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".
Werewolf
Cat Power Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Comes stepping along
He don't even break the branches where he's gone
Once I saw him in the moonlight, when the bats were a flying
I saw the werewolf, and the werewolf was crying
Cryin' nobody knows, nobody knows, body knows
How I loved the man, as I teared off his clothes
When I see that it's risen, that fool moon again
For the werewolf, for the werewolf has sympathy
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me
And only he goes to me, man this little flute I play
All through the night, until the light of day, and we are doomed to play
For the werewolf, for the werewolf, has sympathy
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me
The song "Werewolf" by Cat Power is a haunting and melancholic masterpiece. It tells the story of a werewolf who walks through the woods, leaving no trace of his presence except for the sound of his howls. The singer has seen the werewolf under the moonlight, and she senses a deep sadness in him. She feels a connection with the werewolf and sings to him, expressing her own pain and longing, knowing that he understands it intimately. She reveals that she once loved a man and tore off his clothes, but nobody knows how she has suffered since then. The werewolf is the only one who can sympathize with her, someone like her and the only one who can hear her play her little flute all through the night, until the light of day.
The lyrics of the song are deeply poetic and metaphorical. The werewolf symbolizes the outcasts in society, those who are misunderstood and shunned by others. The singer, in turn, represents the longing and pain that all of us carry in our hearts, often hidden from view. The werewolf is the only one who can understand and connect with her, much like the way that only those who have experienced deep sadness can empathize with one another. The song is a beautiful reminder that sometimes the most unlikely of individuals can find solace in each other's company, even if nobody else can understand.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh the werewolf, oh the werewolf
Talking about the werewolf.
Comes stepping along
The werewolf is coming.
He don't even break the branches where he's gone
The werewolf is very agile and leaves no mark.
Once I saw him in the moonlight, when the bats were a flying
The artist saw the werewolf at night during bat flying time.
I saw the werewolf, and the werewolf was crying
The werewolf was seen crying.
Cryin' nobody knows, nobody knows, body knows
No one knows the werewolf's tears.
How I loved the man, as I teared off his clothes
The singer reveals a secret love of hers.
Cryin' nobody know, nobody knows my pain
No one knows the artist's pain.
When I see that it's risen, that fool moon again
The artist is affected by the moon's rise.
For the werewolf, for the werewolf has sympathy
The werewolf is a sympathetic character.
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me
The werewolf is like an ordinary person.
And only he goes to me, man this little flute I play
The werewolf is the only one who goes to the artist.
All through the night, until the light of day, and we are doomed to play
The werewolf and the singer are doomed to play together.
For the werewolf, for the werewolf, has sympathy
The werewolf is still a sympathetic character.
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me
The werewolf is still like an ordinary person.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: MICHAEL HURLEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@hedgehogblue4
This song is performed by Cat Power and appears on the album You Are Free (2003).
This song is a cover of "Werewolf" by Michael Hurley.
Oh the werewolf, the werewolf
Comes stepping along
He don't even break the branches where he's gone
Once I saw him in the moonlight, when the bats were flying
I saw the werewolf, and the werewolf was crying
How nobody knows, nobody knows, body knows
How I loved the man, as I teared off his clothes.
How nobody knows, nobody knows my pain
When I see that it's risen; that full moon again
For the werewolf, the werewolf has seen apathy
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me.
And only he goes to me, man this little flute I play.
All through the night, until the light of day, and we are doomed to play.
For the werewolf, the werewolf, has seen apathy
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me.
@SeenTheLight0
Oh the werewolf, the werewolf comes stepping along
He don't even break the branches where he's gone
Once I saw him in the moonlight when the bats were flying
I saw the werewolf and the werewolf was crying
How nobody knows, nobody knows, body knows
How I loved the man, as I teared off his clothes
How nobody knows, nobody knows my pain
When I see that it's risen, that full moon again
For the werewolf, the werewolf has sympathy
For the werewolf, somebody like you and me
And only he goes to me, man, this little flute I play
All through the night until the light of day
And we are doomed to play
@njafricancichlids5149
This tune tears me at the roots
@GangIrish
Know the feeling ,,,Geesh ,,,
@mrkengage
True classic that doesn't get the recognition it deserves.
@tash4959
WOW I''m looking for this song for 5 years !!!!! so happy now 😍
@sonson.j7356
Damn you must love it
@katiemayfield7937
Her voice is haunting... I LOVE IT!!! I watched her perform live in Portland OR about 8yrs ago. It was just her and her piano. Beauty!!!
@GangIrish
Her voice sends chills down my spine ,, everytime she speaks
@drix4275
Haunting like an ex you still love. Beautiful and painful.
@fenrirmotionless7269
The werewolf lives in me, hiding from people under my skin. My heart beats in the palm of the werewolf. When night falls, the light of the full moon is waiting for my skin. I climb into the mountains, run through the trees, sing my song howling to the full moon.
@germanbustos2272
Yeahhhh🍻