Song Meaning
The lyrics paint a surreal, almost hallucinatory portrait of a figure arriving with an enigmatic aura. This "Old Flattop" is presented through a series of bizarre, disconnected images – "joo-joo Eyeball," "toe-jam football," "monkey finger" – that defy easy categorization. He moves "grooving up slowly," suggesting a deliberate, unhurried presence that commands attention, and his actions are characterized by a sense of absolute freedom: "He just do what He please."
The central tension arises from the contradictory nature of this figure and the command to unite. He's described with both spiritual and unsettling physical attributes, like being a "One Holy Roller" with "hair down to His Knee" and feet "Below His Knee," yet also possessing a "disease" that can be felt when held. This juxtaposition creates an unsettling allure, making the directive "Come Together Right Now / Over Me" feel less like an invitation and more like an inexorable pull.
The most striking craft element is the deliberate absurdity of the descriptions, which forces the listener to engage with the *feeling* rather than a literal understanding. Phrases like "He shoot coca-cola" or the mathematical anomaly "One and one and one is three" disrupt conventional logic. This linguistic playfulness, combined with the repeated, almost hypnotic command, suggests a call to surrender to a force that operates outside normal rules, a force that is "so hard to see" yet demands unity.
Ultimately, the lyrics' effectiveness lies in their ability to evoke a potent, dreamlike atmosphere. By avoiding clear explanations and instead relying on a cascade of strange, vivid imagery and a persistent, rhythmic plea, the song creates a sense of communal, almost ritualistic surrender. The listener is drawn into a shared experience of the inexplicable, compelled to "Come Together" under the spell of this peculiar, compelling entity.