relationship, but is willing to "go with the flow," epitomizing the spirit of the seventies, where individuals were encouraged to see the process of the journey, (especially a trip into the realm of love) as an end in itself, and more important than actually arriving at a planned destination.
Take It Easy suggests that the writer's follies will be revealed if he takes on another relationship based on previous experiences. The writer suggests that he is relaxed about a new relationship, but his tone sounds ironic. In reality, he needs to know if this new opportunity will be his saving grace. The road evokes a physical response in Don Henley's memory as it recalls bad relationships in his past. He is trying to loosen the grip of past memories in the hope of finding a relationship that will free him from past failures. Both Elaine Paige and Barbara Streisand, the vocalists who sang Memory, were able to capture the plaintive lament of the piece which was intended by the writers. The lyrics suggest a sense of inevitability that morning threatens to arrive and swallow up the good memories of the speaker, which are only dimmed at night. The guttering of the street lamps one by one symbolizes the dying of the character's hopes for the future. The road which the lamps illuminate is a powerful metaphor for the journey of the character's life from fame and glory to ignominy and poverty.
Memory's lyrics suggest that the events and memories of the past will fade, though the speaker fights to try to force the memory to live again. The speaker wants to be strong as she puts into perspective her happy days by feebly anticipating the experience of a new day which may be free from the touch of her past memories. One does not hear a sound from the pavement at midnight because other pedestrians have ceased their journeys and gone home to peace and stillness. The silence and loneliness of the night evokes the image that the moon ha...