Brian Wilson’s fingerprints are all over Ben Shive’s The Cymbal Crashing Clouds and perhaps nowhere are they more apparent than in “Sorry But I’m Yours.” Here’s an excerpt from the Cymbal Crashing Clouds companion book (which is amazingly awesome) in which Ben talks a little about the song:
My poor, timid voice wants only to live a quiet life, tending little gardens of conversation. But instead he is made something of a sideshow, rudely shoved in front of microphones and made to sing my songs. But imagine my frustration. I work hard writing these things. Often they take years. Then I open my mouth and I’m something like the inverse of the singing frog in the cartoon. You see a man, but all you hear is “croak, craok.” I thought it was time we got some counseling. And I decided he should go first. So I wrote him a song of apology to sing to me from stage, and it has been surprisingly therapeutic for both of us. The phrase “I’m sorry, but I’m yours” could be taken to mean “I know I’m a hopless case, but at least I’m loyal,” or it could mean “I hate to break it to you, but the fact is that you are stuck with me.” Whichever you prefer.
“Sorry But I’m Yours” Ben Shive The Cymbal Crashing Clouds