In 2007, Charlie Winston released his self produced debut album “Make Way” and shortly after embarked on tour with Peter Gabriel on European Summer tour.
Charlie also composed music for film (The Day I will Never Forget by Kim Longinotto), theatre (Almeida Theatre, Nottinghill Gate Theatre), dance (Sadler's Wells, Ballet Rambert) and has often appeared in various TV (Top Of The Pops, Good Morning TV, CD UK) and radio shows (The Steve Merchant Show on BBC 6Music, Spanish Radio 3 with Julio Ruiz, BBC Radio with Stephen Foster).
In Charlie Winston's band, the Oxymorons, harmonica plays devil's advocate within moods, from dirty blues riffs to ethereal angelic cries, meanwhile bass, drums and guitar lay the ground rules, only to be broken. To add to it the Extramorons brass quartet puff their way to a sound that’s carnivalesque. There is an overriding positivity throughout every performance that leaves the audience wanting to dance, laugh and cry all in the same breath.
Website: www.charliewinston.com
Lift Me Gently
Charlie Winston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Made by the madness of this man
And my words to him be thank you
Would the heavens understand?
All my life I've been a good girl
Every night I've said my prayers
And I hope that Jesus heard me
Hears my angels come to take me
They are haloed in the light
But I wish they'd touch me softly
They're aggressive and they're uptight
Lift me gently
Or leave me where I am
I thought you'd be the hand of God
But you're just the same as Him
Lift me gently
Please not with human touch
Christ knows I've had my share alive
And it never felt like love
So I'm face down in this river
And my body's cold and useless
And the angels pull at my soul
But it's anxious and it's nervous
And they tell me, "You're not the only one
Who waits for their delivery
And you're world's too full of lonely souls
And we're rushed off our feet"
But I say, "Please lift me gently
Or leave me where I am
I thought you'd be the hand of God
But you're just the same as Him"
Lift me gently
Please not with human touch
Christ knows I've had my share alive
And it never felt like love
Lift me gently, lift me gently
The lyrics of Charlie Winston's song "Lift Me Gently" are both touching and thought-provoking. The song is essentially a plea from a dying person to the angels to lift them gently into the afterlife. The first verse presents the idea that the river is the singer's deathbed as a result of their own madness, and they question whether the heavens will understand them when they say thank you to the person who made the river. The singer reflects on their life as a good girl who prayed every night and hoped that Jesus heard them through their tears. In the second verse, the angels come to take the singer, but they do not touch them softly, and their approach is aggressive and uptight. The singer then begs the angels to lift them gently, not with human touch, as they have had enough of the pain from human life, which never felt like love.
The song deals with some deep and sensitive themes, such as death, the afterlife, and spirituality. It is both poignant and reflective, with Winston's unique voice adding an extra layer of emotion to the lyrics. The singer's fear of a violent or unfeeling journey into the afterlife is not uncommon, and the song presents an alternative view on how one might want to experience the end of their life journey.
Line by Line Meaning
If this river be my death bed
If this river ends up being the place where I die
Made by the madness of this man
Because of the madness of the person who brought me here
And my words to him be thank you
If I were to thank him
Would the heavens understand?
Would God understand?
All my life I've been a good girl
I've always been a good person
Every night I've said my prayers
I've prayed every night
And I hope that Jesus heard me
I hope that Jesus listened to me
Through all my tears
Even when I was crying
Hears my angels come to take me
Here come the angels to take me
They are haloed in the light
The angels are surrounded by light
But I wish they'd touch me softly
I wish they would touch me gently
They're aggressive and they're uptight
They're forceful and anxious
Lift me gently
Raise me softly
Or leave me where I am
Or leave me here
I thought you'd be the hand of God
I expected you to be like God
But you're just the same as Him
But you're no different from Him
Please not with human touch
Not with a touch like a human
Christ knows I've had my share alive
I've had enough experiences in life
And it never felt like love
And it never felt like love
So I'm face down in this river
So I'm lying face down in this river
And my body's cold and useless
And my body is lifeless and cold
And the angels pull at my soul
The angels try to take my soul
But it's anxious and it's nervous
But my soul is anxious and nervous
And they tell me, "You're not the only one
And they tell me that I'm not the only one
Who waits for their delivery
Who waits to be saved
And you're world's too full of lonely souls
And the world is full of people who are lonely
And we're rushed off our feet"
And we're very busy
Lift me gently
Raise me softly
Please not with human touch
Not with a touch like a human
Christ knows I've had my share alive
I've had enough experiences in life
And it never felt like love
And it never felt like love
Lift me gently, lift me gently
Raise me softly, raise me softly
Contributed by Adam V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.