J… Read Full Bio ↴Essie Jain is English singer-songwriter born and raised in London.
Jain has released four studio albums worldwide; her first full-length record, We Made This Ourselves, was critically acclaimed and drew comparisons to the British singers Sandy Denny and Vashti Bunyan. In 2011, she started her own label and released Until the Light of Morning, an album of original lullabies for parent and child.
Her third album, All Became Golden, is an audiovisual project and the creative vision of Jain and filmaker Natalie Johns. It marked the dawn of a more expansive and joyful direction with Jain's songwriting.
In January 2015, Jain released To Love, an album of modern chants, movements and meditations, and a journey began to bring these songs of the heart out into the world through healing workshops, retreats and live accompaniment for yoga classes.
She currently lives in New York with her husband and longterm musical collaborator Patrick Glynn.
www.essiejain.com
Disgrace
Essie Jain Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For most of us it's easier
To watch the way they do betray
With wait and see
Looks on their face
Vacant expressions replace
What it was we stood for
We wonder at the motion of the step
The big disgrace
Now we are stocking the mold
That they have made
To fit like glue
Can't help but think it's all our fault
Can't help but wait for the lightning bolt
Maybe we don't want to know
That every man was bailing out
On issues that they'd have no doubt
With certainty, wipe from their face
They did all they could to replace
What it was we stood for
We wonder at the motion of the step
The blow
The big disgrace
Now we are stocking the mold
That they have made
To fit like glue
Can't help but think it's all our fault
Can't help but wait for the lightning bolt
In Essie Jain's song Disgrace, the lyrics contemplate the struggle of standing up for what is right, and the difficulty of taking action when we see others betraying their values. The first verse describes the common tendency to simply watch as others betray what they believe in, with "vacant expressions" replacing their former commitment. The second verse suggests that this inaction can have serious consequences, as we begin to conform to the mold created by those who have betrayed their values. The phrase "the big disgrace" the song repeats throughout seems to represent both the failure to take action and the aftermath of that failure - the way we ultimately end up conforming to the values we originally opposed.
The chorus also contains two important lines: "Can't help but think it's all our fault / Can't help but wait for the lightning bolt." These lines capture the sense of doom that accompanies inaction - the idea that we know we should be doing something, but we also know that we are complicit in allowing things to get to this point. At the same time, there is the hope that some kind of external force (represented by the "lightning bolt") will come in and change things, since we are unable or unwilling to act ourselves.
Overall, Disgrace is a powerful song that speaks to the importance of standing up for what we believe in, even when it's hard or unpopular. The song also raises questions about the power of longstanding patterns and molds, and the ways in which they can lead us astray. The repeated phrase "the big disgrace" has a haunting quality, suggesting that the consequences of inaction can be profound and far-reaching.
Line by Line Meaning
This way or that way we go
We have choices to make and directions to take
For most of us it's easier
The path of least resistance is often tempting
To watch the way they do betray
We witness betrayal by those we trusted
With wait and see
Our response is hesitant and uncertain
Looks on their face
They seem unemotional and unaffected
Vacant expressions replace
Their previous conviction has vanished
What it was we stood for
Our beliefs and values have been compromised
We wonder at the motion of the step
We question the direction of our progress
The blow
The impact of the situation
The big disgrace
The magnitude of the failure
Now we are stocking the mold
We conform to their expectations
That they have made
Their influence shapes our behavior
To fit like glue
We are trapped in their mold
Can't help but think it's all our fault
We feel responsible for the situation
Can't help but wait for the lightning bolt
We anticipate punishment for our actions
Maybe we don't want to know
We might prefer ignorance to facing the truth
That every man was bailing out
Everyone else was abandoning the cause
On issues that they'd have no doubt
On matters they previously believed in without hesitation
With certainty, wipe from their face
Their conviction disappears without a trace
They did all they could to replace
They actively sought to change our beliefs
Writer(s): Jain Essie Copyright: Carlin Music Corp.
Contributed by Hunter Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.