In 1983, she travelled to Toronto to seek a musical career. In 1986, she founded a trio with bassist David Piltch and pianist Aaron Davis. Offered a record deal in 1989, the Holly Cole Trio released an EP, Christmas Blues, that year, which featured a version of The Pretenders' "2,000 Miles". This was followed by their first full album, Girl Talk, in 1990.
A succession of releases followed through the early 1990s. For example, 1991's Blame It On My Youth, covered songs by Tom Waits ("Purple Avenue", aka "Empty Pockets"), Lyle Lovett ("God Will"), includes show tunes such as "If I Were a Bell" (from Guys and Dolls) and "On the Street Where You Live" (from My Fair Lady), and even remakes "Trust In Me", from Disney's The Jungle Book, into a strikingly sultry and sinister song of seduction and death. Also recorded in this period was "Alison", a reinterpretation of Elvis Costello's original.
Following 1993's Don't Smoke in Bed, the trio released a CD entirely of songs by Tom Waits, called Temptation. With this 1995 release, the "Trio" was dropped from the group's name.
Cole next went into a two-album flirtation with pop music, perhaps keeping with the "diva" fad of the late 90s. These albums, Dark Dear Heart (1997) and Romantically Helpless (2000) veered further from jazz by introducing pop elements to Cole's sound.
In 2001, she returned to the Christmas jazz roots of her first CD with Baby It's Cold Outside, which included such should-be classics as "Christmas Time is Here" (from A Charlie Brown Christmas), "Santa Baby", and the title track. Swapping cold for hot, she moved to a Summer theme in 2003's Shade, this time reinterpreting Cole Porter ("Too Darn Hot"), Irving Berlin ("Heatwave"), and The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson ("God Only Knows").
Cole's latest album, Holly Cole (originally entitled This House Is Haunted) was released in Canada in March 2007. It was released in the US in January 2008 and was followed by a US tour.
Cole tours frequently, particularly around the holiday season, in Canada. She was also a part of the 1999 Lilith Fair tour.
Ev'rything I've Got
Holly Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's impolite
To stamp your foot at me
Is not quite right
At man's ingratitude
A woman winks
But such an attitude just stinks
I have words that do not come from children's books
there's a trick with a knife I'm learning to do
And everything I've got belongs to you
I've a powerful anesthesia in my fist
And the perfect wrist to give your neck a twist
There are hammerlock holds
I've mastered a few
And everything I've got belongs to you
Share for share, share alike
You get struck each time I strike
You for me- me for me
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I'm not yours for better but for worse
And I've learned to give the well-known witches' curse
I've a terrible tongue, a temper for two
And ev'rything I've got belongs to you
Don't raise your voice at me
That's very rude
To raise your voice at me
Is rather crude
It's wrong essentially when woman yells
And confidentially, it smells
I'll converse with you on politics at length
I'll protect you with my superhuman strength
If you're ever attacked I'll scream and say , "Boo!"
And everything I've got belongs to you
I will never stray from home, I'll just stay put
Cause I've got a brand-new thing called athlete' s foot
I'm a victim of colds, anemia, too
And everything I've got belongs to you
Off to bed we will creep
Then we'll sleep and sleep and sleep
Till the birds start to peep
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I'll be yours forever and a day
If the first good breeze does not blow me away
You're enough for one man, that's why I'll be true
And everything I've got belongs to you
You may have some things that I can't use at all
When I look at you, your manly gifts are small
I've a wonderful way of saying adieu
And everything I've got belongs to you
You won't know how good I am until you try
And you'll let my well of loneliness run dry
I've a marvelous way of telling you no
And everything I've got belongs to you
And everything you want belongs to me!
And everything you need belongs to me!
Life has no shape or form
And no design
It isn't life without
That fool of mine
I used to gad about
With any chap
And now I'm sad about my sap
He's a living thing that isn't quite alive
He has brains enough for any child of five
Oh, he isn't too rich in vigor and vim
But everything I've got belongs to him
He's a naughty brat that can't be left alone
He has eyes for every skirt except my own
Even under a tree, he grabs for the limb
But everything I've got belongs to him
Something beats in his chest
But it's just a pump at best
I'm for him, he's for him
He gives me plenty of nothing
When I see that funny face, I know
Something scared his mother twenty years ago
But I'll never let go, he'll never be free!
Till everything he's got belongs to me!
And everything I've got belongs to him!
And everything I've got belongs to us!
The song "Ev'rything I've Got" by Holly Cole is a humorous and satirical take on the traditional love song. The lyrics suggest that the singer is willing to do whatever it takes to make her love interest happy, including using violence and manipulation.
The song opens with the singer admonishing her love interest for stomping his foot at her, and goes on to detail the various ways she can use her skills to control him. She alludes to having a "trick with a knife" and a "powerful anesthesia in [her] fist," and implies that she's mastered various grappling techniques. Despite all of this, she claims that "everything [she's] got belongs" to him.
The song continues with the singer making more humorous and often contradictory statements. She promises to talk about politics at length, protect him with her "superhuman strength," and stay faithful to him even though he's a "naughty brat" who can't be left alone. She also mentions her various health problems, including athlete's foot and anemia, in a lighthearted way.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't stamp your foot at me
It's not polite to make a noise like stamping your foot at someone
It's impolite
It's not well-mannered
To stamp your foot at me
To make a noise by stamping one's foot on the ground in the vicinity of the person being addressed
Is not quite right
It's not the right thing to do
At man's ingratitude
When people do not appreciate what they have been given
A woman winks
A woman may choose to ignore the slight and communicate non-verbally to imply that all is well
But such an attitude just stinks
But such an attitude just reeks of ingratitude
I have eyes for you to give you dirty looks
I have a hostile gaze reserved exclusively for you
I have words that do not come from children's books
I have a repertoire of foul language that I will not hesitate to use
there's a trick with a knife I'm learning to do
I'm learning how to use a knife to cause harm
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I own, all my skills and talents, belong to you
I've a powerful anesthesia in my fist
I have a powerful sedative in my fist that I could use to knock you out
And the perfect wrist to give your neck a twist
And the perfect grip to forcefully turn your neck
There are hammerlock holds
I possess knowledge of grappling techniques, such as the hammerlock hold
I've mastered a few
I have become an expert in implementing such techniques
Share for share, share alike
If you strike me, I'll strike you back
You get struck each time I strike
I will reciprocate any physical attack from you
You for me- me for me
I'm not in a mutually beneficial relationship with you
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I may seem to be giving you something, but it is really nothing of value
I'm not yours for better but for worse
I'm not with you for the good times only, but for better and worse
And I've learned to give the well-known witches' curse
I know how to cast a spell to hurt you
I've a terrible tongue, a temper for two
I'm known for my sharp tongue, and my temper is easy to ignite
And ev'rything I've got belongs to you
Everything I've got, including my personality traits, belong to you
Don't raise your voice at me
It's not polite to speak loudly to someone
That's very rude
That's not proper behavior
To raise your voice at me
To express oneself loudly to the person being addressed
Is rather crude
It's quite uncivilized
It's wrong essentially when woman yells
It's not appropriate for a woman to raise her voice
And confidentially, it smells
And it's quite distasteful
I'll converse with you on politics at length
I can hold an extended conversation with you about politics
I'll protect you with my superhuman strength
I'll use my strength to keep you safe
If you're ever attacked I'll scream and say , "Boo!"
If you're ever attacked, I'll scream and pretend to be scary to deter the attacker
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything I have and everything I can do is at your disposal
I will never stray from home, I'll just stay put
I'll never leave the house and just stay at home
Cause I've got a brand-new thing called athlete' s foot
I have developed a new infection on my foot called athlete's foot
I'm a victim of colds, anemia, too
I am prone to catching colds and suffering from anemia
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I own or do, including my health, belongs to you
Off to bed we will creep
We will quietly go to bed
Then we'll sleep and sleep and sleep
We will sleep a lot
Till the birds start to peep
Till the birds start chirping in the morning
I'll give you plenty of nothing
I'll pretend to give you something, but it will be of no value
I'll be yours forever and a day
I will stay with you for eternity
If the first good breeze does not blow me away
If I don't find something better or more interesting than you, I'll stick around
You're enough for one man, that's why I'll be true
You are enough for me, so I'll remain loyal
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I have or can do belongs to you
You may have some things that I can't use at all
You may possess items or characteristics that I cannot enjoy or utilize
When I look at you, your manly gifts are small
When I look at you, I don't see anything particularly special to me
I've a wonderful way of saying adieu
I have a very effective way of saying goodbye
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I own or have belongs to you
You won't know how good I am until you try
You won't know how good I am until you experience it firsthand
And you'll let my well of loneliness run dry
You'll keep me company so I won't feel lonely anymore
I've a marvelous way of telling you no
I have a fantastic manner of refusing your requests or demands
And everything I've got belongs to you
Everything that I am or can do is in your interest
And everything you want belongs to me!
I control everything that you want
And everything you need belongs to me!
I am the sole provider of everything that you need
Life has no shape or form
Life is shapeless and formless
And no design
And has no specific plan
It isn't life without
Life doesn't feel complete without
That fool of mine
That person I foolishly love
I used to gad about
I used to go out excessively, socializing and having fun
With any chap
With any man who was available at the time
And now I'm sad about my sap
And now I'm sad about that person I foolishly love
He's a living thing that isn't quite alive
He is a human being, but his actions and personality are lacking
He has brains enough for any child of five
He has the mental capacity of a five-year-old child
Oh, he isn't too rich in vigor and vim
He's not full of energy and enthusiasm
But everything I've got belongs to him
Everything I own and can do is dedicated to him
He's a naughty brat that can't be left alone
He is a mischievous child who requires constant supervision
He has eyes for every skirt except my own
He is interested in other women and not me
Even under a tree, he grabs for the limb
Even in a peaceful environment, he behaves recklessly
But everything I've got belongs to him
Everything that I possess and all of my abilities are dedicated to him
Something beats in his chest
He has a heartbeat
But it's just a pump at best
But his heart is not full of emotions
I'm for him, he's for him
I'm in love with him, but he is only interested in himself
He gives me plenty of nothing
He may appear to give me something, but it is actually of no value
When I see that funny face, I know
When I see his face, I understand immediately
Something scared his mother twenty years ago
He has inherited his mother's fears or has the same cause of fright
But I'll never let go, he'll never be free!
But I will never leave him, and he will never be able to enjoy freedom from our relationship
Till everything he's got belongs to me!
Until everything that he owns and all of his abilities are dedicated to me
And everything I've got belongs to him!
And everything that I own and can do is dedicated to him
And everything I've got belongs to us!
And everything that belongs to me and my partner is shared between us
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LORENZ HART, RICHARD RODGERS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind