Album: Arc (2013)
Charted: 48
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Songfacts®:

  • The second single from British Indie band Everything Everything' s second album, Arc, is an electronic R&B groover. Its title is a term of endearment used towards The Lone Ranger by his Native American sidekick, Tonto. Frontman Jonathan Higgs revealed to Q magazine the song' s lyrics equate The Lone Ranger and Tonto' s relationship to that of domestic abuse.
  • The phrase 'Kemo Sabe,' meaning 'faithful friend' was presented during the original The Lone Ranger radio series as being from a genuine North American language. However, according to Brewer' s Dictionary of Modern Phrase and Fable, it was the creation of the Lone Ranger' s inventor, WXYZ radio station owner George W. Trendle. The term' s use subsequently became so widespread it was entered into Webster' s New Millennium Dictionary in 2002.
  • Higgs explained the song's meaning to The Line Of Best Fit: "It's about turbulent relationships and feeling alone even if you are with somebody. It's playing off the Lone Ranger and his relationship with Tonto. The fact that he's the Lone Ranger despite - well, he's always been Tonto. I always thought that was funny and a bit weird. And I liked the language: 'Yippeekayay' and 'Hiyo Silver' and 'Kemosabe'."

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