Banhart is considered to have an eclectic style, with many of his songs seemingly following a stream-of-consciousness vein, being hard to decipher and non-literal. His music tends to consist of fairly simple guitar melodies with minimal other instrumentation, and his lyrical themes are often surreal and naturalistic. His involvement in the Los Angeles artist community is reflected in Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon, released in September 2007. He gained some underground notoriety in New York for performing several of his early shows with underwear on his head for the duration of the performance.
Banhart's most recent tour of the United States saw him perform with his full band, which is currently known as Power Mineral. Power Mineral included Andy Cabic (Vetiver), Greg Rogove (Priestbird), Noah Georgeson, Luckey Remington, Pete Newsom, Otto Hauser (Vetiver, Currituck Co., Espers, Nick Castro), Kevin Barker (Currituck Co.), and others. The band claims to rechristen itself when a name comes to them, and has previously been known as Fried Hummingbird, Vagina Burglars, Hairy Fairy Band, Las Putas Locas, Stoner Boner, Spiritual Boner, Bummer Hummer, Brain Taint, Love Fart, Bathhouse Of The Winds, and First Woman Millionaire among other names.
Banhart was discovered by Michael Gira of Swans, who released his Oh Me Oh My... The Way the Day Goes by the Sun Is Setting Dogs Are Dreaming… album on his own Young God Records label in 2002. In 2005, Banhart (along with Andy Cabic and Revolver USA) created the Gnomonsong record label. In 2006 he helped to curate an edition of the British All Tomorrow's Parties festival.
Banhart also was one of the younger musicians responsible for "rediscovering" the music of folksinger Vashti Bunyan. Bunyan is a guest vocalist on his album Rejoicing in the Hands.
06 Your Fine Petting Duck
Devendra Banhart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause I don't really love him (No no no)
Give me that
Won't ya gimme gimme
Give me all your loving and I'll call you
And hope that you won't say
If he ever treats you bad
If he doesn't try his best
Please remember that I never tried at all
And if he makes you cry a lot
Please remember that with me you never stopped
I never held
On long enough
To let you go
Come back baby
I never really loved him
I'll take ya back
I never really loved him
If he don't give enough time
Please remember that I never gave you mine
If he doesn't have a dime
Please forget how hard I worked to get you lots
You, you always knew
But ya pushed it, baby
Yeah, ya pushed it, baby
You looked away
Come back baby
I never really loved him
I'll take ya back
I never really loved him
If he ever is untrue
Please remember I was too (And so much more so)
If he doesn't have a clue
Please forget how much I always had a few
And if he ever is unkind
At least he'll never change his mind
Not the way
I always did
And still will do
Als eine flamme reißt du
Du durch das essentialisieren universum
Inzwischen trinken wia
Unser glas de himmels abstinenz
Eines tages konnten
Wir unser locher
Wieder stopfen
Als eine flamme reißt du
Du durch das essentialisieren universum
Inzwischen trinken wia
Unser glas de himmels abstinenz
Yes I've been, yes I've been, yes I've been
I've been feeling it too.
Yes I've been, yes I've been, yes I've been
I've been feeling it too.
Yes I've been, yes I've been, yes I've been
I've been feeling it too.
I've been feeling it, I've been feeling it
I've been feeling it
Yes I've been feeling it too.
The song "Your Fine Petting Duck" by Devendra Banhart is a heartfelt plea for a lost love to return. The lyrics are full of regret and longing, as Banhart sings about never truly loving his previous partner, but wanting them back nonetheless. The chorus repeats the phrase "Come back baby, I never really loved him, I'll take ya back" in a desperate attempt to win back the one he let slip away. Banhart acknowledges his shortcomings as a partner and asks his former lover to remember how poorly he treated them, but also to remember the good times they shared. He juxtaposes his own failings with the potential shortcomings of the new partner in a last-ditch attempt to show his worthiness.
The verse that begins with "If he ever is untrue, please remember I was too" is particularly powerful in its vulnerability. Banhart acknowledges his own flaws and asks the new partner to forgive him for them. The use of the German language in the bridge adds a surreal element to the song, as Banhart sings about flames and the universe. This could be interpreted as a metaphor for the intensity and passion of the relationship he once had with his former partner, and the emptiness he feels without them.
Overall, "Your Fine Petting Duck" is a bittersweet song about lost love and the regret that follows. It showcases Banhart's ability to write emotive lyrics and deliver them with raw sincerity.
Line by Line Meaning
I'll take you back
I want you back in my life
'Cause I don't really love him (No no no)
I don't love the person I'm with right now
Give me that
Give me your love and attention
Won't ya gimme gimme
Please give me what I'm asking for
Give me all your loving and I'll call you
If you give me your love, I'll reach out to you
And hope that you won't say
I hope you won't reject me
If he ever treats you bad
If your current partner mistreats you
Please remember how much worse I treated you
Remember that I treated you poorly too
If he doesn't try his best
If your current partner doesn't put in enough effort
Please remember that I never tried at all
I wasn't willing to try in our relationship
And if he makes you cry a lot
If your current partner causes you pain and sorrow
Please remember that with me you never stopped
In our relationship, you were always unhappy and hurt
I never held
I never held on tightly
On long enough
For us to work out our problems
To let you go
To move on from our relationship
Come back baby
I want you to come back to me
If he don't give enough time
If your current partner doesn't spend enough time with you
Please remember that I never gave you mine
I also neglected to give you my time
If he doesn't have a dime
If your current partner is broke
Please forget how hard I worked to get you lots
I worked hard to provide for you, but that's in the past
You, you always knew
You were aware of the issues in our relationship
But ya pushed it, baby
You ignored those issues and tried to make it work
Yeah, ya pushed it, baby
You kept trying to fix our relationship
You looked away
You turned a blind eye to the problems
If he ever is untrue
If your current partner is cheating on you
Please remember I was too (And so much more so)
I was unfaithful to you and even worse than he is
If he doesn't have a clue
If your current partner is oblivious to your needs
Please forget how much I always had a few
I also had no idea how to make you happy
And if he ever is unkind
If your current partner is cruel to you
At least he'll never change his mind
He won't toy with your emotions like I did
Not the way
Definitely not like how
I always did
I constantly changed my mind and hurt you
And still will do
I would do it all over again
Als eine flamme reißt du
Like a flame you tear through
Du durch das essentialisieren universum
You go through the essentialized universe
Inzwischen trinken wia
Meanwhile we drink
Unser glas de himmels abstinenz
From our glass of heavenly abstinence
Eines tages konnten
One day we could
Wir unser locher
We close our holes
Wieder stopfen
Again to plug (referring to a cork)
Yes I've been, yes I've been, yes I've been
I have been feeling this way for a while now
I've been feeling it, I've been feeling it
My feelings have stayed the same
Yes I've been feeling it too.
I have been feeling the mutual connection between us
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY, BMG Rights Management
Written by: DEVENDRA BANHART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Erika Hamerla Vaz
I think she sounds lovely! Especially for someone who is not a professional singer and is putted on the spot like that, you can see she is completely out of place. Besides being beautiful, she is an amazing photographer, model and furniture designer... As a Devendra fan I think he got really lucky, hope they go a long way together!
Vanessa Nieto
They broke up!
kplaxiy
I think its very beautiful how even though she is completely tone deaf, he loves her so much he still wants her to sing with him.
vomitodeterciopelo
ana kras and devendra shoud make a record together it would a blast
ejsbxbeia skd
this is sweet. l love both of them.
Rafael Trindade
This is lovely. I adore that kiss Dev gives on Ana's forehead at 3:41. They were so cute.
ilikeponie
in an interview, ana kras (his fiancee) stated that he basically forced her to sing for him. She loved him enough to do it!
Sharvari Tavkar
they're so beautiful I lost it at the wah wah wah part
Dominique Diglio
He said in an interview he wanted the song to sound as if The Shaggs and New Order made a song.
無
god dammit fab is in the drums