All About Eve is an 80's British goth rock group with a unique, folk-rock-i… Read Full Bio ↴All About Eve is an 80's British goth rock group with a unique, folk-rock-influenced take on the style. The creative core consists of Julianne Regan (vocals) and Andy Cousin (bass guitar), with other members changing over the years.

Julianne Regan, a former journalist, played bass for the popular rock group Gene Loves Jezebel for a little while. The initial core of All About Eve was Regan, guitarist Tim Bricheno, and bassist Andy Cousin from Aemotti Crii. As a three-piece (plus a drum machine), they released a series of independent singles starting from 1984 including "D For Desire", "In The Clouds" and "Flowers In Our Hair". After Julianne sang backing vocals for The Mission's God's Own Medicine album, the band received greater attention and were signed to Phonogram. Drummer Mark Price was added around this time.

Their self-titled debut album was released in 1988 and produced the UK hit single Martha's Harbour. Drawing much of its lyrical material from hippie ideals, white magic and dreamlike fairy tales, the album's gentle folk rock-inspired pop sound won the band many fans (nicknamed "angels"). Although often falsely lumped by the media under the label of goth rock, little (if any) such inspiration actually played a part in the band's music after around 1986, any "goth" connection being drawn not from the music, but from the previous and future engagements of the band members in the musical scene of the time.

In a well known incident, the band later performed a dubbed version of Martha's Harbour on the BBC1 television show Top Of The Pops, but, owing to a studio technical error, the taped vocals were broadcast without the band being able to hear them, resulting in the TV audience hearing the recorded version of the song, while the band members sat motionless on screen waiting for their cue to begin. By way of compensation the band were invited back on to the show the following week, and this time their performance passed off smoothly.

The following year, their second album Scarlet And Other Stories was released, and the band toured around the UK. Widely prevalent on this album were Regan's somber, highly melancholic moods. Painful chance encounters with love also appeared on the lyrical front, and it is this motif (and period of time) which was to greatly paint the picture for the future of the band as well.

In 1990, Bricheno left the group (later to join The Sisters Of Mercy for their Vision Thing era, and subsequent bands XC-NN and Tin Star) to be swiftly replaced by The Church's Marty Willson-Piper. They went on to record Touched By Jesus in 1991 (which featured David Gilmour of Pink Floyd on guitar on two tracks), before changing record companies and taking a dramatic stylistic change by releasing Ultraviolet the year after.

Going an altogether different way to their previous release, Ultraviolet mellowed the band's sound greatly, revisiting Scarlet's general sorrowful feel with a heavy inspiration from the shoegazing movement and psychedelia to turn the Eve signature sound ever colder, with much downplayed vocals. The album, released by MCA Records was not well supported by the record company, considering the change to be for the worse, and the band subsequently went their separate ways. MCA, shedding no tears, promptly deleted the album from their catalogue. Although the band continued for a couple more months without Regan's input, they disbanded in early 1993, with the album they had been working on at the time eventually seeing the light of day under the group name Seeing Stars.

Regan went on to form Mice and to work with Bernard Butler, but an album with the latter never came to fruition due to personality clashes. Though often quoted that Julianne thought Butler to be "Satan", this quote is in fact not true. Later on, she also teamed up with her old Gene Loves Jezebel acquaintance Jean-Marc Lederman in the highly atmospheric Jules et Jim project (a collaboration which continues to this day).

In 1999, old friends The Mission reformed after a short break and started touring. They invited Regan to open for them, and their offer was accepted, starting the second era of the band. Soon after the tour the newly-reformed (Regan, Willson-Piper & Cousin) All About Eve toured for two years, releasing Fairy Light Nights, an acoustic live collection in 2000, with Volume 2 following in 2001, and later followed by two more live albums Live And Electric At The Union Chapel and Cinemasonic (the latter of which was also released as a DVD). A collection of early recordings was also released, entitled Return To Eden, Volume 1 (no second volume has yet appeared).

In 2002, Willson-Piper left the band to pursue other projects, to be replaced by new guitarist Toni Haimi, previously of the band Malluka and now in the Sohodolls. Also in 2002, Julianne and Andy released their first studio recordings in a decade, with the EP Iceland – a collection of "winter songs", including reworkings of previous fan-favourite December and cover versions of Wham!'s "Last Christmas", Queen's "A Winter's Tale", and a minimalist electronic take on the popular song from the animated short The Snowman, "Walking In The Air".

In mid-2004, just after the release of their first single in a decade, "Let Me Go Home", the band split once again. Regan is currently working on projects including an album with Jean-Marc Lederman (in a long-awaited follow-up to the first Jules et Jim album), as well as collaborating with Norwegian songwriters GKraft, and a possible solo album. The nearly-completed Eve studio album that was being worked on remains unreleased, although Regan and Cousin may possibly be dusting off the recordings to finish them in the near future. A double CD collection entitled Keepsakes, consisting of the singles, key album tracks and previously unreleased rarities, as well as some newly recorded songs, was released early March 2006 and will initially be available with a DVD of promo videos and TV appearances.

Flowers In Our Hair
All About Eve Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Where have the flowers gone sun-children
Your shirts are loud and your hair is long
Now do you ever think we'll make it
Something more than a uniform

And we're almost there
We learn to love and we learn to give
And we earn the flowers in our hair

Where has the vision gone sun-children
Colors glow but your eyes are closed
I swear I still believe we'll make it
In your eyes I see your soul

And we're almost there
We learn to love and we learn to give
And we earn the flowers in our hair my friend
So take my hand
One day is always too far away

I wish we had the hearts of children
Their eyes are wide and their love is pure

But we only dare to say 'please love me'
At the seventh glass of wine

Overall Meaning

The lyrics describe a sense of optimism and hope for the future, while acknowledging the challenges and struggles that come with it. The "sun-children" are a metaphor for the youthful and free-spirited individuals who are yearning for something more meaningful than the "uniform" of conformity that society often imposes. The line "we learn to love and we learn to give" suggests that by opening ourselves up to love and compassion, we can find the beauty and joy in life, symbolized by the "flowers in our hair."

The second verse addresses the loss of vision and imagination in the world, and calls for a return to the innocence and purity of childhood. Despite these challenges, the singer remains optimistic and sees the potential for greatness in others, seeing their "soul" in their eyes. The repetition of the line "and we're almost there" further emphasizes this sense of hope and anticipation for a better future.

Overall, the song encourages us to stay hopeful, open-minded and compassionate, and to strive towards a brighter future. The imagery of the flowers in our hair serves as a symbol for the beauty and joy we can attain through love and unity.

Line by Line Meaning

Where have the flowers gone sun-children
Asking where the carefree nature of youth has gone and why we aren't finding simple joys in life anymore.

Your shirts are loud and your hair is long
Describing how the young generation is breaking away from societal norms and wanting to find their own identity.

Now do you ever think we'll make it
Questioning if the youth of today can achieve their dreams or if everything will be for naught.

Something more than a uniform
Asking for more than just being another cog in the machine of society, and wanting to stand out and make a difference.

And we're almost there
Suggesting that progress is being made and that the youth are on the cusp of accomplishing their goals.

We learn to love and we learn to give
Learn the importance of kindness, empathy, and love to not just take but give back to the world.

And we earn the flowers in our hair
As a result of our growth and hard work, we earn the right to enjoy and celebrate the simple pleasures in life.

Where has the vision gone sun-children
Asking where our dreams have gone and questioning the loss of ambition as we age.

Colors glow but your eyes are closed
Although the beauty of the world may be apparent, it takes mindful intention to truly appreciate and partake in it.

I swear I still believe we'll make it
Declaring belief in ourselves and the potential of the youth to succeed in their aspirations.

In your eyes I see your soul
Acknowledging that the eyes show emotion and reveal the depth of character that lies within us all.

So take my hand
Inviting others to share in the journey of life together and to support each other along the way.

One day is always too far away
Emphasizing that life moves quickly and waiting for tomorrow can mean missing out on opportunities today.

I wish we had the hearts of children
Expressing desire for the pure and innocent hearts of children, which hold no malice and only see beauty in the world.

Their eyes are wide and their love is pure
Describing the genuine love and wonder that children possess, unclouded by the complexities of adulthood.

But we only dare to say 'please love me'
Admitting that, as adults, we often struggle to be vulnerable and ask for love and connection, preferring to mask our true emotions.

At the seventh glass of wine
Highlighting the tendency to only truly open up and express ourselves after consuming alcohol, when our inhibitions are lowered.

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ANDY COUSIN, JULIANNE REGAN, TIM BRICHENO

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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