What It Is by Mark Knopfler Lyrics Meaning – Unraveling the Tapestry of Scottish Reverie

You can view the lyrics, alternate interprations and sheet music for Mark Knopfler's What It Is at Lyrics.org.

Lyrics

The drinking dens are spilling out
There’s staggering in the square
There’s lads and lasses falling about
And a crackling in the air
Down around the dungeon doors
The shelters and the queues
Everybody’s looking for
Somebody’s arms to fall into
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now

There’s frost on the graves and the monuments
But the taverns are warm in town
People curse the government
And shovel hot food down
The lights are out in city hall
The castle and the keep
The moon shines down upon it all
The legless and asleep

And it’s cold on the tollgate
With the wagons creeping through
Cold on the tollgate
God knows what I could do with you
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now

The garrison sleeps in the citadel
With the ghosts and the ancient stones
High up on the parapet
A Scottish piper stands alone
And high on the wind
The highland drums begin to roll
And something from the past just comes
And stares into my soul

And it’s cold on the tollgate
With the Caledonian blues
Cold on the tollgate
God knows what I could do with you
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now
What it is
It’s what it is now

There’s a chink of light, there’s a burning wick
There’s a lantern in the tower
Wee willie winkie with a candlestick
Still writing songs in the wee wee hours
On Charlotte Street
I take A walking stick from my hotel
The ghost of Dirty Dick
Is still in search of little nell
And it’s what it is
It’s what it is now
Oh, it’s what it is
What it is now

Mark Knopfler, renowned for his storytelling prowess and the evocative stringing of guitar chords, often brings much more to the table than mere melody. His song ‘What It Is’ is a mystic tapestry carefully woven with threads of Scottish imagery, history, and a visceral sense of place and time. The lyrics not only paint a vivid picture of a bustling Scottish scene but whisper the deeper existential truths of life’s ephemerality.

Beyond the seemingly simple refrain ‘it’s what it is,’ the song is rich with motifs of warmth and cold, life’s revelries and its stark realities, ultimately encapsulating an entire spectrum of human emotion within a few stanzas. Let’s pull back the layers wrapped within the stanzas and unearth the profound essence of this hauntingly beautiful ballad.

A Night on the Scottish Town: Vivid Imagery and Raucous Revelry

Knopfler kicks off the journey through ‘What It Is’ by setting a scene so tangible, one can almost feel the crisp Scottish air. The ‘drinking dens spilling out’ and ‘staggering in the square’ illustrate a robust nightlife powered by human connection and the universal pursuit of joy. This communal canvas is set against a backdrop of historical depth – the ‘dungeon doors’ and ‘queues’ conjuring images of Edinburgh’s famous underground city and the echoes of its lived past.

The struggle between warmth and chill, light and dark, propels the narrative further. In one stanza, Knopfler marks the warmth found within the taverns as a sanctuary against life’s harsh climes, while the ‘frost on the graves’ narrates the undeniable presence of cold realities waiting just outside. This juxtaposition subtly nestles the listener within the human condition that oscillates between seeking comfort and facing life’s starker truths.

The Anthem of the Disenchanted: Prostests and Piper’s Calls

In a defiant whisper against power, ‘What It Is’ refers to people who ‘curse the government,’ a motif that surfaces periodically in folk traditions, where the everyday man contends with the rulings of the distant and often disinterested governing elite. The imagery of the ‘legless and asleep’ starkly contrasts this defiance with the inevitable toll such struggles take on the people.

However, Knopfler doesn’t let the listener languish in disheartenment. Instead, he revives the spirit with ‘the highland drums’ and a ‘Scottish piper’ who’s ‘high on the wind,’ summoning an aural connection to a past littered with battles, glory, and the indomitable Scottish spirit. It serves as a reminder of resilience amid adversity, a pulse of nationalist pride perennially beating in the heart of Scotland.

The Soul’s Mirror: Unveiling the Song’s Hidden Meaning

‘And something from the past just comes / And stares into my soul’ – here lies the crux of ‘What It Is.’ These lines suggest an introspective moment, where history and identity collide within the protagonist, embodying a universal moment where one confronts their place in the continuum of time and legacy.

The repetition of ‘it’s what it is’ resonates as an existential acknowledgment of accepting circumstances as they come – embracing the present moment without resentment or regret. Knopfler’s narrative genius lies in crafting a tale that is both personally reflective and universally relatable, bridging the particularities of Scottish heritage with the underlying human quest for meaning.

The Tollgate of Life: Musings on Love and Hardship

A standout moment in the lyrics comes with the recurring imagery of a ‘cold on the tollgate,’ possibly a symbol for life’s many barriers and checkpoints, where progress often feels frozen, whether it’s in reference to relationships – ‘God knows what I could do with you’ – or life’s broader challenges.

Knopfler situates the tollgate as both a physical and emotional juncture, alluding to the cost of passage through the trials of life. Love’s frustrations resonate alongside the biting ‘Caledonian blues,’ further embedding ‘What It Is’ with the common threads of the human tapestry, wound tightly with longing and resilience.

Of Candlesticks and Walking Sticks: Memorable Lines and Haunting Symbols

‘Wee willie winkie with a candlestick / Still writing songs in the wee wee hours’ – these lines are imbued with both charm and wistfulness. By invoking the Scottish nursery rhyme character, Knopfler not only pays homage to his roots but also acknowledges the timeless act of creation amidst solitude.

The ‘walking stick from my hotel’ and the reference to ‘Dirty Dick’ lend a Dickensian color to the song, weaving in the literary and the lyrical with a ghostly aura. This historical tapestry blends the whimsical with the profound, leaving ‘What It Is’ as a spectral ballad transcending time, yet remaining ineffably rooted in the folklore and history that courses through Scotland’s veins.