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.
Strange Way
All About Eve Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Or looking for your mother ?
I was looking for a love inspired
I didn't need a little brother to hold
When the wind blew cold
A string of hearts lie in your wake
You tried to take along for the ride
I must be out of my head
A strange way of showing your love
You had a strange way
I hear you met a young girl
I hear she is your lover
So when you break her young, sweet heart
She'll find it easy to recover
Not like me, I took you seriously
And for a while I lost my smile,
I lost my way but I found something out
It's going to take something more than you
To break a spirit like mine
A strange way of showing your love
Just for the thrill of it all
But then the future is blind
Just for the thrill of it all
I'm good at wasting my time
But I'm on my way, I've had enough
The winter comes the wind blows cold
It isn't forever.
The lyrics of All About Eve's "Strange Way" suggest a relationship where the singer was looking for a romantic partner who would inspire her love, not a brotherly figure to protect her in the cold. She accuses her partner of leaving a trail of broken hearts behind him, possibly by trying to take them along for rides, and of having a strange way of showing his love. She heard that he has found a new lover, but implies that the new lover will not take the breakup as seriously as she did. Lastly, the singer acknowledges that she wasted time on this unsuitable partner, but is on her way to something better, and that the harshness of winter is not forever.
The lyrics of "Strange Way" describe a tumultuous relationship where one partner seems to prioritize thrill-seeking and protecting himself over genuine emotional connections. The singer is wiser now and realizes that she deserves better than someone who enjoys leaving a trail of heartbreak behind him. The lyrics also suggest that the singer has learned an important lesson: that her strength and spirit cannot be broken by someone who doesn't truly care for her.
Line by Line Meaning
Were you looking for a sister
Did you want someone to confide in, like a sister?
Or looking for your mother?
Did you want someone to take care of you, like a mother?
I was looking for a love inspired
I was seeking a love that was meaningful and inspiring.
I didn't need a little brother to hold
I didn't want a younger, less experienced partner.
When the wind blew cold
When times were tough.
A string of hearts lie in your wake
You've left a trail of broken hearts behind you.
You tried to take along for the ride
You tried to bring others along with you on your journey.
I must be out of my head
I must be crazy or foolish for falling for you.
To get strung out on your silver thread
To become addicted or dependent on your charm and false promises.
A strange way of showing your love
Your behavior is unusual and doesn't seem like an expression of love.
You had a strange way
You expressed your love in a peculiar manner.
I hear you met a young girl
I heard that you started a relationship with a younger woman.
I hear she is your lover
I heard that you are romantically involved with her.
So when you break her young, sweet heart
When you inevitably hurt her emotionally.
She'll find it easy to recover
She's resilient and will move on from you quickly.
Not like me, I took you seriously
I took our relationship to heart and was devoted to you.
And for a while I lost my smile, I lost my way but I found something out
I became lost and unhappy, but eventually realized that I can do better.
It's going to take something more than you to break a spirit like mine
I'm stronger than I thought, and you can't bring me down.
Just for the thrill of it all
You did everything purely for excitement, even if it hurt others.
But then the future is blind
We can't predict what will happen in the future.
I'm good at wasting my time
I'm prone to making bad decisions or spending time on fruitless endeavors.
But I'm on my way, I've had enough
I'm on my way to a better life without you, because I've had enough of your destructive behavior.
The winter comes the wind blows cold
Difficult times will come, as sure as winter brings cold winds.
It isn't forever.
But nothing lasts forever, and things will get better eventually.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ANDY COUSIN, JULIANNE REGAN, MARK PRICE, MARTY WILSON-PIPER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
PJ Poll
Love , love , LOVE it!
Dave Hall
OH WOW! wonderful! doesn't Julianne look absolutely stunning! purrrr!
Michael Sullivan
Whatever they spent on Julianne's hair & makeup, it was worth it.