h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Can't usefully help you with the lyrics question, sorry.

But as to the smiley / fish bit.. Click on this

http://www.h2g2.com/dontpanic.cgi?name=#12.1

The rest of the info there is worth taking the time to read as well, and can be accessed anytime by clicking the "don't panic" link in the goo above.

Ossario T'an
#

I'm a bit late on this one, but i always thought lovely face was a reference to the face of the Tiffany twisted / mercedes benzed woman

Of course i have been wrong in the past...........

You aren't alone! I better say "thanks" to the original asker of the question because I was, in fact, quite utterly and completely WRONG with my original postm, and what's more would have continued being wrong had people not gently pointed it out to me. This is what I get for flapping my mouth without verifying my facts. *sigh* I wonder if I'll ever learn?

What I mean is that my album does indeed state the (now infamous) lyric as "Mercedes bends" and NOT "Mercedes-Benz" as I initially said. I still think The Eagles meant Mercedes-Benz, the manufacturer of fine automobiles which (in the USA at least) are something of a status symbol. It goes along with the theme of the song (IMO) of the female character in question being materialistic ("her mind is Tiffany twisted" I think means she's really spoiled/warped by being excessively into jewelry, Tiffany's being a large jewelry store). I guess, as others have pointed out, the lyrics had to be changed in the earlier verisons due to some kind of copyright dispute with the automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz. (I wonder if I'm going to get into trouble for using that phrase all over the place? ah crap - I better say something good about 'em so they don't sue me ... erm, I really liked the old reliable Mercedes-Benz my Dad had in the 70's ... it didn't LOOK like a status symbol I can assure you, but it sure as heck ran like the Dickens!)

- JD