Hayden is Paul Hayden Desser (born February 12, 1971), a Canadian singer-so… Read Full Bio ↴Hayden is Paul Hayden Desser (born February 12, 1971), a Canadian singer-songwriter from Thornhill, Ontario. His early works are a largely eclectic mix of genres from grunge to alternative country, as demonstrated by his first full album, Everything I Long For, released in 1995. Since then his work has become progressively more refined.

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
www.myspace.com/hayden

Never Lonely
Hayden Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I've been doing just fine
I've been happy
I've been having a good time

Invitations lie
Unopened
I don't have the time
To reply

And I can't go out
Without a crowd
Music out loud
and Life shining down
And I drink for free
And girls come to me
And never lonley

I have money now
And I spend it
On my every whim

I never sleep alone
Sometimes i wake up
In the arms of those
I don't even know

And i can't go out
Without a crowd
And music out loud
And lights shining down
And I drink for free
And girls come to me
And i'm never lonley

You should call me

If you're on my street
You left something behind

Overall Meaning

Hayden's song "Never Lonely" is a captivating piece that delves deeper into the theme of loneliness and how it is perceived. The singer opens the song with a sense of satisfaction about their life, highlighting how they are happy and enjoying life without any obvious problems. However, as the song progresses, the singer reveals a darker side to their life, where they long for the company of others but only under certain conditions. For instance, they can't go out without a crowd, and the music has to be loud, and life has to shine down for them to enjoy their time out. This shows that the singer is not as content or happy as they initially claim to be, and they rely on the social scene to feel connected, but even at that, the absence of the right conditions still makes them feel alone.

Line by Line Meaning

I've been doing just fine
My life has been going well lately

I've been happy
I am content with my life

I've been having a good time
I've been enjoying myself

Invitations lie
I have received invitations that I have not responded to

Unopened
I haven't bothered to open these invitations

I don't have the time
I am too busy to attend these events

To reply
Therefore, I have not bothered to respond to them

And I can't go out
I cannot go out in public

Without a crowd
I need to be surrounded by people

Music out loud
I need loud music playing

and Life shining down
I need bright lights around me