2) US ; country singer
1) Singer, writer and concertina player based in the North East of England. With a BBC Folk Award nomination for her work with harmony trio The Devil’s Interval, Emily is already an established musician on the UK folk scene, commended by Shirley Collins and annually touring with Waterson:Carthy. Emily has recently appeared at The Southbank Centre as part of their ‘Folk Roots, New Routes’ series and debuted her new songs at The Sage Gateshead. She is also fast making waves beyond the folk scene, being featured as a soloist on the BBC's adaptation of 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' as well as appearing on alt-folk songwriter Alasdair Roberts’ forthcoming album.
Emily originally hails from Glastonbury, where, raised on a diet of fairytales and deep Somerset folklore she began songwriting at the age of six, starting out with a keyboard, a tape recorder and a thirst for blood-curdling stories. After years immersed in traditional songs, Emily's return to songwriting has already grabbed the attention of the BBC, with Radio 3’s 'Late Junction' recently previewing her new music and ‘Words and Music’ broadcasting live performances of songs from the album at their 'Free Thinking' Festival. Inspired by folktales and Ballads, Emily weaves harmony-rich narratives relaying female experience, accompanied by Viola player Lucy Farrell (fresh from touring with The Unthanks) and Harpist Rachel Newton of BBC folk Award Nominees The Shee. These visceral visions of a darker Albion conjure landscapes where mythical sirens collide in urban backstreets. Emily's debut solo album ‘The Glamoury’ was released in March 2010.
2) US ; country singer : http://www.last.fm/music/Emily+Portman/Country+Girl+Like+Me
Pretty Skin
Emily Portman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For you are good enough to eat
Soon you'll join with the gossiping
And then with the winding sheet
You may throw me to the flames
But in the embers my remains
My stooping frame
You turn like river stones
You may try to bury me
But even in the darkest woods
There will be nowhere, no good, no way
My bones will rise out of the clay
And by the time you're lost and alone
My old bones could carry you home
They'll whisper softly in your ear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
You cannot make me disappear
The lyrics to Emily Portman's song "Pretty Skin" are complex and multi-layered, employing vivid imagery and metaphors to convey the theme of resilience and survival against all odds.
The opening line "Oh to gnaw at your pretty skin" is a disturbing and eerie image that sets the tone for the rest of the song. It suggests a vampire-like desire to consume and gain power over the object of desire, who is described as "good enough to eat." The following lines, "Soon you'll join with the gossiping / And then with the winding sheet," indicate that the singer is aware of the transience of beauty and the inevitability of death. The imagery of the "winding sheet" is particularly powerful as it refers to the cloth used to wrap a corpse for burial.
The second verse of the song shifts in tone, as the singer seems to be addressing someone who has wronged them. The lines "You may throw me to the flames / But in the embers my remains / My stooping frame / My withered bones away / You turn like river stones" suggest a sense of betrayal and abandonment. The singer is acknowledging the possibility of being destroyed or eliminated, but the powerful imagery of their "withered bones" rising out of the clay suggests that they cannot be silenced or erased completely.
The repeated refrain "You cannot make me disappear" reinforces the theme of resilience and survival. It suggests that even in the face of adversity, the singer will persist and endure, refusing to be silenced or eradicated. The use of repetition is also effective in emphasizing the message of the song and highlighting the power and strength of the singer.
Overall, "Pretty Skin" is a haunting and thought-provoking song that tackles complex themes with powerful imagery and metaphors. Its message of resilience and survival is conveyed through vivid and evocative lyrics that invite the listener to contemplate the meaning and significance of mortality, beauty, and the human condition.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh to gnaw at your pretty skin
I am so enamored with your beauty that I want to possess a part of you. I see you as good enough to be devoured.
For you are good enough to eat
Your physical attractiveness is so exquisite that it makes me want to indulge in every part of you.
Soon you'll join with the gossiping
You will soon be subjected to the whims of others and will be made into a spectacle of gossip and rumors.
And then with the winding sheet
When you die, you will be wrapped in a burial shroud, like all others who have passed.
You may throw me to the flames
You may try to destroy me, but I will not allow it.
But in the embers my remains
Even in the aftermath of destruction, there will be remnants of me left behind.
My stooping frame
My body, which has hunched over from the weight of hardship and pain.
My withered bones away
My physical form, which has deteriorated over the years of life.
You turn like river stones
You are flippant and carelessly shift your affections, likened to the way river stones are moved by the current.
You may try to bury me
You may try to hide me away, pretending that I do not exist.
But even in the darkest woods
Even in the most remote and hidden places, I will persist.
There will be nowhere, no good, no way
There is no way to erase me or make me disappear.
My bones will rise out of the clay
My remains will resurface and persist even after my physical body has entered the earth.
And by the time you're lost and alone
When you are isolated and alone, I will be the only constant that remains.
My old bones could carry you home
The years of life that I have experienced will act as a guide and lead you back home.
They'll whisper softly in your ear
The memories and lessons learned from my life will whisper to you and bring you comfort.
You cannot make me disappear
No matter how hard you try, you cannot erase me or the impact that I have made on your life.
You cannot make me disappear
I will persist and exist, despite the attempts to erase me.
You cannot make me disappear
My legacy and memory will remain, even after my physical form is gone.
You cannot make me disappear
I am irreplaceable and my life cannot be erased.
You cannot make me disappear
I will not allow myself to be forgotten or erased from existence.
You cannot make me disappear
Even in the face of difficulty and adversity, I will persist and live on.
You cannot make me disappear
No matter what happens, I will always exist in the world and in the memories of others.
You cannot make me disappear
My impact cannot be erased, and my existence is permanent.
You cannot make me disappear
No amount of effort will erase me or my legacy from the world.
You cannot make me disappear
I am too strong and too significant to be erased, and I will persist indefinitely.
Writer(s): Finn Mcnicholas, Emily Portman
Contributed by Mila M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.