Grant made her debut in 1977 under the guidance of Myrrh Records, and became the first Christian recording act to have an album be certified platinum. Following her marriage to Gary Chapman in 1982 and a subsequent deal between her record company and A&M Records, a series of successful pop-crossover records consolidated her position as both Christian music's highest-selling act and a formidable force in mainstream music, and according to Billboard magazine she was the most successful Christian recording artist of the 1980s and 1990s.
After giving birth to her fourth child Corinna Grant Gill, Grant returned to her gospel music roots with the 2002 release of Legacy...Hymns & Faith. The album featured a Vince Gill-influenced mix of bluegrass and gospel and marked Grant's 25th anniversary in the music industry. Grant followed this up with the pop release Simple Things in 2003. The album did not see the success of her previous pop efforts, and soon after the album, Amy and Interscope/A&M parted ways.
Grant released a sequel to her hymns collection in 2005 titled Rock of Ages... Hymns & Faith. Despite publicly musing that life would be easier if she weren't working, Grant joined the reality television phenomenon by hosting Three Wishes, a show in which she and a team of helpers make wishes come true for small-town residents. The show debuted on NBC in the fall of 2005, but was cancelled in November after 10 episodes. After Three Wishes was cancelled, Grant won her 6th Grammy Award for Rock of Ages.
In a February, 2006 webchat, Amy stated she believes her "best music is still ahead".
Amy Grant recorded a live cd/dvd album in early 2006 and it was released later in the year.
To date Amy Grant has sold more than 25 million records worldwide and is a 6 time Grammy winning artist.
Big Yellow Taxi
Amy Grant Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swinging hot spot
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop, shoo-bop-bop-bop
They took all the trees and put 'em in a tree museum
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop, shoo-bop-bop-bop
Hey farmer, farmer, put away your DDT now
Give me spots on my apples but leave me the birds and the bees, please
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
I say, they paved paradise and they put up a parking lot
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop
Late last night I heard the screen door slam
And a big yellow taxi carried off my old man
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
They paved paradise and they put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop
Oh, now, they paved paradise and they put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop
Hey, steam rolled paradise and put up a parking lot
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop
Amy Grant's song Big Yellow Taxi observes how humans destroy the environment we live in with our reckless behavior. The lyrics explain how paradise, symbolically representing nature, has been destroyed to make room for parking lots, a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swinging hot spot. The first verse highlights how the location has been transformed to the extent that it is no longer recognizable, and despite the destruction, people consistently repeat the same mistake without considering the consequence until it is too late. The second verse emphasizes how people have commodified nature to such an extent that trees are no longer left to grow naturally, rather they have been moved to a museum where people are charged a premium amount to see them. The bridge of the song reflects Amy Grant's concern for the environment and sustainability. In these lines, she urges farmers to stop using DDT, a pesticide that she believes is harmful to the environment.
The final verse illustrates the impact of humans on the environment in a more personal way. The lyrics describe how the singer hears the screen door slam late at night and subsequently, a big yellow taxi takes away her old man. The taxi represents urbanization and how it has contributed to the destruction of nature, taking away what individuals hold dear but have neglected to preserve. The chorus emphasizes how quickly humans destroy nature but also emphasizes how easily we forget its worth, waiting for the absence to realize the value we have lost.
Line by Line Meaning
They paved paradise and put up a parking lot
The destruction of nature to make way for urbanization and consumerism
With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swinging hot spot
Gentrification and commercialization of natural spaces
Don't it always seem to go
A common and recurring pattern of taking nature for granted
That you don't know what you've got till it's gone
The appreciation of nature comes when it's too late
Shoo-bop-bop-bop-bop, shoo-bop-bop-bop
A catchy chorus used to emphasize the message of the song
They took all the trees and put 'em in a tree museum
The absurdity of treating nature as a commodity, rather than a living entity
And then they charged all the people twenty-five bucks just to see 'em
The commodification of nature results in exploitation and greed
Hey farmer, farmer, put away your DDT now
The song addresses the need to stop using harmful chemicals in agriculture
Give me spots on my apples but leave me the birds and the bees, please
The emphasis on the importance of preserving ecosystems and wildlife
Late last night I heard the screen door slam
The personal impact of urbanization and environmental degradation
And a big yellow taxi carried off my old man
The metaphor of a taxi taking away something precious, just like how urbanization takes away nature
Oh, now, they paved paradise and they put up a parking lot
The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the point made in the song
Hey, steam rolled paradise and put up a parking lot
The use of a metaphorical phrase to describe the destruction of nature
Lyrics © Reservoir Media Management, Inc.
Written by: Joni Mitchell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
M3mphix
Such a beautiful voice. So many versions of this track, but this'll always be my favorite.
sirknight1399
Mine too.
BCJ1985
@Tesla The Counting Crows version is absolutely horrible. They're the parking lot.
DrumGuyC
Me too, great voice and beautiful lady!
MA6391 Aivoges
mine too. it's my favorite. Love Amy's voice.
Joe Boxer
@Tesla heard it before this and nothing beat the original, but this one is a close second
Jose Araujo
I love this version of the song because it was the first one i've heard back in 1995 a great year for music IMO :-)
Holly Sierra
Lol and it was a good year to be born #1995baby
Evangelia Katsaris
Grew up with Amy Grant s songs. May she be healthy and happy and safe and strong to keep singing.. Patience.... God bless you and your family Amy Grant
BlueLineGroovy
I absolutely love love love this version. Very clean, crisp, and real.