Song Origins
Diner
A Conversation with David Schools at O.B. And Jack's House (04/01/1995)
DS: "Diner" is funny because we wrote that song, and we were recording it in the studio, and then "Harvest Moon," Neil Young's record, came out. And there's a song that's... of a similar nature, about watching a waitress in a diner. JB carries the metaphor a lot further in that not only can she serve you food, [but] just with a smile and a nod, or just the company of her presence you can feed your soul. And it's about being in love. Actually, Todd [Nance, Widespread Panic's drummer] wrote the guitar part...
R&R: Really! DS: Yeah. He has a guitar that he likes to strum and he wrote the chord progression, and we all liked it. It's a good song to do "The Swim" to.
R&R: Did he bring the music after the song had been already presented to the band? DS: No, that one came together in the usual way. We had some musical ideas, JB had some lyrical ideas, and we just hammered it out.
R&R: Harry Chapin had a really great song in the same vein. What's the name of it? It's called like "Watertown Diner" or something like that. About a sort of Alfred Prufrock type fellow, a night watchman, and he has a dalliance with the waitress at the town diner. DS: Yup, that's similar. JB's is mostly about feeding your soul just by... interacting with another person, the kind of satisfaction you can get.
# of times played: 567
First time played: 02/07/92
Frequency: 3.43 Shows
Longest drought: 12 shows (05/03/1997 > 06/27/97; 11/13/02 > 04/16/03)
Most common lead in: Disco (38 times)
Most common lead out: Space Wrangler (49 times)
Most common set position: Set 2, song 2 (39 times)
Notes: Original lyrics contained an alternate verse: "Given time, Lord I'd build her a mountain for a room. Given an hour, an hour, I'd build a rocket to the moon. Might take at least a week to find the strongest tool. Might take the rest of this lifetime to find the strongest fuel"; Appears on 'Everyday (1993)', 'Light Fuse Get Away (1998)'
Burnthday's Picks:
11/22/00 Asheville Civic Center, Asheville, NC Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4nFPgHRKUc
05/03/97 Oak Mountain Amphitheater, Pelham, AL Link: