Heidi signed to 4AD, and initially appeared on the Blood album by This Mortal Coil, lending her vocals to the track Til I Gain Control Again. She also had three solo albums released via 4AD; Love (1991), Heidi Berry (1993) and Miracle (1996). A compilation of her works, Pomegranate (2001), is also available. Pomegranate contains tracks from Heidi's Creation and 4AD releases.
Heidi Berry is the owner of one of the most emotive voices to ever record, and her songwriting has her ranking up there with Sandy Denny, Nick Drake, John Martyn and the miniscule few others who share her mastery of this art. The fact that she is not far more successful than she is can come as a bit of a shock after listening to just one of her many songs. If ever a singer deserves wider acclaim during their lifetime, it is Heidi.
Lily
Heidi Berry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lily in the shadow
Hiding from the moon
Lily under glass
You're rising
Rising as the sun sets
Going to your window
Lay your face against the glass
And sway from side to side in silence
And slowly turning round with nothing but the sound
Of your bare feet on the wooden floor
And lily
All your time you're wasting
Will you ever know
When your time is done
Now leaning
Hands flat to the wall
And slowly trace the boundary
Of an empty room
No word, no warning on the day
You left the stage, quit the play
You closed your eyes and faded away
And lily
Come into the moonlight
Here, no one will harm you
You're not very strong
You're dying
And you don't even know it
You're drowning on thin air
You're already gone
Heidi Berry's song "Lily" portrays the story of a person who is living their life without purpose and direction. The lyrics describe a lily in the shadow, hiding from the moon, and under the glass, rising. The person is waiting for something to happen, while time is slipping away. The lily is slowly but surely dying, struggling to breathe and drowning on thin air. The singer of the song is unaware of their condition, unable or unwilling to change their situation. The lyrics describe how the person leans, with their hands flat on the wall, slowly tracing the boundary of an empty room, signifying their state of confusion and loss.
The song talks about the lily's experience of life, reflected in the lyrics, "All your time you're wasting, will you ever know when your time is done?" This suggests that the person is not living life to the fullest, but rather going through the motions, and that they may only realize this when it's too late. Finally, the lyrics of "Lily" conclude with "No word, no warning on the day, you left the stage, quit the play, you closed your eyes and faded away." The meaning conveyed here is that one day, without any notice or understanding, a person may suddenly stop living, fade away and disappear.
Overall, the song "Lily" is an introspective examination of the human condition. The song is an ode to the human struggle and the challenges that can prevent one from living an abundant life. The lyrics provide insight into the human experience of confusion, purposelessness, and stagnation while urging people not to let time slip away.
Line by Line Meaning
Ah, lily
Addressing the subject of the song, Lily
Lily in the shadow
Lily is in a place hidden from sight
Hiding from the moon
Lily is trying to avoid the moonlight
Lily under glass
Lily is trapped and enclosed in a glass container
You're rising
Despite the confines of the glass container, the lily is still growing upward
Rising as the sun sets
The lily is defying expectations by growing during twilight
Going to your window
The lily is reaching towards an opening in the glass container
Lay your face against the glass
The lily is pressing itself against the glass, as if trying to escape
And sway from side to side in silence
The lily is moving gently back and forth without making any noise
And slowly turning round with nothing but the sound
The only sound that can be heard is the lily's footsteps on the wooden floor
Of your bare feet on the wooden floor
The lily is barefoot, emphasizing its vulnerability
And lily
Once again addressing the subject of the song, Lily
All your time you're wasting
The lily is spending its time in a confined space, not able to reach its full potential
Will you ever know
Will the lily ever realize its predicament?
When your time is done
When the lily's growth cycle is complete, will it have lived up to its potential?
Now leaning
The lily is changing its position
Hands flat to the wall
The lily is touching the surface of the wall with its hands
And slowly trace the boundary
The lily is methodically exploring the perimeter of its enclosure
Of an empty room
The lily is confined to a space devoid of life or growth potential
No word, no warning on the day
There will be no clear signals when the lily reaches the end of its growth cycle
You left the stage, quit the play
The lily's influence will end abruptly when it has completed its growth cycle
You closed your eyes and faded away
The end will come quietly and without warning for the lily
And lily
Addressing the subject of the song one last time
Come into the moonlight
The lily should embrace the light that it has been avoiding
Here, no one will harm you
In the moonlight, the lily is safe from harm
You're not very strong
The lily is weak and vulnerable
You're dying
The lily is past its prime and has reached the end of its life cycle
And you don't even know it
The lily may not be aware of its imminent demise
You're drowning on thin air
The lily is slowly losing its vitality and will eventually wither away
You're already gone
The lily has passed its peak and is now slowly decaying
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: HEIDI ANN BERRY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind