Bu… Read Full Bio ↴“My favorite forms of expression are music, photography, and poetry.
But I suppose you could say that music is my first ‘love’.”
As a vocalist/musician Derek Lassiter’s power is in his ability to render the subject he’s writing about as cleanly as possible. For him, God isn’t in the details but in simplicity. Lassiter bravely steps from behind the false front and in doing so reveals the sobering truth about his life. In this sense he is a poet’s musician.
Born in the South Bronx, Derek Lassiter spent the first eleven years of his life moving around the neighborhoods of that New York City borough. At age 11 he moved to the suburbs of Pennsylvania to live with his maternal Grandmother..
“Both places had a profound effect on me and I learned at an early age just how disparate the world could be. My mother listened to Soul and 60’s folk music, my Grandmother didn’t have a stereo and only listened to Country and Western on a little radio in the kitchen. But then again my Grandmother also sent us to a Baptist church where I heard Gospel for the first time.”
When his Grandmother became too ill to care for him and his siblings, Derek spent his teen years moving between foster homes in Pennsylvania. He recounts that with each move he was exposed to an ever growing list of musical genres.
“I can track the movements of my life through music. Whenever I talk to my older brother about a song and we’re trying to remember the year we’ll say; “oh yeah, that’s when we lived at...”
Eventually Derek settled in San Francisco where he currently lives and works. In the early 90’s he fronted several bands and played many of the local clubs including Slim’s, Great American Music Hall, Café du Nord and numerous cafes and private events.
In 2006 he embarked on a “solo” endeavor composing his own music and
writing lyrics. He’s collaborated with some of the finest musicians for his
live shows including Tammy Hall, pc muñoz, Marc Weibel, Art Khu,
Alcide Marshall and Tom Freund to name a few.
Derek Lassiter's EP, Witness, is a breath of fresh air: earthy, percussion-driven, spiritual and sensual. From the opening rocker Hunger to the jazzy workout Ill Grow, Lassiter's poetic songs explore the deep roots of Africa and Africa-America, powered by the sound of the drum. Featuring special guest musicians Tom Freund (fresh off of a tour with his former songwriting partner, Ben Harper), Louisiana Blues legend Lady Memfis, and San Francisco guitar phenom Marc Weibel. Produced by pc muñoz.
A few years have passed since the release of Witness. Shortly after the completion of that project he started writing a song called Music Outside. The inspiration for the song came when he remembered that at one point in his life he had consciously made a decision to stop doing anything creative: no music, no writing, acting or photography. Those years were very dark and desperate times for him.
Music Outside is an account of the toll it takes on us when we abandon our spirit. The stories tell of people he met along the way who faced their own challenges to create the music of their soul when mentally, physically, financially it seems impossible. With this new project he hopes to inspire others to finally start living out their truth. To follow their dream.
Pool
Derek Lassiter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the truth was light—fell on me
...of light, of water, of blood
Is what I had to find
To fall into, restore my state
Of hope, faith, and dreaming
Things I'd turned away
I was lost and on the gift of love I traded
Cut my heart and in a pool of blood I waded
...of light, of water, of blood
I was baptized, restored my joy
And filled me up with
Hope, faith, and dreaming
Things that once were mine
And faded like the sun gone down
Nights were long, but there were stars always reminding
Nothing's lost, it's never dark enough to stop love shining
Derek Lassiter's "Pool" is a song about finding hope and redemption. The opening lines describe a sense of being lost and unable to see clearly. The truth, in the form of light, suddenly falls on the singer, illuminating their path. The repeated phrase "of light, of water, of blood" suggests a symbolic journey that the singer must undertake to regain their sense of self.
The lyrics suggest that the singer has made mistakes and turned away from things that were once important to them. But through some kind of baptism, they are able to restore their state of hope, faith, and dreaming. The phrase "cut my heart and in a pool of blood I waded" suggests a sacrifice of sorts that the singer has made to achieve this transformation.
Throughout the song, there is a sense of darkness and struggle. The nights are long, and the singer has been lost for a while. But there is always a glimmer of hope in the form of stars shining in the dark. In the end, nothing is truly lost, and love continues to shine.
Overall, the song is a meditation on the power of redemption and the importance of holding on to hope and faith, even in the darkest of times.
Line by Line Meaning
I was lost, couldn't find, couldn't see
I was feeling lost and unable to find my way in life, like I was in the dark and couldn't see the path ahead of me.
And the truth was light—fell on me
Suddenly, I had a moment of clarity and realized the truth about what I needed to do with my life.
...of light, of water, of blood
I needed to experience things like light, water, and blood in order to renew my spirit.
Is what I had to find
These experiences were necessary for me to recover from feeling lost and find my way back to hope and happiness.
To fall into, restore my state
By immersing myself in these experiences, I could renew my sense of self and find hope and faith again.
Of hope, faith, and dreaming
These were the qualities that I had lost touch with and needed to rediscover in order to feel whole again.
Things I'd turned away
I had been neglecting these important values and had to consciously choose to embrace them again.
And didn't know would lead me home
I didn't realize at the time that rediscovering these values would be the key to finding my way back to a happy, fulfilling life.
I was lost and on the gift of love I traded
I had given up on love and was feeling lost, but I knew that love was the key to finding my way back.
Cut my heart and in a pool of blood I waded
I had to endure pain and suffering to get to this point of rediscovering hope and faith.
I was baptized, restored my joy
Through these experiences, I felt as though I was being reborn and rediscovered the joy in life that I had lost.
And filled me up with
These experiences were like a balm to my spirit, filling me with renewed energy and optimism.
Hope, faith, and dreaming
These were the values that I had rediscovered through my journey, and they renewed my sense of purpose and positivity.
Things that once were mine
I had lost touch with these values, but now they were central to my identity and sense of self.
And faded like the sun gone down
These values had once been part of my life, but I had let them fade away, like the end of a day when the sun sets.
Nights were long, but there were stars always reminding
Even in my darkest moments, there were always signs of hope and guidance, like the stars shining in the night sky.
Nothing's lost, it's never dark enough to stop love shining
Even in the darkest times, there is always love and hope to be found, and it can never truly be extinguished.
Contributed by Tyler I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.