In addition, Belew is well-regarded for his contributions, particularly on guitar, to various other artists' recordings. In 1977, he performed with Frank Zappa, appearing in Zappa's 1979 concert film Baby Snakes, as well as Zappa's controversial album Sheik Yerbouti. He also supported David Bowie on his "Heroes" tour that was released as "Stage". He also played on the 1990 Sound + Vision tour. On both tours he was musical director, playing guitar and singing backing vocals.
Belew's other session credits include the 1980 album Remain in Light by the Talking Heads, Lights Out by Peter Wolf, and Paul Simon's landmark 1986 album Graceland. He worked with Laurie Anderson during the mid-1980s, appearing in her concert film Home of the Brave. During the 1990s, he contributed to three Nine Inch Nails albums, The Downward Spiral, The Fragile, and Ghosts. He played synthesized guitar on the song "God Shuffled His Feet" by Crash Test Dummies in 1993.
In the late-1980s, Belew formed the pop band The Bears with ex-Raisins members and released two albums, The Bears and Rise and Shine. A third album, Car Caught Fire, followed in 2001.
He features prominently on Tori Amos's 2001 cover album, "Strange Little Girls". He also contributed his lead guitar stylings to Porcupine Tree's album Deadwing (2005) as well as to a track ("I Can't Get Behind That", also featuring Henry Rollins) on the 2004 Ben Folds-produced William Shatner album Has Been.
Young Lions
Adrian Belew Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Underneath fluorescent skies
Bonfires rage strange
Wild, waving, shouting Picasso faces
In the guise of a lioness
The wind kisses her burning dress
You can feel her animal eyes
"Be the jewel around my neck,
Never a tear on my burning dress."
Lying paralyzed
A brave prey who lays dying
And is surrounded by angry spirits
Hunters, guns, drums, and elephants
Why is this night quiet?
Filled with trees, filled with eyes
As she prowls around my feet
She throws back her head dress and cries
"Now you will be mine,
Be my young lion."
Why is this night quiet?
Why the trees filled with eyes?
As she prowls around my feet
She throws back her head dress and cries
"Be my young lion."
The lyrics of Adrian Belew's song Young Lions evoke a mysterious and haunting atmosphere. The first stanza describes a hot tribal night, characterized by fluorescent skies and bonfires raging strange. The imagery hints at a ritualistic or primal event taking place, with wild, waving, shouting Picasso faces dotting the landscape. The second stanza shifts to a more introspective tone, as the singer describes being pursued by a lioness who wants him to be the jewel around her neck. The animalistic imagery is continued in the third stanza, where the singer describes being paralyzed and surrounded by angry spirits, hunters, guns, drums, and elephants. The final stanza repeats the refrain "why is this night quiet?" and ends with the lioness throwing back her head and crying for the singer to be her young lion.
The meaning behind the lyrics of Young Lions is open to interpretation but the song can be seen as a metaphor for the pull between our primal and civilized selves. The lioness represents our primal, wild side, while the singer represents our more civilized, controlled self. The lioness wants the singer to let go of his inhibitions and embrace his animal instincts, represented by the imagery of the hot tribal night and the hunting party. However, the singer is hesitant and paralyzed, unable to fully give in to the call of the wild. The final stanza suggests that the singer is torn between these two sides of himself.
Line by Line Meaning
Hot tribal night
The night is warm and filled with a tribal energy
Underneath fluorescent skies
The night is illuminated with bright lights
Bonfires rage strange
The bonfires burn in an unusual and unusual way
Wild, waving, shouting Picasso faces
The faces of the people around the bonfires are frenzied and intense
In the guise of a lioness
The woman is taking on the powerful and predatory attributes of a lioness
The wind kisses her burning dress
The wind moves the woman's dress, which appears to be on fire
You can feel her animal eyes
The intensity of the woman's gaze is animalistic and powerful
You can hear them cry
Her eyes appear to be crying out with a message
"Be the jewel around my neck,
She wants someone to be her precious possession
Never a tear on my burning dress."
She wants this person to never make her cry or damage her strong outward appearance
Lying paralyzed
The person is helpless and unable to move
A brave prey who lays dying
The person is brave but is now nearing the end of their life
And is surrounded by angry spirits
There are many hostile entities around the person
Hunters, guns, drums, and elephants
These are some of the things being used against the prey
Why is this night quiet?
Despite the intense events happening, the night still feels eerily still
Filled with trees, filled with eyes
There are many trees and they appear to be watching
As she prowls around my feet
The woman is still around, watching the hunt
She throws back her head dress and cries
The woman reveals her true self and cries out a message again
"Now you will be mine,
She wants to take control of the situation
Be my young lion."
She wants someone to be her protege and possess the same strength and courage as a lion cub
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: BELEW
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind