Initially, Garbage was an informal jam session between the three producers held in Marker's basement. Steve Marker saw the music video of "Suffocate Me" by Angelfish on MTV, recorded it and showcased it to his band mates. They invited the Scottish vocalist Shirley Manson to join Garbage, she accepted, and soon Angelfish disbanded. According to Vig, Garbage was named before Manson joined the band, after the percussionist Pauli Ryan walked in while Vig was working on a remix for Nine Inch Nails and said it sounded like "garbage".
In August 1995, the group released their debut album Garbage, preceded by their first single "Vow" in March 1995. This album was an unexpected smash, selling over 5 million copies and reaching double platinum status in the UK (#6), USA (#20), Australia. Also it received great reviews from critics and featured on the book "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die." They released five singles from this album: "Vow", "Only Happy When It Rains", "Queer", "Stupid Girl", and "Milk". A non-album single entitled "Subhuman" was issued on 7 August 1995.
In 1996, the band released a short-form VHS and Video CD entitled "Garbage Video" (also known as "Home Video"), that included all of Garbage's promotional music videos filmed up until that point.
In 1997, Garbage were nominated at Grammy Awards for Best New Artist, Best Rock Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal for "Stupid Girl", Best Rock Song for "Stupid Girl". In the same year, the remixed version of "#1 Crush" (original version released in 1996) was included on the multi-platinum movie soundtrack William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet. Also it was nominated for Best Song From a Movie at the 1997 MTV Movie Awards.
They spent over an year working on their follow-up album Version 2.0, which was released on May 1998 and hit #1 in the UK and #13 in the US. It was supported by six singles: "Push It", "I Think I'm Paranoid", "Special", "When I Grow Up", "The Trick Is to Keep Breathing" and "You Look So Fine". The music video of "Push It" featured state of the art effects and it costs over $400,000 to make. Version 2.0 sold over 5 million copies, almost the same as their debut.
In 1999, they performed the theme song to the James Bond movie The World Is Not Enough. That year, they also contributed the song "When I Grow Up" to the Adam Sandler movie Big Daddy. Version 2.0 was nominated at Grammy Awards for Album of the Year and Best Rock Album, and "Special" was nominated for Best Rock Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal and Best Rock Song.
In October 2001, Garbage issued their third and most pop album beautifulgarbage, preceded by the single "Androgyny" in September 2001. All four singles released ("Androgyny", "Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go!)", "Breaking Up the Girl" and "Shut Your Mouth") were moderately successful. This album got 6th place at Rolling Stone's Top 10 Albums of The Year. The world tour from October 2001 to November 2002 was affected by Butch's health problems.
The band struggled to remain together and almost split in 2003, before returning with the fourth studio album Bleed Like Me in April 2005, peaking at a career-high #4 in USA. Four singles promoted the album: "Why Do You Love Me", "Sex Is Not the Enemy", "Bleed Like Me", and "Run Baby Run". Garbage cut short their 2005 world tour, and announced an indefinite hiatus, but emphasized it was not a break-up.
In July 2007 the group released a greatest hits album and a DVD entitled Absolute Garbage. The compilation featured a selection of their singles, a new single "Tell Me Where It Hurts" (#50 UK), and a remixed version of "It's All Over But the Crying" (the limited edition had also a remixes disc). The DVD included most of their music videos and a documentary related to the band.
In 2008 a new track called "Witness to Your Love" was issued on a charity compilation in the USA. Shirley Manson recorded a solo album but her label refused to release it considering it to be "too noir". In the same year she started to play a regular role on US TV show Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
According to a post from Shirley's Facebook profile, the band returned back to studio in 2010. On 14 May 2012, Garbage released their fifth studio album, Not Your Kind of People. The album was supported by the singles "Blood For Poppies", "Battle in Me", "Automatic Systematic Habit" and "Big Bright World".
On June 10th 2016, Garbage released their 6th album "Strange Little Birds".
Sleep
Garbage Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Head on my pillow
Looking like a little ghost
Seems like all of the things
That you gave me, mother
Have all gone up in smoke
You don't know what I'm thinking
But still the stars do sparkle and shine
Seems like all of the time
Our boat was slowly sinking
You didn't even seem to mind
Now all I want to do is sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep
The lyrics in Garbage's song "Sleep" convey a sense of emotional exhaustion and confusion. The singer of the song is lying in bed, unable to sleep, and reflecting on the failures of their past. The opening lines describe the singer's appearance as a "little ghost," suggesting that they feel small and insignificant. The use of the word "little" also conveys a sense of vulnerability and perhaps even fear.
The next lines suggest that the singer is feeling disillusioned with their mother's influence in their life. The things their mother gave them seem to have all "gone up in smoke," meaning that they have been depleted or have disappeared altogether. This could be a metaphor for the singer's own sense of loss or disappointment, or it could refer to specific gifts or guidance that their mother gave them that have failed them in some way.
The second verse of the song continues the sense of disillusionment and confusion. The lines "You don't know what I'm thinking / But still the stars do sparkle and shine" suggest that the singer feels alienated from others, perhaps even misunderstood. Despite this, the beauty of the natural world is still present and can be appreciated. The lines "Our boat was slowly sinking / You didn't even seem to mind" suggest that the singer is disappointed in someone who was supposed to support them. This could be the mother mentioned earlier, or it could be someone else entirely.
The chorus of the song, with its repeated refrain of "Now all I want to do is sleep," suggests that the singer is emotionally drained and wants to escape from their current reality. Sleep can be seen as a form of temporary relief or avoidance of problems, but it is not a solution to the deeper issues that the singer is facing.
Line by Line Meaning
In the middle of the night
It's currently nighttime
Head on my pillow
I'm in bed and trying to sleep
Looking like a little ghost
My appearance is pale and ghostly, likely due to sleep deprivation or stress
Seems like all of the things
It appears that everything
That you gave me, mother
That my mother gave me
Have all gone up in smoke
Has disappeared or vanished without a trace
You don't know what I'm thinking
My thoughts are private and unknown to others
But still the stars do sparkle and shine
Despite my unknown thoughts, the stars in the sky are still beautiful
Seems like all of the time
It appears that for all the time
Our boat was slowly sinking
My life and/or relationships were slowly breaking down or failing
You didn't even seem to mind
Nobody seemed to notice or care about the decline
Now all I want to do is sleep
All I desire is to rest and forget my troubles
Now all I want to do is sleep
Once again, my primary wish is to sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep
And again, I only want to sleep
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: DOUGLAS ELWIN ERICKSON, SHIRLEY ANN MANSON, STEVE W. MARKER, BRYAN DAVID VIG, Steve W Marker
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
StratOnFire
In the middle of the night
Head on my pillow
Looking like a little ghost
Seems like all of the things
That you gave your mother
Have all gone up in smoke
In the middle of the night
You don't know what I'm thinking
But still the stars still sparkle and shine
Seems like all of the time
Our boat was slowly sinking
You didn't even seem to mind
Now all I want to do is sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep.
Harvey Routledge
Dark, melancholic and gothic. Sleep is so underrated.
Ms. Blaileen
Garbage’s B-Sides are better than most band’s main tracks...
n/A
Most of Garbage’s B-Sides are better than most of Garbage's main tracks
StratOnFire
In the middle of the night
Head on my pillow
Looking like a little ghost
Seems like all of the things
That you gave your mother
Have all gone up in smoke
In the middle of the night
You don't know what I'm thinking
But still the stars still sparkle and shine
Seems like all of the time
Our boat was slowly sinking
You didn't even seem to mind
Now all I want to do is sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep
Now all I want to do is sleep.
Дед Зеппелин
Using Shirleys lyrics you can figure out the soul of a woman
jawadde158
It's one of my favourite songs from Garbage. Awesome!
Félix Debaser
Lo mejor de Garbage. Que vuelva éste Garbage.
abraxaz777
wow just when i thought Garbage couldn't surprise me anymore...definitly great song!
Leah
I think I'm gonna start listening to this, before I sleep.
Eroblue11
So beautiful. I’m in a trance.