"Song to the Siren" | |
---|---|
Song by Tim Buckley | |
from the album Starsailor | |
Released | November 1970 |
Recorded | 1969 |
Genre | Folk [1] |
Length | 3:28 |
Label | Straight |
Composer(s) | Tim Buckley |
Lyricist(s) | Larry Beckett |
Producer(s) | Tim Buckley |
Audio samples | |
from Starsailor | |
"Song to the Siren" is a song written by Tim Buckley and Larry Beckett, [2] first released by Buckley on his 1970 album Starsailor . It was also later released on Morning Glory:The Tim Buckley Anthology ,the album featuring a performance of the song taken from the final episode of The Monkees .
Pat Boone was the first to release a recording of the song when it was featured on his 1969 album Departure,predating Buckley's album. The song has become perhaps Buckley's most famous due to a number of artists covering the song after his death in 1975,most notably This Mortal Coil in 1983.
"Song to the Siren" was written in 1967,but Buckley was dissatisfied with early attempts at recording it. It would finally appear on his album Starsailor three years later. [3] In 1968,Buckley first performed the song solo in its original folk song style as a guest star on the series finale of The Monkees . This stands in contrast to the lusher,reverb-filled version present on the Starsailor album. The Monkees television spot features the song in the key of E major,while the album version is played in B♭ major. The album version also features heavy reverb on the electric guitar and high-pitched background vocals,while on the earlier version Buckley's voice is accompanied only by his twelve-string acoustic guitar. The 1968 performance also features different lyrics,with the line "I am puzzled as the oyster" in the final verse being changed to "I'm as puzzled as the newborn child" in the album version. This was reportedly because when Buckley played the song to Judy Henske,wife of producer Jerry Yester,she responded to the line with laughter. [4] [5]
Buckley and Beckett regarded this song as their greatest collaboration,with Beckett later stating "It's a perfect match of melody and lyrics. There was some kind of uncanny connection between us." [3]
The song's reference to the sirens tempting sailors at sea stems from Greek mythology. Its lyrical style is an example of Larry Beckett's literary inspirations,and stands in direct contrast to Buckley's own more personal writing style. [6]
Beckett wrote the lyrics to "Song to the Siren" as part of his ongoing collaboration and friendship with Buckley throughout their high school years. Beckett has been working alongside the English musician,vocalist,and songwriter Stuart Anthony in a number of guises. The collaboration with Anthony began with the Lancaster-based band The Long Lost Band in 2014 when Beckett began contributing lyrics to their work. [7] "Song to the Siren" formed part of their collaboration when Beckett visited the UK for two tour dates in 2015 –Liverpool and Lancaster. [7] The live version of the song featured a spoken word part by Beckett explaining the origin of the lyrics,which was previously included in documentary footage with the author. Subsequently,a studio version of the song was recorded in 2016 to reflect the live rendition,making this recording somewhat special as (amongst the raft of cover versions) this is the first time the lyricist has appeared on the track. The Larry Beckett and The Long Lost Band version was released online on 21 October 2016. [8] [9] The song was also performed live by Stuart Anthony on the boat Odysseia,a replica Ancient Greek ship,setting sail from Lefkada. This rendition denotes a spiritual "homecoming" for the song;the surroundings being thought to be Homer's Ithaca.
"Song to the Siren" | |
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Single by This Mortal Coil | |
from the album It'll End in Tears | |
Released | September 1983 |
Genre | Dream pop [10] |
Length | 3:30 |
Label | 4AD |
Songwriter(s) |
This Mortal Coil recorded a version of "Song to the Siren" that was released as a single in September 1983. It entered the UK Independent Singles Chart at No. 31 on 24 September, [11] and reached No. 3 on 5 November. [12] It also reached the main UK Singles Chart,where it peaked at No. 66 on 22 October. [13] Eventually,the single appeared for 101 weeks on the UK Indie Charts,a run that ranked fourth in the 1980s after three classic long-selling records:"Bela Lugosi's Dead" by Bauhaus (131 weeks),"Blue Monday" by New Order (186 weeks) and "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division (195 weeks). [14] "Song to the Siren" was included on the group's 1984 album It'll End in Tears which was released a year after the single.
This Mortal Coil was a loose collective of musicians under the leadership of producer Ivo Watts-Russell,most of whom had recorded for his 4AD label. Singer Elizabeth Fraser and guitarist Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins,who were at the time signed to 4AD,performed on the This Mortal Coil version of "Song to the Siren". Fraser also recorded a duet with Tim's son,Jeff Buckley. [15] [16]
Following the release of the single by This Mortal Coil,Buckley's work experienced a reappraisal. [17] This revival of interest in the artist would be one of the greatest factors in the increase of his posthumous sales,along with Jeff Buckley's own success. [17]
Early EDM duo Messiah sampled the cover in their 1992 hit "Temple of Dreams".[ citation needed ]
This Mortal Coil's version is featured prominently in David Lynch's 1997 film Lost Highway . Lynch had originally intended to use the cover in his 1986 film Blue Velvet ,but the rights proved prohibitively expensive,so instead he wrote the song "Mysteries of Love" with composer Angelo Badalamenti. [18]
In 2009,the This Mortal Coil version of the song was featured in the supernatural fantasy film The Lovely Bones ,to critical acclaim. [19] [20]
In 2012 Dawn French selected this song on Desert Island Discs as "the song that made me fall in love again". [21] In 2021,the song featured on an episode of Soul Music,a music documentary series on BBC Radio 4. [22]
Various trance cover versions exist. The track "Sunrise (Here I Am)" by Ratty covered the song in 2000,as well as Vengeance featuring Clare Pearce in 2001. Lost Witness' "Did I Dream (Song to the Siren)" featuring Tracey Carmen also covered the song.
A cover of the song by Susheela Raman features on her 2001 Mercury award nominated debut album Salt Rain .
Half Man Half Biscuit performed it live on the John Peel show.
Robert Plant recorded the song on his 2002 album Dreamland .
The Czars recorded the song on their 2006 album,Sorry I Made You Cry.
English tenor Alfie Boe also covered the song alongside Robert Plant on the album Alfie in 2011.
John Frusciante also covered the song in 2009, [23] on his album The Empyrean .
Sinéad O'Connor covered the song in 2010. [24]
Brendan Perry also covered the song in 2012,performing the song live on KEXP-FM.
Bryan Ferry covered the song for his 2010 album Olympia .
English rock band Wolf Alice also recorded a version in 2017.
The 2021 director's cut Zack Snyder's Justice League includes a recording of "Song to the Siren" by British singer-songwriter Rose Betts. [25]
Third Eye Blind released a cover of the song on their 2018 EP Thanks for Everything .
George Michael performed the song during his 25 Live and Symphonica tours,and released a cover version of the song on the "White Light" single on August 11,2012.
Garbage released their own cover of the song on the Lie to Me EP (2024).
Dream pop is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals,dense productions,and effects such as reverb,echo,tremolo,and chorus. It often overlaps with the related genre of shoegaze,and the two genre terms have at times been used interchangeably.
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie and Will Heggie (bass),adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrumentalist Simon Raymonde in 1983. The group earned critical praise for their ethereal,effects-laden sound and the soprano vocals of Fraser,whose lyrics often eschew any recognisable language. Fraser's vocals included unknown words she found in foreign language books,adding to the band's dreamy ambience. They pioneered the 1980s alternative subgenre of dream pop and helped define what would become shoegaze.
Timothy Charles Buckley III was an American musician. He began his career based in folk rock,but subsequently experimented with genres such as psychedelia,jazz,the avant-garde,and funk paired with his unique five-octave vocal range. His commercial peak came with the 1969 album Happy Sad,reaching No. 81 on the charts,while his experimental 1970 album Starsailor went on to become a cult favorite. The latter contained his best known song,"Song to the Siren." Buckley died at the age of 28 from a heroin and morphine overdose,leaving behind sons Taylor and Jeff.
Elizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer. She was the vocalist for the band Cocteau Twins who achieved success in the UK primarily during the fifteen years from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. Their studio albums Victorialand (1986) and Heaven or Las Vegas (1990) both reached the top ten of the UK Album Charts,as well as other albums including Blue Bell Knoll (1988),Four-Calendar Café (1993) and Milk &Kisses (1996) charting on the Billboard 200 album charts in the United States as well as the top 20 in the UK. She also performed as part of the 4AD group This Mortal Coil,including the successful 1983 single "Song to the Siren",and as a guest with Massive Attack on their 1998 hit single "Teardrop".
This Mortal Coil were a British music collective led by Ivo Watts-Russell,founder of the British record label 4AD. Although Watts-Russell and John Fryer were the only two official members,the band's recorded output featured a large rotating cast of supporting artists,many of whom were otherwise associated with 4AD,including members of Cocteau Twins,Pixies and Dead Can Dance. The project became known for its gothic,dream pop sound,and released three full albums,beginning in 1984 with It'll End in Tears.
Starsailor is the sixth studio album by Tim Buckley,released on Herb Cohen's Straight Records label in November 1970. Starsailor marks Buckley's full embrace of avant-garde and jazz-rock styles into his music. Although it alienated elements of his fanbase upon release,it also contains his best known song,"Song to the Siren",which was written much earlier than the rest of the material. Bunk Gardner,a former member of the Mothers of Invention,joined Buckley's backing band to record the album. Also,Buckley began working again with lyricist Larry Beckett,after a three-album hiatus.
Brendan Michael Perry is a British singer and multi-instrumentalist best known for his work as half of the duo Dead Can Dance with Lisa Gerrard.
It'll End in Tears is the first album released by 4AD collective This Mortal Coil,an umbrella title for a loose grouping of guest musicians and vocalists brought together by label boss Ivo Watts-Russell. The album was released on 8 October 1984,and reached #38 on the UK Albums Chart. It features many of the artists on the 4AD roster at the time,including Cocteau Twins,Colourbox,and Dead Can Dance;as well as key post-punk figure Howard Devoto,who sang "Holocaust",one of two covers of songs from the Third/Sister Lovers album by Big Star. The other Alex Chilton-penned track,album opener "Kangaroo",was released as a single to promote the album. Two key songs were performed by Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins,including Tim Buckley's "Song to the Siren",which reached #66 on the UK Charts when released as This Mortal Coil's debut single a year before the album. The song remained on the UK Indie Chart for almost two years. Fraser also performed on "Another Day" by Roy Harper. 4AD would go on to release two further albums under the name of This Mortal Coil:Filigree &Shadow (1986) and Blood (1991).
Happy Sad is the third album by American singer-songwriter Tim Buckley,released in April 1969. It was recorded at Elektra Sound Recorders in Los Angeles,California and was produced by former Lovin' Spoonful members Zal Yanovsky and,coincidentally,his subsequent replacement Jerry Yester. It marked the beginning of Buckley's experimental period,as it incorporated elements of jazz that he had never used before. Many of the songs here represent a departure from the binary form that dominated much of his previous work.
Morning Glory:The Tim Buckley Anthology is a compilation album by Tim Buckley. The two cds give an overview of Tim Buckley's career. The compilation contains material from the many phases of Buckley's career,and includes a previously unreleased version of "Song to the Siren",as performed in 1968 on The Monkees. The photo used for the cover art was taken by Linda Eastman,more commonly known as Linda McCartney.
Larry Beckett is an American poet,songwriter,musician,and literary critic. As a songwriter and music arranger,Beckett collaborated with Tim Buckley in the late 1960s and early 1970s on several songs and albums,including the critically acclaimed "Song to the Siren" which has been recorded by many artists,from This Mortal Coil to Robert Plant to George Michael and Jann Klose. He has also collaborated with British group The Long Lost Band,and local Portland indie band Eyelids.
The Dirt Eaters in an EP by His Name Is Alive,originally released by 4AD in early 1992. It has never been released on its own in the United States,as it was included on the 4AD/Rykodisc US reissue of Home Is in Your Head in 1992.
"This Woman's Work" is a song written and performed by the English singer-songwriter Kate Bush. It was initially featured on the soundtrack of the American film She's Having a Baby (1988). The song was released as the second single from her album The Sensual World in 1989 and peaked at 25 in the UK Singles Chart.
The Dream Belongs to Me:Rare and Unreleased 1968 –1973 is a compilation album by Tim Buckley. The album consists of three demo sessions,two recorded in 1968 and the other in 1973.
Thin Wires In The Voice is a 120-page booklet written by Italian writer Luca Ferrari with a 3 track EP by Tim Buckley. The EP is a compilation of "Song to the Siren",featuring just Buckley's guitar and voice,recorded for the TV show The Monkees and two live recordings taken from a 1968 Danish radio broadcast. This earlier version of Starsailor track "Song to the Siren" is more folk-oriented and can also be found on Morning Glory:The Tim Buckley Anthology. The two live recordings are also found on Buckley's 1968 live album Copenhagen Tapes. The booklet is dual language appraisal of Tim Buckley in Italian and English. It also contains selected lyrics and poetry.
Tim Buckley:My Fleeting House is a DVD-Video collection of live appearances and performances by Tim Buckley. It features footage from throughout his career,starting from a 1967 performance of "Song to the Siren" on The Monkees TV show and ending with a performance from May 21,1974 of "Dolphins" for The Old Grey Whistle Test. Broadcasts from WITF-TV's The Show from 1970 has performances of "I Woke Up" and "Come Here Woman". The DVD also contains recorded interviews with occasional songwriting partner Larry Beckett,regular lead guitarist Lee Underwood and David Browne,author of Dream Brother:The Lives and Music of Jeff and Tim Buckley,a dual biography of Tim Buckley and his son Jeff Buckley. The release also contains a 12-page photo booklet with liner notes.
The Best of Tim Buckley is a compilation LP by Tim Buckley. It presents Buckley as a folk artist with songs written between 1966 and 1970. The album features material from the studio albums Tim Buckley,Goodbye and Hello,Happy Sad and Blue Afternoon,in addition to "Song to the Siren" from his avant garde album Starsailor. This was the first new release,outside of Australia after Buckley's death. The album provides an overview of Buckley's folk beginnings,excluding material from his later albums.
Sixteen Days / Gathering Dust is an EP released in 1983 by This Mortal Coil,a supergroup assembled by Ivo Watts-Russell for his record label,4AD.
Sleeps with the Fishes is the lone collaborative album from Clan of Xymox founding member Pieter Nooten and Canadian guitarist/producer Michael Brook,released by 4AD on 12 October 1987. Intended as Nooten's debut solo album after a brief split from Clan of Xymox,the record turned into a collaboration with Brook after a suggestion from 4AD label founder and boss Ivo Watts-Russell. Though not a huge commercial success,Sleeps with the Fishes was described by AllMusic as "essential listening for fans of 4AD,ambient music,minimalism,experimental electronic music,and morose themes alike... an overlooked masterpiece."
Lie to Me is an EP by American rock band Garbage. It was released on April 20,2024,on Record Store Day through BMG/Stunvolume in the United States and UK,and its subsidiary Infectious Music in Europe. The EP includes the two previously unreleased tracks,"Better Not Lie To Me" and "Revenge and Hurt";a cover of "Song For the Siren" by Tim Buckley and a new remix of Bleed Like Me track "Bad Boyfriend" featuring Dave Grohl.
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