Frank Turner started solo acoustic shows prior to Million Dead's break up. The first official performance was at the first Small Town America all dayer at 93 Feet East on September 18th 2004. The solo performances were, in a sense, a sideline to Million Dead. They did allow Turner to display some of his own songwriting capabilities (without a band) as well as some covers of songs and bands he enjoyed, in some cases the songs were much re-worked to fit an acoustic atmosphere. Solo performances were also used to help bolster or expose Million Dead to new individuals as well, with some acoustic in-store and radio performances of Million Dead songs.
At the end of February and start of March (2006) Frank went to Oxford to record the "Campfire Punkrock" EP with Dive Dive as the backing band for three of the songs. This EP was released on May 15 2006 on a limited run through Xtra Mile recordings. It sold out after only a few weeks on sale and had to be re-pressed to meet demand.
With Jonah Matranga doing some touring in June 2006 in support of his CD/DVD album "Jonah Matranga" there was some discussion of Frank doing supports with Jonah, this only ended up with one show featuring both at The Peel in Kingston. The discussion however lead to the creation of the Jonah Matranga and Frank Turner split 12" vinyl. Released in the USA on Welcome Home Records and in the UK via Xtra Mile Recordings. The release features Frank covering two songs by American songwriters and Jonah covering two songs by British songwriters. He was recently (September 18 2006) the last ever artist to perform on BBC Radio 1's Lamacq Live program, unveiling two new songs from "Sleep Is For The Week".
The good sales of "Campfire Punkrock" meant good news as this allowed Frank to record his debut album "Sleep Is For The Week" in August and September 2006. Recorded in Oxford with Dive Dive as extra band on a selection of the 13 tracks. The last track, "The Ballad Of Me And My Friends", is a live recording from a sold out show at the London Barfly and features the vocal contribution of the (approximately) 200 strong audience during a verse. Those in attendance and gave their names to Xtra Mile Recordings will have their names credited as contributers to this track.
In April 2008, his second album Love, Ire and Song was released to critical acclaim.
His third full-length album, Poetry Of The Deed, was released September 7th 2009, and includes the singles The Road, Try This At Home and Isabel. An accompanying DVD, Take To The Road, was released in March 2010.
Amidst extensive touring in support of Poetry of the Deed, Turner and his then-untitled backing band recorded Rock & Roll, an EP consisting of tracks written at the same time as Poetry of the Deed alongside new material. Following its release, Turner and the band spent twenty days in January 2011, recording their next studio album with producer Tristan Ivemy. The result was England Keep My Bones, the fourth studio album by Frank, released on June 6, 2011, on Xtra Mile in the United Kingdom, and on June 7, 2011, on Epitaph Records worldwide. Preceded by the single, "Peggy Sang the Blues", the album was produced and mixed by Tristan Ivemy, who had previously mixed Love, Ire and Song, Rock & Roll and Campfire Punkrock.
The album's title is taken from William Shakespeare's play, The Life and Death of King John, with Turner noting, "I knew that the album was, for the most part, about mortality, and about Englishness. Shakespeare seemed like a good place to go hunting for some pearls of wisdom, and with a little help from my friend Ben we came across this one, and it just seemed to fit the work really well."
Following the completion of the album, Turner subsequently announced his backing band had named themselves The Sleeping Souls, after a lyric in the track, "I Am Disappeared". The Sleeping Souls are Nigel Powell, Ben LLoyd, Tarant Anderson and Matt Nasir.
Turner recorded his fifth studio album in Burbank, California, in October 2012. The reason for recording first time abroad in California was, that producer Rich Costey wouldn't come to England with all his equipment so he convinced Turner to record it in Burbank. Frank Turner announced via Twitter on 28 October 2012 that recording was completed, and mixing and mastering would be done in time for a March 2013 release date. During the November and December UK tour a free CD titled Good Hangs from Xtra Mile Recordings was distributed for free at Frank Turner shows, this included a yet-to-be-released Turner song titled "Tattoos" plus the Möngöl Hörde song "Casual Threats From Weekend Hardmen". On Christmas Day 2012, the song "Four Simple Words" was released on Xtra Mile Recordings' website as a free download along with the b-side "Cowboy Chords". On 4 January 2013, a video was shot for what would be the first single. On the same day Frank announced on Twitter that the single was the song "Recovery". On 9 January, Frank uploaded a photo to his Instagram page showing the names of all 13 songs that would feature on his new album. This included songs played during the UK and US tours of 2012 such as "Anymore", "Plain Sailing Weather", "We Shall Not Overcome" and "Tell Tale Signs". Frank also posted on his fan forum that an extended edition of his new album would be released that includes an extra 5 or 6 songs. On 19 February 2013, it was announced that Turner had signed a licensing deal with Interscope Records in the US for Tape Deck Heart. Following the release of the album Frank Turner embarked on a short U.K tour.
[this section requires expansion, to cover the period 2013 to 2018]
Discography:
2005 - Frank Turner's Demo
2007 - Campfire Punkrock
2007 - The Real Damage
2007 - Sleep Is For The Week
2008 - Love Ire & Song
2008 - The First Three Years
2009 - Poetry Of The Deed
2010 - Take to the Road: Live 2009
2010 - iTunes Festival: London 2010
2011 - 2011-11-17: Daytrotter Session, Big Orange Studios, Austin, TX, USA
2012 - The Second Three Years
2012 - Last Minutes and Lost Evenings
2013 - Tape Deck Heart
2014 - Polaroid Picture
2014 - The Third Three Years
2015 - Positive Songs for Negative People
2017 - Songbook
2018 - Be More Kind
2019 - No Man's Land
2020 - West Coast vs. Wessex
2020 - Buddies II: Still Buddies
Wanderlust
Frank Turner Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Into the lap of the lady that I love
And though she begged and she cajoled
I couldn't tell her what I was thinking of
I didn't chose, no I was chosen
By a life that must be lived in passing through
And though she changed so much for me
Darling, I'm leaving
The distance keeps calling me on
Darling, come morning
I'll be gone
She is beauty, she is graceful
In a poison she is gentle in her care
She is the calm in the centre of my storm
She has her fingers through my hair
She has my heart but it is breaking
Cause it knows that deep inside she still believes
That there will ever come a morning that I'll stay
And not gathering to leave
Darling, I'm leaving
The distance keeps calling me on
Darling, come morning
I'll be gone
Baby let's get out of the city
We need to breathe some cleaner air
That creeping feeling starting like I miss you
And we're both of us still here
There's a sadness in your smiles now
And an edge of desperation in your voice
We have all this independence
But it still feels like we never had a choice
Darling, I'm leaving
The lyrics of Frank Turner's song Wanderlust are a melancholic reflection on the feeling of being torn between one's desire for freedom and the love and attachment shared with a partner. The singer himself is struggling with the idea of leaving the woman he loves, despite feeling that he has to go away. He has cried on her lap, and although she begs him to stay and tries to understand his thoughts, he can't confide in her. He feels that he is not the one who chose to leave, but rather that his life is dictated by some higher force that compels him to pass through, to never settle. Even though she has changed so much for him, he knows that he cannot change this one thing, and that their relationship is ultimately doomed.
The chorus repeats the words "Darling, I'm leaving / The distance keeps calling me on / Darling, come morning / I'll be gone," emphasizing the sense of inevitability in the situation. The singer is torn between his love for the woman he is leaving and his need to wander, and although he wants to be with her, he knows that he can't. The woman, for her part, is described as a calming and gentle presence, the "beauty" and "calm in the center of [his] storm." However, she too is affected by the singer's restlessness, and her sadness and desperation highlight the weight of his decision.
Overall, the lyrics convey a sense of the complexity of human relationships and how love can be incompatible with individual desires and needs. The singer's longing for freedom and adventure doesn't detract from his love for the woman, but it also doesn't allow him to stay. In the end, both he and the woman are left with sadness and uncertainty, feeling as if they never had a choice.
Line by Line Meaning
I have wept until I've slept
I cried so much that I fell asleep
Into the lap of the lady that I love
I found comfort in the woman I love
And though she begged and she cajoled
Even though she pleaded with me
I couldn't tell her what I was thinking of
I couldn't express what was on my mind
I didn't chose, no I was chosen
I did not choose my path, it was chosen for me
By a life that must be lived in passing through
This life must be lived by moving through it
And though she changed so much for me
Even though she made so many changes for me
Changing this is the one thing I cannot do
The one thing I cannot change is leaving
Darling, I'm leaving
I am telling my love that I am leaving
The distance keeps calling me on
I feel compelled to keep my distance and move on
She is beauty, she is graceful
She is a person of beauty and grace
In a poison she is gentle in her care
Even in difficult circumstances, she is tender and compassionate
She is the calm in the centre of my storm
She brings calmness when everything else is chaotic
She has her fingers through my hair
She touches me tenderly and affectionately
She has my heart but it is breaking
She has my heart, but it is breaking because of my departure
Cause it knows that deep inside she still believes
My heart knows that she still has hope that I will stay
That there will ever come a morning that I'll stay
She believes I will stay one day, but I won't
And not gathering to leave
I won't be packing or preparing to leave
Baby let's get out of the city
Let's leave the city and find some fresh air
We need to breathe some cleaner air
The air in the city is not good for us
That creeping feeling starting like I miss you
I am starting to feel like I miss you
And we're both of us still here
Both of us are still together in this place
There's a sadness in your smiles now
There is a melancholy feeling in your smiles
And an edge of desperation in your voice
Your voice has a hint of panic and despair
We have all this independence
We are free to do what we want
But it still feels like we never had a choice
Even though we have freedom, we feel trapped
Darling, come morning
My dear, by the morning
I'll be gone
I will have departed
Contributed by Gabriel K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.