☝️ Key Points
- Romanticism in a harsh, industrial environment with the protagonist finding love and dreams.
- Description of the city at night, including the wild nature presented in the form of stray cats and clouds drifting over the moon.
- Detailed depiction of industrial activity in the city, with the sound of a siren and the sight of a train illuminating the night.
- The protagonist shows determination to change or leave the city, possibly symbolized by his intention to forge a strong axe.
- Despite all the harshness and dirtiness of the city, the protagonist holds a deep affection for it, where he has found love and dreams.
Interpretation
Dirty Old Town is a melancholic song that portrays the rough and dirty industrial city of Salford, England. It was originally written by Ewan MacColl, who himself grew up in Salford.
The first verse speaks of the romance that the singer finds in this harsh environment: "I met my love by the gasworks croft, dreamed a dream by the old canal, I kissed my girl by the factory wall". Despite the industrial and dirty surroundings, the protagonist finds love and dreams.
The second verse describes the nighttime scene of the city, including nature that is shown in the form of "Clouds are drifting across the moon, cats are prowling on their beat".
The third verse shows the industrial activity in the city with the sound of a siren and the sight of a train lighting up the night: "I heard a siren from the docks, saw a train set the night on fire".
In the fourth verse, the singer shows his determination to change or leave the city. The lines "I'm going to make a good sharp axe, shining steel tempered in the fire, I'll chop you down like an old dead tree" could symbolize the singer's intention to make a fresh start or eliminate the old, unwanted parts of his life.
The last verse repeats the first, suggesting that despite all the toughness and dirtiness of the city, the protagonist still holds a deep affection for it. It's still the "Dirty old town" that he loves and where he found his dreams and his love.