Windmills

Album: Dulcinea (1994)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Toad The Wet Sprocket's fourth album, Dulcinea, takes its name from the unseen damsel in distress who inspires courage in Don Quixote, the title character of Miguel Cervantes' 17th-century epic novel, who is beset by delusions of grandeur after reading one too many chivalric romances. Quixote is rather misguided in his heroics, as his first adventure finds him attacking windmills that he mistakes for giants.

    Toad drummer Randy Guss was reading the novel while they were making the album, which inspired lead singer/songwriter Glen Phillips to pick up a CliffsNotes version and write the album cut "Windmills."

    "That song I always felt was a little bit amorphous," he told Songfacts in 2022. "It deals more with an emotional and imagery set as opposed to a strict narrative, meaning something happened or didn't happen. It's that balance between dreaming and showing up, and living in an invented world and trying to figure out what reality is."
  • The album, which spawned the hit singles "Fall Down" and "Something's Always Wrong," sold one million copies in the US. It was the band's second album to earn Platinum status, following its breakthrough predecessor, Fear.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino Edition

Songs in Famous Movie Scenes: Tarantino EditionMusic Quiz

Whether he's splitting ears or burning Nazis, Quentin Tarantino uses memorable music in his films. See if you can match the song to the scene.

Daniel Lanois

Daniel LanoisSongwriter Interviews

Daniel Lanois on his album Heavy Sun, and the inside stories of songs he produced for U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan.

Charlotte Caffey of The Go-Go's

Charlotte Caffey of The Go-Go'sSongwriter Interviews

Charlotte was established in the LA punk scene when a freaky girl named Belinda approached her wearing a garbage bag.

Ron and Russell Mael of Sparks

Ron and Russell Mael of SparksSongwriter Interviews

The men of Sparks on their album Hippopotamus, and how Morrissey handled it when they suggested he lighten up.

dUg Pinnick of King's X

dUg Pinnick of King's XSongwriter Interviews

dUg dIgs into his King's X metal classics and his many side projects, including the one with Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam.

Gary Lewis

Gary LewisSongwriter Interviews

Gary Lewis and the Playboys had seven Top 10 hits despite competition from The Beatles. Gary talks about the hits, his famous father, and getting drafted.