Was just listening to the radio on my way out for lunch and a song got my attention. The singer was lamenting about her lover who is always absent. The laid back and mellow mood of the song was so 'alien', standing out like a sore thumb amongst the rock & roll, emo music that saturates the airwaves that it would seem inappropriate at all.
Came home googling for 'Bitterheart' and surprise, surprise - she's one of our own! OMG! At first I thought someone at the radio station had a nostalgic moment and put on a 60s-styled song. I thought it was a master touch as it certainly got me listening, as well as curious. I've always liked the slow music of the olden days for the relaxing mood that they bring, especially from the somewhat muffled speakers of old radio.
Zee Avi - Bitterheart
Showing posts with label great music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label great music. Show all posts
8 November 2009
2 September 2009
Whoever finds this
Whoever Finds This, I Love You!
Mac Davis, 1970
On a quiet street in the city a little old man walks along.
Shuffling through the Autumn afternoon.
And the Autumn leaves reminded him another summer's come and gone.
He had a long, lonely night ahead waitin' for June.
Then among the leaves near an orphan's home a piece of paper caught his eye,
And he stooped to pick it up with trembling hands.
And as he read the childish writing, the old man began to cry,
'Cause the words burned inside him like a flame.
CHORUS
"Whoever finds this, I love you!"
"Whoever finds this, I need you!"
"I ain't even got no one to talk to!"
"So, Whoever finds this, I love you!"
The old man's eyes searched the orphan's home,
And came to rest upon a child with her nose pressed up against the window pane.
And the old man knew he'd found a friend, at last,
So he waved at her and smiled.
And they both knew they'd spend the winter laughing at the rain.
And they did spend the summer laughing at the rain, talking through the fence, exchanging little gifts they'd made for each other. The old man would carve toys for the little girl, and she would draw pictures for him of beautiful ladies surrounded by green trees and sunshine, and they laughed alot. But then on the first day of June, the little girl ran to the fence to show the man a picture she had drawn, BUT HE WASN'T THERE! And somehow, the little girl knew he wasn't coming back. So she went back to her little room, took out a crayola and a piece of paper, and wrote:
"Whoever finds this, I love you!"
"Whoever finds this, I need you!"
"I don't even have no one to talk to."
"So, whoever finds this, I love you!"
---
Another of my favourite songs, the lyrics are simply poignant yet beautiful. The verses described it all like a story book.
Whilst the original was by Mac Davis, I actually prefer Chyi's version because IMO it sounded better sang with a feminine voice. Perhaps it's also because it's the first version I have ever heard until I found out about Mac Davis.
Mac Davis, 1970
On a quiet street in the city a little old man walks along.
Shuffling through the Autumn afternoon.
And the Autumn leaves reminded him another summer's come and gone.
He had a long, lonely night ahead waitin' for June.
Then among the leaves near an orphan's home a piece of paper caught his eye,
And he stooped to pick it up with trembling hands.
And as he read the childish writing, the old man began to cry,
'Cause the words burned inside him like a flame.
CHORUS
"Whoever finds this, I love you!"
"Whoever finds this, I need you!"
"I ain't even got no one to talk to!"
"So, Whoever finds this, I love you!"
The old man's eyes searched the orphan's home,
And came to rest upon a child with her nose pressed up against the window pane.
And the old man knew he'd found a friend, at last,
So he waved at her and smiled.
And they both knew they'd spend the winter laughing at the rain.
And they did spend the summer laughing at the rain, talking through the fence, exchanging little gifts they'd made for each other. The old man would carve toys for the little girl, and she would draw pictures for him of beautiful ladies surrounded by green trees and sunshine, and they laughed alot. But then on the first day of June, the little girl ran to the fence to show the man a picture she had drawn, BUT HE WASN'T THERE! And somehow, the little girl knew he wasn't coming back. So she went back to her little room, took out a crayola and a piece of paper, and wrote:
"Whoever finds this, I love you!"
"Whoever finds this, I need you!"
"I don't even have no one to talk to."
"So, whoever finds this, I love you!"
---
Another of my favourite songs, the lyrics are simply poignant yet beautiful. The verses described it all like a story book.
Whilst the original was by Mac Davis, I actually prefer Chyi's version because IMO it sounded better sang with a feminine voice. Perhaps it's also because it's the first version I have ever heard until I found out about Mac Davis.
23 August 2009
Angel
ANGEL
Sarah McLachlan
"Surfacing", 1997
Spend all your time waiting
For that second chance
For a break that would make it okay
There�s always one reason
To feel not good enough
And it�s hard at the end of the day
I need some distraction
Oh beautiful release
Memory seeps from my veins
Let me be empty
And weightless and maybe
I�'ll find some peace tonight
***In the arms of an/the angel
Fly away from here
From this dark cold hotel room
And the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage
Of your silent reverie
You�re in the arms of the angel
May you find some comfort there
So tired of the straight line
And everywhere you turn
There�s vultures and thieves at your back
And the storm keeps on twisting
You keep on building the lie
That you make up for all that you lack
It don�t make no difference
Escaping one last time
It�s easier to believe in this sweet madness oh
This glorious sadness that brings me to my knees
***
I simply adore this song.
I first heard of Ms McLachlan when we first had Channel [V] - anybody remember Nonie Tao, Nadya Hutagalung, Sonia Couling? - through excess broadcast signal from neighbouring Brunei, her MV of Sweet Surrender. The first thing that came to mind was how utterly enchanting that voice is - soft yet powerful, firm yet poignant. She could sound like pleading yet never to the point of whining, the voice so clear, forcing you to listen to the lyrics.
It wasn't until Angel that I considered her to be one of the best female singers out there, the song made famous by being the soundtrack to the movie City of Angels starring Meg Ryan and Nicholas Cage. By then it comfortably dethroned Vanessa William's Colours of the Wind as my all time favourite song.
I never watched the movie though - thought it was all too soppy for my tastes but I'll probably do so the next time I could after learning to appreciate the deeper meanings to movies rather than just explosions and the US saves the world elements to most screenings nowadays.
The meaning to the song differs from person to another though. Whilst the mainstream idea is about balm in times of trouble or comfort in the passing of a loved one, one interpretation was about heroin.
Ms McLachlan wrote this song as a tribute to her friend, the drummer of Smashing Pumpkins who died from heroin overdose. The lyrics could be an allusion to the 'weightlessness' as carried by angels and the feeling of release from the sufferings of the day. Ms McLachlan explained, "there's nothing constant when you are on the road; everything becomes the same".
I'm not sure what that meant, though it didn't quite endorse the idea that she sang about heroin as the angel of comfort. Yet it didn't stop people from using it as the theme song during tragedies - New York 9/11, Columbine High School Massacre - or funerals.
As for me, I'm don't have to be listening to the song for comfort but it does actually afford a moment or so of solace, like the sound of crushing waves on a beachside after a long day or a kitten's mew when you were bored out of your skull. Time would often stood still when I have it on, as if transported to an auditorium where the only thing visible were Ms McLachlan and a microphone stand, illuminated by a spotlight shrouded by total darkness.
Unbelievable.
Sarah McLachlan
"Surfacing", 1997
Spend all your time waiting
For that second chance
For a break that would make it okay
There�s always one reason
To feel not good enough
And it�s hard at the end of the day
I need some distraction
Oh beautiful release
Memory seeps from my veins
Let me be empty
And weightless and maybe
I�'ll find some peace tonight
***In the arms of an/the angel
Fly away from here
From this dark cold hotel room
And the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage
Of your silent reverie
You�re in the arms of the angel
May you find some comfort there
So tired of the straight line
And everywhere you turn
There�s vultures and thieves at your back
And the storm keeps on twisting
You keep on building the lie
That you make up for all that you lack
It don�t make no difference
Escaping one last time
It�s easier to believe in this sweet madness oh
This glorious sadness that brings me to my knees
***
I simply adore this song.
I first heard of Ms McLachlan when we first had Channel [V] - anybody remember Nonie Tao, Nadya Hutagalung, Sonia Couling? - through excess broadcast signal from neighbouring Brunei, her MV of Sweet Surrender. The first thing that came to mind was how utterly enchanting that voice is - soft yet powerful, firm yet poignant. She could sound like pleading yet never to the point of whining, the voice so clear, forcing you to listen to the lyrics.
It wasn't until Angel that I considered her to be one of the best female singers out there, the song made famous by being the soundtrack to the movie City of Angels starring Meg Ryan and Nicholas Cage. By then it comfortably dethroned Vanessa William's Colours of the Wind as my all time favourite song.
I never watched the movie though - thought it was all too soppy for my tastes but I'll probably do so the next time I could after learning to appreciate the deeper meanings to movies rather than just explosions and the US saves the world elements to most screenings nowadays.
The meaning to the song differs from person to another though. Whilst the mainstream idea is about balm in times of trouble or comfort in the passing of a loved one, one interpretation was about heroin.
Ms McLachlan wrote this song as a tribute to her friend, the drummer of Smashing Pumpkins who died from heroin overdose. The lyrics could be an allusion to the 'weightlessness' as carried by angels and the feeling of release from the sufferings of the day. Ms McLachlan explained, "there's nothing constant when you are on the road; everything becomes the same".
I'm not sure what that meant, though it didn't quite endorse the idea that she sang about heroin as the angel of comfort. Yet it didn't stop people from using it as the theme song during tragedies - New York 9/11, Columbine High School Massacre - or funerals.
As for me, I'm don't have to be listening to the song for comfort but it does actually afford a moment or so of solace, like the sound of crushing waves on a beachside after a long day or a kitten's mew when you were bored out of your skull. Time would often stood still when I have it on, as if transported to an auditorium where the only thing visible were Ms McLachlan and a microphone stand, illuminated by a spotlight shrouded by total darkness.
Unbelievable.
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