Gavin Friday was born in Dublin on October 8, 1959. He survived a Christian… Read Full Bio ↴Gavin Friday was born in Dublin on October 8, 1959. He survived a Christian Brothers education to become a singer, composer and painter. Ireland's most avant-garde chanteur founded the legendary Virgin Prunes in 1977. The band's uncompromising body of work ensured a dedicated fan base in Ireland, the U.K. and mainland Europe in particular.

In 1986 Gavin briefly abandoned music to paint, which culminated in the 1988 exhibition entitled 'I didn't come up the Liffey in a bubble' at Dublin's Hendriks Gallery. The previous year, itchy to perform again, he had returned to the stage, acting as master of ceremonies in his own weekly cabaret, 'Blue Jaysus'. Friday's own unique interpretations of classic burlesque songs featured alongside comedy and drag acts, as well as appearances by special guests from Dublin's always fertile music scene.

Since 1987 he has composed and performed with pianist Maurice Roycroft (The Man Seezer). Fresh from The Blue Jaysus, they played their first gig together in October 1987 at an AIDS benefit in Dublin. A demo tape of original material attracted attention of Island Records and they signed to the label in 1988.

'Each Man Kills the Thing He Loves' (1989), their compelling moody debut produced by Hal Willner, explored the world of Brel (whose song 'Next' is covered on the album), Piaf, Brecht and Weill with a healthy punk ethos. Recorded in New York, Friday claimed it articulates everything he wasn't able to say in the Virgin Prunes. Themes of love, death and sex permeate the subject matter of the album, which has a strong musical cast including Michael Blair, Marc Ribot, Fernando Saunders and Bill Frisell.

The follow up, 1992's 'Adam 'N' Eve' is an eclectic work by an artist who refused to be pigeonholed. Influenced by Gavin's adolescent pop past, the album contains shades of T-Rex, Roxy Music, Satie and Bacharach and is lighter and more humorous than its predecessor. The first single, 'I Want to Live', was a chart hit in Holland and Belgium where Friday's debut album had been especially well received.

In 1995 Gavin Friday released 'Shag Tobacco'. Produced by Bomb the Bass' Tim Simenon, the sultry, cinematic album uniquely blends 90's dance rhythms with more traditional European pop set in a world not quite in the future, or in the past. 'It's a very sexual album,' said Friday, 'if there is a location for this album, it is a place where love is most definitely the drug and everyone is a junkie.' The Shag Tobacco tours lasted well into 1996, ending triumphantly with a show at the Olympia Theatre in Friday's home town, Dublin.

In Summer 1999, Gavin travelled to Kosovo on behalf of the charity Concern, to film a documentary highlighting to plight of Kosovan refugees. 'Artists for Kosovo', a slide-show of work by renowned Irish artists set to Friday/Seezer music opened in Dublin's Temple Bar. Later that year the video documentary 'Three Wishes For Kosovo' was completed and Gavin's children's charity project for Kosovo, 'Muc the flying piggy bank' was launched. The project encouraged kids in schools around Ireland to set up their own collections for the charity.

Gavin Friday is a prolific vocalist, artist and composer, whose film work includes the songs written with Bono for the popular 1993 film 'In the Name of the Father'. They recorded the title track as well as the Sinead O'Connor sung hit 'You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart'. In 1996 Friday and Seezer contributed the song 'Angel' to the 'Romeo + Juliet' soundtrack and wrote their first piece of score for the Australian film 'Angel Baby'. His subsequent film scores have included 'The Boxer' (1998), 'Disco Pigs' (2001) and 'In America' (2002). In late 2005, Friday and Seezer teamed up with legendary producer Quincy Jones to score the Jim Sheridan directed 50 Cent biopic 'Get Rich or Die Trying.'

A consummate live performer, Friday mesmerises his audiences, slipping into the many different characters that inhabit his songs. In 2001 he created 'Ich Liebe Dich', a twisted and seductive musical theatre tribute to the German composer Kurt Weill. Performed with the Friday-Seezer Ensemble at the Dublin Theatre Festival, the sold out six-show run brought the best of 1920s/30s Berlin and 40s Broadway into the 21st century.

In 2002 Friday and Seezer tackled Prokofiev's 'Peter and the Wolf', recording their own arrangement of the children's classic with their ensemble. A luxury box set, with artwork by U2's Bono, raised money and awareness for the Irish Hospice Foundation.

The next year Gavin performed the surreal and personal one man show 'I Didn't Come up the Liffey in a Bubble' at the Dublin Fringe Festival. The acclaimed director Neil Jordan cast Gavin as the sexually ambiguous rocker Billy Hatchet in the 2005 movie "Breakfast on Pluto". Starring alongside Cillian Murphy, Liam Neeson and Brendan Gleeson, Friday held his own and received much praise for his debut screen appearance.

Summer 2006 saw him return to the stage with his tribute to German culture, 'Tomorrow Belongs To Me', and again collaborating with producer Hal Willner on the boisterous collection of pirate ballads, sea songs and chanteys, entitled 'Rogue's Gallery'. Later that year, Gavin narrates The Fortune Teller, a marionette play by Erik Sanko. It premieres in New York to great acclaim.

Taking time out from work on his fourth solo album with new writing partner Herb Macken, Gavin participated in the Shakespeare Sonnet Project, jointly commissioned by Opera North Projects and the Royal Shakespeare Company. The project, curated by the English composer Gavin Bryars, premiered in Stratford-Upon-Avon in February and around the U.K. through March 2007. Gavin performed his take on 'Sonnet 40' live and narrated the eight sonnets that make up Bryars' 40-minute composition 'Nothing Like the Sun'.

In Summer 2007 Gavin Friday and Herb Macken composed the music and main theme 'Dreamland' for Patrick McCabe's play The Revenant, which opened at the Galway Arts Festival in July.

Caruso
Gavin Friday & The Man Seezer Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

No, I'm not myself today.
Je suis salome.... I am romantic
Je suis apollo.... I am gigantic
Hey! stronzo,
I'm standing next to you in the supermarket
Yeah! you are obvious. I am oblivious

Salome, apollo, in technicolour

I walked on the moon to touch the stars,
A legend in my lifetime.
Oh momma! my rosa! from an early age
I was used and abused, no more those bad reviews
Take me back to '72 my coo ca choo,
Oh! ignorance was bliss,
Spunk-a-flow, to the joy of my first kiss

I'm not me.... I'm not me.... I'm not me.... not me....
Non sono io!

Oh mi lord, I'm so bored, what's on the t.v.?
Do we really need these pissy pop stars
When there's not enough of me!
Oh dada, my dali, un chen de lou lou....
I am the art in your party,
Not a twist cap sniffing bore.
It's tough in the queue, it's as unto a platform shoe,

Oh! trampled underfoot,
I'm fred astaire, I face the music and dance.

I'm not me.... I'm not me.... I'm not me.... not me....
No I'm not myself....today

Oh glorioso deliver us not into frustration

Salome, apollo, in technicolour,
I walked on the moon to touch the stars.
Hey stronzo.... ancora!

I'm not me.... I'm not me.... I'm not me.... not me....
Non sono io!
Heave ho.... heave ho....

Leonardo! marlon brando! machiavelli!
And bertolt's belly!
A millionaire with curly hair, I'm your burning empire.

Greta garbo! andy warhol! and his jam-roll!
Nero plays his violin, seezer his accordian

I'm sitting in the bathtub watching the dirty water

Swirl down the plughole.... and on my stereo....
....is caruso.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to "Caruso" by Gavin Friday & The Man Seezer are a reflection of the artist's identity crisis. The song speaks to how he is feeling different and disconnected from his true self. The metaphorical references to Salome and Apollo illustrate Gavin's romantic and gigantic personality, contrasting with the everyday reality of standing next to someone at a supermarket. He identifies himself as a legend, using himself as the only reference point which highlights his isolation. The lines 'not me...not me' drive the message home, showing the artist's internal struggle and the struggle to relate to others. The song covers themes of disillusionment, boredom with popular culture, and an appreciation for art and culture.

Line by Line Meaning

No, I'm not myself today.
I am not feeling like myself today

Je suis salome.... I am romantic
I am feeling romantic and comparing myself to Salome

Je suis apollo.... I am gigantic
I am comparing myself to Apollo and feeling powerful and extraordinary

Hey! stronzo, I'm standing next to you in the supermarket
Addressing someone and saying 'hey!', I am standing next to you in the supermarket

Yeah! you are obvious. I am oblivious
You are noticeable but I am not paying attention to you

Salome, apollo, in technicolour
Continuing to compare myself to Salome and Apollo in colorful and vivid imagery

I walked on the moon to touch the stars, A legend in my lifetime.
I have accomplished great feats and am known for it

Oh momma! my rosa! from an early age I was used and abused, no more those bad reviews
Calling out to my mother and reflecting on how I was taken advantage of, but I am no longer subject to negative criticism

Take me back to '72 my coo ca choo, Oh! ignorance was bliss, Spunk-a-flow, to the joy of my first kiss
Reflecting on a time in the past when I was innocent and carefree, recalling the excitement and wonder of my first kiss

Oh mi lord, I'm so bored, what's on the t.v.? Do we really need these pissy pop stars When there's not enough of me!
Expressing boredom and questioning the relevance of current pop culture and its lack of representation for myself

Oh dada, my dali, un chen de lou lou.... I am the art in your party, Not a twist cap sniffing bore.
Referencing Dadaism and Surrealism and proclaiming myself as a unique and creative individual at a party full of boring people

It's tough in the queue, it's as unto a platform shoe,
Waiting in line is a frustrating experience, likening it to a difficult and uncomfortable shoe

Oh! trampled underfoot, I'm fred astaire, I face the music and dance.
Feeling beaten down but channeling Fred Astaire's dance skills to cope and push through

Oh glorioso deliver us not into frustration
Pleading for relief from feelings of frustration

Heave ho.... heave ho....
Chanting and pushing to continue moving forward

Leonardo! marlon brando! machiavelli! And bertolt's belly! A millionaire with curly hair, I'm your burning empire.
Listing off famous and influential individuals, including myself as a wealthy and powerful entity

Greta garbo! andy warhol! and his jam-roll! Nero plays his violin, seezer his accordian
Referencing more famous figures, including Nero and myself and Seezer playing an instrument

I'm sitting in the bathtub watching the dirty water Swirl down the plughole.... and on my stereo.... ....is caruso.
Relaxing and watching the water drain as I listen to Caruso on my stereo

I'm not me.... I'm not me.... I'm not me.... not me.... Non sono io!
Reiterating that I do not feel like myself, including in Italian

Contributed by Jake L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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