Auf der Maur became friends with Billy Corgan after apologizing for a friend who threw a beer bottle at him during one of The Smashing Pumpkins' Canadian shows. Her band, Tinker, opened for The Smashing Pumpkins in Montréal in 1993. In 1994, when Hole was in need of a new bassist following the death of Kristen Pfaff, Corgan recommended Auf der Maur to Courtney Love. Auf der Maur originally turned down the job but reconsidered on advice from her father. She joined Hole two weeks before the band's appearance at the Reading Festival, and recorded the band's third album Celebrity Skin. She left on October 20, 1999 after the band's tours in promotion of the album.
In 1999, she joined The Smashing Pumpkins after the departure of D'arcy Wretzky, and remained with the band until they disbanded in 2000. After this, she collaborated with a number of artists. In 2001, she sang on Rufus Wainwright's album, Poses. In 2002, she sang with Nicola Sirkis on the French band Indochine's song "Le Grand Secret."
In 2004, she released her debut album, Auf der Maur. The singles "Followed the Waves", "Real A Lie" and "Taste You" garnered significant airplay on modern rock radio. Six years later, she released her long-awaited follow-up, Out of Our Minds, in 2010, which featured a more obscure approach to songwriting and featured an appearance from Glenn Danzig.
Lightning Is My Girl
Auf Der Maur Lyrics
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Tuck me into my bed
Gonna let that man
Let him into my head
I'll see you in my dreams
Electrified and cherry red
And I'll, meet you on the corner
Seeking cherry colo
As the bridging wine
To bring you to my lips, one more time
Kissing on the corner
I know it's a dream,
It's better than day time,
Cause dream time lasts forever
Swarming on the corner,
Bringing rain, dream time is over
'Til lightning strikes again
And I'll, meet you on the corner
Under true blue skies
Seeking cherry cola
As the bridging wine
To bring you to my lips, one more time
The sun has crept in,
Away with the night
Good-bye to my lover
I'm back in bed
But lightning is my girl,
And promises me
To bring me to that corner, again and again
And I'll, meet you on the corner
Under true blue skies
Seeking cherry cola
As the bridging wine
To bring you to my lips, one more time
There was a little girl
Who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead
The song Lightning Is My Girl by Auf Der Maur is a dreamy and atmospheric piece about longing, desire, and the power of lightning to reignite those feelings. The lyrics employ vivid imagery and metaphors to paint a picture of a solitary figure who finds solace and comfort in the natural spectacle of lightning. The persona of the song expresses her willingness to be taken over by the forces of nature, willing to let the lightning tuck her into bed and enter her head. The idea is that the electricity from the lightning will electrify and invigorate her, leaving her feeling hopeful and alive.
The central image of the song is the corner, a place where people often wait for someone or something to happen. The persona is waiting on the corner for her lover, seeking cherry cola as the bridging wine to bring her lover to her lips one more time. The corner in the song represents the intersection of reality and fantasy, where the persona can indulge in her wildest dreams and a place where desires can be fulfilled.
The lyrics make use of the nursery rhyme "There was a little girl/Who had a little curl/Right in the middle of her forehead." The reference to the nursery rhyme is a callback to childhood innocence and a simpler time, juxtaposed against the sexuality and hopefulness of the song. The lightning is the metaphor for the persona's passion, igniting the dormant feelings and desires that she had, allowing her to connect with her lover.
Line by Line Meaning
Gonna let the lightning
I'm surrendering to the power of lightning
Tuck me into my bed
It's like bedtime; I'm letting go
Gonna let that man
I'm allowing lightning to enter my thoughts
Let him into my head
I'll make a connection with lightning
I'll see you in my dreams
I'll dream of being electrified and intense
Electrified and cherry red
Being aroused and powerful, like lightning
And I'll, meet you on the corner
I'll wait for you where we've met before
Under true blue skies
Beneath a flawless sky, we'll be together
Seeking cherry cola
I want what we had before
As the bridging wine
This will connect us
To bring you to my lips, one more time
To taste what we had before, once again
Kissing on the corner
I'm getting a memory of us kissing at a corner
I know it's a dream,
I know it's not real
It's better than day time,
It's better than daytime memories
Cause dream time lasts forever
Dreams can last as long as you want
Swarming on the corner,
Memories flood back
Bringing rain, dream time is over
Reality comes back, just like rain
'Til lightning strikes again
Until the memory comes back again
The sun has crept in,
The day has started
Away with the night
Nighttime memories are over
Good-bye to my lover
I say goodbye to the old memory
I'm back in bed
I'm back where I started
But lightning is my girl,
But my memory of lightning still remains
And promises me
And it's a promise
To bring me to that corner, again and again
That the memory will come back again and again
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Melissa Auf de Maur
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind