Contraflow
Lyrics
The Real New Fall LP
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much (1)
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
Go out little tyke (2)
And meet at crossroads
Early morning
The sick hills near Buxton (3)
Softly roll
I gotta do it
Prefixed about it
Goin' to meet Jim (4)
With a roll (5)
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
As a retard I had to do it
I hate the dole
Them keys won't fit
Keys won't fit (the keys won't fit)
The keys won't fit in the socket
Or the controls
Stuck like grids on Pennine mud (6)
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
(Backing vocals: walk snake back pass) (7)
Walk snake back
Walk snake back
walk snake pass
walk snake bank
Go out little tyke
Early morning
Sick hills near Buxton
Softly roll
I gotta do it
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
Peel (8)
Ouch!
Hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryside so much
Hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
Hate the countryside so much
Walked up milky hillocks
Down to Buxton
Got lost
Lost key in lock
Lost key in lot
Had to meet Jim
With the Roll -
I was in Buxton
I hate the countryside so much
Hate the countryside so much
Hate the countryside so much
Walked town-side
Walked up Pennine
Go out little tyke
Meet you at crossroads
Early morning, sick hills near Buxton
Over Buxton
Softly roll
I’ve got to do it
Prefixed about it
Got to meet Jim with the Roll -
Here’s only deviants
Had to wait on a Snake Pass
He’s a lazy hill person
Late and slow as usual
Ted Hughes human (9)
Semi Mole
As a retard I have to do it
Lost key in lock
I hate the dole
Up Snake Pass
The keys won’t fit in the socket
Past Buxton
Of the control
I hate the countryside so much
Stuck like buds
I hate the countryside so much
On Pennine mud
Read the contraflow so much
Walk straight back past back
Read the contraflow so much
Read the contraflow so much
Go out little tyke
Meet you at crossroads
Early morning, the sick hills near Buxton
Softly roll
Had to walk back home
Through the mud and sludge
Walk Snake Pass
He’s a lazy hill person
Slow as usual
Ted Hughes human
Semi Mole
Over hills and dales
I had to do it
And milky hillsides
I hate the dole
The keys won’t fit in the socket
The keys won’t fit in the socket
I hate the countryside so much
The keys won’t fit in the socket
I hate the countryside so much
Of the control
I hate the countryside so much
Of the control
I hate the contraflow so much
Stuck like buds on Pennine mud
Stuck like buds on Pennine mud
Walk straight back past
I hate the countryside so much
Walk straight back past
I hate the countryside so much
Again, red lights on, do it again, start again, 1,2,3,4
Extended version, 1,2,3,4
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryside so much
Notes
1. "Contraflow" is when opposing traffic, due to construction, occupies one of the lanes on the same side of a highway or road that is normally dedicated to traffic going in a single direction. Many fans are adamant that the words as sung are actually "I hate the country folk so much," at least part of the time. Some of the iterations do sound like they could be "country folk."
The bass line resembles Pink Floyd's "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun." The original demo recording of this song was titled "Controls." According to Jim Watts, the resemblance was unintentional, but "when i realised it i thought it was funny and left it."
Our roving reporter has the following to say:
From The Fallen, Dave Simpson interviews ex-drummer Dave Milner at his home in the Peak District (p.270 of the 2009 paperback):
"Those lyrics about hating the countryside were directly inspired by this place", proclaims Milner, grinning. It seems the Fall van used to have to negotiate Snake Pass to pick the drummer up, at which point Smith would grumble, "Where the fook are we going now?"
2. "Tyke" is most commonly used to mean a child nowadays, but it originally referred to a dog. It is also a term for someone from Yorkshire, which may be how it is used here. The song is set in Derbyshire, which borders Yorkshire.
3. Buxton is in Derbyshire, and is very close to what is considered Greater Manchester.
4. Probably a reference to Jim Watts, the bass player at the time (Watts also sometimes played guitar in the Fall).
5. The text from Renegade (thanks to Xyralothep's cat). Note this verse continues a bit past what we have on TRNFLP and matches the Peel version:
Sufficiently Strenuous
2 deter flirts
Go out little tyke –
Meet at crossroads
Early morning
The sick hills near Buxton
Softly roll
I got to do it
Prefixed about it
Gotta meet Jim with the
Roll –
He’s a lazy hill-person
Late – and slow as usual
A Ted Hughes human
Semi Mole
The only Ted Hughes I know of was an English poet, married to Sylvia Plath (see note 9 below).
^
6. The Pennines are a range of hills in England; Buxton is in the Pennines.
7. Snake Pass is in the Pennines, not far from Buxton. According to Russell:
The snake pass is a well-worn route from Manchester to Sheffield, it must have been well-known to The Fall in early gigging days, as well as being popular with cyclists (and Buxton, apart from being a 19th century health spa is also god forsaken) but the song seems to refer to a car or van getting stuck (in the mud) in bad weather (a frequent occurrence on the Snake) and, having to walk back, it's pretty remote by English standards and 'a walk' could be up to 15 miles (it could be very exhausting/annoying or potentially fatal). It would certainly make you (temporarily) hate the countryside, but there aren't many country folk to hate, to be honest. A frequently closed road like the Snake would also have loads of 'contraflow' which means even more delays and hassle, so... you can hate that, too. Otherwise, it's a breathtakingly beautiful part of the world. Honest!
8. Thanks to Xyralothep's cat for the transcription.
9. Ted Hughes was a famous English poet, and the erstwhile Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom. He was married to Sylvia Plath.
More Information
Comments (40)
- 1. | 08/04/2013
- 2. | 10/04/2013
- 3. | 16/04/2013
"Those lyrics about hating the countryside were directly inspired by this place", proclaims Milner, grinning. It seems the Fall van used to have to negotiate Snake Pass to pick the drummer up, at which point Smith would grumble, "Where the fook are we going now?"
Dan
- 4. | 08/11/2014
- 5. | 08/11/2014
I found this in a book called, "The sociology of an English village: Gosforth": (the section is about courting)
p.63: "This new rendezvous is a lane leading to three farms which is normally little used at night. Since it stands at the top of the steepest hill in the parish it is open to conjecture whether its popularity is due to the fact that it is immune to interference by all but the most athletic of 'Peeping Toms', or whether, as it is locally maintained, the journey up the hill is sufficiently strenuous to discourage the 'flirts'."
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=KcH7AQAAQBAJ&lpg=PA63&dq=%22sufficiently%20strenuous%22%20flirts&pg=PA63#v=onepage&q=%22sufficiently%20strenuous%22%20flirts&f=false
- 6. | 04/05/2015
the snake pass is a well-worn route from Manchester to Sheffield, must have been well-known to The Fall in early gigging days, as well as being popular with cyclists (and Buxton, apart from being a 19th century health spa is also god forsaken....) but the song seems to refer to a car or van getting stuck (in the mud) in bad weather ( a frequent occurrence on the Snake) and having to walk back it's pretty remote by English standards and 'a walk' could be up to 15 miles... (could be very exhausting/annoying or potentially fatal) . would certainly make you (temporarily) have the countryside, but there aren't many country folk to hate, to be honest. A frequently closed road like the Snake would also have loads of 'contraflow' which means even more delays and hassle, so... you can hate that, too.
Otherwise, it's a breathtakingly beautiful part of the world. Honest!
- 7. | 12/07/2015
- 8. | 12/07/2015
https://youtu.be/EeiERO3i04E
Back the other way, in half an hour:
https://youtu.be/Q7145Zw1Oho
- 9. | 12/07/2015
- 10. | 29/11/2018
It was a panoramic framing of this whole social dynamic, and served brutally. The idea that they followed some backwardly ill-conceived dream only to discover they hate the mud, hate the water, milking and heorse,.. is a comedy bonus. A completely classic Fall track, huuuge razor sharp ideas, biting lyrics, savage delivery, like he's ripping your kecks off with his teeth, chasing you over grinding metallic riffs, through a pulsating, convulsive, undulating landscape.... slight overkill there as I can't do it justice, but you get the picture.
- 11. | 10/12/2018
- 12. | 11/12/2018
You'd be mad to have an opinion here.
- 13. | 11/12/2018
- 14. | 13/12/2018
- 15. | 14/12/2018
he could go mental in the passenger seat
but who'd ever give him a lift twice
shame really, 2 tonnes of steel during the school run can be a great way to vent
- 16. | 15/12/2018
- 17. | 15/12/2018
If you will allow me one assumption, out of my usual 500, then perhaps the holy stink over 'keys' suggests 'door' rather than 'dole'. there is a narrative believe it or not, and other nice themes I didn't mention.
Without doubt the biggest bastard track I've attempted to nail down lyrically, not least because, as Danny pointed out, he plays it so bleedin' close to 'country folks' you can no longer trust your ears.
That skill, or annoyance, runs throughout. With the 'RO~?' sounds, and repeating similar sounding wa-wa-wa syllables, unnatural word order to sentences that are stabbed barked or growled. Also, this woman... I'm assuming it's a woman...(I'm also now assuming no female has ever read anything on a fall forum in its history) .is an emotional car crash, All seems deliberately designed to play between words and sounds, everything a bit double edged. The names of snake head 1 and 4 are in fact, fake,
- 18. | 15/12/2018
Go out little tyke, And meet at crossroads, Early morning, The sick hill near Buxton, I gotta do it, With a roll, keys won't fit, in the socket, on Pennine mud, Walk snake back, walk snake pass
I do remember I definitely had 'gonna make gym'.
Had most trouble with the line before mud, I think someone else has..
door - key - control - fridge ... then mud? I think the mud is in part a decoy to make you hear 'stuck', a mean mark the day he wrote this, so sticking with 'stuck' will always turn that line into clanger. Changing 'stuck' was one of the happiest moments of my life, and turned into a very happy 'unstuck' line.
- 19. | 12/01/2019
- 20. | 26/01/2019
- 21. | 28/01/2019
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the country folk so much?
- 22. | 16/02/2019
- 23. | 09/04/2019
'He's a lazy hill person late and slow as usual
A Ted Hughes human semi-mole
I hate the countryside so much...
All the controls stuck like fudge on genuine Pennine mud'
Tractor by Ted Hughes
'The tractor stands frozen - an agony
To think of. All night
Snow packed its open entrails. Now a head-pincering gale,
A spill of molten ice, smoking snow,
Pours into its steel.
At white heat of numbness it stands
In the aimed hosing of ground-level fieriness.
It defied flesh and won't start...
...All the time the tractor is sinking
Through the degrees, deepening
Into its hell of ice.'
- 24. | 24/05/2019
Walk snake back
Walk snake pass
Walk snake fake
- 25. | 28/05/2019
I am pretty sure the line on note 5 is
Otter Controls
Stock my fridge
Otter Controls is/was an engineering firm in Buxton
- 26. | 28/05/2019
In my opinion, all the following lines are wrong:
Stock reload
Prefixed about it
Goin' to meet Jim
I had to do it
I hate the dole
Or the controls
Stuck like grids
Walk snake back
walk snake bank
Suffering
I gotta do it
- 27. | 21/06/2019
- 28. | 31/12/2019
'The sick hill near Buxton
Softly roll'
- 29. | 19/01/2020
- 30. | 19/01/2020
- 31. | 22/02/2020
Sufficiently Strenuous
2 deter flirts
Go out little tyke –
Meet at crossroads
Early morning
The sick hills near Buxton
Softly roll
I got to do it
Prefixed about it
Gotta meet Jim with the
Roll –
He’s a lazy hill-person
Late – and slow as usual
A Ted Hughes human
Semi Mole
- 32. | 22/02/2020
the
Roll -
suggests something more portentous than an egg butty, perhaps someone's nickname
and fwiw the control line I hear as "key won't fit in the socket of the control"
- 33. | 22/02/2020
Ouch!
Hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryside so much
Hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the contraflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
Hate the countryside so much
Walked up milky hillocks
Down to Buxton
Got lost
Lost key in lock
Lost key in lot
Had to meet Jim
With the Roll -
I was in Buxton
I hate the countryside so much
Hate the countryside so much
Hate the countryside so much
Walked town-side
Walked up Pennine
Go out little tyke
Meet you at crossroads
Early morning, sick hills near Buxton
Over Buxton
Softly roll
I’ve got to do it
Prefixed about it
Got to meet Jim with the Roll -
Here’s only deviants
Had to wait on a Snake Pass
He’s a lazy hill person
Late -and slow as usual
Ted Hughes human
Semi Mole
As a retard I have to do it
Lost key in lock
I hate the dole
Up Snake Pass
The keys won’t fit in the socket
Past Buxton
Of the control
I hate the countryside so much
Stuck like buds
I hate the countryside so much
On Pennine mud
Read the contraflow so much
Walk straight back past back
Read the contraflow so much
Read the contraflow so much
Go out little tyke
Meet you at crossroads
Early morning, the sick hills near Buxton
Softly roll
Had to walk back home
Through the mud and sludge
Walk Snake Pass
He’s a lazy hill person
Slow as usual
Ted Hughes human
Semi Mole
Over hills and dales
I had to do it
And milky hillsides
I hate the dole
The keys won’t fit in the socket
The keys won’t fit in the socket
I hate the countryside so much
The keys won’t fit in the socket
I hate the countryside so much
Of the control
I hate the countryside so much
Of the control
I hate the contraflow so much
Stuck like buds on Pennine mud
Stuck like buds on Pennine mud
Walk straight back past
I hate the countryside so much
Walk straight back past
I hate the countryside so much
Again, red lights on, do it again, start again, 1,2,3,4
Extended version, 1,2,3,4
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryflow so much
I hate the countryside so much
I hate the countryside so much
- 34. | 22/02/2020
and i do hear "read the contraflow" at those points, possibly "rate"
- 35. | 14/03/2020
Excellent transcription, I didn't change anything
- 36. | 02/06/2021
- 37. | 05/06/2021
- 38. | 01/01/2023
A tyke is a Yorkshireman, also one of the nicknames of Barnsley F.C. (The Tykes), Barnsley being an ex-mining town in South Yorkshire (ref: The Mixer) partly in the Pennines.
- 39. | 01/01/2023
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYXktvqmmao
Happy New Year Fall fans!
- 40. | 01/01/2023
Buxton is to the south of the Snake Pass https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=buxton&hl=en&ll=53.307083,-1.816864&spn=0.327819,0.617294&sll=53.395717,-1.499456&sspn=0.327139,0.617294&hnear=Buxton,+Derbyshire,+United+Kingdom&t=m&z=11.
What of "sick hill(s)"? Buxton is a spa town, so maybe there's some irony there. Or maybe they just make him sick. Or maybe there's a link to Eyam, to the east of Buxton, and famous as the "plague village" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eyam)?