cynical and condescending is yet another trait of the song to appreciate.