He was born in Fyzabad, Trinidad and Tobago to Grenadian parents, and moved to England with his family at the age of eight. Oceans' musical influence came at an early age of his life, as his father was a musician, and realised he was inline to follow those ambitions as he was growing up. During his teenage years, he sang regularly in London clubs while also working as a tailor in London's Savile Row. He released his first single in 1972 on Spark Records as Les Charles.
When in Trinidad as a boy he adopted the name Billy Ocean, taking the surname from the local football team 'Ocean's Eleven', who had gotten the name from the famous film of the same name. The next year, 1976, was when he recorded his first album, Billy Ocean, with its first single release, "Love Really Hurts Without You," charting at number 2 in the UK Singles Chart and number 22 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. More successes ensued, including "L.O.D. (Love On Delivery)". He also wrote songs for other artists, such as La Toya Jackson. In 1981, he scored the U.S. R&B chart with "Nights (Feel Like Getting Down)".
Ocean's period of greatest success began with Suddenly during 1984, and its main single, "Caribbean Queen". The song's title and lyrics were changed for different regions, such that the song is also known as "African Queen" or "European Queen". The song won Ocean the Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 1985 Grammy Awards. The album's title track also became a success, its score maximizing at #4 in both the US and the UK; and the song "Loverboy", while also being a #2 US success during 1985, from the album, was also the background music for the first scene of the popular UK BBC One TV series, Casualty, during 1986.
Ocean appeared at Live Aid in 1985, singing "Caribbean Queen" and "Loverboy", from the JFK Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
His 1986 album Love Zone also sold well. It included the successful singles "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" (the theme from the film The Jewel of the Nile); this was a number one success in the UK and a number two in the U.S.; and "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)" (a U.S. number one, and also a major UK success). Also included were the title track and "Love Is Forever", which were #10 and #16 U.S. successes for Ocean, respectively.
In February 1986, Ocean's video of "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" was banned by the BBC, owing to non-union members (including Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito) miming to backing vocals.
Ocean's next album, Tear Down These Walls (1988) featured another number one single, "Get Outta My Dreams, Get into My Car", while the album was certified platinum.
His 1993 album Time to Move On failed to produce any major successes, but his 1989 Greatest Hits collection has been a steady seller over the years, and his 1997 compilation Love Is For Ever made #7 on the UK album chart. Ocean's last studio album for Jive Records was Time to Move On, which he recorded in Chicago with R&B star R. Kelly. It turned out that R. Kelly had been a long-time admirer of the way Ocean was able to mix the more emotive soul style with a crossover popular style.
In 2002, the University of Westminster awarded Ocean an honorary doctorate of music. The awards ceremony took place in the Barbican Centre, in London. He continues to tour and record in Europe. He lives in Sunningdale, Berkshire with his wife of 27 years, Judy; and their three children Cherie, Antony and Rachel. Ocean is now a patron for Tech Music Schools in London, made up of Drumtech, Vocaltech, Guitar-X and Keyboardtech. He regularly visits to hold clinics and seminars for the students.
In October 2007, Ocean commenced his first British tour in over 15 years. In February and March 2008 he toured Australia and the Far East. His new album, Because I Love You was released on 2 February 2009. To coincide with this new tour and album launch, Ocean has been working with Adoseof Design on a website revision which is due March 2009.
For more information got to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Ocean
The Colour Of Love
Billy Ocean Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I had to paint a picture
To show the world how true love can really be
I would use the brightest colors
To create a vision of harmony
It would be a reality
Cause its only what's inside of my heart
You would see I've always loved you right from the very start
Tell me what is the color of love?
What do you see?
Is it warm is it tender when you think of me
I see the color of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect painting of love forever true
The colors of the rainbow turn grey whenever you're so far away
It changes like the seasons
You're the reason it happens that way
What you see are colors of emotion
Reflecting what I feel deep inside
Now I'd like to take a look at emotions that you hide
Tell me what is the color of love?
What do you see?
Is it warm is it tender when you think of me
I see the color of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect painting of love forever true
And oh though many may try to keep us apart
Oh the colors that I see in you will shine a light to see us through
No matter what the world will do I'll always love you
Ooh ooh ooh
Oh what is the color of love oh tell me tell me
Oh I want to know I want to know - when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect paining of love forever true
Billy Ocean's song "The Colour of Love" is a poetic masterpiece that describes how the world would look if true love was represented by colors. The song suggests that if love was to be painted, it would be created using the brightest colors to harmoniously display the depth of one's feelings. Ocean goes ahead to explain the emotional attachment and how love deeply resides inside his heart even from the start of the relationship. He is curious and wonders what color represents love and if the thought of him invokes warmth and tenderness.
Ocean further describes how colors turn grey when the one they love is away. He goes ahead to list the colors that portray his emotions, reflecting how deeply he feels inside. The song highlights how as human beings, we may hide our emotions for fear of being hurt, but love never hides. The song also suggests that love is indefeasible and that no matter what comes between two people in love, the colors that resonate with them will always shine a light that will see them through.
In summary, "The Colour of Love" is a song that highlights the beauty and depth of true love. It describes how love transcends physical barriers and how emotions and colors are intertwined. It portrays love as an indefatigable force, which will remain true no matter the circumstances, and ultimately will shine brightly forever.
Line by Line Meaning
If I had to paint a picture
If I needed to express true love through art
To show the world how true love can really be
To demonstrate the reality of pure love
I would use the brightest colors
I would use the most vibrant and lively colors
To create a vision of harmony
To produce a depiction of a peaceful and unified image
It would be a reality
It would be an actual and existing feeling
Cause its only what's inside of my heart
Because it's solely what I feel within my heart
You would see I've always loved you right from the very start
You will understand that I have loved you since the beginning
Tell me what is the color of love?
Can you describe the color that symbolizes love?
What do you see?
Do you have a particular image or vision of love?
Is it warm is it tender when you think of me
Is it a sweet and gentle feelings when you think of me?
I see the color of love when I'm thinking of you
I perceive the sensation of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect painting of love forever true
It's a flawless portrayal of eternal love, like a masterpiece painting
The colors of the rainbow turn grey whenever you're so far away
The brightness and vivacity of the world turns dull and colorless whenever you're away
It changes like the seasons
It transforms similar to how the seasons change
You're the reason it happens that way
It happens that way because of you
What you see are colors of emotion
The things you encounter are the emotions that are shown through colors
Reflecting what I feel deep inside
Revealing the emotions that flows deep within me
Now I'd like to take a look at emotions that you hide
I want to observe the feelings that you keep concealed
And oh though many may try to keep us apart
Despite the efforts of many to keep us separated
Oh the colors that I see in you will shine a light to see us through
The positive attributes that I perceive in you will guide us through hardships
No matter what the world will do I'll always love you
I'll continue to love you regardless of what goes on around us
Oh what is the color of love oh tell me tell me
What is the precise color that represents love, please advise me
Oh I want to know I want to know - when I'm thinking of you
I genuinely want to comprehend, as it pertains to you and my thoughts of you
As a picture perfect painting of love forever true
As a flawless representation of love that will last forever
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Barry James Eastmond, Billy Ocean, Jolyon W Skinner, Wayne Anton Brathwaite
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@user-jn9dl9px6r
If I had to paint a picture
To show the world how true love can really be
I would use the brightest colours
To create a vision of harmony
It would be a reality
Cause it's only what's inside of my heart
You would see I've always loved you
Right from the very start
Tell me what is the colour of love, what do you see
Is it warm, is it tender when you think of me
I see the colour of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect painting of a love forever true
The colours of the rainbow
Turn grey whenever you're so far away
It changes like the seasons
You're the reason it happens that way
What you see are colours of emotion
Reflecting what I feel deep inside
Now I'd like to take a look
At emotions that you hide
Tell me what is the colour of love, what do you see
Is it warm, is it tender when you think of me
I see the colour of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect painting of a love forever true
And oh, though many may try to keep us apart
Oh the colours that I see in you
Will shine a light to see us through
No matter what the world will do, I'll always love you
Tell me what is the colour of love, what do you see
Is it warm, is it tender when you think of me
I see the colour of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect painting of a love forever true
What is the colour of love, oh tell me, tell me
Oh I wanna know, I wanna know
I see the colour of love when I'm thinking of you
As a picture perfect paining of a love forever true
@jonathankhanh8840
The current generation sadly doesnt appreciate this kinda music
@jb5xq
Sadly... it's deep
@artvandelay5
im here loser
@cynthiastewart9322
Still sounding good in 2024
@debrawright9451
There's not a person on the face of this Earth who can't tell me that this man don't sing from the pit of his stomach and very depths of his soul.
@theresajesselli4880
Yes he does.he is fabulous 😁❤️
@manuelvasquezt6836
Mao ba, slang punny blue
@michaelk969
How true! From the depth of his soul!
@TyeArtisik
💯
@john-hu6tt
No arguing there, that man could sing.