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oohykitten
03-22-2002, 10:57 AM
Sorry in advance for being so long winded but I was listeing to my old No Doubt CD and thought their song "Tragic Kindom" fit well as a theme for DCA. Even the title should be DCA new motto...

what do you think?

Once was a magical place
Over time it was lost
Price increased the cost
Now the fortune of the kingdom
Is locked up in its dungeon vaults
The castle floor ties in traps
With coiled wires set back
Decoyed by old cheese
Now the drawbridge has been lifted
As the millions
They drop to their knees

They pay homage to a king
Whose dreams are buried
In their minds
His tears are frozen stiff
Icicles drip from his eyes

The cold wind blows as it snows
On those who fight to get in
On heads that are small
disillusioned as they enter
They're unaware what's
Behind castle walls
But now it's written in stone
The king has been overthrown
By jesterly fools
And the power of the people
Shall come to believe they do rule

They pay homage to a king
Whose dreams are buried
In their minds
His tears are frozen stiff
Icicles drip from his eyes
Welcome to the tragic kingdom
Cornfields of popcorn
Have yet to spring open

Have they lost their heads
Or are they just all blind mice
We've heard all their stories
One too many times
Hypnotized by fireflies
that glow in the dark
Midgets that disguise themselves
As tiny little dwarfs
The parade that's electrical
It serves no real purpose
Just takes up a lot of juice
Just to impress us

Welcome to the tragic kingdom
cornfields of popcorn
Have yet to spring open

HondaBoy
03-22-2002, 02:35 PM
That song seems familiar, I might have heard it before.

BJW
03-22-2002, 05:08 PM
What is the story behind this song? I know that Gwen and Eric Stefani grew up across the street from Disneyland. Could something have happened to provoke them to have a hatred of the park?

MonorailMan
03-22-2002, 06:22 PM
I still don't quite get the song, I think the

His tears are frozen stiff...
Referes the myth of Walt getting frozen, and the fact that he's sad of the current state of DL.

Also:

By jesterly fools...
Fools, Eisner and his cronies.



They pay homage to a king
Whose dreams are buried
In their minds
How many gests that will never forget walt and his dreams.



Have they lost their heads
Or are they just all blind mice
We've heard all their stories
One too many times
Hypnotized by fireflies
that glow in the dark

The fact that many guests (besides us Mpers), on the current state of DL.

Well that's just my guess. :)

MonorailMan
03-22-2002, 06:57 PM
Thought Of A Few More:



Now the fortune of the kingdom
Is locked up in its dungeon vaults
The fact that Eisner will not spend a major amount of money just for DL.


The castle floor lies in traps
With coiled wires set back
Decoyed by old cheese
Now the drawbridge has been lifted
As the millions
They drop to their knees
Maybe the fact that many people are obessed with DL, and the way were lured into DL (Old Cheese Refers to the Amount of "Old Attrations in DL). {Now I know what your all thinking, that this is very insulting to fellow MP people, this is not ment to be insulting, just what I think about the lyricks.}

Also, If you listen in the background of the Matterhorn speech, it sounds like the music from Splash. :)

Ace
03-22-2002, 07:52 PM
Originally posted by oohykitten
Sorry in advance for being so long winded but I was listeing to my old No Doubt CD and thought their song "Tragic Kindom" fit well as a theme for DCA. Even the title should be DCA new motto...

what do you think?

Once was a magical place
Over time it was lost
Price increased the cost (price went up)
Now the fortune of the kingdom
Is locked up in its dungeon vaults (something about Disney head honchos?)
The castle floor ties in traps
With coiled wires set back
Decoyed by old cheese (cheese meaning mickey mouse?)
Now the drawbridge has been lifted (drawbridge to the castle)
As the millions (guests)
They drop to their knees

They pay homage to a king (Walt)
Whose dreams are buried (his vision of Disneyland)
In their minds (Disneyphiles)
His tears are frozen stiff (prob. frozen Walt)
Icicles drip from his eyes (same thing as above)

The cold wind blows as it snows
On those who fight to get in (in the entrance gates)
On heads that are small
disillusioned as they enter
They're unaware what's
Behind castle walls (I bet all the castle references are about the castle)
But now it's written in stone
The king has been overthrown
By jesterly fools
And the power of the people
Shall come to believe they do rule

They pay homage to a king
Whose dreams are buried
In their minds
His tears are frozen stiff
Icicles drip from his eyes
Welcome to the tragic kingdom
Cornfields of popcorn
Have yet to spring open

Have they lost their heads
Or are they just all blind mice (mice=mickey mouse)
We've heard all their stories
One too many times
Hypnotized by fireflies
that glow in the dark
Midgets that disguise themselves
As tiny little dwarfs (costumed characters)
The parade that's electrical (electrical parade, duh.)
It serves no real purpose (it's pretty but has no meaning to reality)
Just takes up a lot of juice
Just to impress us

Welcome to the tragic kingdom
cornfields of popcorn
Have yet to spring open

well I tried... but of course it could be one of those songs where he writes whatever and since no one understands it's considered good writing... go figure.

EandCDad
03-23-2002, 06:16 AM
Here is a link to a previous thread on this song (http://mousepad.mouseplanet.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1873&highlight=tragic+kingdom+doubt) . It has some other thoughts on what it all means.

coronamouseman
03-23-2002, 07:29 AM
Wow - never heard of this song before - what a statement about DL, its management and the people that go there ..........

Nothing much more to say ..........

Lani
03-23-2002, 07:30 AM
No, I do not think Eric Stefani was a prophet. While the lyrics can certainly be applied to the current situation of the DL parks, I believe, from the various things I've read over the years, that "Tragic Kingdom" was written to reflect the general sentiments at the time about American capitalism and overcommercialization in general, represented by Disneyland. I realize as park fans that it's hard for us to see the forest for the trees, but even many years ago, Disney and Disneyland represented--to the rest of the world--some of the most decadent and crass commercialism of America. That the Stefanis lived in the shadow of Disneyland meant they saw it firsthand, and were able to voice larger issues within the context of a song about the park.

coronamouseman
03-23-2002, 07:43 AM
lani: I guess I don't see the reference to overcommericalization here - what I see more of is the suggestion that "disneyites" allow themselves to become mindless followers of Walt's (or even now Eisner's) ideals without any measure of reality checking along the way. It's one thing to be manipulated - it a totally different thing to become entranced or infatuated to the point of surrendering one's critical powers.

oohykitten
03-23-2002, 12:00 PM
Okay since I started this I need to explain better what I mean. I am a huge ND fan and have been since near the start, so I know what they mean by it. However I feel this song sums up DCA. It does talk about how Eisner and yes-men run the place with no reguard to what we think, dispite the fact we are made to believe we matter. I still think Disneyland is the Magic Kingdom, however I feel DCA is Tragic. We got the lamest park to be the sister to the original. The lyrics just fit DCA better to "me". I rememeber people standing in line, and sleeping on the ground in the cold to see DCA the day it opened, and how Lumineria was to be this great thing, and wasn't. And how the Electric Parade serves no real purpose just trying to impress us. (In DCA it has no place there, it was just there to bring in numbers)

***I am glad though others understand what I am trying to say, I am not the best at making a good point on paper*** : )

MonorailMan
03-23-2002, 06:10 PM
Originally posted by coronamouseman
lani: I guess I don't see the reference to overcommericalization here - what I see more of is the suggestion that "disneyites" allow themselves to become mindless followers of Walt's (or even now Eisner's) ideals without any measure of reality checking along the way. It's one thing to be manipulated - it a totally different thing to become entranced or infatuated to the point of surrendering one's critical powers.
I like this statment, relly sums up what I think about the song. :)

Fearless Mouse
03-23-2002, 07:44 PM
Eric used to work at Disneyland he was an artist in New Orleans Square. Him, his friends and his sister used to go over to the Disneyland Hotel and play on the piano there in the lobby. So yes he knows about how Disneyland works but he doesnt understand why so many people idolize the place.