Elvis attributes the idea for this song to Paul, which just goes to show that McCartney's shadows house a wealth of material that sees light only infrequently, and are usually best brought out by Costello. One of these days maybe I'll get my wish and this pair will write and record an entire album together, but I'm not going to hold my breath. The piece needs only vocals and piano, but for the album received additional instrumentation. Here we are given another look at a desperate, helpless character who is more of an everyman than we'd like to admit. An example of male impotence, he is a metaphor for the greater impotence of the individual in its search to regain the purity of childhood.
Futility abounds, whether at work or in the wilderness, but most especially alone at home.
Instead of easing his troubles our poor victim only increases his burden, while the narrator cannot even voice his whole opinion in the face of society's persecution of those who try to get to the truth. Here it is more obvious, but not as powerful as some other examples on the album. Still, failure and disgust come through with every breath, as Costello practically stutters with emotion. This time the focus is not as obviously placed on societal ills, but one person's weakness and failure to grasp the golden ring as it drifts by. This makes it a kind of case study representative of the greater populace, most of whom are the underachievers, not the go-getters.