It started in 1997 with their debut single Sunrise, the first step towards producing their own tracks. Nowadays, one cannot imagine the electronic elite without BLANK & JONES. 13 of their singles made it into the German Top 50, and three into the Top 20. Each and every album hit the Top 50, including two which climbed into the Top 10. They also scored a spectacular triple whammy by occupying the Top Ten album, singles and compilation charts simultaneously with Substance, Desire and The Mix respectively.
BLANK & JONES have teamed up with a number of top international stars in their career to date. The Cure mastermind Robert Smith, Bernard Sumner (New Order), Anne Clark, Sarah McLachlan and Claudia BrĂŒcken (Propaganda) have been immortalized on BLANK & JONES tracks, giving them a certain credibility way beyond the boundaries of dance music. Further evidence of their versatility can be seen in their contributions to the CafĂ© del Mar compilation series and their own chill-out albums, Relax and Relax (Edition 2). Next up, the people behind the Buddha Bar series have also made enquiries..
The release of the A Forest single and the accompanying album Monument in the USA last year also laid the foundations for BLANK & JONES to create a solid fanbase across the Atlantic.
Seven albums, 3 mix albums (The Mix 1-3) and 15 singles later, BLANK & JONES and their longstanding production colleague Andy Kaufhold have chosen this moment to collate their finest material on one release - The Singles. Comprising the best tracks and greatest successes of BLANK & JONES plus two brand new tracks, recorded exclusively for this album. âWe felt the time had come to put all our singles together on one CD, â Piet and Jaspa explain. âWe prefer to see it as one step along the way, rather than a mere retrospective. A little breather before we move on to pastures new.â
Over 20 tracks were in the reckoning for The Singles collection, most of them penned by BLANK & JONES themselves. From the first single Sunrise via chart smashes such as Desire, DJ Culture and Beyond Time all the way to entrancing collaborations with the like of Elles DeGraaf on Mind Of The Wonderful, Claudia BrĂŒcken on Unknown Treasure and Steve Kilbey (The Church) on Revealed, the album is packed with original material. One of the few covers is, of course, A Forest with Robert Smith of The Cure on vocals.
An absolute must for fans is the all new WMC Retouch version of Nightfly, direct from the Miami Winter Music Conference (WMC), where BLANK & JONES headlined in March of this year. So new, the track was hot to the touch as it made its way onto the album, having been premiered to rave reactions at the dance convention. BLANK & JONESâ Nightfly WMC Retouch was the talk of the town the following morning on various online sites and blogs.
The album also features two completely new tracks. One is Somebody and the other is Catch, the newest single, based on Kosheenâs 1998 tune. Vocals supplied once again by the fantastic Elles DeGraaf.
BLANK & JONES have taken the utmost care in getting the sound right. Tracks have been remastered but not remixed. âOur aim was to retain the flair of each original trackâ Piet and Jaspa elucidate. âWe wanted them to sound just as they did when we made them, but clearer, in the same way as one restores a painting. You donât paint it from scratch, you just bring out the colours again.â Such loving attention to detail is typical of BLANK & JONES, making them the artists they are today, ready and able to see the bigger picture.
The album is also being released in Limited Edition format, in which The Singles are complemented by an additional DVD, bringing together all BLANK & JONES videos on one disc for the first time. The BLANK & JONES clips are something worth seeing, with a artistic quality rarely seen in such a genre. BLANK & JONESâ dramatic credentials are matched by their sense of humour. Numerous famous names have featured in their videos, including Estella Warren and Til Schweiger in Beyond Time, the latter having also directed the clip.
The DVD was produced and designed by Thomas Jahn, renowned as scriptwriter and director of âKnocking On Heavenâs Doorâ and also the man responsible for The Hardest Heart, Mind Of The Wonderful, Perfect Silence and Desire.
The video for the latest single, Catch, was directed by Conchita Soares and Toni Froschhammer and features the thespian talents of TV actress Nadine. The piece will not only be presented on the music channels, but will also be shown at short film festivals over the summer.
BLANK & JONESâ roots are firmly placed in DJ culture. Year after year, millions of ravers around the globe feel the heat of their sensational sets at major events like Mayday, Nature One and Love Parade as well as in clubs all over the world. BLANK & JONES mix DJ and live, making the most of todayâs technology. âWe do everything digitally, on the basis of Final Scratch, which allows us to use our own edits and mixes, nothing comes straight from tape. Every set we play is unique, not only sound-wise but also in terms of what we play and how we play it. Roughly 60% of our set consists of our own repertoire, as where better to present our own material than via the DJ decks.â
BLANK & JONES are global players in the best sense of the word, with a worldwide reputation to match. They are more than welcome guests at the major festivals and raves in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Russia. At the beginning of the year, they played to 15,000 fans in St. Petersburg! They also travel further afield on a regular basis, to Canada, Mexico, South America and Australia.
2005 saw BLANK & JONES spend a lot of time in the USA, where A Forest proved to be a big success. Electronic music is growing and growing Stateside, so BLANK & JONES will return to LA, San Diego, San Francisco and many more cities in North America this year. Overwhelmingly positive reactions to Catch on the initial installment of the BLANK & JONES tour mean that the American fans can hardly wait for The Singles to be released. This will be the third BLANK & JONES US album.
Not content to rest on their laurels, Piet and Jaspa are already preparing an exciting, new and unusual project. On May 26th, BLANK & JONES will perform together with the Robert Schumann Kammerorchester conducted by Alexander Shelly in the Tonhalle DĂŒsseldorf. The definitive electro-classical crossover extravaganza!
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People From Ibiza
Blank & Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Why do the neighbors chatter all day, behind their doors?
I know a way to prove what they say is quite untrue.
Here is the gist, a practical list of "donts" for you.
Don't throw bouquets at me
Don't please my folks too much
Don't laugh at my jokes too much
Don't sigh and gaze at me
Your sighs are so like mine
Your eyes mustn't glow like mine
People will say we're in love!
Don't start collecting things
Give me my rose and my glove.
Sweetheart they're suspecting things
People will say we're in love.
Don't praise my charm too much
Don't look so vain with me
Don't stand in the rain with me
People will say we're in love!
Don't take my arm too much
Don't keep your hand in mine
Your hand feels so grand in mine
People will say we're in love!
Don't dance all night with me
Till the stars fade from above.
They'll see it's alright with me
People will say we're in love.
The song "People from Ibiza" by Blank & Jones is an intriguing one because the lyrics seem to be a mashup of two different songs from two different eras. The first part of the song talks about the rumors and gossip surrounding two individuals and how they are being linked together. This theme is reminiscent of old Hollywood romance movies where the paparazzi are always trying to link two stars together. The lyrics "Why do they think up stories that link my name with yours? Why do the neighbors chatter all day, behind their doors?" is an illustration of when two people are constantly under scrutiny and judgment from the public.
The second part of the song is based on an old classic musical song called "People Will Say We're In Love" from the musical "Oklahoma!" by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. The song talks about the fear of being judged by others and how to avoid giving the appearance of being in love to the public. The lyrics "Don't sigh and gaze at me, Your sighs are so like mine, Your eyes mustn't glow like mine, People will say we're in love!" is an illustration of the fear of being exposed for something one might not want to happen.
Overall, the song "People from Ibiza" is a unique combination of two different themed songs, the first, focusing on scrutiny and the second on appearances. This combination adds depth to the song, making it more interesting.
Line by Line Meaning
Why do they think up stories that link my name with yours?
Why are people coming up with rumors that connect us?
Why do the neighbors chatter all day, behind their doors?
Why are the neighbors gossiping about us, behind closed doors?
I know a way to prove what they say is quite untrue.
I have a solution to prove that the rumors they spread are false.
Here is the gist, a practical list of "donts" for you.
Here's a summary of things we shouldn't do, to avoid people speculating about us.
Don't throw bouquets at me
Don't shower me with compliments.
Don't please my folks too much
Don't try too hard to impress my family.
Don't laugh at my jokes too much
Don't fake laughter at my jokes excessively.
People will say we're in love!
Otherwise, people will assume that we're romantically involved.
Don't sigh and gaze at me
Don't gaze at me longingly and sigh.
Your sighs are so like mine
Your sighs and mine sound exactly alike.
Your eyes mustn't glow like mine
Your eyes shouldn't light up like mine do when we're together.
Don't start collecting things
Don't start taking mementos from our time together.
Give me my rose and my glove.
Just give me back the rose and the glove I lent you.
Sweetheart they're suspecting things
Honey, they're already suspecting things about us.
People will say we're in love.
If we keep this behavior up, our acquaintances will assume we're in love.
Don't praise my charm too much
Don't compliment me excessively.
Don't look so vain with me
Don't act conceited around me.
Don't stand in the rain with me
Especially, don't stand in the rain with me lovingly.
Don't take my arm too much
Don't hold onto me too often.
Don't keep your hand in mine
Don't hold my hand so frequently.
Your hand feels so grand in mine
Although holding my hand feels incredible.
People will say we're in love!
We'll attract suspicion from onlookers that we're falling in love.
Don't dance all night with me
Don't dance intimately with me for hours.
Till the stars fade from above.
Until the stars disappear from above us.
They'll see it's alright with me
It doesn't bother me if we dance together late into the night.
People will say we're in love.
But this behavior will cause others to start rumors about us being in love.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: Oscar Hammerstein Ii, Richard Rodgers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind