Belle and Sebastian released their first two albums in 1996: Tigermilk, recorded over three days, and If You're Feeling Sinister, recorded in a week, at the peak of the chamber pop movement. At first, some critics in Britain's music weeklies tied the band into the subgenre, yet the group was too pretty, too delicate, to bear that label. Through their first two years of public existence, the band shielded their personalities, submitting publicity photos featuring a girl, who was a friend of the band and reluctantly posing for photo shoots. Furthermore, they performed in odd venues, playing not only the standard coffeehouses and cafes, but also homes, church halls, and libraries.
Prior to the formation of Belle and Sebastian, Murdoch suffered from a protracted battle with chronic fatigue syndrome, which forced him to drop out of school and spend seven years living in his parents' home crippled by his condition.Whilst in his parents home, Murdoch wrote a short story about a boy named Sebastian and a girl named Isabelle based on the names from Madame Cecile Aubery's children's book Belle et Sebastian. On New Year's Day 1996, Stuart attended a party at which he met a young singer and cellist named Isobel Campbell. In a letter to his brother Fraser, Murdoch explained how he was making a single for Stow college at the end of February. Murdoch opted to use the name Belle&Sebastian for the project because it was occupying him at the time. Murdoch took to songwriting as an escapism from the four walls surrounding him in his room and eventually recorded demos with bassist Stuart David whom he met at a government training programme called Beatbox. Murdoch quickly met a series of other musicians through social and musical circles in his hometown Glasgow and they agreed to help with the Stow project. The members he found for this initial lineup were Stevie Jackson (guitar), Mick Cooke (trumpet), Chris Geddes (keyboards), Stuart David (bass), Richard Colburn (drums), and Isobel Campbell (cello). The Stow College record was to be issued by Electric Honey, but it turned into a full album. The course instructor Alan Rankine determined that Murdoch had enough good material to record a full LP and could do so if they could get it all done in three days, studio time allotted for the single. Murdoch and his musicians rose to the challenge and recorded ten tracks putting the songs in order as they would appear on the record and mostly completing them in just a few takes.
In May of 1996, Belle and Sebastian self-released their debut album, Tigermilk, on Electric Honey Records. Only 1,000 copies of the album, which was only pressed on vinyl, were released, but it unexpectedly became a sensation, earning terrific word of mouth throughout the UK. As a result, the band became slightly more than a school project — it became an actual band. If You're Feeling Sinister, released on the independent Jeepster label, followed in November of 1996. By the time the album was released in America on the EMI subsidiary The Enclave, it had earned considerable critical acclaim in the U.K. — not only from music weeklies, but from newspapers like The Sunday Times and magazines like The Face — and a large cult following; by some accounts, Tigermilk was being sold for as much as 75 pounds. Over the course of 1997, word of mouth continued to grow in America, even as the band pulled out of an American tour because The Enclave went bankrupt and closed.
As the band cult continued to build in 1997, Belle and Sebastian released three EPs — Dog on Wheels (May), Lazy Line Painter Jane (July), and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds of Light (October). Each subsequent EP placed higher on the indie charts and received great critical acclaim. Later in the year, violinist Sarah Martin became a member of the band. By the end of the year, the group finalized an American deal with Matador Records, issuing The Boy With the Arab Strap in September 1998. The following year saw the eagerly anticipated wide re-release of Tigermilk, the album that started it all. It was the biggest selling album but is unpopular with the group themselves. Following completion of 2000's Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like a Peasant, Stuart David left Belle and Sebastian to focus full-time on his solo project, Looper, being replaced by Bobby Kildea of V-Twin. In 2001, the group released two EPs — Jonathan David and I'm Waking Up to Us — and recorded the soundtrack for Todd Solondz's film Storytelling. Just before the soundtrack's release in spring 2002, Belle and Sebastian embarked on a comprehensive tour of the United States and Canada before returning to Europe for the summer festival season. Midway through the tour, Isobel Campbell left the band, citing the usual differences.
Another major change that soon took place was the band leaving Jeepster and Matador to sign with Rough Trade, with their next record, late 2003's Dear Catastrophe Waitress, produced by the inimitable Trevor Horn (who also produced Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Yes, and scores of others). The record spawned the brilliant "Step into My Office, Baby" and "I'm a Cuckoo" singles, the latter of which was the group's biggest U.K. hit, reaching number 14 in early 2004. After a long worldwide tour that found Belle and Sebastian reaching new levels of success, they retired to Scotland and began preparing for the recording of their seventh full length album, The Life Pursuit, released in 2006.
In 2010, they released their eighth full length album, Write About Love.
Official website: www.belleandsebastian.com
Legal Man
Belle and Sebastian Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
L-O-V-E love, it's coming back, it's coming back
Refer to our discussions, confirm the terms of our love affair
I exercise all options, and I know I'll see you there
BA-BA-BA etc. etc.
L-O-V-E love, it's coming back, it's coming back
L-O-V-E love, it's coming back, it's coming back
Not withstanding provisions of clauses 1,2,3 and 4
You're the Legal Man, you've got to prove that you're no liar
I'll render services that you may reasonably require
L-O-V-E love, it's coming back, it's coming back
L-O-V-E love, it's coming back, it's coming back
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Get out of the office and into the springtime
The lyrics to Belle and Sebastian’s song “Legal Man” are a playful and tongue-in-cheek exploration of the language and concepts of business contracts applied to a romantic relationship. The singer likens love to a legal agreement, repeatedly calling for its return and referring to “discussions” and “confirmations.” The lyrics even include a clause specifying that the contract between the singer and their partner will be extended “forevermore”. The playful tone ramps up in the second verse as the singer declares their commitment to the relationship, calling their partner the “Legal Man” and offering to “render services” as required.
The repetition of the phrase “Get out of the city and into the sunshine / Get out of the office and into the springtime” adds to the playful tone of the song, as it suggests the traditional idea of escaping the drudgery and constraints of work life for a more carefree and romantic existence. Overall, the song is an upbeat celebration of the joys of love and playful poke at the formalities of business life.
Line by Line Meaning
L-O-V-E love, it's coming back, it's coming back
Love is returning, it's coming back
Refer to our discussions, confirm the terms of our love affair
Let's revisit our past conversations and make sure we are on the same page about our relationship
I exercise all options, and I know I'll see you there
I will explore all possibilities and I am confident I will meet you in the end
BA-BA-BA etc. etc.
Non-lyrical portion of the song
Not withstanding provisions of clauses 1,2,3 and 4
Despite the terms laid out in previous agreements
Extend contractual period, me and you for evermore
Let's extend our contract, you and I together for eternity
You're the Legal Man, you've got to prove that you're no liar
As the legal representative, you must demonstrate that you are truthful
I'll render services that you may reasonably require
I will provide the necessary services that you reasonably request
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Escape the busyness of urban life and enjoy the sun
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Leave work behind and embrace the renewal of spring
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Escape the busyness of urban life and enjoy the sun
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Leave work behind and embrace the renewal of spring
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Escape the busyness of urban life and enjoy the sun
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Leave work behind and embrace the renewal of spring
Get out of the city and into the sunshine
Escape the busyness of urban life and enjoy the sun
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Leave work behind and embrace the renewal of spring
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CAMPBE, CHRISTOPHER GEDDES, ISOBEL CAMPBELL, MICHAEL COOKE, RICHARD COLBURN, SARAH MARTIN, STEPHEN JACKSON, STUART MURDOCH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Patrick Stocks
L-O-V-E love, it’s coming back, it’s coming back
L-O-V-E love, it’s coming back, it’s coming back
Refer to our discussions, confirm the terms of our love affair
I exercise all options, and I know I’ll see you there
BA-BA-BA etc. Etc.
L-O-V-E love, it’s coming back, it’s coming back
L-O-V-E love, it’s coming back, it’s coming back
Not withstanding provisions of clauses 1 2 3 & 4
Extend contractual period, me and you for evermore
You’re the Legal Man 👨 you’ve got to prove that you’re no liar 🤥
I’ll render services that you may reasonably require
L-O-V-E love, it’s coming back, it’s coming back
L-O-V-E love, it’s coming back, it’s coming back
Get out of the city and into the sunshine 🌞
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Get out of the city and into the sunshine 🌞
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Get out of the city and into the sunshine 🌞
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Get out of the city and into the sunshine 🌞
Get out of the office and into the springtime
Jack Duncan
Great song by Scotland’s greatest band.
Steve Forest
What? You mean ever better than the Bay City Rollers?
Jack Duncan
Steve Forest ha ha, good one.
Emerson Tomasini
Cocteau Twins are amazing too.
Lytton Martin
This has always been my favorite B&S song and I had no idea that there was a video for it until today. Great video! I think the lawyer is played by none other than "Roj Blake" himself - Gareth Thomas!!!! Can anyone confirm? Blake's 7 was one of my all-time sci-fi favorites!
Bravo!
John Preston
He was born five years after my mother - who is still with us -, and died in 2016. Hopefully you have not been checking up every day for five years to get the answer, but yes, he is the actor who led the 7.
Pippa Daisychain
I thought I recognised him. I've been a huge Blake's 7 fan all my life. I only regret I never took the chance to meet Gareth Thomas when I could have done but I was busy talking to Paul Darrow. Gareth was also in Children Of The Stones and Torchwood.
MisterNewOutlook
They returned to this style of "era pastiche" in full with The Life Pursuit and it leaves no doubt that Murdoch is a superb expert at production to get it just right. His band deserves every accolade. Very few groups can do it this well.
Richard Arriaga
God, I love this song!
Luiz Caniza
Wow, what a perfect pop song!