After dropping out of high school, Marshall started performing under the name Cat Power, while in Atlanta, backed by musicians Glen Thrasher, Mark Moore, and others. She soon moved to New York City, New York, United States in 1992, then later opening for Liz Phair in 1994, she met Steve Shelley of Sonic Youth and Tim Foljahn of Two Dollar Guitar, who encouraged her to record, and played on her first two albums, 1995's Dear Sir and 1996's Myra Lee. In 1996 she was signed to Matador Records, and released her third album, What Would the Community Think, which spawned a single and music video, "Nude as the News".
Shortly following the release of What Would the Community Think Marshall disappeared from the musical scene, initially working as a baby sitter in Portland, Oregon and then moving to a farmhouse in Prosperity, South Carolina with boyfriend Bill Callahan (who performs under the name Smog). The plan was to permanently retire from music but during a sleepless night resulting from a nightmare, Marshall wrote several new songs. These songs would make up the bulk of Moon Pix. The album was recorded at Sing Sing Studios in Melbourne in eleven days with backing musicians Mick Turner and Jim White of the Dirty Three. The album was well-received by critics, and gained her recognition in the indie rock scene. However, during the subsequent tours she grew tired of her own material. This resulted in a series of shows during 1999 involving Marshall providing musical accompaniment to a series of screenings of the silent movie The Passion of Joan of Arc. The shows combined original material and many covers, many of which would later see release on The Covers Record, a collection of cover songs recorded at various sessions in 1998 and 1999. A selection of covers that didn't make it on to the album were recorded at Peel Acres, home of the highly influential and legendary British DJ John Peel. The session was broadcast on his BBC Radio 1 show and featured Marshall's own interpretations of Bob Dylan's "Hard Times in New York Town" amongst others.
In 2003 she resumed releasing original material with You Are Free, a diverse and critically acclaimed album that featured guest musicians such as Eddie Vedder, Dave Grohl, and the Dirty Three's Warren Ellis.
2004 saw the release of Speaking for Trees, a critically polarizing DVD which featured a single two-hour static shot of Marshall performing in a woodland. It was accompanied by an audio CD containing the 18-minute song "Willie Deadwilder", which featured M. Ward on guitar. 2005 found Cat Power out on the road again, touring the world and playing sold-out solo shows, including an Australian tour supporting Nick Cave. The shows largely consisted of material for her next album.
Cat Power's seventh record, The Greatest, was released in January, 2006. This was not a "Greatest Hits" record but rather a collaboration with Al Green's guitarist Teenie Hodges and many other well-known R&B musicians. A tour followed in the fall of 2006.
Early in 2006, Marshall announced the cancellation of her upcoming United States tour, citing "health-related issues". A few days later, Matador announced the cancellation of her two shows in London and Paris. She resumed touring in April 2006, playing some of the most well received shows of her career both with the Memphis Rhythm Band and as a solo performer.
In 2007, she played live music for the spring/ summer Chanel Haute Couture collection in Paris and appeared in Wong Kar Wai's film My Blueberry Nights as Katya. Also in 2007, she became the first female ever to win the Shortlist Music Prize when The Greatest was voted album of the year in June. Earlier in the year she was nominated in the Best International Female category at the annual Brit Awards, alongside more mainstream artists like Christina Aguilera and Nelly Furtado.
On January 22, 2008, Cat Power released a second collection of covers called Jukebox--her eighth LP overall. It included versions of songs by artists such as Hank Williams, James Brown, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Patsy Cline and Janis Joplin.
Since then, she has released an EP called "The Dark End of the Street" on vinyl, only.
Cat Power released her first original song since 2008 just before Christmas 2011 when an MP3 of "King Rides By" was made available on her official site, in exchange for a donation of at least $0.99 to the Festival of Children Foundation and the Ali Forney Center charities. (King Rides By Songfacts).
In 2012, Cat Power released her 9th studio album, Sun which received generally positive reviews from critics. The album was included in several year-end lists by music critics and publications. Rolling Stone magazine, in their list of the "50 Best Albums of 2012", ranked it at sixteenth place, writing "the idea of the brilliantly morose Chan Marshall making a dance-rock record is almost absurd. Yet the groove-powered Sun is a perfect fit." The A.V. Club placed the album at number twenty-two on their list of the "Best Albums of 2012." Billboard also placed the album at number nine in their list of the "10 Best Albums of 2012."The L.A. Times and Filter magazine both placed the album at number six in their lists of the best albums of 2012. Sun was also included on two separate "Best Music of 2012" lists compiled by NPR, appearing at number five on the list compiled by Bob Boilen,while topping the list compiled by Robin Hilton. The album was also listed twenty-eighth on Stereogum's list of top 50 albums of 2012. Thus, becoming Cat Power's most successful original album.
In April 2015, Marshall announced that she recently had a baby.
In February 2016, Marshall had to cancel her New Zealand shows due to health reasons. According to an official press release, this is the first time in Marshall's 18-year touring history she has been forced to postpone, but is "determined to make it back ASAP, and in good health".
Good Woman
Cat Power Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I want, for you to be a good man.
This is why I will be leaving
And this is why, I can't see you no more.
I will miss your heart so tender
And I will love
This love forever
And I can't stand to see you be a bad man
I will miss your heart so tender
And I will love
This love forever
And this is why I am leaving
And this is why I can't see you no more
This is why I am lying when I say
That I don't love you no more
'Cause I want (to) be a good women
And I want for to be a good man
The opening lines of Cat Power's "Good Woman" may seem simple at first, but upon closer examination, they reveal a complex and layered emotional journey. The singer declares her desire to be a good woman and to have a good man by her side, suggesting that there has been a struggle in their relationship. She then explains that she must leave, conveying that there are irreconcilable issues that make their relationship untenable. Perhaps the couple has grown apart or there have been betrayals or disappointments that make it impossible to stay together.
Despite her heartbreak, the singer acknowledges that she will miss her partner's "heart so tender" and that she will always cherish their love. Despite her desire to be a good woman, she cannot deny her feelings for him, as she admits that she is lying when she says she doesn't love him anymore. The song captures the complicated emotions of a tumultuous relationship, where love and regret, joy and pain, coexist.
Overall, "Good Woman" is a poignant and heartfelt reflection on the challenges of love and relationships. It speaks to the universal experience of wanting to be good people and to have healthy, fulfilling relationships, but also recognizing that sometimes those things are beyond our grasp. It's an emotionally honest piece of music that resonates with anyone who has ever struggled to find their way in love.
Line by Line Meaning
I want to be a good woman
I don't want to be a bad woman, I want to be a respectable and kind person.
And I want, for you to be a good man.
I hope that you will also strive to be a good and decent human being.
This is why I will be leaving
I need to leave this situation because it is not conducive to my desire to be a good person and to surround myself with goodness.
And this is why, I can't see you no more.
In order to truly move on and focus on myself, I need to cut ties completely.
I will miss your heart so tender
I will miss the vulnerable and loving side of you that I have grown to know and appreciate.
And I will love This love forever
Although I may be moving on from this relationship, the love that we shared will always hold a special place in my heart.
And this is why I am leaving
I am leaving not because I want to, but because I need to in order to be true to myself and my desire to be a good person.
And this is why I can't see you no more
I need to remove myself from this environment completely in order to move on and focus on my own growth.
This is why I am lying when I say That I don't love you no more
I still have feelings for you, but I know that I need to prioritize my own wellbeing and personal growth over our relationship.
'Cause I want (to) be a good woman And I want for to be a good man
Ultimately, I hope that both of us can focus on being good people and making positive contributions in the world.
Lyrics © HIPGNOSIS SONGS GROUP
Written by: CHAN MARSHALL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
ISI BONA
BUENA MUJER--
Quiero ser una buena mujer
Y quiero que seas otra buena mujer....
Por eso, voy a dejarte...
Y, por eso, no puedo verte, no más....
Echaré de menos tu corazón, tan tierno...
Y yo te amaré...
Este amor es para siempre....
No quiero ser una mala mujer...
Y no puedo soportar ver otra mala mujer....
Echaré de menos tu corazón, tan tierno...
Y yo te amaré....
Este amor es para siempre.
Y es por eso que me voy....
Y por eso, no puedo verte, no más....
Por eso, estoy mintiendo, cuando digo
que no te amo, nunca más.....
Ruben Urrea Moreno
I want to be a good woman
And I want, for you to be a good man.
This is why I will be leaving
And this is why, I can see you no more.
I will miss your heart so tender
And I will love
This love forever
I don’t want to be a bad woman
And I can’t stand to see you be a bad man
I will miss your heart so tender
And I will love
This love forever
And this is why I am leaving
And this is why I can see you no more
This is why I am lying when I say
That I don’t love you no more
Cause I want to be a good woman
And I want for you to be a good man
holyfuknmolymyshitstinks
I’m just a guy that realized I’ve been listening to this song for more than 10 years and it’s still one of the greats to me. What a voice
D Barcles
Even by her standards, this is an incredible song to have written. Tender, defiant, brave, gut-wrenching, heart-breaking- all at once. No mean feat. 11/10
Shania Rome
I don't understand how she could sing the whole song without crying. I mean everytime I try to sing this, tears just stream down from my eyes.
EternalShinyandChrome
You'll probably never see this, but I totally know what you mean- and I'm a "tough"guy with alot of scars.... but I know real music. This song reaches me too.
NOT ME
Meds.
JMP 01A2
Life is a struggle, especially for most people. Just a lucky few goes through life without being marked by moments, experiences, situations, random shit, all are fragments of the total experience... I seen beauty. I felt discomfort and pain. Life has short moments of infinite beauty, even if it's for a brief moment I forever long for that sweet relief of pain and sorrow. Alone is empty, but finding a good woman, one that shares herself with me, even for a short time, will stay with me forever. Some don't care for others, only way they know how to interact is by inflicting pain and suffering onto others. And to do that to a good woman, that is a great sin imo. I love this good woman forever, whomever she be, cause to me she was a safe harbor, she open herself to me: That needs to be rewarded with love, never by pain or selfish acts of evil. She makes me try be a good man. Even if it's hard, I know deep inside, that enduring my pain will set us free. Cause she know I tried my best. Even if I failed sometimes. I hope she remembers me as a good man.
Mors Bu
Великое произведение!👏👏👏👏
Cyntia laura Bessa
Bom ouvir você Cat Power!!!
memymusicloveables
I cry everytime I listen to this song! The melody is so.. indescribable! Just makes me shiver but feel warm at the same time. Her voice is so gorgeous...
somuchyarn
Wow. This song just tears your heart out. Cat Power is an amazing artist.