☝️ Key Points
- The song is about a young man who used to play cowboy and Indian and liked to climb trees.
- He wasn't really mean, just a little scarred and inexperienced.
- The song also mentions that the driver was drunk or simply didn't see him.
- It's about broken hearts, old bad memories, whisky and women, and growing up fast.
- 'One Paper Kid' went to a place where it's allowed to dream.
Interpretation
"One Paper Kid" by
Emmylou Harris is about a young man who used to play cowboys and Indians in his youth and enjoyed climbing trees. Although time passed quickly, he didn't mind. He could quickly get to where he wanted to go. But this "One Paper Kid" wasn't really mean, just a little marked and inexperienced. He had heard of a place where dreaming was allowed.
The song describes how he sits with his coffee in a blue Texan wind and writes on a rock. The "One Paper Kid" is on the move again. It is also mentioned that the driver was drunk or simply didn't see him. The future comes faster than one thinks, and it will also catch up with him. The time he wasted is now available to him again.
There are broken hearts scattered in the past, old bad memories trying to survive, whiskey and women, and the quick process of growing up. The "One Paper Kid" wasn't really mean, just a little peculiar because the times were tough. But now he has gone to a place where dreaming is allowed. There are no camels, no coffee, and no cold morning wind. It was written on a rock: the "One Paper Kid" is on the move again."