Heh, it wasn't really a "rag", I was just kinda jokingly using it as an example ... whether it was meant to be a sleazy party song or not, there's not really any denying that those are far from the best lyrics ever written.

Seems a little odd to be continuing this when everyone's focused on Lost Highway (which I still haven't managed to pick up yet, grrrrr), but ah well, can't wait around for the buzz to die down forever ...

Billy Get Your Guns – Beginning with Billy’s “Yoohoo, I’ll make ya famous” line from the film, and, somehwhat inevitably, a gunshot; the opening song of the album sounds like what you’d get if you transported a 70s blues rock band into an Old West bar. The guitar riff that opens it and continues throughout is pure sleazy, swaggering, bluesy hard rock; and the drumming sounds like a constant handclap beat (and is actually replaced by handclaps during the breakdown), and there’s even some barely noticeable cowbell in there too to add to the cowboy vibe. The piano, played by none other than Elton John, seems to bridge together old style saloon music and more modern piano and guitar based rock n’ roll; in much the same way that his playing with Jon bridges the gap between different ages of rock music. The lyrics are like a prelude to a bar fight: as if at any minute the relative calm of the bar room will explode into a situation where anyone could die. A picture is painted here of both the world as Billy sees it (with typical imagery of bars, whores, and whisky bottles); and of Billy the way the world sees him: as an antihero, with lyrics such as “they christened you with whisky / and fire running through your veins” suggesting that he was born to be who he is, and it couldn’t have turned out any other way. However, the lyrics lack the depth of those elsewhere on the album, and the title line is repeated far too often. Jon’s fuller and more focused vocals are showcased here: sounding strong but perhaps remaining too constant throughout, although this does make his incredibly short reversion to his screaming voice at the end of the breakdown. Overall then this is a reasonable rock song, with a good attempt at establishing the atmosphere of a bar in the Old West … perhaps it’s best to think about it as a prelude to the epic introspection of most of the rest of the album, which it comparatively falls ever so slightly flat alongside.

3.5/5