It has all started with this song... a soundtrack used in a beautiful Hungarian film 'On Body and Soul'. Mz Peggy did the PR for this film, and she made me fall in love with the song long before I got to see the film.
The lyrics:
Spoiler:
What He Wrote
Forgive me, Hera,
I cannot stay
He cut out my tongue,
There is nothing to save
Love me, oh lord, he threw me away,
He laughed at my sins, in his arms I must stay
He wrote, I'm broke
Please send for me
But I'm broken too,
And spoken for
Do not tempt me
Her skin is white, and I'm light as the sun,
So holy light shines, on the things you have done
So I asked him how he became this man?
How did he learn to hold fruit in his hands?
And where is the lamb, that gave you your name?
He had to leave, though I begged him to stay
Left me alone, when I needed the light
Fell to my knees, and I wept for my life
If he had have stayed, you might understand
If he had have stayed, you never would've taken my hand
He wrote,
I'm low
Please send for me
But I'm broken too,
And spoken for
Do not tempt me
And where is the lamb, that gave you your name?
He had to leave, though I begged him to stay
Begged him to stay, in my cold wooden grip
Begged him to stay, by the light of my ship
Me fighting him,
Fighting light,
Fighting dawn,
And the waves came,
And stole him,
And took him to war
He wrote,
I'm broke
Please send for me
But I'm broken too,
And spoken for
Do not tempt me
Forgive me, Hera, I cannot stay
Cut out my tongue, there is nothing to save
Love me oh lord, he threw me away
He laughed at my sins, in his arms I must stay
We write
That's alright
I miss his smell
We speak,
When spoken to
That suits us well
That suits us well
That suits me well
~ Laura Marling
Little background:
"I read some letters published in a newspaper, wartime letters, from World War II. It was between a man and a woman, a man who had gone away to fight, and it only had the woman's letters. They never found the man's letters, and it was all about how the last time that they had seen each other, she had been so upset that she was, like, rigid with anger, and I started to think about his letters."
~ Laura Marling
This song has gotten under my skin. I have played it over and over. Then I started exploring this young lady's other songs, and I'm finding her music and lyrics very intriguing. Perhaps we could discover her together?
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2017 5:27 pm
by Dee
Laura Beatrice Marling (born in 1990) is a British folk singer-songwriter. Her debut album Alas, I Cannot Swim, her second album I Speak Because I Can, and her fourth album Once I Was an Eagle were each nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2008, 2010, and 2013, respectively. She won the Brit Award for Best British Female Solo Artist at the 2011 Brit Awards, and was nominated for the same award at the 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018 Brit Awards.
Albums:
Alas, I Cannot Swim (2008)
I Speak Because I Can (2010)
A Creature I Don't Know (2011)
Once I Was an Eagle (2013)
Short Movie (2015)
Semper Femina (2017)
Song for Our Daughter (2020)
So, I've typed in Laura's name in the search box on YouTube and the first song that came up was "Soothing" from her latest album.
A rather unusual video with beautiful sensuality.
I think this song is extraordinary.
I literally crave to hear it every day.
Love the jazzy bass riffs.
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2017 6:00 pm
by Dee
A lovely duet from 2010:
Lyrics:
Spoiler:
All that I have is a river
The river is always my home
Lord, take me away
For I just cannot stay
Or I'll sink in my skin and my bones
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Please help me build a small boat
One that'll ride on the flow
Where the river runs deep
And the larger fish creep
I'm glad of what keeps me afloat
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Now deeper the water I sail
And faster the current I'm in
That each night brings the stars
And the song in my heart
Is a tune for the journeyman's tale
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Now the land that I knew is a dream
And the line on the distance grows faint
So wide is my river
The horizon a sliver
The artist has run out of paint
Where the blue of the sea meets the sky
And the big yellow sun leads me home
I'm everywhere now
The way is a vow
To the wind of each breath by and by
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Mz L, better start practising. Tune or harmony?
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2017 6:02 pm
by Dee
Another great song from her latest album, Semper Femina.
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2017 6:06 pm
by Dee
From the album 'I Speak Because I Can':
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Mon Sep 18, 2017 6:20 pm
by Dee
A very young song, she was 17 when she released this:
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Tue Sep 19, 2017 6:20 pm
by Dee
Another sparkle from Sempre Femina.
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2017 5:40 am
by Dee
She's such a trip.
Re: Laura Marling
Posted: Wed Sep 20, 2017 3:43 pm
by Dee
Ok, I must say, I'm in total awe of this woman now. How amazing is this?
Very interesting discussions on the meaning of the lyrics:
All that I have is a river
The river is always my home
Lord, take me away
For I just cannot stay
Or I'll sink in my skin and my bones
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Please help me build a small boat
One that'll ride on the flow
Where the river runs deep
And the larger fish creep
I'm glad of what keeps me afloat
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Now deeper the water I sail
And faster the current I'm in
That each night brings the stars
And the song in my heart
Is a tune for the journeyman's tale
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying
Now the land that I knew is a dream
And the line on the distance grows faint
So wide is my river
The horizon a sliver
The artist has run out of paint
Where the blue of the sea meets the sky
And the big yellow sun leads me home
I'm everywhere now
The way is a vow
To the wind of each breath by and by
The water sustains me without even trying
The water can't drown me, I'm done
With my dying