whatthecello42 Posted April 11, 2012 Share Posted April 11, 2012 I just started reading Game of Thrones and I noticed his use of these two terms which also have connections to the Grateful Dead. There is a GD song called Dire Wolf, and the name of the rhythm guitarist is Bob Weir. I am probably just looking too much into this. Maybe there is a connection and maybe there isn't. Does anyone have any idea of GRRM is a fan of the GD??Here are the lyrics to Dire Wolf:In the timbers to fennario, the wolves are running round,The winter was so hard and cold, froze ten feet neath the ground.Dont murder me, I beg of you, dont murder me. please, dont murder me.I sat down to my supper, twas a bottle of red whisky,I said my prayers and went to bed, thats the last they saw of me.Dont murder me, I beg of you, dont murder me. please, dont murder me.When I awoke, the dire wolf, six hundred pounds of sin,Was grinning at my window, all I said was come on in.Dont murder me, I beg of you, dont murder me. please, dont murder me.The wolf came in, I got my cards, we sat down for a game.I cut my deck to the queen of spades, but the cards were all the same.Dont murder me, I beg of you, dont murder me. please, dont murder me.In the backwash of fennario, the black and bloody mire,The dire wolf collects his dues, while the boys sing round the fire.Dont murder me, I beg of you, dont murder me. please, dont murder me.No, no, no dont murder me. I beg of you,Dont murder me. please, dont murder me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DirePenguin Posted April 12, 2012 Share Posted April 12, 2012 is fennario a town? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chalkius Stark Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Doubtful. The term Dire Wolf is much older than the Grateful Dead. I think the same goes for Weir Wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Special Agent Punk Posted April 17, 2012 Share Posted April 17, 2012 Made that connection too. Let's all throw that track on this Friday?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Khal Pono Posted July 29, 2012 Share Posted July 29, 2012 Also he has a character named "Darkstar" which is the name of another Dead song.I;d say GRRM is almost certainly huge fan. He comes from that era and was part of the countercultural movement. Although I haven't read any of GRRM's non-ASOIAF writings, I read descriptions of them:Wildcards: Martin's contribution to this series features a superhero with armor shaped like a Volkswagen beetle. VW beetles and VW buses are the favorite vehicles of Deadheads everywhereThe Armageddon Rag: the plot and charaters are centered around the 60s music scene and the murder of a rock promoter who one managed legendary 60s rock bands Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Euron to something Posted June 16, 2013 Share Posted June 16, 2013 My first post!! Just read a mini biography on martin that mentioned someone getting him backstage passes for the Dead. Also there is a dead song called Mountains of the Moon. As if i couldn't love this series (and author) anymore!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AC Angel Posted August 8, 2013 Share Posted August 8, 2013 Doubtful. The term Dire Wolf is much older than the Grateful Dead. I think the same goes for Weir Wood.This. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowlandReed'sWorth Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 And in the acknowledgements at the end of aDWD it seems like he mentions his home as "terrapin station". (~);} the winter was so hard and cold froze ten feet neath the ground Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonBranRickon Posted August 6, 2014 Share Posted August 6, 2014 Direwolf is an actual extinct species. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadstarks Posted September 16, 2014 Share Posted September 16, 2014 Direwolf is an actual extinct species. Irrelevant. His mention of "weir"woods, dire wolves, and having a character named "Darkstar" indicate little subtle nods to the Dead. Unless it's a coincidence, which it might be. I personally hope he did it on purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taenqyrhae Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 Interesting that the dire wolf in the song is described as 600 pounds. It's bugged me that the "direwolves" in the book are described as pony-sized when they were no bigger than modern gray wolves (big dog sized, no more than 200 pounds). I made a post suggesting some other extinct animals that could fit the role. 600 pounds IS pony sized (usually 500-800 pounds). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadstarks Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 Interesting that the dire wolf in the song is described as 600 pounds. It's bugged me that the "direwolves" in the book are described as pony-sized when they were no bigger than modern gray wolves (big dog sized, no more than 200 pounds). I made a post suggesting some other extinct animals that could fit the role. 600 pounds IS pony sized (usually 500-800 pounds). I think that's just Martin taking artistic liberties. I'm sure he knows that dire wolves were hardly any larger than gray wolves, but in a fantasy story, a pony-sized wolf with magical powers is a lot cooler. Just my $.02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faceless Ninja Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Well GRRM basically confirmed it in an interview. He is (or was) a Grateful Dead fan. I also found another nod to the GD yesterday. AFFC Spoiler: When Sam & Gilly sail away from the wall with Maester Aemon (and that punk singer), and when Maester Aemon finally reveals to a clueless Sam why Gilly is so disconsolate, he grows exasperated with Sam's complete obliviousness/naivite and says: "You have two good eyes, but you still don't see" or something very close to that. This is a near direct quote from the song Casey Jones. That plus the Dire Wolves, Weirwoods, Darkstar, Mountains of the Moon are all nod to the GD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirt Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 Well GRRM basically confirmed it in an interview. He is (or was) a Grateful Dead fan. I also found another nod to the GD yesterday. (...) Well, it's not quite literary within the scope of the 1st book, is it? Take a bit of a research about the spoiler tag. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dopplerdog Posted December 3, 2014 Share Posted December 3, 2014 Well, Soft Cell had a song called "Sex Dwarf" in 1981, so GRRM must therefore also be giving a nod to Soft Cell. Seriously, you'll find all sorts of connections in books as long as the ASOIAF series. Unless they're confirmed by the author, they're in the eye of the beholder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love Is A Sweet Poison Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 GRRM is a known dead head. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimiya Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 I see what you did there...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Love Is A Sweet Poison Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kilted yaksmen Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 Well, Soft Cell had a song called "Sex Dwarf" in 1981, so GRRM must therefore also be giving a nod to Soft Cell. Seriously, you'll find all sorts of connections in books as long as the ASOIAF series. Unless they're confirmed by the author, they're in the eye of the beholder.:seems legit: But in the Soft Cell song you are referring to, a "sex dwarf" is a reference to a actual prostitute of short stature, whereas Tyrion would have sex with prostitutes, none of which were dwarfs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.