Cold Water

Tom Waits' song "Cold Water" paints a vivid picture of life on the fringes of society. The recurring motif of waking up with cold water symbolizes the harsh and unrelenting reality faced by those living in poverty and homelessness. The cold water serves as a metaphor for the daily struggles and discomforts that define their existence. This imagery sets the tone for the rest of the song, which delves into various aspects of a life marked by hardship and survival.

The lyrics describe encounters with unfriendly police, a lack of money, and the company of an old dog, which seems to be one of the few sources of comfort. Waits also touches on the broader social issues, such as the plight of Vietnam veterans and pregnant women begging on the freeway. These lines highlight the systemic neglect and societal indifference towards the most vulnerable. The mention of reading the Bible by a 40-watt bulb and sleeping with snakes and bugs further emphasizes the dire conditions and the search for some semblance of solace or meaning in a harsh world.

The song also explores themes of transience and the search for freedom. The narrator's experiences of sleeping in a graveyard and a cedar grove, and the idea of being born to ramble and rove, reflect a life of constant movement and instability. The reference to men searching for the Holy Grail juxtaposed with the narrator's simpler pleasure of riding the rail suggests a rejection of grandiose quests in favor of finding small joys in a difficult life. The final image of watching TV through a furniture store window underscores the sense of exclusion and longing for a better life that remains just out of reach.