In August 1998, Saddam Hussein decided to stop cooperating with UNSCOM, a UN special comission that investigated about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. In the following months the diplomatic relations between the US and the Iraq were incredibly strained, and the UN Security Council debated over sanctions. Even a US-lead air strike in order to degrade Saddam Hussein's ability to develop and deliver weapons of mass destruction was openly discussed. On november 12th 1998 the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, gave a Press conference, and this small excerpt is relevant for the inception of 'Trans-Atlantic Drawl':
CNN (AMANPOUR): But sir, isn't it true that many of them have expressed dismay or at the very least surprise that at this very moment, when it appeared that there was the light at the end of the tunnel that you had so long asked for, at this moment, you chose to break cooperation with UNSCOM? And that's -- they can't understand, they say.
Mr. AZIZ: We don't see any light at the end of the tunnel, Christiane. With all respect to them, they haven't shown us -- nobody has shown us a light at the end of the tunnel. There is a tunnel after the tunnel. Each time we cooperate and work with Butler and his group a new tunnel is being built after the first one, and the third one after the second one. And that is the experience, the conclusion I reached and the Iraqi delegation reached on the 3rd of August in our last meeting with Butler. |
This quote apparently caught Thom's attention, and a while later this page, titled 'honey bear' appeared in radiohead.com:
![]() tariq aziz iraqs ambassador
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This page appeared in radiohead.com during the Kid A period under the title 'andrun':
![]() fucking in the toilets of the soho house. help me please i am trapped on-in tv i am trapped in the society page s of a magazine with a grin like road kill with the bloodypower of kings enough to wipe the president i sneeze and its an exocet the flames are rising higher i am tied to the stake you better start naming names do you see light at the end of the tunnel? ![]() yes i see light at the end of the tunnel jesus lord
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The same content appeared in a different design in the 'imaginery prisons' section of radiohead.com at the time Amnesiac was released in spring 2001:
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fucking in the toilets of the soho house. help me please i am trapped on-in t.v i am trapped in the society pages of a magazine with a grin like road kill with the bloodypower of kings enoughto wipe the president i sneeze and its an exocet the flames are rising higher iam tied to the stake you better start naming names do yousee light at the end of the tunnel? jesus lord amen yes i see light at the end of the tunnel jesus lord amen. ![]() |
This page was titled 'micturation of the gods':
if you wasnt just tryin to make ends meet. transantlantic drawl very fucking dull wth a grn lke rd kll wth th bldypwr of kngs i snze nd ts n xoct the flames are rising higher i am tied to the stake you better start naming names do you see light at the end of the tunnel? jesus lord amen yes i see light at the end of the tunnel jesus lord amen |
The above page seems to have been pieced together from a more complete draft, that appeared in two further, succeeding pages from the 'imaginery prisons' section of radiohead.com:
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i was born in a magazine i was tampered nipped and tucked for a magazine smiling sweetly reclining in expensive desirable furniture for you pleasure in a magazine in what the IN people are wearing now in what clever people talk about what you cannot afford skinny girl ribs removed from a magazine i dont know what it mean i think its something obscene i was gone now im back with a new book i wanna talk about before we get to the ads ![]() |
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do you see light at the end of the tunnel at the end of the tunnel? do you see light at the end of the tunnel at the end of the tunnel? i guess i should know better but it keeps my wait down i am just the gaps between the ads after all look inside nothing going on at all the life youd like to lead white meat on a stick if you wasnt just tryin to make ends meet. 1st class seat 2nd class ticket my whole life is a bloody magazine withr transantlantic drawl very fucking dull my whole life is a bloody magazine ![]() |
This page, that appeared in radiohead.com during the Kid A period under the title 'END', looks like it was edited from several different early drafts. Most of these lines can be found in the pages above:
(transatlantic drawl) i was born in a magazine i am trapped in the
society page of your magazine i dont know what it means i think its something
obscene you better start naming namesyou better start naming names you better start naming names do you see light at the end of the tunnel? you bttr start naming naaaames you better start nming names you better stttt names ![]() if you wasnt just tryin to make ends meet. transantlantic drawl very fucking dull wth a grn lke rd kll wth th bldypwr of kngs i snze nd ts n xoct the flames are rising higher i am tied to the stake you better start naming names do you see light at the end of the tunnel? jesus lord amen yes i see light at the end of the tunnel jesus lord amen ![]() |
This fourth page from the 'imaginary prisons' section features the finished lyrics:
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I was born for your magazine I am trapped in the society page of your magazine I dont know what it means. do you see light at the end of the tunnel? do you see light at the end of the tunnel? do you see light at the end of the tunnel? do you see light at the end of the tunnel? ("you better start naming names"). ![]() |
This stereo extraction from the released version reveals lyrics that are hardly audible in the full mix ("these are things that get on my nerves"/"you better start naming names"), apparently spoken by Colin. The music of the second half of the track is also here, just because it's beautiful:
'Trans-Atlantic Drawl' was released as a b-side on the Pyramid Song single on may 21st 2001. The song has never been performed live.