She plays mostly acoustic guitar and a rhodes or wurlitzer organ, either solo or with her Minneapolis-based band, including Jeremy Ylvisaker and Mike Lewis of Andrew Bird fame, as well as long time band mates Luke Anderson on drums and Jacob Hanson on guitar.
In 2003 Bonar's album . . . The Size of Planets (Chairkicker's Union) received favorable reviews in the Minneapolis press. The album spawned the single "Am I Allowed," which was played on college radio stations. Bonar was 20 years old when the album was released, and did a number of tours with Duluth band Low upon its release. She also toured with the likes of Mason Jennings, Richard Buckner, and Mary Lou Lord, who was also, for a time, Bonar's manager.
In 2006 she released the album Lure the Fox, originally on Mary Ellen Recordings, whose owner, Mary Lewis, decided to help Bonar pay to record the album at Pachyderm Studio after reading a Star Tribune article about her in 2005. Dave King of Happy Apple and The Bad Plus plays drums, Chris Morrissey plays bass, and the album features Low's Alan Sparhawk on the track "Give it Up." Also on that track is David Frankenfeld, Bonar's former drummer, who played on The Size of Planets. One year after Lure the Fox was recorded, Bonar signed with local label Afternoon Records, who then released the album nationally in October 2006.
Lure the Fox earned Bonar two Minnesota Music Awards, one for Best American Roots recording, and another for Best American Roots artist. The album also topped many Twin Cities year-end favorite lists, including those of the Star Tribune, City Pages, The Onion, and Pulse magazine. Bonar was also featured on the cover of Metro magazine.
Big Star, released in June 2008 on Afternoon Records, gained Bonar a broader audience with songs like "Big Star," "Green Eyed Boy," and "Arms of Harm," which was featured on the credits for an episode of HBO's The United States of Tara. The songs "Queen of Everything," "Big Star," and "Something Great" were also featured on MTV's show Teen Moms in 2009/2010.
Upon completion of her album Golder, she also started a side project band called Gramma's Boyfriend, a "no-wave, new wave, punkish kind of thing that sounds like the Twin Peaks High School prom band". Bonar started a Kickstarter campaign in February 2011 in order to raise money to promote and tour her upcoming record. She played the 2011 SXSW music festival in March, released the album in April, and toured it summer 2011.
- wikipedia
Give It Up
Haley Bonar Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And think of all the things
That I could've said
The choir hums
A hundred thousand words
The silence is
In their black dresses
Blow out the flame
And sing a little song
Call out his name
Everyone can sing along
But give all your love to me
And don't let me give it up
Let me love this man
Sunny times
We could pray each other clean
Weep for God and man
In the dust of dirty dreams
Let me hold you
Let me love this man
Don't let me give it up
Don't let me give it up
Don't let me give it up
Don't let me give it up
In Haley Bonar's song "Give It Up," the lyrics convey a sense of regret and self-reflection as the singer thinks back on missed opportunities and things left unsaid. The opening line, "Lie in my bed and think of all the things that I could've said," sets the tone for the rest of the song. The singer is haunted by the past and the things they wish they had done differently.
The mention of a choir humming "a hundred thousand words" adds to the poignancy of the song, as if the weight of unspoken words is almost unbearable. The silence of the black-dressed choir emphasizes the weight of those unsaid words. However, the singer finds solace in calling out the name of the person they love and having everyone join in, showing that love can bridge the gap of the things left unsaid.
The second half of the song is a plea to not let go of that love. The singer suggests that being with their loved one can bring a new sense of purity and redemption ("We could pray each other clean/Weep for God and man in the dust of dirty dreams"). In the final repetition of "Don't let me give it up," the singer is begging to hold onto the love that could have so easily slipped away.
Line by Line Meaning
Lie in my bed
Being in a state of contemplation
And think of all the things
Reflecting on missed opportunities or unsaid words
That I could've said
Regret over not expressing oneself
The choir hums
A sound of divine presence
A hundred thousand words
A spiritual experience of overwhelming emotion
The silence is
A moment of tranquil contemplation
In their black dresses
Tapping into a moment of melancholic beauty
Blow out the flame
Relinquishing a relationship
And sing a little song
Trying to make sense of it all
Call out his name
The desire for reconciliation
Everyone can sing along
The shared experience of love and loss
But give all your love to me
The need for affirmation and commitment
And don't let me give it up
The fear of losing what is precious
Let me love this man
The desire for a meaningful relationship
Sunny times
Moments of clarity and happiness
We could pray each other clean
Healing and purification through love
Weep for God and man
Acknowledging the struggle of the human experience
In the dust of dirty dreams
Navigating through the messiness of life
Let me hold you
The need for physical intimacy
Don't let me give it up
Not wanting to let go of what is cherished
Don't let me give it up
The importance of holding on tight
Don't let me give it up
The plea for eternal happiness
Don't let me give it up
The fear of losing love
Contributed by Allison E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
PLSCHWRT
Haley, keep on keeping on, come over to Europe, Holland, lots of people are dying to see you, it's just that they don't know it yet!
VRRay OfMinneapolis
I liked that. and it's my B-day. whoo.