Both Numan's music and his transgressive public image are known for his sense of alien coldness and embrace of avant-garde influences. Becoming of the founding fathers of electronic-based pop music, Numan's reach extends far beyond his lone American hit, โCars,โ which still stands as one of the defining new wave singles. That seminal track helped usher in the synthpop era on both sides of the Atlantic, especially his native England, where he was a genuine pop star and consistent hit-maker during the early 80s. Even after new wave had mostly petered out, Numanโs influence continued to make itself felt. His dark, paranoid vision, theatrically icy persona, and clinical, robotic sound were echoed strongly in the work of many goth rock and (especially) industrial artists during the past several decades. For his part, Numan just kept on recording, and, by the late 90s, heโd become a hip name to drop. Prominent alternative rock bands have covered his hits, with Numan himself playing live with Nine Inch Nails briefly to much acclaim, and a goth-flavored brand of industrial-type music christened darkwave looks to him as its mentor.
Numan was born Gary Anthony James Webb on March 8, 1958, in Hammersmith, West London, U.K. A shy child, music brought him out of his shell; he began playing guitar in his early teens and played in several short-lived bands. Inspired by the amateurism of the punk movement, he joined a punk rock group called "The Lasers" in 1976. The following year, he and bassist Paul Gardiner split off to form a new group, dubbed "Tubeway Army", with drummer Bob Simmonds. They recorded a couple of singles under futuristic pseudonyms (Valerium [or Valerian], Scarlett, and Rael, respectively) that attempted to match their new interest in synthesizers. Scrapping that idea, Webb rechristened himself Gary Numan and replaced Simmonds with his uncle Jess Lidyard. Thus constituted, "Tubeway Army" cut a set of "punk-meets-Kraftwerk" demos for Beggars Banquet in early 1978. That work ended up being released several years later as 'The Plan'.
That summer, Numan sang a TV commercial jingle for jeans, and toward the end of the year the groupโs debut album, 'Tubeway Army', appeared. Chiefly influenced by Kraftwerk and David Bowieโs Berlin-era collaborations with Brian Eno, the album also displayed Numanโs fascination with the electronic, experimental side of glam rock (such as in some works by Roxy Music and Ultravox) and Krautrock (such as in some works by Can). He also drew much influence from transgressive science fiction writers such as Philip K. Dick, people who challenged conventional thinking through exploring the affects of new technology.
The groupโs second album, 'Replicas', was released in early 1979. Its accompanying single, โAre โFriendsโ Electric?", was a left-field smash, topping the UK charts and sending 'Replicas' to number one on the album listings as well. The record also included โDown in the Park", an oft-covered song that stands as one of Numanโs most 'gothic' outings.
Numan had become a star overnight, despite critical distaste for any music so heavily reliant on synthesizers, and he formed a larger backing band that replaced "Tubeway Army", keeping Gardiner on bass. "The Pleasure Principle" was released in the fall of 1979 and spawned Numanโs international hit โCarsโ, which reached the American Top Ten and hit number one in the UK; the album also became Numanโs second straight British number one. He put together a hugely elaborate, futuristic stage show and went on a money-losing tour, and also began to indulge his hobby as an amateur pilot with his newfound wealth.
Numan returned in the fall of 1980 with "Telekon", his third straight chart-topping album in Britain, and scored two Top Ten hits with โWe Are Glassโ and โI Die: You Dieโ; โThis Wreckageโ later reached the Top 20.
In 1981, Numan announced his retirement from live performance, playing several farewell concerts just prior to the release of "Dance". While "Dance" and its lead single, โSheโs Got Clawsโ, were both climbing into the British Top Ten, Numan attempted to fly around the world, but in a bizarre twist was arrested in India on suspicion of spying and smuggling. The charges were dropped, although authorities confiscated his plane. His retirement proved short-lived, but when he returned in 1982 with "I, Assassin", some of his popularity had dissipated - perhaps because of the retirement announcement, perhaps because the charts were overflowing with synthpop, much of which was already expanding on Numanโs early innovations (which were starting to sound repetitive). "I, Assassin" was another Top Ten album, and โWe Take Mystery (To Bed)โ another major hit, but in general Numanโs singles were starting to slip on the charts; the title track of 1983โs "Warriors" became his last British Top Twenty hit (excluding reissues and collaborations).
Numan and Beggars Banquet subsequently parted ways, and Numan formed his own Numa label, kicking things off with "Berserker" in late 1984. Sadly, longtime collaborator "Paul Gardiner" died earlier that year from a drug overdose. 1985โs "The Fury" became the final Numan album to reach the British Top 30. Over the next few years, Numan collaborated occasionally with "Shakatakโs" Bill Sharpe, releasing four singles and one album from 1985-1989.
Following 1986โs "Strange Charm", Numan signed with IRS, but the relationship was fraught with discord from the start. IRS forced Numan to change the title of 1988โs "Metal Rhythm" to "New Anger" for his first North American release since 1981 (and also remixed several tracks), refused to release his soundtrack for the film "The Unborn", and would not fund any supporting tours for "New Anger" or 1991โs "Outland". When his contract expired, Numan returned to Numa for 1992โs "Machine + Soul".
1994 brought the release of the industrial-tinged "Sacrifice", the first glimmering of Numanโs return to critical favor and underground hipness. Over the next few years, bands like "Hole", "The Foo Fighters", and "Smashing Pumpkins" covered Numan songs in concert, and Marilyn Manson recorded โDown in the Parkโ for the B-side of the โLunchboxโ single; moreover, "Nine Inch Nails" cited Numan as an important influence. With his fan base refreshed and expectations raised, Numan delved deeper into gothic, metal-tinged industrial dance on 1997โs "Exile". However, he didnโt truly hit his stride in this newly adopted style until 2000โs "Pure", which was acclaimed as his best work in years and expanded his cult following into new territory.
In 2003, Numan enjoyed fleeting chart success once again with the "Gary Numan vs Rico" single โCrazierโ, reaching No.13 in the U.K. chart. Rico, who is an up and coming artist from Glasgow, also worked on the remix album "Hybrid" which featured reworkings of older songs in a more contemporary industrial style. In 2004 Numan took control of his own business affairs again, launching the label Mortal Records and releasing a series of live DVDs as a precursor to his highly anticipated new studio album, "Jagged" which was released on 13 March 2006. An album launch gig took place at "The Forum, London" on 18 March 2006. Numan announced a UK tour commencing in April 2006 and plans to tour other countries, including the USA, during the year in support of the release. Numan also to launched a "Jagged" website to showcase the new album.
Numan contributed vocals to four tracks on the April 2007 release of Ade Fentonโs debut solo album "Artificial Perfect" on his new industrial/electronic label Submission, including songs โThe Leather Seaโ, โSlide Awayโ, โRecallโ and the first single to be taken from the album, โHealingโ. The second single to be released in the UK was โThe Leather Seaโ on July 30, 2007.
In 2008, he released a double CD remix album "Jagged Edge", based around 2006โs critically acclaimed "Jagged", co-produced with Ade Fenton. The pair are currently in the studio working on Numanโs 18th studio album "Splinter", due for release in 2009.
While Numan is known for his electronic music innovations, he prefers real instruments. He explained in an interview with Songfacts: "I didn't go the technology route wholeheartedly, the way Kraftwerk had done. I considered it to be a layer. I added to what we already had, and I wanted to merge that. There's plenty of things about guitar players, and bass players, and songs I really love that I didn't particularly want to get rid of. The only time I did get rid of guitars was on Pleasure Principle, and that was in fact a reaction to the press. I got a huge amount of hostility from the British press, particularly, when I first became successful. And Pleasure Principle was the first album I made after that success happened. I became successful in the early part of '79 and Pleasure Principle came out in the end of '79, in the UK, anyway. And there was a lot of talk about electronic music being cold and weak and all that sort of stuff. So I made Pleasure Principle to try to prove a point, that you could make a contemporary album that didn't have guitar in it, but still had enough power and would stand up well. That's the only reason that album didn't have guitar in it. But apart from that one album they've all had guitars - that was the blueprint."
The official website can be found here: www.garynuman.co.uk
Crazier
Gary Numan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The more I understand the ride, the more I slide
The more you put me back in line, the more I tried
The more you looked into my eyes, the more you lied
I come back crazier, but feel much better
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
The more I walk across the lines, the more I glide
You come back crazier, but feel much better
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
You come back crazier, but feel much better
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
In the song "Crazier" by Gary Numan and Rico, the singer of the lyrics is describing a personal journey towards understanding themselves and the world around them. We see this in the lines "The more I take a look inside, the more I'm fried / The more I understand the ride, the more I slide," suggesting that the more they try to understand themselves, the more overwhelmed they become. This is further emphasized in the lines "The more you put me back in line, the more I tried / The more you looked into my eyes, the more you lied," where the singer implies that attempts to control or manage them only make things worse.
However, the chorus offers a glimmer of hope. The repeated phrase "You come back crazier, but feel much better / You come back crazier, you'll feel better" suggests that while personal growth can be difficult and unsettling, it ultimately leads to a sense of understanding and self-assurance. The line "The more I fly / The more I walk across the lines, the more I glide" reiterates this sense of liberation and empowerment that comes from exploring oneself and defying societal norms.
Line by Line Meaning
The more I take a look inside, the more I'm fried
As I introspect more, my mind gets more overwhelmed and burnt out.
The more I understand the ride, the more I slide
As I gain better comprehension of the situation, I feel like I'm losing control.
The more you put me back in line, the more I tried
The harder you try to get me on track, the harder I work to comply, but it feels like a never-ending cycle.
The more you looked into my eyes, the more you lied
I can tell you're not telling me the truth as you gaze into my eyes.
I come back crazier, but feel much better
Even though the experience makes me feel insane, I feel more content after it.
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
If you go through a similar experience, you'll feel better in the end.
The more I disregard the signs, the more I fly
As I ignore the red flags, I feel like I have more freedom to do as I please.
The more I walk across the lines, the more I glide
As I cross boundaries that I shouldn't, I feel more in control and effortless in my actions.
You come back crazier, but feel much better
Even though the experience makes you feel insane, you will feel more content after it.
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
If you go through a similar experience, you'll feel better in the end.
You come back crazier, but feel much better
Even though the experience makes you feel insane, you will feel more content after it.
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
If you go through a similar experience, you'll feel better in the end.
Lyrics ยฉ BMG Rights Management
Written by: Gary Anthony Webb, Gary Anthony James Webb, Ricardo Capuano
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@user-hm3gt5be9j
The more I take a look inside, the more I pried
The more I understand the ride, the more I slide
The more you put me back in line, the more I tried
The more you looked into my eyes, the more you lied
I come back crazier, but feel much better
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
The more I disregard the signs, the more I fly
The more I walk across the lines, the more I glide
You come back crazier, but feel much better
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
I come back crazier, but feel much better
You come back crazier, you'll feel better
@DragonsTomeRob
I think the fact that most people thought this was a new song proves Gary Numan's timeless sound! He was so far ahead of the curve when he first came out in 1975 and he still is!
@ryanwalker1982
Close, but it was 1978!
@parasite-b9604
@Ryan Walker that's when Tubeway Army came out, but he's been around since 1975.
@questioneverything8301
Should have stuck to electronic not a rock star
@questioneverything8301
@andy morris I have never seen him in concert I would not go to any he does now but I would have gone to the stuff he did in the late 70s and 80s. that was music ahead of it's time. This song seemed like he wanted to play the part in the Prodigy firestarted video
@questioneverything8301
@andy morris I am not saying it is bad just I prefer his earlier stuff than all that dark menacing stuff each to their own though
@nicolecross1430
R. I. P Rico.
This was part of the rebirth of Gary's career.
@marpsr
Iโm just flabbergasted at how many kickass songs Gary has written over the years and just keeps writing. Truly remarkable. The man is a hit machine!
@WillCrazie
Gary didnt write this... all down to Rico...
@Wolfsheim23
Numans the only old musician that's still just as badass and hardcore as he used to be. Maybe even moreso.