History
E solo records
In 1991, Everett signed a contract with Polydor and released A Man Called E under the name E a year later. The single "Hello Cruel World" was a minor success. Touring to support the album, E opened for Tori Amos. A Man Called E was followed by Broken Toy Shop in 1993. This year also marked the beginning of E's collaboration with drummer Jonathan "Butch" Norton. After Broken Toy Shop, E was released from his record deal with Polydor. E has performed two of the songs from Broken Toy Shop ("The Only Thing I Care About" and "Manchester Girl") for his own live shows with the Eels.
Beautiful Freak
Eels were officially founded when Butch and E met Tommy Walter. The name "Eels" was chosen so that the band's records would be close to E's solo records in an alphabetical ordering, although it was too late once they realized that numerous Eagles and Earth, Wind & Fire releases were in between. Eels became one of the first groups to sign a record deal with DreamWorks Records, followed by Elliott Smith.
In 1996, the band released their debut album Beautiful Freak. The singles "Novocaine for the Soul", "Susan's House" and "Your Lucky Day in Hell" achieved modest national and international success, with the band winning the Best International Breakthrough Act award at the 1998 BRIT Awards. In 1996 and 1997, Eels toured extensively to support the album, building their name as a live act in the United States and Europe. In September 1997, Walter quit the band.
Released in May 2001, the motion picture soundtrack for the movie Shrek included the song "My Beloved Monster".
Electro-Shock Blues
Following the success of Beautiful Freak, E experienced a difficult time in his personal life. His sister committed suicide, and his mother was diagnosed with cancer. These events inspired Eels' second album, 1998's Electro-Shock Blues. The album deals with many difficult subjects, including cancer, mental illness, suicide and death. The tragedy of Everett's father's death became prominent once more in the context of his mother's impending death and his sister's suicide, and as a result the song "Baby Genius" is written for his father Hugh Everett III. Contributions to the album were made by Jon Brion, Lisa Germano, Jim Jacobsen, Grant-Lee Phillips, Dust Brother Michael Simpson, and T-Bone Burnett.
The single "Last Stop: This Town" saw minor success, while "Cancer for the Cure", the second single from the album, appeared on the soundtrack for American Beauty (1999).
Still a three-piece band on stage, Tommy Walter was replaced by Adam Siegel. Part of the American leg of the tour was cancelled after the death of E's mother. They returned to tour Europe later in the year, to open for Pulp.
Daisies of the Galaxy
In 2000, Eels released Daisies of the Galaxy. The album, which was recorded almost entirely in E's basement, is lighter and more upbeat than its predecessor. Everett noted, "if Electro-Shock Blues was the phone call in the middle of the night that the world doesn't want to answer, then Daisies of the Galaxy is the hotel wake-up call that says your lovely breakfast is ready". He was joined in the studio by Michael Simpson (Dust Brothers), Grant-Lee Phillips (Grant Lee Buffalo), and Peter Buck (R.E.M.).
The first single, "Mr. E's Beautiful Blues", was co-written by Simpson. The song was not intended to be on the album, but the record company insisted on its inclusion. Therefore, it was not featured on the track listing but was instead listed on the cover sticker as a bonus track, separated from the rest of the album by 20 seconds of silence.
To promote Daisies of the Galaxy, another tour took place across the United States and Europe, with the band also playing their first concerts in Australia. For these performances, Eels were transformed into a 6-piece orchestra, including Lisa Germano and Probyn Gregory. E also played some solo shows, opening for Fiona Apple.
Souljacker and Shootenanny!
In 2001, Souljacker was released, an album with a heavier feel and more rock-oriented sound than Daisies of the Galaxy. John Parish, previously of PJ Harvey's band, co-wrote most of the songs and played guitar on the album and first part of the tour. After Parish became a father, he was replaced with Joe Gore for the American leg of the Bus Driving, Band Rocking Tour. Koool G Murder played bass and keyboards and joined Eels on tour.
2003 marked the release of the album Shootenanny!. E now refers to the album as a break from recording the following Blinking Lights album. It was recorded live in the studio in only ten days. "Saturday Morning" was released as a single.
Butch was replaced on drums by Puddin'. In 2003, Eels embarked upon another big tour, called the Tour of Duty. The live band consisted of E, Goldenboy (guitar), Koool G Murder (bass) and Puddin' (drums). Later that year, E composed the score for the film Levity.
Blinking Lights and Other Revelations and Eels with Strings
Eels' next album, Blinking Lights and Other Revelations, was released on April 26, 2005, and was the band's first release for new label Vagrant Records. It is a 33-track double album. Contributions were made by Tom Waits, Peter Buck, John Sebastian (The Lovin' Spoonful), Jim Jacobsen, and Butch.
The first tour in support of the Blinking Lights album, billed as Eels with Strings, featured primarily performances by E on acoustic guitar, organ or piano, backed by Allen "Big Al" Hunter on piano and upright bass, Jeffrey Lyster (also known as Chet Atkins III or "The Chet") on guitar, mandolin, pedal steel, musical saw and drums, and a string quartet consisting of violinists Paloma Udovic and Julie Carpenter, violist Heather Lockie and cellist Ana Lenchantin. The tour resulted in a live album, Eels with Strings: Live at Town Hall, recorded in New York City. The performance includes tracks from all of their albums, and was released on CD and DVD on February 21, 2006.
Meet the Eels: Essential Eels Vol. I and Useless Trinkets
In early 2008, Eels released their first "greatest hits" compilation as well as a compilation of B-sides, rarities, soundtrack singles and unreleased tracks. Meet the Eels: Essential Eels Vol. I spans the first decade of the Eels, including singles from all their albums, as well as a DVD featuring music videos and one live performance video. Useless Trinkets contains 50 B-sides and rarities and a DVD of their Lollapalooza 2006 performances. To promote the releases, the band went on a world tour, An Evening With Eels. This time, only the Chet joined E on stage, both playing a broad cross-section from the Eels repertoire on a variety of instruments. The concerts also featured the Chet reading excerpts from E's 2008 autobiography, Things the Grandchildren Should Know. On this tour, the band released a live CD/DVD package of Eels' 2006 performance at the London Astoria, Live and in Person!, documenting a show from the second tour in support of Blinking Lights and Other Revelations.
The soundtrack of the 2008 comedy film Yes Man features nine songs by Eels, including "Man Up", a brand new song.
Concept album trilogy: Hombre Lobo, End Times, and Tomorrow Morning
Hombre Lobo, the seventh Eels studio album, was released on June 2, 2009. The album comprises twelve new songs. "Hombre Lobo" is Spanish for "wolf man" or "werewolf" and references E's unusually long beard, which he originally grew when writing the song "Dog Faced Boy". On March 31, 2009, the band made the track "Fresh Blood" available on Spinner, explaining that the song would be the lead single for the album. A Jesse Dylan-directed music video was released on April 29, 2009 as well. The album was released as a single-disc CD and a deluxe edition with a DVD. In September 2009, Eels released a music video for "That Look You Give That Guy", featuring Bobby Jr., E and Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi.
While promoting this album, Eels released the live EP The Myspace Transmissions Session 2009 on October 14, 2009. That same day, the band's website announced that a new Eels album entitled End Times would be released on January 19, 2010. It was largely recorded on a four-track recorder and is based on the themes of broken love. Three album tracks—"Little Bird", "In My Younger Days", and "A Line in the Dirt"—were made available as music videos or promotional downloads prior to the release of the album. Once again, Butch contributed drums to "A Line in the Dirt". On January 19, 2010, End Times was released. E made no comment on touring and there was no tour scheduled to begin.
A second album was announced on May 20, 2010: Tomorrow Morning was described as the "final installment of a trilogy that began with Hombre Lobo and End Times." The three albums respectively explore themes of desire, loss, and redemption. A world tour, the first since 2007's An Evening With Eels tour, was announced at the same time. This tour once again featured the Chet on various instruments, alongside Koool G Murder on bass, trilogy drummer Knuckles on drums and a new member, P-Boo, on guitar.
Wonderful, Glorious and The Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett
On February 5, 2013, the 10th Eels studio album was released, entitled Wonderful, Glorious. The first single from the album, "Peach Blossom", premiered on SoundCloud on November 6, 2012. A month later, on December 4, 2012, the official video was released on Stereogum. The second single, "New Alphabet", was streamed pre-release on December 12, 2012 on Spinner
On March 25, 2013, the band released a parody music video called "Cold Dead Hand" through Funny or Die, with Jim Carrey replacing E on vocals. The song and video, set as a musical act during the variety program Hee Haw, lampoons American gun culture, and specifically former NRA spokesperson Charlton Heston.
Eels' eleventh studio album, The Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett, was released on April 21, 2014 on E Works Records. In April 2015, the band released the DVD and double live album Live at the Royal Albert Hall.
In 2015, Eels created their own version of Melanie De Biasio's track "I Feel You" for the album Gilles Peterson Presents - No Deal Remixed. The track was later used to promote the 2017 film Alien: Covenant, directed by Ridley Scott, and appears during the entire in-universe short movie Meet Walter starring Michael Fassbender.
The Deconstruction and Earth to Dora
On January 17, 2018, Eels announced their 12th studio album, The Deconstruction, to be released on April 6, 2018, their first in nearly four years. They also announced a supporting tour throughout the United States and Europe, beginning in Pomona, California on May 28, 2018. The album travels through many styles sonically, but its lyrics primarily deal with rebuilding one's life and looking back on what went wrong. Singles include (in release order) the title track, "Today Is the Day", "Premonition", and "Bone Dry". Styles present on the album include orchestral pop, power pop, psychedelic pop/rock, indie/alternative rock and post-modern pop.
The band's next release was the single "Baby Let's Make It Real"/"Who You Say You Are", announced on September 1, 2020. These songs were featured on the subsequent studio album, Earth to Dora (2020).
Extreme Witchcraft
On September 21, 2021, it was announced that the 14th Eels album would be called Extreme Witchcraft and would be released on January 28, 2022. The album was produced by E and John Parish in their first collaboration since 2001's Souljacker.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eels_(band)
Studio albums
As E
A Man Called E (1992)
Broken Toy Shop (1993)
As Eels
Beautiful Freak (1996)
Electro-Shock Blues (1998)
Daisies of the Galaxy (2000)
Souljacker (2001)
Shootenanny! (2003)
Blinking Lights and Other Revelations (2005)
Hombre Lobo (2009)
End Times (2010)
Tomorrow Morning (2010)
Wonderful, Glorious (2013)
The Cautionary Tales of Mark Oliver Everett (2014)
The Deconstruction (2018)
Earth to Dora (2020)
Extreme Witchcraft (2022)
Paradise Blues
Eels Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On the way to paradise
Gonna take yourself and be with her
Killin' once and killin' twice
Well it's a real hard time
Singin' the paradise blues
For goin' to a better place
For thinkin' there's some kinda magic
Up there past outer space
Well that's some crazy-ass shit
Singin' the paradise blues
I'm gonna walk these filthy streets
I'm gonna raise my head
I may not be in paradise
Woo, but I'm not dead
Ain't gonna fly blind
Singin' these paradise blues
Your contempt and your sarcasm
It's all so transparent
Why don't you give up the act now, kid
Woo, and let some love in?
Cause that's all that we got
Singin' these paradise blues
The lyrics of Eels' song Paradise Blues describe the mindset of a suicide bomber who believes that by killing others and himself, he will reach paradise. The opening line, "Scary little suicide bomber on the way to paradise" immediately sets a dark and somber tone for the rest of the song. The lyrics suggest that the bomber is doing this for a romantic partner, symbolized by the line "gonna take yourself and be with her."
The second verse goes on to describe the difficulty in blaming someone for wanting to go to a better place. The use of the phrase "some kinda magic up there past outer space" portrays a place that is out of reach, beyond the worldly troubles that we face. However, the chorus "Well it's a real hard time singin' the paradise blues" reminds us that there are more constructive ways to live and that the pursuit of such a paradise is a fruitless endeavor. The final line of the chorus "kinda hard to blame somebody" is poignant, as it suggests that the bomber's desire to reach paradise may be a result of his own suffering and hardship.
The final verse is about the singer's own journey through life, emphasizing the struggle to find meaning and purpose in a world that can be cruel and unforgiving. The line "I'm gonna walk these filthy streets, I'm gonna raise my head" reveals a determination to endure and find meaning in life, even when paradise seems out of reach. The chorus once again emphasizes the difficulty of achieving paradise and the importance of love as the ultimate goal in life, reminding us that in the end, that is all we truly have.
Line by Line Meaning
Scary little suicide bomber
Referring to individuals who are willing to take their own lives in exchange for a supposed entry to paradise.
On the way to paradise
Describing the suicide bomber's intended destination after committing an act of terror.
Gonna take yourself and be with her
The bomber intends to take their own life and be reunited with a woman (possibly a spouse or loved one) in paradise.
Killin' once and killin' twice
The suicide bomber intends to commit an act of terror that will result in the death of others and their own death in exchange for their perceived entry to paradise.
Well it's a real hard time
Describing the difficulty of understanding the mindset of a suicide bomber who is willing to kill themselves and others for their perceived entry to paradise.
Singin' the paradise blues
A metaphorical reference to the feelings of sorrow and hopelessness that arise from contemplating the actions of a suicide bomber.
Kinda hard to blame somebody
It's difficult to place blame on someone who believes they are going to a better place by committing acts of violence.
For goin' to a better place
The thought of being rewarded with entry to paradise can be seen as a motive for someone's willingness to engage in deadly acts of violence.
For thinkin' there's some kinda magic
The belief in an otherworldly paradise can be viewed as a form of magical thinking and a motivation for violence.
Up there past outer space
A description of paradise as a place that exists beyond our world and its limitations.
Well that's some crazy-ass shit
A reaction to the irrational belief that committing acts of violence will result in entry to paradise.
I'm gonna walk these filthy streets
The artist intends to continue living in the real world, despite the allure of a supposed paradise.
I'm gonna raise my head
The singer intends to maintain their dignity and self-respect in the face of adversity.
I may not be in paradise
The singer acknowledges that they may not achieve the promised reward of paradise, but will continue living their life regardless.
Woo, but I'm not dead
The singer is still alive and has the ability to continue living their life as they see fit.
Ain't gonna fly blind
Won't blindly follow the seductive messages of paradise afterlife that persuade committing violent and destructive acts.
Your contempt and your sarcasm
Referring to individuals who belittle the idea of an afterlife and criticize those who believe in it.
It's all so transparent
The contempt and sarcasm of such individuals is obvious and lacks any real substance.
Why don't you give up the act now, kid
A call to stop pretending to know everything and to approach things more humbly.
Woo, and let some love in?
A suggestion to be more open and accepting of others rather than dwelling in contempt and contemptuous behavior.
Cause that's all that we got
Love and compassion are the only genuine forces that can bring warmth and comfort to the world.
Singin' these paradise blues
The struggles and hardships encountered while striving for a better world rather than acting on a misguided belief of a blissful afterlife.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MARK O. EVERETT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
peterdought
Fabulous, so well worded
asstezz
PARADISE BLUES... ...Kinda hard to blame somebody For goin' to a better place For thinkin' there's some kinda magic Up there past outer space. excellent lyrics
Olle
It's some crazy ass shit alright
Jerzy Kaczmarczyk
Proponuję Rick Harris-"Paradise Blues". Eels też jest OK.
Jens Present
@rienstra100 ge zijt nie alleen