Combining elements of both rock and folk music, along with disturbingly personal sentiments, dark humor, and a voice able to channel both the falsetto highs of Neil Young and the wavering raspy low tones of Leonard Cohen, Toronto's Hayden Desser has spent his career creating uniquely affecting music.
The critically-acclaimed musician first appeared in the early '90s armed with only his four-track tape recorder, his unexpectedly low vocal range, and an extremely detuned guitar. Going simply by the name Hayden, he recorded his self-released cassette, In September, in 1994, and much of the material included evolved into his first proper LP, 1995's Everything I Long For. Initially self-released on his own Hardwood Records, the debut disc toed the line between beautiful and horrifying, touching on simple details of human interaction as well as delving into macabre tales that still retained an oddly personal edge. After a year of touring Canada, E.T.I.L.F. was picked up by Outpost Recordings (Geffen) and was released worldwide in early 1996. Tours of the U.S., Europe and Japan took up most of 1996, as well as writing and recording the title track to the Steve Buscemi-directed Tree’s Lounge. Hayden’s second full-length record. The Closer I Get (1998) was recorded in Toronto, Bearsville, N.Y., Seattle and Los Angeles. After another year of touring, Hayden closed the book on chapter one of his musical endeavors.
The next couple of years went by without any performances, but during 2000, Hayden began writing and recording in his Toronto home. The self-produced collection of songs was titled Skyscraper National Park and was released in 2001 to world–wide critical acclaim.
The following year, a live concert double CD was released, Live at Convocation Hall, a glimpse, for the listener, into what makes Hayden’s appearances such a favourite among his ever devoted fan base. His natural rapport with the crowd, along with an honest demeanour, has continued Hayden’s reputation as a unique and charming performer.
In 2004, Hayden released his 4th studio album. Elk-Lake Serenade continued in the direction of Skyscraper with it’s collection of warm and memorable recordings. 2004 also heralded Hayden’s return to the road with several tours that took him as far as Australia and New Zealand.
After a long period of writing and recording, Hayden returned in early 2008 with his 5th full-length studio record. In Field & Town is his most musically diverse and textured record to date. It captures his penchant for self-referential fiction and emotionally heavy songs and laces them with sharp hooks and smart lyrics. After supporting The National in Europe in November of ‘07, Hayden completed a sold-out theatre tour of Canada as well as spring and fall North American tours supporting Feist. In Field & Town was released on Fat Possum in the U.S.A. and November saw the release in Europe via the Affairs of the Heart label, combined with Nov./Dec. dates in the UK, France, Switzerland, Holland, Belgium and Germany.
www.hardwoodrecords.com
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Hardly
Hayden Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Missing from your life
And from your everyday?
I need you to be beside me
Why don't you call me and we'll see?
I see you having coffee
You are almost beside me
Laughing with your friends
I tell Lorraine to look at you
I tell her I need to tell you
I don't know you
But I want to
I just can't leave here
Without telling you
Just how lonely I've been lately
You are just as lonely, maybe?
We should go out for some coffee
I wonder how I can
Give you my phone number
And not be so afraid?
I ask Lorraine to give it to you
When I go to the washroom
I return to the table
I look, but I'm unable
To find you anywhere
I ask Lorraine to look for you
I tell her I need to tell you
Don't know you
But I want to
I just can't leave here
Without telling you
Just how lonely I've been lately
You are just as lonely, maybe?
We should go out for some coffee
On the way out the door
Lorraine lets me know that she went up to you
And gave you my number and said, "Call him or else he'll be sad"
And I waited, for two weeks and
I realized that you'd never call me
How could I have been so stupid
I should have gone up to you and
Told you myself how you make me feel
The song "Hardly" by Hayden depicts a a man who sees a woman that he is attracted to, but he is hesitant to make a move due to his fear of rejection. The song talks about the man wanting to muster up the courage to approach the woman, but is unsuccessful in doing so. The lyrics imply that the man is lonely and he feels like he could be missing something in his life, and that something could be the woman sitting near him. However, he is afraid to approach her to find out.
The lyric "Could I be the one thing missing from your life?" suggests that the singer has imagined what it would be like to be in a relationship with this woman, and that there is a possibility that the woman could also be lonely and looking for a companion. The singer's hesitancy to approach the woman shows that he is insecure and not confident enough to take the initiative to start a conversation with her. The lyrics "I just can't leave here without telling you just how lonely I've been lately" show us that the singer is struggling to find a way to communicate his feelings to the woman.
In conclusion, "Hardly" is a song about wanting to take a risk and approach someone who one has feelings for, but being paralyzed by the fear of rejection. It portrays how difficult it can be to open up emotionally, and the potential regret that arises when one doesn't seize an opportunity to take the chance.
Line by Line Meaning
Could I be the one thing
I wonder if I could be the one thing missing from your life.
Missing from your life
Someone who you don't even know you're missing, but you are.
And from your everyday?
Someone who would brighten up your everyday life.
I need you to be beside me
I need you to be there for me and comfort me.
Why don't you call me and we'll see?
Why don't you take a chance and get together with me?
I see you having coffee
I see you living your life.
You are almost beside me
You are so close yet so far away.
Laughing with your friends
Having a good time with the people in your life.
I tell Lorraine to look at you
I ask my friend Lorraine to look at you.
I tell her I need to tell you
I tell Lorraine that I need to tell you something.
I don't know you
I don't actually know you.
But I want to
But I really want to know you.
I just can't leave here
I can't leave without talking to you.
Without telling you
Without telling you how I feel.
Just how lonely I've been lately
How much I've been hurting and feeling lonely lately.
You are just as lonely, maybe?
I think maybe you are feeling lonely too.
We should go out for some coffee
Maybe we should go out and get to know each other over some coffee.
I wonder how I can
I wonder how I can give you my number.
Give you my phone number
Give you my phone number so we can get in touch.
And not be so afraid?
Without feeling so scared about it.
I ask Lorraine to give it to you
I ask Lorraine to give you my phone number.
When I go to the washroom
When I excuse myself to the washroom.
I return to the table
I come back to the table.
I look, but I'm unable
But I can't find you.
To find you anywhere
You are nowhere to be found.
I ask Lorraine to look for you
I ask Lorraine to look for you again.
Don't know you
Still don't actually know you.
But I want to
But I still really want to know you.
I just can't leave here
I still can't leave without talking to you.
Without telling you
Without telling you how much you mean to me.
Just how lonely I've been lately
How much I've been hurting and feeling lonely lately.
You are just as lonely, maybe?
I think maybe you are feeling lonely too.
We should go out for some coffee
Maybe we should go out and get to know each other over some coffee.
On the way out the door
As I'm about to leave.
Lorraine lets me know that she went up to you
Lorraine tells me that she went up to you and gave you my phone number.
And gave you my number and said, "Call him or else he'll be sad"
She gave you my number and told you to call me so I wouldn't be sad.
And I waited, for two weeks and
I waited anxiously to hear from you for two weeks.
I realized that you'd never call me
I came to the realization that you were never going to call me.
How could I have been so stupid
I feel foolish for thinking you would call.
I should have gone up to you and
I realize now that I should have approached you and told you how I feel.
Told you myself how you make me feel
Just how much you mean to me and how I feel when I think of you.
Lyrics © SC PUBLISHING DBA SECRETLY CANADIAN PUB.
Written by: Paul Hayden Desser
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ashley Walklett
So epic..
I knew every word.. 😍😍😍
Definitely a beautiful memory from some really formative years!! Ha!
I never missed a Hayden show (Winnipeg) back in this day!!
I EVEN MET LORRAINE!!! I SH!T YOU NOT!! I even have a pic with her!! 🤣 And.. ya know.. a few with Mr Desser himself. 💖
kl0wnkill
I loved this album, someone in my circle of friends introduced it to me. Listened again and again and again. Some really beautiful and raw feelings in there for me. Stay safe everyone. (NZ)
MAGA OFFENSIVE
That's pretty awesome
Jeff Krasulak
I love the pure sound of this album, very striped down and still extremely perfect.
Eric Freda
I had this song stuck in my head all morning. Thank you. I hadn’t heard it in many years. Love it.
Ali Dez
The raw, 'shittiness' of this song is what makes it so charming. I love these old acoustic songs of his. It really feels like he's your friend and you're just sitting side by side on the couch together.
Tommy Boy
I remember i listent to hayden a lot in the 90's when my heart was broken
Buck Wilde
brings back memories from the 90's!! Cool very cool.
Sheldon
I agree, time flys.
Ron Riggs
Good ol Lorraine!!!
Does anyone know if Hayden ever got the chance to tell her? Have coffee together?