Born in Windsor, Ontario and raised in France and Kelowna, British Columbia, Fellows lived in Toronto, Vancouver, Guelph and Montreal before settling in Winnipeg in 1992.
In 1993, she formed her first group, Helen, with Barry Mirochnick, Paul James, and Chang. Helen broke up in 1995, and in 1996 Fellows teamed up with singer-songwriter Keri McTighe, Barry Mirochnick, Keith McLeod and Peggy Messing, to form Special Fancy. The group released one album, King Me.
In 2000 Fellows released her debut solo album, 2 Little Birds. This was followed by The Last One Standing in 2002, Paper Anniversary in 2005, and Nevertheless in 2007. These albums feature Leanne Zacharias (cello), Jason Tait (drums, vibraphone), Barry Mirochnick (drums, vocals), John K. Samson (vocals, guitar), Keith McLeod (mandolin), Monica Guenter (viola), Greg Smith (bass), Ed Reifel (percussion), and Cristina Zacharias (violin).
Fellows has performed with the Rheostatics, Veda Hille, The Mountain Goats, Kim Barlow, Old Man Luedecke, and The Weakerthans. She is married to The Weakerthans' lead singer, John K. Samson.
In 2006, Fellows and Samson recorded The Old House, an album intended only as a Christmas gift for friends and family, although they released two songs, "Taps Reversed" and "Good Salvage", for airplay on CBC Radio 3 in early 2007. Fellows and Samson also performed live on the network on March 17, 2007, to mark the final night of the network's terrestrial simulcast on CBC Radio 2.
Fellows also composes music for dance, film and television. She scored part of Clive Holden's Trains of Winnipeg film series, as well as collaborating with Tait and Samson on the associated album. In 2007, she wrote several songs for a dance piece by choreographer Susie Burpee; they were later included on her fourth solo album, Nevertheless, which was released on November 6, 2007.
Fellows has also toured as a member of The Pan-Canadian New Folk Ensemble with Kim Barlow and Old Man Luedecke.
Recently, she was artist-in-residence at Le Musee de Saint-Boniface Museum in Winnipeg (2009), and she has been writing songs for a new solo album, scheduled for release on Six Shooter Records in fall of 2010.
Boy On the Cover
Christine Fellows Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
there's a paperback with your name attached. there's a boy on the cover who looks a whole lot like you. there's a coffee ring that floats above his head so it must be. there's a mixture of fairy tales and fingerprints that show a handful of torn out pages and feathers in the snow.
there's a bird-boned boy you could blow over like that. and he's carrying a bookshelf on his back. and the paragraphs are pouring from his mouth. and he's coming through to carry you over.
The lyrics of Christine Fellows's Boy On the Cover are packed with vivid and imaginative descriptions that paint a picture of a fragile and otherworldly boy who appears to embody the spirit of a fairy tale. The first verse describes the boy's "bird-boned shoulders" and "great big doe eyes" that have the power to "curl your toes." It's as if he's sprouting wings and could flutter away at any moment, yet his gaze is mesmerizing and intense, drawing you in closer.
The second verse introduces a paperback book with the boy's name on it and a cover image that looks just like him. The image is marked by a coffee ring that hovers above the boy's head, suggesting a magical quality to the book or its contents. The book itself is a blend of fairy tales and fingerprints, with missing pages and feathers scattered in the snow, reinforcing the idea that the boy is somehow connected to the realm of dreams and imagination.
The final lines of the song describe the boy as both fragile and strong, carrying a bookshelf on his back while spilling paragraphs from his mouth. He's a figure of mystery and enchantment, swooping in to rescue or carry you away to another world. Overall, the lyrics of Boy On the Cover are a testament to Fellows's poetic sensibility and her ability to convey complex emotions and ideas with evocative and memorable words.
Line by Line Meaning
I'd swear that there's wings sprouting out from your bird-boned shoulders.
I can see that you're fragile and delicate, but at the same time, you have a unique strength and grace that make you seem angelic and powerful.
great big doe eyes that curl your toes.
Your eyes are so beautiful and big that they have the power to make me weak and dizzy.
lean in closer.
I want to be closer to you, to feel your presence and be enveloped by your aura.
there's a paperback with your name attached.
You have written a book, and this book represents a part of who you are and your creative vision.
there's a boy on the cover who looks a whole lot like you.
The character on the cover of your book resembles you, and this makes me wonder about the connection between your art and your personal life.
there's a coffee ring that floats above his head so it must be.
There is evidence of your presence around the book, like this coffee ring, and this confirms that the book is a part of your life.
there's a mixture of fairy tales and fingerprints that show a handful of torn out pages and feathers in the snow.
The book is a blend of fiction and reality, and it has been used and handled, with evidence of this in torn pages and feathers.
there's a bird-boned boy you could blow over like that.
The character on the book cover is fragile and delicate, like you, and this makes me worry about your vulnerability and safety.
and he's carrying a bookshelf on his back.
Despite his fragility, the character on the cover is strong and capable of carrying a lot of weight, which is inspiring and impressive.
and the paragraphs are pouring from his mouth.
The character on the cover is full of stories and ideas, and he is capable of eloquently expressing them verbally.
and he's coming through to carry you over.
The character on the cover, and perhaps you as well, have the strength and grace to carry and support others through difficult times and challenges.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@bridgetz5807
I love Christine Fellows so much. I love Canadians.
@alexmottram07
I am from Mexico City, living in Canada for the last four months... it also makes me proud if not to be a Canadian makes me feel proud of being here... I just want to say I heard Christine Fellows for the first time a couple days ago on the radio and she is one of the best singers/composers I´ve ever heard... I also want to thank CBC Radio Two in Toronto for broadcasting such a superb concert and so allowing me to get to know her great work...
@yzkiarkhan903
Nice song, I'm here just because she mentioned White River town, that's my current home, I'm a immigrant and I living the Canadian dream.
@Neocelt146
Brilliant! Makes me proud to be Canadian. Perfect plucking of our collective heartstrings.
@elmejorrockdelmundo.4647
10 POINT SSS!!!! JAJAJAJAJAJ....MUCHAS GRACIASSSS...SALUDOS DESDE BSB AS ARGENTINA !!!!
@pdvmorris1
Amazin' lyrics....wonderful art by the projection artist....makes me homesick for Canada!
@debibulated
beautiful video and performance
@straussie
beautiful...i saw her a year ago in halifax opening for the weakerthans. just stunning.
@gorampageband
yes
@erinmerle
neat video!