Born in the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, she attended George Westinghouse High School and studied music at the Filion School of Music in Pittsburgh. Later she performed regularly in the Hill District, a jazz hotspot, as a vocalist with the Joe Westray Orchestra, a popular Pittsburgh orchestra. She next spent several years in the nightclub circuit in such cities as Detroit, Indianapolis, Cleveland and St. Louis. While in New York, she was noticed singing at a Harlem nightclub called the Baby Grand by Dave Cavanaugh, a producer for Capitol Records. She was signed and released several singles, her success leading her to win Down Beat magazine's "Most Promising Newcomer" award in 1955. In 1958, Staton wed Talib Dawud, a black Antigua-born Ahmadi Muslim trumpeter and noted critic of Elijah Muhammad. She subsequently converted to Islam and used the name Aliyah Rabia for some time. The marriage ultimately ended in divorce.
She released several critically acclaimed albums in the late 1950s and early 1960s, including: The Late, Late Show (1957), whose title track was her biggest hit, In the Night (1957), a collaboration with pianist George Shearing, Dynamic! (1958) and Dakota at Storyville (1961), a live album recorded at the Storyville jazz club in Boston. In the mid-1960s Staton moved to England, where she recorded the album Dakota ′67. Returning to the US in the early 1970s, she continued to record semi-regularly, her recordings taking an increasingly strong gospel and blues influence. She suffered a stroke in 1999, after which her health deteriorated. Staton died in New York City aged 76 in 2007.
You've Changed
Dakota Staton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This thought that's been a-stealing
Through my brain
Is not to be ignored
But to really tell the truth
Though I'm not a well known sleuth
I honestly believe
You've changed
That sparkle in your eye is gone
Your smile is just a careless yawn
You're breaking my heart
You've changed
You've changed
You're kisses now are so blase
You're bored with me in every way
I can't understand
You've changed
You've forgotten the words 'I love you'
Each memory that we've shared
You ignore every star above you
I can't realize you've ever cared
You've changed
You're not the angel I once knew
No need to tell me that we're through
It's all over now
You've changed
Dakota Staton's song "You've Changed" talks about the feeling someone gets when they realize that their significant other is no longer the same person they fell in love with. The lyrics are meant to be read skeptically, indicating that the singer is unsure whether their suspicions are correct. They mention that "that sparkle in your eye is gone" and compare their lover's smile to a "careless yawn." The singer feels as though their partner is "bored" with them and has "changed" as a result.
The chorus indicates the depth of the singer's disappointment as they sing "You've changed" twice, accompanied by a soulful melody that reflects the sadness they feel. They refer to their lover's kisses as "blase" and say that they are "bored with me in every way." The song is particularly heartbreaking because the singer had shared so many memories with their partner only to feel as though they are now being ignored. The line "I can't realize you've ever cared" adds a sense of hopelessness to the song, as if the singer feels as though they have been in a one-sided relationship all along.
Overall, "You've Changed" is a soulful and heartbreaking song that deals with the emotions of falling out of love. Dakota Staton's rich voice and the melody of the song perfectly capture the sentiments of loss, sadness, and disbelief that come with such a realization.
Line by Line Meaning
I've an awful feeling that
I have a terrible feeling that
This thought that's been a-stealing
This idea that's been creeping
Through my brain
Into my mind
Is not to be ignored
Should not be disregarded
But to really tell the truth
To be completely honest
Though I'm not a well known sleuth
Even though I'm not a detective
I honestly believe
I truly think
That you are bored
That you are uninterested
You've changed
You are different now
That sparkle in your eye is gone
You don't have that twinkle in your eye anymore
Your smile is just a careless yawn
Your smile is just a lazy, unenthusiastic gesture
You're breaking my heart
You're causing me a lot of emotional pain
You've changed
You're not the same person I knew
You're kisses now are so blase
Your kisses are lacking enthusiasm
You're bored with me in every way
You are uninterested in me in every aspect
I can't understand
I don't comprehend
You've changed
You're different now
You've forgotten the words 'I love you'
You've stopped saying 'I love you'
Each memory that we've shared
Every memory we've made together
You ignore every star above you
You don't even notice the beauty around you
I can't realize you've ever cared
I can't believe you ever had feelings for me
You've changed
You're not the same person anymore
You're not the angel I once knew
You're not the amazing person I used to know
No need to tell me that we're through
No need to inform me that we're over
It's all over now
Our relationship is finished
You've changed
You're not the same person you used to be
Lyrics © CONSALAD CO., Ltd., Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Carl Fischer, Bill William Carey
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind