Frank Turner started solo acoustic shows prior to Million Dead's break up. The first official performance was at the first Small Town America all dayer at 93 Feet East on September 18th 2004. The solo performances were, in a sense, a sideline to Million Dead. They did allow Turner to display some of his own songwriting capabilities (without a band) as well as some covers of songs and bands he enjoyed, in some cases the songs were much re-worked to fit an acoustic atmosphere. Solo performances were also used to help bolster or expose Million Dead to new individuals as well, with some acoustic in-store and radio performances of Million Dead songs.
At the end of February and start of March (2006) Frank went to Oxford to record the "Campfire Punkrock" EP with Dive Dive as the backing band for three of the songs. This EP was released on May 15 2006 on a limited run through Xtra Mile recordings. It sold out after only a few weeks on sale and had to be re-pressed to meet demand.
With Jonah Matranga doing some touring in June 2006 in support of his CD/DVD album "Jonah Matranga" there was some discussion of Frank doing supports with Jonah, this only ended up with one show featuring both at The Peel in Kingston. The discussion however lead to the creation of the Jonah Matranga and Frank Turner split 12" vinyl. Released in the USA on Welcome Home Records and in the UK via Xtra Mile Recordings. The release features Frank covering two songs by American songwriters and Jonah covering two songs by British songwriters. He was recently (September 18 2006) the last ever artist to perform on BBC Radio 1's Lamacq Live program, unveiling two new songs from "Sleep Is For The Week".
The good sales of "Campfire Punkrock" meant good news as this allowed Frank to record his debut album "Sleep Is For The Week" in August and September 2006. Recorded in Oxford with Dive Dive as extra band on a selection of the 13 tracks. The last track, "The Ballad Of Me And My Friends", is a live recording from a sold out show at the London Barfly and features the vocal contribution of the (approximately) 200 strong audience during a verse. Those in attendance and gave their names to Xtra Mile Recordings will have their names credited as contributers to this track.
In April 2008, his second album Love, Ire and Song was released to critical acclaim.
His third full-length album, Poetry Of The Deed, was released September 7th 2009, and includes the singles The Road, Try This At Home and Isabel. An accompanying DVD, Take To The Road, was released in March 2010.
Amidst extensive touring in support of Poetry of the Deed, Turner and his then-untitled backing band recorded Rock & Roll, an EP consisting of tracks written at the same time as Poetry of the Deed alongside new material. Following its release, Turner and the band spent twenty days in January 2011, recording their next studio album with producer Tristan Ivemy. The result was England Keep My Bones, the fourth studio album by Frank, released on June 6, 2011, on Xtra Mile in the United Kingdom, and on June 7, 2011, on Epitaph Records worldwide. Preceded by the single, "Peggy Sang the Blues", the album was produced and mixed by Tristan Ivemy, who had previously mixed Love, Ire and Song, Rock & Roll and Campfire Punkrock.
The album's title is taken from William Shakespeare's play, The Life and Death of King John, with Turner noting, "I knew that the album was, for the most part, about mortality, and about Englishness. Shakespeare seemed like a good place to go hunting for some pearls of wisdom, and with a little help from my friend Ben we came across this one, and it just seemed to fit the work really well."
Following the completion of the album, Turner subsequently announced his backing band had named themselves The Sleeping Souls, after a lyric in the track, "I Am Disappeared". The Sleeping Souls are Nigel Powell, Ben LLoyd, Tarant Anderson and Matt Nasir.
Turner recorded his fifth studio album in Burbank, California, in October 2012. The reason for recording first time abroad in California was, that producer Rich Costey wouldn't come to England with all his equipment so he convinced Turner to record it in Burbank. Frank Turner announced via Twitter on 28 October 2012 that recording was completed, and mixing and mastering would be done in time for a March 2013 release date. During the November and December UK tour a free CD titled Good Hangs from Xtra Mile Recordings was distributed for free at Frank Turner shows, this included a yet-to-be-released Turner song titled "Tattoos" plus the Möngöl Hörde song "Casual Threats From Weekend Hardmen". On Christmas Day 2012, the song "Four Simple Words" was released on Xtra Mile Recordings' website as a free download along with the b-side "Cowboy Chords". On 4 January 2013, a video was shot for what would be the first single. On the same day Frank announced on Twitter that the single was the song "Recovery". On 9 January, Frank uploaded a photo to his Instagram page showing the names of all 13 songs that would feature on his new album. This included songs played during the UK and US tours of 2012 such as "Anymore", "Plain Sailing Weather", "We Shall Not Overcome" and "Tell Tale Signs". Frank also posted on his fan forum that an extended edition of his new album would be released that includes an extra 5 or 6 songs. On 19 February 2013, it was announced that Turner had signed a licensing deal with Interscope Records in the US for Tape Deck Heart. Following the release of the album Frank Turner embarked on a short U.K tour.
[this section requires expansion, to cover the period 2013 to 2018]
Discography:
2005 - Frank Turner's Demo
2007 - Campfire Punkrock
2007 - The Real Damage
2007 - Sleep Is For The Week
2008 - Love Ire & Song
2008 - The First Three Years
2009 - Poetry Of The Deed
2010 - Take to the Road: Live 2009
2010 - iTunes Festival: London 2010
2011 - 2011-11-17: Daytrotter Session, Big Orange Studios, Austin, TX, USA
2012 - The Second Three Years
2012 - Last Minutes and Lost Evenings
2013 - Tape Deck Heart
2014 - Polaroid Picture
2014 - The Third Three Years
2015 - Positive Songs for Negative People
2017 - Songbook
2018 - Be More Kind
2019 - No Man's Land
2020 - West Coast vs. Wessex
2020 - Buddies II: Still Buddies
Recovery
Frank Turner Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Somebody I don't really know just gave me something to help
Settle me down and to stop me from always thinking about you
And you know your life is heading in a questionable
Direction when you're up for days with strangers
And you can't remember anything except the way you sounded
When you told me you didn't know what I should do
It's a long road up to recovery from here
A long way back to the light
A long road up to recovery from here
A long way to makin' it right
And I've been wakin' in the morning just like every other day
And just like every boring blues song I get swallowed by the pain
And so I fumble for your figure in the darkness just to make it go away
But you're not lying there any longer and I know that
That's my fault, so I've been pounding on the floor
And I've been crawling up the walls and I've been dipping in my darkness
For Serotonin boosters, cider and some kind of smelling salts
It's a long road up to recovery from here
A long way back to the light
A long road up to recovery from here
A long way to makin' it right
And on the first night we met, you said, "Well, darling, let's make a deal"
If anybody ever asks us, let's just tell them that we met in jail
And that's the story that I'm sticking to like
A stony-faced accomplice, but tonight I need to hear
Some truth if I'm ever getting through this
Yeah, you once sent me a letter that said, "If you're lost at sea
Close your eyes and catch the tide, my dear, and only think of me
Well, darling now I'm sinking, and I'm as lost as
Lost can be and I was hoping you could drag me
Up from down here towards my recovery
If you could just give me a sign, yeah, just a subtle little glimmer
Some suggestion that you'd have me if I could only make you better
Then I would stand a little stronger as I walk a little taller all the time
Because I know you are a cynic but I think
I can convince you, yeah, 'cause broken people
Can get better if they really want to
Or at least that's what I have to tell myself
If I am hoping to survive
It's a long road up to recovery from here
A long way back to the light
A long road up to recovery from here
A long way to makin' it right
Darling, sweet lover, won't you help me to recover?
Darling, sweet lover, won't you help me to recover?
Darling, sweet lover, won't you help me to recover?
Darling, sweet lover, one day this will all be over
The lyrics of Frank Turner's "Recovery" depict the struggle of coming to terms with the aftermath of a difficult breakup. The singer finds himself lost in a strange flat in east London, having taken medication to numb the pain of losing his significant other. He cannot escape his thoughts and memories, and is trapped in a vicious cycle of self-destruction. He's been up for days with strangers and is constantly searching for something to take away the pain, whether it be alcohol, drugs, or the memory of his past lover.
The chorus repeats the idea that recovery is a long and difficult road, but one that must be taken in order to truly heal. The singer recognizes that he has a lot of work to do in order to make it right again, but he fears that he's not strong enough to do it on his own. He longs for his lost love to help him through the difficult journey, to give him a sign that she still cares, but ultimately realizes that he must do the work himself. The final lines offer a glimmer of hope, reminding the listener that the pain and struggle will eventually come to an end.
Line by Line Meaning
Blacking in and out in a strange flat in east London
I don't even remember who I met or where I am
Somebody I don't really know just gave me something to help
I took drugs from a stranger to forget my problems
Settle me down and to stop me from always thinking about you
I was stuck thinking about you and needed something to make me stop
And you know your life is heading in a questionable
I realized my life is heading in an uncertain direction
Direction when you're up for days with strangers
I spent days with people I don't even know
And you can't remember anything except the way you sounded
I don't remember anything else except what you said to me
When you told me you didn't know what I should do
You didn't know how to help me and it's making me feel worse
It's a long road up to recovery from here
It's going to be tough, but I have to start somewhere
A long way back to the light
I have to find hope and positivity again
And I've been wakin' in the morning just like every other day
Every day is the same and I feel stuck
And just like every boring blues song I get swallowed by the pain
I'm consumed by my suffering and I can't escape it
And so I fumble for your figure in the darkness just to make it go away
I reach out for you even though you're not there anymore
But you're not lying there any longer and I know that
I know it's my fault that you're gone
That's my fault, so I've been pounding on the floor
I feel guilty and angry at myself for losing you
And I've been crawling up the walls and I've been dipping in my darkness
I'm struggling and trying different things to ease the pain
For Serotonin boosters, cider and some kind of smelling salts
I'm using drugs, alcohol, and anything else to numb the pain
And on the first night we met, you said, "Well, darling, let's make a deal"
We made a lighthearted pact when we first met
If anybody ever asks us, let's just tell them that we met in jail
We agreed to tell people we met in an interesting way
And that's the story that I'm sticking to like
I'm still holding onto that story as a reminder of our connection
A stony-faced accomplice, but tonight I need to hear
I'm trying to be strong, but I need some honesty tonight
Some truth if I'm ever getting through this
I need to face the truth if I want to recover
Yeah, you once sent me a letter that said, "If you're lost at sea
You sent me a letter with some advice
Close your eyes and catch the tide, my dear, and only think of me
You told me to focus on you when I'm struggling
Well, darling now I'm sinking, and I'm as lost as
I'm sinking and I feel lost without you
Lost can be and I was hoping you could drag me
I need someone's help to pull me out of this
Up from down here towards my recovery
I need help to recover and get better
If you could just give me a sign, yeah, just a subtle little glimmer
I need some sort of hope or hint that I can get better
Some suggestion that you'd have me if I could only make you better
I wish that you would be there for me if I could just fix myself
Then I would stand a little stronger as I walk a little taller all the time
If I had your support, I could be more confident and resilient
Because I know you are a cynic but I think
I know you are skeptical, but I still hope
I can convince you, yeah, 'cause broken people
I believe that people can heal and recover
Can get better if they really want to
If you want to heal, it's possible
Or at least that's what I have to tell myself
I try to convince myself that recovery is possible
If I am hoping to survive
If I don't believe in recovery, I may not make it
Darling, sweet lover, won't you help me to recover?
I need your help to heal and get better
Darling, sweet lover, one day this will all be over
I hope that someday this will all be in the past and we can move on together
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Frank Turner
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind