John Ondrasik was born in the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. He grew up there in a musical family, with his mother teaching him the piano from the age of two. As a teenager, he learned how to play the guitar as well and started to write music. While he also learned to sing opera briefly, he quickly decided that he would like to be a piano playing popular musician along the lines of Elton John and Billy Joel. Ondrasik adopted the name "Five for Fighting" which is an expression in ice hockey when a player is sent from the rink by the referee for a major penalty. The name was used for the reason that it would be more memorable than his real name.
In 1997, his first album, 'Message for Albert', was released by EMI. Although not quite breaking through commercially, fans of modern singer-songwriter music provided a warm audience for Ondrasik. After the success of 'America Town', Capitol Records re-released this debut album to give it a more mainstream audience.
In 2000, Ondrasik signed with the aforementioned Columbia Records and released 'America Town' on September 26, 2000. At first, it made little impact until track "Superman (It's Not Easy)" became an American anthem after the September 11 attacks. Ondrasik performed the song at 'The Concert for New York Cit'y in late 2001.
"Superman (It's Not Easy)" started climbing the charts reaching the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard Adult Top 40. While 'America Town' itself failed to make the top 50 of the Billboard 200 album charts, its consistent sales led to it going platinum. "Superman (It's Not Easy)" was also an international hit reaching number one on a composite adult international chart (based on performance in the U.S., Canada, Germany, France, the United Kingdom and Australia). Ondrasik's second single, "Easy Tonight", would make the top 20 of the world adult chart as well as going top 20 in New Zealand.
His third album, 'The Battle for Everything', debuted at number 20 on the Billboard 200 in February 2004. Its first single, "100 Years", was another top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and again reached number one on the World Adult Top 40. It also was number one on a composite world airplay chart and top 10 on a composite world modern rock chart. (based on USA, Germany, United Kingdom, Finland, Sweden, Canada and Australia).
The Five for Fighting song "100 Years" was used in a ubiquitous JP Morgan Chase commercial, and more recently in an episode of Scrubs. The song was also used in the last scenes of the final episode of JAG.
Lately, Ondrasik's sixth album, 2013's 'Bookmarks', came out after a four year gap between his last release. The album has received critical praise from a variety of publications such as Allmusic, where the reviewer lauded how Five for Fighting produced " sturdy tunes wrapped up neatly in a shiny, appealing gloss". Released by the label Universal, his work also hit the #54 slot on the Billboard 200, with his fans happily looking forwards to his future endeavors.
See more at: http://www.fiveforfighting.com/
Dying
Five for Fighting Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm dying, dying to forget about you, that you ever lived
There's a shade come over this heart that's coping with laying down to rest
I'm dying to live without you again
I'm dying, dying to find a distraction, get you away from me
I'm dying, dying to reach a conclusion, so that the world can see
It's the same old story of love and glory that broke before it bent
The first time you left I said goodbye
Now there's not a prayer that can survive
Dying, dying to die just to come back so we can meet again
Dying, dying to say what I always should have said
It's a strange emotion this but there's still hope in this
As long as there's a breath...
I'm dying and I can't live without you again
It's a strange emotion this but there's still hope in this
As long as there's a breath
I'm dying and I can't live without you
I'm dying and I can't live without you again
The lyrics of Five for Fighting's "Dying" describe the struggle of moving on from a failed relationship. The singer is consumed by thoughts of their former partner and desires to forget them entirely. The first stanza implies that the singer can't escape the memories of their ex, even in their dreams. They wish to "wake up without you," but their mind is plagued with thoughts of the former partner. The second stanza expresses the singer's desperation to find a way to distract themselves from their thoughts. They want closure to be able to move on "so that the world can see." Despite the pain of heartbreak, the singer holds onto hope for the future, stating that "as long as there's a breath," hope remains.
The lines "The first time you left I said goodbye, now there's not a prayer that can survive" suggest that the singer has been through this before and that they cannot bring themselves to say goodbye again. The final two stanzas express the singer's ultimate desire to be reunited with their ex, even if it means dying to do so. The lyrics suggest that the pain of losing their partner is inextricably linked to their identity and their will to live.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm dying, dying to wake up without you, without you in my head again
I long for a peaceful morning free of any thoughts of you.
I'm dying, dying to forget about you, that you ever lived
I wish I could erase any memory of you from my mind.
There's a shade come over this heart that's coping with laying down to rest
My heart is burdened with sadness as I go to sleep each night.
I'm dying to live without you again
I yearn to move on from you and start living my life without you.
I'm dying, dying to find a distraction, get you away from me
I am desperate to find anything that will help me forget about you.
I'm dying, dying to reach a conclusion, so that the world can see
I want closure in our relationship so that others can understand why it ended.
It's the same old story of love and glory that broke before it bent
Our love story was doomed from the start and could not find a way to survive.
I'm dying to live without you again
I still crave the freedom of living my life without you.
The first time you left I said goodbye
When you left me the first time, I accepted it and said goodbye.
Now there's not a prayer that can survive
But now, I cannot find any hope for our relationship to be restored.
Dying, dying to die just to come back so we can meet again
I wish that death could reunite us so we could see each other once more.
Dying, dying to say what I always should have said
I have regrets about the things I never got to tell you before we parted ways.
It's a strange emotion this but there's still hope in this
Despite the complexity of my emotions, I still hold onto hope for the future.
As long as there's a breath...
I will continue to hold onto hope as long as I am alive.
I'm dying and I can't live without you again
Even though I try to move on, I cannot escape the pain of losing you.
It's a strange emotion this but there's still hope in this
Despite the complexity of my emotions, I still hold onto hope for the future.
As long as there's a breath
Even in the midst of my pain, there is still a glimmer of hope for a better tomorrow.
I'm dying and I can't live without you
The thought of being without you is unbearable for me to even consider.
I'm dying and I can't live without you again
I still feel like a part of me has died without you in my life.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: JOHN ONDRASIK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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