The Duke of Prunes

Song Meaning

This track opens with a surreal, almost dreamlike scene: a "moonbeam through the prune in June." It immediately establishes a quirky, intimate atmosphere, focusing on unexpected physical details like "lovely beans" and a playful, aggressive gesture of biting a neck. The narrator declares their affection as "real and very new," setting a tone of fresh, slightly bizarre infatuation. The core of the song seems to hinge on the nature of this burgeoning love, contrasted with the peculiar imagery of prunes. The repetition of the first verse in the second, swapping "cheese" for "love," highlights this connection. The narrator is trying to articulate a profound, novel feeling using the most unconventional metaphors available, suggesting a love that is both deeply felt and utterly unique, perhaps even strange. The chorus introduces a strange, almost philosophical contemplation of the prune itself. It's presented as something that "knows no cheese" and has a unique physical presence, "taller or softer than any tree or bush." This abstract description of a prune feels like an attempt to define the undefinable – the narrator's new love – by comparing it to something familiar yet oddly specific and slightly absurd. Ultimately, the lyrics work by embracing their own absurdity to convey genuine emotion. The narrator offers a "love that is strong, a prune that is true," a declaration that lands because of its sheer, unadulterated oddness. It's this commitment to a peculiar, singular vision that makes the expression of new love feel so potent and memorable, suggesting that the most authentic feelings can sometimes be the strangest.