Hotel Illness

Hotel Illness is off my favourite TBC album, The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion. It's been played 328 times live, which is pretty high for TBC: higher than average, at least. I think Hotel Illness is the epitome of this album, too. Sure it's not my top song (Bad Luck Blue Eyes Goodbye) on the album and it's not as popular as Remedy, but it's just amazing. I think the reason why I love TSHMC so much is because all the songs on it tell a story; all the songs are truly their own little novella. As Chris said in the iTunes exclusive, "All of Southern Harmony was, to me, was a real departure from where we started . . .," meaning from Shake Your Money Maker. And Hotel Illness is a prime example of that departure -- it's a story with the music (+ a lot of harmonica) rather than what defined SYMM (for me, rock syncopation and ballads).

My favourite line in Hotel Illness is hard choose because it's another one in which I love all the lyrics. I love the idea of leaving the medicine "outside with my etiquette," but I think my real favourite line is another one of those lines that is an aphorism: "No baby, love is not a punishment." It's so true.

Oh good heavens, baby where's my medicine?
I must have left it outside with my etiquette
The undertaker's rule of thumb
It's hard to talk with a novocaine tongue

This room smells like hotel illness
The scars I hide are now your business
I can't seem to make hair nor hide of this
No baby love is not a punishment.

Hypnotized by your rotten behavior
This week's fashion is last year's flavor
I got a head full of sermons and a mouth full of spiders
The politics of the world's greatest liar

So tell me baby is it true all those things that they say about you...