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re: My thoughts on 5 shows this weekend...

Posted by: Chromolume 05:29 pm EDT 05/04/15
In reply to: My thoughts on 5 shows this weekend... - bicoastal 03:58 pm EDT 05/04/15
...but no staircase in "Stairway to Paradise"...

I keep seeing this complaint and it strikes me as odd. Does the "stairway" need to be a literal staircase?

The use of the word "step" in the lyric refers (consistently) to a dance step, not a step on a staircase. The pun in the lyric is the idea of building a "stairway" with "a new [dance] step every day." The intro verse starts with the premise that though some consider dancing sinful ("All you preachers / that delight in panning the dancing teachers..."), one can, in fact, use dance to "carry you through the gates of heaven, and that in fact dancing may be "the quickest way to paradise." I see no mention of "staircase" anywhere in the premise.

Yes, the film used a staircase, and yes, it's an iconic scene. But I don't think that means that's the only way to interpret the song. In fact, it's nowhere in the lyric at all.


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Previous: re: My thoughts on 5 shows this weekend... - lowwriter 05:39 pm EDT 05/04/15
Next: I wanted to see a "Paradise" - jimvar1 09:54 pm EDT 05/04/15

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