David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, February 23 1958, in Beckenham, Kent, … Read Full Bio ↴David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, February 23 1958, in Beckenham, Kent, UK) is an English singer, musician and composer who first rose to fame as the lead vocalist and main songwriter of the band Japan, and whose subsequent solo career has been influenced by a variety of musical styles and genres, including jazz, ambient music and electronic music.

Japan, which also included Mick Karn, Rob Dean, Richard Barbieri and Sylvian's brother Steve Jansen, started out as a confusing hybrid rock/sleaze outfit in the mould of David Bowie and The New York Dolls. Their music quickly evolved as, at least to begin with, they drew heavily on the influence of Roxy Music's art rock stylings. Their visual image developed in parallel and the band were (unwillingly) tagged as forerunners of the New Romantic movement.

Japan recorded five studio albums between March 1978 and November 1981. Their biggest hit single, the minimalist Ghosts, which reached the Top 5 in the UK charts in 1982, was a clear pointer to Sylvian's future direction. After a successful tour, the band split in late 1982, and Sylvian embarked upon a solo career.

Around the time of Sylvian's first solo album he collaborated with 坂本龍一 (Ryuichi Sakamoto) on the soundtrack music for the Nagisa Oshima film Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), which produced a Top 20 hit single, Forbidden Colours.

Sylvian's debut solo album, the jazz and ambient-influenced Brilliant Trees (1984), met with critical acclaim and yielded the single Red Guitar, another Top 20 hit. Guest artists included Jon Hassell and Holger Czukay. His follow-up was an instrumental EP Alchemy which cemented his drift away from commercial pop

The EP was in turn followed by the double album Gone to Earth (1986), which flouted convention (and perhaps commercial wisdom) by featuring one record of songs (predominantly atmospheric ballads) and one consisting almost entirely of ambient instrumental tracks. Guest artists included guitarists Robert Fripp and Bill Nelson.

His third album, Secrets of the Beehive (1987), was more acoustic and oriented towards somber, emotive ballads laced with string arrangements by 坂本龍一 (Ryuichi Sakamoto). It yielded one of Sylvian's most well-received songs, Orpheus, and was supported by his first solo tour, 1988's "In Praise of Shamans". Sylvian's touring band included ex-Japan bandmates Jansen and Barbieri along with trumpeter Mark Isham, bassist Ian Maidman and guitarists David Torn and Robbie Aceto.

Never one to conform to commercial expectations, Sylvian then collaborated on several ambient music projects with artists including Holger Czukay and Russell Mills.

In 1991, a highly-anticipated Japan reunion (excluding Rob Dean) ended in acrimony. Sylvian insisted on calling the project and the album Rain Tree Crow, to the dismay of both his label Virgin Records (who were hoping for a hit "comeback" album) and his former bandmates. Guitarists Bill Nelson, Phil Palmer and Michael Brook augmented the quartet for the recording of the album.

In late 1991, Robert Fripp approached Sylvian and asked him to be part of a new King Crimson. Sylvian declined and instead suggested they work on a future collaboration resulting in the release of The First Day.

A period of relative musical inactivity followed, during which time Sylvian moved to the United States. Eventually in 1999, Sylvian released Dead Bees on a Cake. It showed the most eclectic influence of all his recordings, ranging from soul music to jazz fusion to Eastern spiritual chants, and most of the songs' lyrics reflecting Sylvian's inner peace with his marriage (to the wonderful poet/singer Ingrid Chavez), family and beliefs. Guest artists included longtime friend 坂本龍一 (Ryuichi Sakamoto), as well as Talvin Singh, Marc Ribot, Kenny Wheeler and Bill Frisell.

Sylvian parted ways with Virgin and launched his own independent label, Samadhi Sound. Sylvian experimented alone with treated sounds made from his guitar and computer. The results were recorded during February of 2003. A few months later, he released the album Blemish. The disc was stark in its sound and content. The lyrical subject matter dealt primarily with the impending dissolution of Sylvian's marriage. In 2005 The Good Son vs The Only Daughter was released, which was comprised of remixes of tracks from Blemish.

With the conclusion of "A Fire In The Forest Tour" in 2004, work resumed on a joint project between Sylvian and Jansen. Yet the course of the album took on a completely new tone after Sylvian decided to add keyboardist/vibraphonist/programmer Burnt Friedman to the proceedings and make him an equal partner in the collaboration. The band name of Nine Horses was adopted and the CD, titled Snow Borne Sorrow, was released in October of 2005. The sound was a return to more traditional avenues for Sylvian after the radical departure he took with Blemish. Elements of avant-garde jazz, pop, folk and electronic music were all blended together

Nine Horses' Money For All EP was released in 2006, which included new material as well as Burnt Friedman remixes of songs selected from their first disc.

News on Sylvian's website was released in March stating that "We're preparing for the release of David’s new album Manafon. It’s a powerfully bold, uncompromising work featuring contributions from Evan Parker, John Tilbury, Keith Rowe, Christian Fennesz, Otomo Yoshihide, and many more."

David Sylvian's official website: www.davidsylvian.com

Thoroughly Lost To Logic
David Sylvian Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

When the little one came
A hole was blown open
A partial surrendering in the midst of knowing
And for an instant the constant heart shed its own tears
Wave upon wave carried me over
Beyond the peripheries of hope and fear
Deadening the voice of relentless biography
I stood at the centre and danced at the extremities

Mapping the city as subtle as silence
Then on, outwards, into the darkness

When the crazy one came
She placed her finger on my forehead
And pushed on through
I woke up, face on fire
Spitting out diamonds

Thoroughly lost to logic
Craving her madness

Overall Meaning

The song Thoroughly Lost to Logic by David Sylvian is a wistful reflection on the profound transformation caused by two significant women in the singer's life. The first stanza speaks of the emotional upheaval caused by the arrival of a child, creating an opening in his being that transcends his intellectual faculties. He experiences a moment of profound insight that transcends his preconceptions and immerses him in a realm beyond hope and fear. In this state, he dances and maps the subtle nuances of the city, far beyond the mundane world. The lyrics likely use allegory to convey the transformative power of the child's arrival, which has opened a new internal landscape full of creative potential and emotional resonance for the singer.

The second stanza speaks of another woman, the "crazy one," who has a transformative effect on the singer through a more passionate, visceral manner. She literally pushes into his forehead to awaken him to a new awareness that challenges his tendency towards excessive reason and logic. He feels a burning passion and "spits out diamonds," hinting at the creative metamorphosis taking place. He confesses to being "thoroughly lost to logic" and craving her madness. Once again, allegory hints at a profound transformative power, this time rooted in passion and intensity. Together, the two women represent different aspects of personal transformation, one intellectual and the other visceral.

Line by Line Meaning

When the little one came
The arrival of something new in my life

A hole was blown open
Change entered my life, leaving me exposed

A partial surrendering in the midst of knowing
Giving in to the unknown while still in control of the situation

And for an instant the constant heart shed its own tears
Feeling overwhelmed with emotions and crying

Wave upon wave carried me over
Being swept away in a torrent of emotions

Beyond the peripheries of hope and fear
Going beyond the limits of my emotions

Deadening the voice of relentless biography
Ignoring the past and focusing on the present

I stood at the centre and danced at the extremities
Being in control of life while still taking risks

Mapping the city as subtle as silence
Discovering new things that were previously unnoticed

Then on, outwards, into the darkness
Venturing into the unknown

When the crazy one came
A new, unconventional person entered my life