Peter Gabriel, “Mercy Street”

Late at night, when almost everyone is asleep and my mind wanders over the width and breadth of my life, those thousand sordid images, I find myself drawn to certain songs. It’s an instinct that I’ve had since I was very little, and I’m sure my father, and the music he lulled me to sleep with, has everything to do with it. This song has ever been one of the late-night songs. I first heard it when I was about ten. My uncle Troy had the “Sixteen Golden Treats” disc, and he would let me borrow it from time to time. I remember staying up in the small hours listening to it over and over. Over the years, I’ve really come to admire Peter Gabriel’s originality. His fierce, and often impossible, integrity as an artist. I don’t really intend to go too deeply into it, as I’m really only here to share this brief moment with you. (Never fear, though: Peter will certainly be along soon enough in the “Songs” series.) Continue reading