ln Waterford, O'Sullivan's father worked in a meat factory while his mother ran a sweet shop. In 1958, at the age of 11, he moved with his family to Swindon in England in search of a better life. He attended St. Joseph's Comprehensive school in Swindon. While there he developed an interest in both music and amateur boxing. Musically he began with the guitar and progressed to the piano. In the boxing ring he had nearly 50 bouts. Meanwhile his painting and drawing had won him a place at Swindon Art College. He started there in September 1963. His aim was to be a graphic designer. He played drums in his first group The Doodles and left them to join The Prefects while attending Swindon Art College. It was while at college that he met Rick Davies, who was later a member of Supertramp. While at college he began writing songs and sending out demo tapes, alas they were always returned unopened. The first song he remembers writing was Ready Miss Steady.
After finishing college, O'Sullivan moved to London in 1967 to try and further his musical career. He took a part-time job as a salesman at the C & A department store in Oxford Street. Mike Ward who also worked at C & A, had a contract with CBS and Gilbert went with him one day and played his tapes for some of the CBS executives. Gilbert signed a five year publishing contract with CBS which called for one single a year, and released two singles Disappear/You in 1967 and What Can I Do/You in 1968. Gilbert was disappointed that he was not allowed any input into the arranging or production of the singles. Neither single did well. Disillusioned with CBS, O'Sullivan signed with the Major Minor label and released I Wish I Could Cry/Mr. Moody's Garden in 1969.
O'Sullivan came to the attention of BBC Radio 1 disc jockey, John Peel, who gave him a slot on his radio show Top Gear, little of note resulted, and O'Sullivan spent part of 1969 applying to other record labels and management companies. It was at this time that O'Sullivan formulated his 'Bisto Kid' image; grey flannel suit, flat cap, school boy tie, football socks and hobnail boots. In search of a manager he sent some demo tapes to Gordon Mills, an ex-pop singer and himself a songwriter of repute, who had successfully guided the careers of Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdinck. Gordon Mills recognised something unique in the young Irishman and signed him for management as well as to a songwriting contract.
O'Sullivan made an irresistible impression with Nothing Rhymed, his first Top 10 hit and an introduction to his witty lyrics and original approach as a singer/songwriter. Signed to MAM Records, the label launched by Gordon Mills, who was also his record producer, great friend and surrogate older brother, O'Sullivan enjoyed four years of major success, incorporating a dozen more hit singles, ten of which reached the UK Top 10, and four Top 5 albums: Himself (1971), Back To Front (1972), I'm A Writer Not A Fighter (1973) and A Stranger In My Own Back Yard (1974).
Both Clair (written about Mills's infant daughter for whom Gilbert occasionally babysat) and Get Down were number one hit singles in Britain, and additionally, Back To Front topped the UK LP chart in 1972, emulating the success of the two million seller Alone Again (Naturally), a six week US chart-topper in 1972. O'Sullivan made his live debut in The National Stadium in Dublin in October of '72. Around this time, the singer jettisoned his so-called "Bisto Kid" image in favour of an endless series of collegiate-styled sweaters embossed with the letter "G". As quickly as O'Sullivan ascended to fame, however, his star began to fall , although singles like Ooh Baby and Happiness Is Me and You continued to chart, they sold increasingly fewer copies, and after 1973 his overseas popularity essentially ceased altogether. At home, he notched his final Top 20 hit with 1975's I Don't Love You But I Think I Like You. After a Greatest Hits album in 1976, and Southpaw in 1977, by which time the hit singles had dried up, disagreements over future direction led to a bitter split between O'Sullivan and Mills, which effectively sidelined the former as a recording artist for five years. The gruelling court case between O'Sullivan and his erstwhile manager, producer, music publisher and record company boss finally gave him control of his own recordings and the copyright in his songs, although it exacted an inevitable toll on his energy and his creativity during it's precedent-setting course.
Gilbert returned to CBS in 1980 and released Off Centre (1980) and Life & Rhymes (1982) but maintained a low profile during much of the 1980s, recharging his batteries and moving to Jersey, where he still lives with his wife and two children. Off Centre provided his 13th UK Top 20 single, What's In A Kiss?, after which legal proceedings monopolised his time. However, he continued writing songs, performing what he called "concepts within four walls" rather than starting back on the road before it was appropriate. He later recalled that the lyrics he wrote during that period were too heavily influenced by his personal emotions - having been extremely close to Mills before their disagreement, he was highly distressed to discover that his dear friend had been guilty of considerable financial greed at Gilbert's expense. Even so, he applied himself to his lonely creativity, working from 9 to 5 each day "just like Goffin & King and people like Neil Sedaka & Howard Greenfield at the Brill Building in New York used to do", although he later confessed "Really, the words were no good, because my mind was cluttered with all the problems". Lyrics have always been O'Sullivan's most unique facet, reflecting what's going on in his mind, and the strain under which he found himself was hardly conducive to much positive artistic or commercial creativity.
The first release for five years was Frobisher Drive and was only available in Germany. The same album with a slightly different track listing was released in the UK in 1989 under the title In The Key Of G, and included So What, his first chart single in almost a decade. Since the low-key comeback, the pace has increased, with five more albums. Gilbert also made a return to live performances in the early nineties, playing regularly in both Europe and Japan. In 1991, Gilbert was again in court, this time he sued American rapper Biz Markie and won the decision after Markie's unauthorized sample of "Alone Again (Naturally)" on his 1991 album I Need a Haircut. A 1992 single, Tomorrow Today had topped the Japanese charts for nine weeks, and this success led to a tour of Japan in early 1993 with his newly formed backing group, during which he recorded and filmed his first ever live album Tomorrow Today. Gilbert's newfound success in Japan led to the Japanese only release of The Little Album (1992) and Rare Tracks (1992). 1993's critical acclaimed Sounds Of The Loop (Daily Telegraph's Record Of The Week) included a duet with the legendary Peggy Lee on Can't Think Straight and even a solo version of the same song in Japanese. This album was recorded almost entirely at his home in Jersey in the Channel Islands.
By Larry (with a similar track listing to the Japanese released The Little Album) was released in 1994. Larry is a famous English cartoonist, much admired by Gilbert. Larry provided original cartoons for the album sleeve and booklet. Every Song Has It's Play was released the following year and was the soundtrack of the semi-autobiographical stage show that Gilbert had acted and sang in, in 1991. Singer Sowing Machine was released in 1997. The title is a humorous reaction by Gilbert to being constantly referred to as a singer/ songwriter. Irlish was released in 2000 and yielded three singles, Have It, Say Goodbye and Two's Company (Three Is Allowed). The album title Irlish, combination of the words Irish and English, appropriate for someone born in Ireland and raised in England. Gilbert's family was part of this migration. In 2001 The Official Gilbert O'Sullivan Website was launched as well as his own record label ByGum Records.
Gilbert continued to tour and he played a series of concerts in Ireland in 2001 and in the UK in 2002 to promote the Irlish album. A new studio album Piano Foreplay followed in 2003. In 2004 Rhino Handmade Records released a 3 CD anthology in the USA of Gilbert's music entitled Caricature: The Box. It contains 73 tracks which span the years 1967-2001. This is the first in-depth survey of Gilbert's lengthy career. It contains numerous singles and B-sides, tracks from 16 of his albums, and five previously unreleased tracks. A b-side collection entitled The Other Sides of Gilbert O'Sullivan was released in Japan in 2004 and contained many tracks available on CD for the first time. A series of concerts followed in Japan in June 2004 followed by a 20 date European Tour of the UK, Ireland, Norway and Denmark in November and December. In February 2005 a DVD/CD set of the 2004 Japanese show was released in Japan. Gilbert returned to Japan in June 2005 for a series of 13 shows. Gilbert spent the end of 2005 and the beginning of 2006 recording his next studio album "A Scruff At Heart" which was released in Japan on 25 October 2006.
Made in Love
Gilbert O'Sullivan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Long before it was round
Much the same as when Adam met Eve
Apes could not be found
I'm seeing things now in a different light
Even though the bulbs the same
Unlock the doors
I'm in love with love (again)
How'd it happen let's just say
Luck has played it's part
I was seated in row F
While she served ala carte
For years I've struggled to overcome
The bitterness and pain
And now at last that's all in the past
I'm in love with love (again)
And anyone who tells you
Second time around
Doesn't get much better
Is on solid ground
Let the bells ring out
Let there be no doubt
Cross my heart and hope to die
Hope to die delete
Spread the news my life's returned
And boy does it taste sweet
To call it some kind of miracle
Would I think be a claim
Kick out the jams
Raise your lager cans
I'm in love with love (again)
I'm starting to get the feeling back
In places I could name
Suffice to say let the music play
I'm in love with love (again)
You''l have to excuse me
If I appear to
Be a little over keen
Hardly surprising considering where
For the last few years I've been
Once the writing is on the wall
Not much you can do
I tried everything in my power
She tried someone new
But now quite suddenly
Words like bliss
Have entered my domain
you have to laugh running with a bath
I'm in love with love
Arrest that man for every wheel he'll clamp
I'm in love with love
I'm in love with love
I'm in love with love (again)
The lyrics of Gilbert O'Sullivan's song "Made In Love" have a playful and whimsical tone, using metaphors and wordplay to convey the idea of finding love again. The first verse speaks of a time when the world was believed to be flat, drawing a parallel with the singer's previous perspective on love. It implies that in the past, the singer's view of love may have been limited or one-dimensional, like the idea of a flat earth. The mention of Adam and Eve suggests the origin of love in human history, contrasting with the absence of love in the animal kingdom.
The second verse introduces a shift in perspective. The singer claims to see things in a different light, even though the external circumstances may be the same (symbolized by the bulbs being unchanged). The imagery of unlocking doors and the ceiling greeting the floors metaphorically represents the opening up of possibilities and the breaking down of barriers for love. The repetition of the line "I'm in love with love (again)" emphasizes the singer's newfound appreciation and enthusiasm for love.
The third verse alludes to a stroke of luck or chance encounter that led the singer to experience this rejuvenated love. Being seated in row F while someone served ala carte implies that a fortuitous event or circumstance brought the singer and their love interest together. The mention of struggling to overcome bitterness and pain suggests the singer went through a difficult period in their past relationships. However, the singer conveys that they have moved on from the pain and are now fully embracing and celebrating love.
The final verse expresses the singer's joy and satisfaction with love's return. The phrase "spread the news my life's returned" suggests the singer's eagerness to share their happiness with others. The reference to calling it a miracle and kicking out the jams (a colloquial expression for having a good time) emphasizes the singer's excitement and disbelief at having found love again. The mention of raising lager cans implies a celebratory toast. The repetition of "I'm in love with love" reinforces the songwriter's overall message of rediscovering the joy and magic of love.
Line by Line Meaning
In the way that the world was flat
In a similar manner to how people used to believe the world was flat
Long before it was round
Before it was proven to be round
Much the same as when Adam met Eve
Similar to the time when Adam and Eve first encountered each other
Apes could not be found
There were no apes in existence
I'm seeing things now in a different light
I have a new perspective on things
Even though the bulbs the same
Even though the light bulbs remain unchanged
Unlock the doors
Open up the opportunities
Ceiling greet the floors
Even the ceiling acknowledges the floor
I'm in love with love (again)
I have fallen in love once again
How'd it happen let's just say
Let's just say it happened unexpectedly
Luck has played it's part
Luck has had a role to play
I was seated in row F
I happened to be sitting in row F
While she served ala carte
While she was serving food from the menu
For years I've struggled to overcome
I have been trying for years to overcome
The bitterness and pain
The feelings of bitterness and pain
And now at last that's all in the past
And now finally, it is all in the past
I'm in love with love (again)
I have fallen in love once again
And anyone who tells you
And anyone who claims
Second time around
The second attempt
Doesn't get much better
Doesn't improve significantly
Is on solid ground
Is correct
Let the bells ring out
Let the bells ring loudly
Let there be no doubt
Without any uncertainty
Cross my heart and hope to die
I promise sincerely
Hope to die delete
Delete the phrase 'hope to die'
Spread the news my life's returned
Spread the news that my life has returned to normal
And boy does it taste sweet
And it feels incredibly satisfying
To call it some kind of miracle
To describe it as a miracle of sorts
Would I think be a claim
Would, in my opinion, be an assertion
Kick out the jams
Enjoy the music to the fullest
Raise your lager cans
Raise your beer cans
I'm in love with love (again)
I have fallen in love once again
I'm starting to get the feeling back
I'm beginning to regain the feeling
In places I could name
In specific locations that I could identify
Suffice to say let the music play
It is enough to say that the music should continue playing
I'm in love with love (again)
I have fallen in love once again
You''l have to excuse me
You will have to forgive me
If I appear to
If I seem to
Be a little over keen
Be slightly too enthusiastic
Hardly surprising considering where
Not very surprising, given that
For the last few years I've been
For the past few years, I have been
Once the writing is on the wall
Once the signs become clear
Not much you can do
There is not a lot you can do
I tried everything in my power
I attempted everything that was within my capability
She tried someone new
She pursued a relationship with someone else
But now quite suddenly
But now, all of a sudden
Words like bliss
Words such as happiness
Have entered my domain
Have become part of my life
You have to laugh running with a bath
You have to find it amusing to run with a bathtub
I'm in love with love
I am deeply in love
Arrest that man for every wheel he'll clamp
Arrest that man for every wheel he will secure with a clamp
I'm in love with love
I am deeply in love
I'm in love with love
I am deeply in love
I'm in love with love (again)
I have fallen in love once again
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: GILBERT O'SULLIVAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind