Jones had begun writing songs and recording home demos as part of an experimental theatre group in Sheffield. A collection of these demos (I Was Born a Man) was released in the summer of 1995, under the name Baby Bird. Following a warm critical reception for this record, he recruited a band made up of Huw Chadbourne (keyboards), Robert Gregory (drums), John Pedder (bass) and Luke Scott (guitar), in order to tour and promote his work.
During 1995, two further albums of demo recordings were released under the name Baby Bird (Bad Shave and Fatherhood) and two in 1996 (The Happiest Man Alive and Dying Happy).
By the end of the year, a decent public following had been built up, as well as quite considerable excitment within the press and music industry. Babybird were signed to Echo Records (a division of the Chrysalis Group), and the first "proper" single, a full-band recording of "Goodnight", which had appeared in demo form on Fatherhood, was eventually released in the summer of 1996, becoming a minor chart hit in the UK.
"You're Gorgeous"
The second single, You're Gorgeous, reached number 3 in the UK in October 1996, and was also one of the biggest selling singles of the year, going on to chart around the world. This remains the song for which Stephen Jones and Babybird are best known.
However, it presented a much more commercial face to the public in comparison to Jones' previous work. The early demo albums won Jones great credibility with those who heard them, but had not reached a wide audience (each one being a one-off pressing). Arguably, the commercial sound and success of "You're Gorgeous", which received massive exposure by comparison, made it hard for many to take Jones seriously as an indie artist. Essentially, what he was best at was no longer what he was best known for.
After "You're Gorgeous"
The album Ugly Beautiful was released to a warm reception, but was not the unmitigated critical triumph that some had anticipated from Babybird's first studio-recorded album. The album produced two more hit singles, Candy Girl and Cornershop.
Babybird returned, minus keyboardist Huw Chadbourne, in 1998 with There's Something Going On, preceded by a single, Bad Old Man. The album was a modest success and was followed by further minor hits, If You'll Be Mine and Back Together.
In 2000, a line-up of Babybird comprising Stephen Jones, Luke Scott and Matt Hay created a third album. Bugged, which was well-received critically (it might be suggested that it is an album of the right quality, but four years later than expected). However, sales were poor and the two singles from it, The F-Word (later the theme tune to a UK TV cookery show of the same name) and Out of Sight barely dented the charts. Babybird were dropped by their record label soon after. A third single from the album Fireflies was released on Animal Noise records, but sold few copies. The band subsequently split.
Stephen Jones went on to write fiction, release solo work and score a film, Blessed, in 2004.
In October 2005, a posting on the official Babybird website announced that the band had reformed as a three-piece featuring Stephen, Luke Scott and Robert Gregory, and would be releasing new material in 2006.
The last CD, called "Between My Ears There's Nothing But Music", was released in autumn 2006 and didn't seem to have encountered a big success.
Stephen Jones has also released Solo material, not to be confused with the american artist of the same name.
In September 2009, Stephen Jones launched an online Babybird community, on which he regularly posts.
A brief tour of the UK was undertaken in November 2009 with the lineup of Stephen Jones, Luke Scott and Robert Gregory. This tour was to promote the new album, Ex-Maniac, due for release in February 2010. Johnny Depp, a long time fan, appears on the album Ex-Maniac, as guitarist in the first single off the album, Unloveable.
Back Together
Babybird Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
and come back to me
without you this house is a hearse without wheels
you can't work out which cringing
which cringing feels worse
when I touch you like this
on the place that it hurts
if you don't I will steal it
all the things that you've lost
I can reel them in
now I'm falling apart every minute of every hour
but you're here to put me back together again
When I don't know where you are
I feel lost
your trail feels so warm
but I'm covered with frost
when I left in the morning
she smelled so good
then I whispered quite nicely, quite rightly
I can make you feel good
you can make me feel bad
I'll never get you back
so you'll never be sad
give me all that you have
if you dont I will find it
all the things that you've lost
I can reel them in
now you're falling apart
every moment of every day
you're not here to put me
back together again
Give me all that you have
if you don't I will steal it
all the things that you've lost
I can reel them in
now you're falling apart every moment of every day
you're not here to put me back together again
The lyrics of "Back Together" by Babybird express the desperation and pain of a person yearning for their lover to come back to them. The persona pleads with their lover to put the car in reverse and come back to them because the state of their house and life is unbearable without them. The persona agonizes over the feeling of cringing created by the absence of their lover and touches them on the spot that hurts the most when together.
In the second verse, there is a feeling of being lost without the lover, as the persona's trail could once be felt warmly, but now they feel covered in frost. The song hints at the idea of cheating as the persona describes leaving someone in the morning who smelled good and whispered that they could make them feel good. The persona acknowledges that while their lover could make them feel bad, they could never get them back, so they will never be sad. The last stanzas of the song reiterate the desperation for the lover to return, how everything they have lost can be reeled back in, and how they need to be put back together again by their lover.
Overall, the lyrics of "Back Together" by Babybird speak to the universal feelings of loss and heartbreak that most people can relate to. The song is a call for reconciliation and the healing of a broken relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Put the car in reverse
and come back to me
I want you to come back to me as I feel like I am stuck and can't move forward without you.
without you this house is a hearse without wheels
you can't work out which cringing
which cringing feels worse
This house is so lifeless without you and it feels like a funeral that is unable to move without its wheels. I can't decide whether it's worse to be stuck in this situation or to think about the possible outcomes.
when I touch you like this
on the place that it hurts
I know where it hurts you and that is exactly where I will touch you to ease your pain.
Give me all that you have
if you don't I will steal it
all the things that you've lost
I can reel them in
now I'm falling apart every minute of every hour
but you're here to put me back together again
I need everything that you can offer me, and if you don't give it to me willingly, I will take it. I can retrieve everything that you have lost. Even though I am falling apart without you, you have the power to put me back together and give me a sense of wholeness.
When I don't know where you are
I feel lost
your trail feels so warm
but I'm covered with frost
when I left in the morning
she smelled so good
then I whispered quite nicely, quite rightly
If I don't know where you are, I feel helpless and alone. It seems like you are leaving a trail behind, but I am still feeling the coldness and numbness from your absence. When I left in the morning, I remember how good you smelled and I whispered something nice and right.
I can make you feel good
you can make me feel bad
I'll never get you back
so you'll never be sad
I know how to make you feel happy, but in doing so, I feel sad myself. I know I won't be able to get you back, and that is why I am glad that you won't be saddened by our separation.
now you're falling apart
every moment of every day
you're not here to put me
back together again
It seems like you are also falling apart because of our separation, and now I feel so empty without you. I need you to put me back together again, but you are not here to do so.
Contributed by Caleb R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.