Summer's career began in 1983 when she was cast as the voice of niece Penny on the original cartoon version of Inspector Gadget. Her unique, throaty voice was instantly recognizable to casting agents (as well as viewers even today), who began frequently casting her in animated programs. Many of these were part of cult franchises, like The Care Bears Movie and Ewoks. Audiences finally had a chance to put Summer's voice to a face when she was cast as the afrocentric Winifred "Freddie" Brooks in the Cosby Show spin-off A Different World. She remained a regular cast member of the show from 1988 through its end in 1993.
In all, Summer has voiced over 70 animated characters between 1983 and 2006, many of them African-American girls. Summer has also ventured into the realm of music. In 1990, she sang background vocals on two tracks for fellow A Different World cast member Jasmine Guy's self titled LP. In 1993 she released an album (as lead singer) with her band Subject to Change. The album was not officially released by Capitol Records because of creative differences; the records that were produced were distributed promotionally and are considered a rarity. The band, with an aggressive political message and rock-soul fusion sound, remained popular as a co-headlining act with other performers.
In 1999 Summer released the solo album Street Faërie produced by and featuring guest artist (and friend) Lenny Kravitz; The album was not hugely successful. Summer toured as Kravitz's opening act, but her label dropped her and a planned spot with Lilith Fair was cancelled. The label continued to promote it, however, sending out a four-track sampler to radio and issuing remix singles of the track "Revelation Sunshine" in Europe, with a special single specifically for Austria.
Mean Sleep
Cree Summer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What can we scrape together
With just the flesh as evidence
Handfuls of hate
And the bittersweet ambivalence
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
Cause I am pushin' cobwebs
[Lenny Kravitz]
Who will find me under this mean sleep
[Cree Summer]
How could the clouds tease us into thinking it might rain ?
How could the need deceive us into thinking things might change ?
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
[Lenny Kravitz]
You could burn a thousand days
And I would need no other light
You could die a thousand ways
And I'd still love you back to life
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
But my needs rising angry
And my loneliness like quicksand
Lenny Kravitz]
Who will find me under this mean sleep
[Cree Summer]
How could the clouds tease us into thinking it might rain ?
How could the need deceive us into thinking things might change ?
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
I am lost to the longing
I am moulded by the memory
[Lenny Kravitz]
Had to shut down half my mind
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
Just to still the space you left behind
Cause I am pushin' cobwebs
And I'm folding into myself
[Lenny Kravitz]
Who will find me under this mean sleep
[Cree Summer]
How could the clouds tease us into thinking it might rain ?
How could the need deceive us into thinking things might change ?
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
[Lenny Kravitz]
Coming back to life
[Cree Summer]
I had a mean sleep
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
I had a mean sleep
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
[Lenny Kravitz]
Coming back to life
[Lenny Kravitz & Cree Summer]
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
I had a mean sleep
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
[Lenny Kravitz]
Coming back to life yeah
The song "Mean Sleep" by Cree Summer, featuring Lenny Kravitz, is a melancholic ballad about the pain of lost love and the struggle to move on. The first verse begins with Kravitz questioning what is left to hold onto when all that remains is the pain and anger from the failed relationship. He sings about the loneliness and feeling as if he is sinking in the quicksand of his own emotions. The chorus is a collaboration between Kravitz and Cree Summer, where they express the difficulty in letting go and the hurt that comes from attempting to move forward from the pain of the past.
The second verse, sung solely by Cree Summer, contemplates the way that hope and need can deceive a person into believing that things might change or improve. She acknowledges the hurt and struggle of coming back to life after a long period of pain and heartbreak. Later on in the song, Kravitz sings about burning a thousand days with no other light needed other than the love he has lost. Even in the face of death, he still loves the person he has lost, and the needs and longing become overwhelming. The song ends with a repetition of the chorus, where the pain and hurt of returning to life after a long period of pain is driven home and emphasized.
In summary, "Mean Sleep" is a song about the struggle to move on from lost love, the pain of returning to life after a long period of heartbreak, and the overwhelming nature of desire and need. The lyrics express the sense of being trapped in the memory of the person who is gone and the difficulty of finding a way to escape.
Line by Line Meaning
What can we scrape together
What resources can we gather
With just the flesh as evidence
With only our physical existence to show for it
Handfuls of hate
Glimpses of anger and resentment
And the bittersweet ambivalence
Mixed emotions of pain and nostalgia
Cause I am pushin' cobwebs
I am trying to clear out old thoughts and feelings
And I'm folding into myself
I am becoming lost in my own thoughts and emotions
Who will find me under this mean sleep
Who will rescue me from this painful state of mind
How could the clouds tease us into thinking it might rain ?
Why does false hope hurt us so much
How could the need deceive us into thinking things might change ?
Why do we cling to the possibility of change even when it seems unlikely
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
I suffered terribly because of you in my dreams
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
The reality of waking up from those dreams is painful
You could burn a thousand days
You could waste so much time
And I would need no other light
And I would still focus on you despite everything else in my life
You could die a thousand ways
You could face many hardships and setbacks
And I'd still love you back to life
Yet still, I would try to bring you back from the brink of despair
But my needs rising angry
But my desires are becoming frustrated and tumultuous
And my loneliness like quicksand
And my isolation feels like it is trapping me
I am lost to the longing
I am consumed by the intense yearning
I am moulded by the memory
I am shaped and impacted by the past
Had to shut down half my mind
I had to numb myself to try to cope
Just to still the space you left behind
Just to try to silence the emptiness you created
I had a mean, mean sleep over you
I suffered terribly because of you in my dreams
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
The reality of waking up from those dreams is painful
Coming back to life
Returning to reality and facing the aftermath
I had a mean sleep
I had a terrible dream
And it hurts, hurts coming back to life
The reality of waking up from those dreams is painful
Coming back to life yeah
Returning to reality and facing the aftermath
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: CREE SUMMER, VAN HUNT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind