Her first single, "Torn", reached number 2 in the UK charts and became the most played song on the radio in 1998. "Torn" is originally written by Anne Preven, Scott Cutler and Phil Thornalley. In 1995, "Torn" was recorded by Preven's and Cutler's band Ednaswap, although the band would record several more versions prior and following Imbruglia's hit recording. The first released version of "Torn", though, was a 1993 version by Danish singer Lis Sørensen, entitled "Braendt". Norwegian singer Trine Rein had a hit with an English language version of "Torn" in her home country, a year prior to Imbruglia's million selling single. Co-writer Phil Thornalley was involved in all of these versions and eventually offered the song to Natalie Imbruglia, whose album he produced. Imbruglia initially declined recording the song, stating she didn't want to do a cover. Ironically, "Torn" did not only become her biggest hit, it also became her signature song.
Following "Torn", Natalie's debut album "Left of the Middle", released on November 1997, became a million seller. Further singles ("Big Mistake", "Wishing I Was There", and "Smoke"), again proved to be hits in terms of radio and video airplay, but had a less than stellar chart run compared to "Torn".
In a 1999 cooperation with singer Tom Jones, she appeared on his duet album "Reload", on which the pair teamed up for a cover of INXS' ""Never Tear Us Apart".
Imbruglia's sophomore album, "White Lilies Island", was released in November 2001, although it met with significantly less success than its precursor. It did spawn the UK hit singles "That Day", "Wrong Impression" and "Beauty On The Fire".
She returned to acting in 2002 with a supporting role in British spy spoof Johnny English, playing alongside Rowan Atkinson. Natalie married her long-time boyfriend Daniel Johns, lead singer of Silverchair, on 31 December 2003.
In April 2005, Imbruglia released her third studio album "Counting Down The Days" in UK, which in its first week of sales hit number one on the album charts. The first single from this album "Shiver" became her longest running single on the UK charts since her debut "Torn" and also topped the UK Airplay charts for several weeks. The second single, the title track "Counting Down The Days", was released on 25 July 2005 and although it did not have as much success in the singles chart as "Shiver" it reignited interest in its parent album.
After "Counting Down the Days", Natalie switched labels and released in a greatest hits "Glorious: The Singles 97-07", which included five new tracks and was promoted by the single "Glorious".
Natalie's fourth studio album "Come to Life" was released on October 2009 in Europe, preceded by the music video of "Wild About It". The first official single issued on 28 September 2009, was "Want", a song written by Natalie Imbruglia, Daniel Johns (credited Kat Kourtney), Gary Clark and Chris Martin. The next single "Scars" was sent to radio in the UK on 22 March 2010; however, due to any support from radio networks, the single release was cancelled.
Appearances on other albums:
"Troubled by the Way We Came Together" on Go! O.S.T. (1999)
"Never Tear Us Apart" with Tom Jones on Reload (1999)
"Identify" on Stigmata O.S.T (1999)
"Cold Air" on Y Tu Mama Tambien (And Your Mother Too) O.S.T. (2001)
"Wrong Impression" (Radio Remix) on Mr. Deed O.S.T. (2002)
"Pineapple Head" on She Will Have Her Way (2005)
"All The Magic" on Winx Club O.S.T. (2007)
Beauty On The Fire
Natalie Imbruglia Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cannot out run my desire
Cover my decent
And throw the
Beauty on the fire
Drawn towards the edge
Do I assume I could fly
Every secret shared
Why do I drink
The feelings dry
Don't go too far
Limitation scars
Tonight
Could I be lost forever
To drown
My soul in
Sensory
Pleasure
Sensory
Pleasure
Here it comes again
You raise the bar even higher
I cannot catch my breath
So throw the
Beauty on the fire
Don't push too hard
Limitaion scars
The lyrics of Natalie Imbruglia's "Beauty on the Fire" depict the struggle of resisting temptation and giving in to desire. The singer is unable to outrun her desires and instead succumbs to them, "covering her decent" by throwing "beauty on the fire." This could be interpreted as an attempt to distract oneself from guilt and moral conflict by indulging in pleasure. The singer acknowledges her limitations and scars but continues to be drawn towards the edge, possibly alluding to the danger of being consumed by her desires.
The chorus of the song speaks of sensory pleasure and the possibility of being lost forever in it, highlighting the intense experience of giving in to one's desires. The repetition of "sensory pleasure" emphasizes the overwhelming nature of this experience. The second verse continues to describe the temptation as being heightened by someone else who raises the bar even higher. The singer cannot catch her breath and once again throws beauty on the fire.
Overall, the lyrics of "Beauty on the Fire" explore the struggle of inner conflict and the temptation to indulge in sensory pleasure. The sadness and desperation in the lyrics are emphasized by the intense emotions conveyed through the use of words such as "desire," "fly," "soul," and "pleasure."
Line by Line Meaning
Here it comes again
Here comes my desire again
Cannot out run my desire
I cannot escape my desire
Cover my decent
Hide my flaws and imperfections
And throw the Beauty on the fire
Sacrifice my beauty for the sake of desire
Drawn towards the edge
Being tempted to cross the line
Do I assume I could fly
Am I overestimating myself
Every secret shared
Revealing everything to someone
Why do I drink The feelings dry
Why do I suppress my emotions
Don't go too far
Don't exceed my limits
Limitation scars
The scars left by my limitations
Tonight
This moment
Could I be lost forever
I might be losing myself forever
To drown My soul in Sensory Pleasure
To indulge my senses to the point of losing my soul
Here it comes again
Again, the desire comes
You raise the bar even higher
You set higher standards
I cannot catch my breath
I am overwhelmed
So throw the Beauty on the fire
So I sacrifice my beauty again
Don't push too hard
Don't force myself too much
Limitation scars
Again, the scars left by my limitations
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Downtown Music Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: GARY CLARK, NATALIE IMBRUGLIA, MATTHEW WILDER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind