Joseph Grijalva
Crossfire Lyric Writeup
Crossfire
Day by
day night after night....Blinded by the neon lights
Hurry here hustlin' there....No one's got the
time to spare
Money's tight nothin' free....Won't somebody come and
rescue me
I am stranded....Caught in the crossfire
Stranded....Caught in the crossfire.
Tooth for tooth eye for an eye....Sell your soul just to buy buy buy
Beggin' a dollar stealin' a
dime....Come on can't you see that I
I am stranded....Caught in the crossfire
I am stranded....Caught in the crossfire.
I need some kind of kindness....Some kind of sympathy oh no
We're stranded....Caught in the crossfire
Save the strong lose the weak....Never turning the other cheek
Trust nobody don't be no fool....Whatever happened to the golden rule
We got stranded....Caught in the crossfire
We got stranded....Caught in the crossfire
We got stranded....Caught in the crossfire
Stranded....Caught in the crossfire
Help me
In modern times there can be no doubting the
fact that a large portion of our lives is spent in the pursuit of material
possessions and other such greedy endeavors.
“Crossfire” speaks to the part of our human nature that strives to be
better than everyone else, is constantly trying to attain material goods, and
has no compassion for others.
The first verse brings to the
attention of the listener the way too many people are caught up in the fast
pace of modern day life. The sheer
glitter of life can sometimes fool us into believing that we must spend all of
our energy striving to purchase materials.
All forms of media, from the internet, television, printed media, radio
are constantly bombarding us with advertisements describing “the latest and
greatest”. Our superficial mentality
causes us to become less receptive to the needs of others. Only rarely, does someone offer any sort of
services for free.
The second verse of the song carries
on with a similar theme as the first.
One part that particularly interested me was the song’s reminder that a
large part of the world is still operating on the “tooth for a tooth, eye for
an eye” principle. Though this system
(when followed) does promote equal punishment for crimes, it also encourages
people to seek revenge. Take for example
the ongoing feud between the Jews and Palestinians in 
Whenever one side commits some heinous
action, the other side is quick to unleash an attack against their enemy that
might even be more devastating than the first.
I know that realistically no one will allow themselves
to be attacked without some kind of retribution, but if one person had realized
early on that the violence could be stopped through forgiveness and a
willingness to compromise, the problem might have ended a long time ago.
Too many people in the world are
reluctant to go out of their way to help others. If we humans are truly better than the rest
of the world’s creatures, we should realize that altruism is the key to our
humanity. When we refuse to help those
who have fallen in need, are disabled in some way, or who have been hurt, we
are falling in with the “only the strong survive” mentality. The point is, by allowing those who might be
physically weaker than the rest of society to parish we loose valuable contributors
to society. Also, many people would
probably agree that all life should be valued no matter how different it might
be from the norm.
“Crossfire,” is one of my favorite
songs, not just because it has a though provoking message, but because it is
presented in a way that doesn’t make it sound “preachy”. It has a great, funk, blues, and rock
influenced sound that is irresistible.
Also, the song was performed by my favorite guitarist, Steve Ray
Vaughan.
Recorded by "Stevie Ray Vaughan"
By T. Shannon, C. Layton, R. Wynans, B. Carter, R. Ellsworth
©1989 - Manchaca Music/Blame Music - BMI
Album: "In Step" - 1989