Biography:
Elizabeth Eaton Converse was born in Laconia, New Hampshire in 1924, the middle child of three siblings. She was bookish, the valedictorian her class at Concord High School, and described by most who knew her to be a polymath. She attended Mt. Holyoke College on an academic scholarship beginning in 1942, studied French, and wrote for several campus publications. By 1944 she decided to leave college, at which point the records of her whereabouts are sparse until about 1949, when she made her way to New York City.
There were two major developments during Elizabeth’s time in New York. The first was her procurement of her nickname “Connie.” It is unclear how or why or when exactly, but the name stuck. The second was Connie’s burgeoning interest in playing and writing music, first for guitar and later for piano. No doubt this stemmed from her love of poetry, as many of her earliest songs were poems that she had written and then set to music. The songs became instant hits with her family, and also attracted the attention of animator and amateur recordist Gene Deitch. Beginning around 1954, Connie would make visits to Deitch’s home in Hastings-on-Hudson to record almost 40 songs.
At first listen, Connie’s music seems to keep close company with the female folk artists who were her contemporaries. The knack for plaintive storytelling shares much with Peggy Seeger and Susan Reed. Reed knew Connie’s music well, and performed a set of her songs in 1961 at the Kaufmann Concert Hall in New York. But Connie’s music stands out from that of the American folk revival of the 1950’s. Her fluid and disarmingly intelligent poetry reflects an urban perspective, that of a new New Yorker becoming disenchanted by the bucolic tropes of folk music. She is at once a maverick and a romantic, intellectual and spiritual, a staunch independent and a tender, pining lover.
Over the years Deitch, along with his colleague Bill Bernal, worked to promote Connie’s music, but despite their efforts, the songs remained unheard to all but a few dozen of Connie’s acquaintances. In 1961 Connie tired of New York and left for Ann Arbor, where her brother was a professor at the University of Michigan.
Having dropped out of college seventeen years prior, it came as something of a surprise that, within months of her arrival in Ann Arbor, Connie had implanted herself firmly in the academic community of U-Mich. She began as a secretary at the Center for Research on Conflict Resolution, eventually working her way to Managing Editor and Co-Editor of CRCR’s Journal of Conflict Resolution.
Connie’s work in Ann Arbor left little time for music and, while she still happily played at family gatherings, there is little evidence that she wrote new material. She did, however, continue her attempts to promote her music already extant. Susan Reed, the folk harpist, took an interest in Connie’s work and performed a set of her songs in New York. There were a handful of scores for commercials and some work on a short film. But never the kind of widespread success she had hoped for her music.
Connie became increasingly despondent in the 1970’s, a period she described as her Blue Funk, although her family and friends say they could not detect any outward change in her character. In 1971, she requested an extended leave of absence from CRCR, citing what she saw as her poor performance at work and unspecified medical problems. Her employer responded by organizing a group of Connie’s friends and colleagues to contribute to a pool of money that would allow her to take a six-month sabbatical in England, which she would later describe as one of the only times in her life that she allowed herself to enjoy “unproductive fun.”
In August of 1974, after waiting for the resignation of Richard Nixon, Connie wrote a series of farewell letters to friends and family. She packed up her Volkswagen and disappeared, her whereabouts unknown to this day.
Film maker Andrea Kannes is currently working on a documentary about Connie. More info here: http://connieconversedoc.com/
Trouble
Connie Converse Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And if you don't stop troublin′ me you'll drive me out of town.
But if you go away, as trouble ought to do,
Where will I find another soul to tell my trouble to?
My bed is made of stone, a star has burnt my eye,
I'm goin′ down to the willow tree and teach her how to cry.
But if you go away, as trouble ought to do,
They bid me wear my hat, put on a nice new gown;
I tossed my bonnet over the roof and I guess it won′t come down.
But if you go away, as trouble ought to do,
Where will I find another soul to tell my trouble to?
Connie Converse's song "Trouble" features lyrics that express turmoil, confusion, and a sense of losing control. The opening line, "Ever since we met the world's been upside-down", suggests that the singer's life has taken a drastic turn since meeting someone, setting up a contrast between a stable past and the uncertain present. The chorus seems to suggest that the person she is addressing is the source of her troubles but paradoxically, she also needs that person to confide in: "Where will I find another soul to tell my trouble to?"
The second verse portrays a feeling of physical discomfort and emotional pain, using images of a cold bed made of stone and a burned-out star in her eye. She expresses a desire to escape her own sorrows by teaching a willow tree how to cry. The final verse describes the singer's rebellion against social norms, as she dismisses the advice of those around her to "wear my hat, put on a nice new gown", by throwing her bonnet over the roof. Despite her resistance to conformity, she still has the need for companionship and the comfort of someone to share her troubles with.
Overall, the song's lyrics suggest a struggle with disruptive forces that the singer cannot control, reflecting a sense of helpless confusion. However, despite her struggles, she still seeks emotional connection and intimacy, highlighting the tension between loneliness and vulnerability.
Line by Line Meaning
Ever since we met the world's been upside-down
My life has been turned upside down since we met.
And if you don't stop troublin' me you'll drive me out of town
If you keep causing me problems, I'll be forced to leave this place.
But if you go away, as trouble ought to do
If you leave, like a problem should, what will I do without you?
Where will I find another soul to tell my trouble to?
I won't have anyone else to confide in and share my problems with.
My bed is made of stone, a star has burnt my eye
I am experiencing great pain and discomfort, both physically and emotionally.
I'm goin' down to the willow tree and teach her how to cry
I will seek solace in nature and try to teach it to empathize with my sadness.
They bid me wear my hat, put on a nice new gown
People are trying to force me to conform and change myself to fit their expectations.
I tossed my bonnet over the roof and I guess it won't come down
I reject their attempts to change me and refuse to comply.
Writer(s): Inconnu Compositeur Auteur, Rolf Wilhelm
Contributed by Matthew T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.