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.
Losing My Mind
Holly Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I think about you
The coffee cup
I think about you
I want you so
It's like I'm losing my mind.
I think about you
I talk to friends
I think about you
And do they know? It's like I'm losing my mind.
All afternoon
Doing every little chore
The thought of you stays bright.
Sometimes I stand in the middle of the floor
Not going left
Not going right.
I dim the lights and think about you
Spend sleepless nights to think about you.
You said you loved me
Or were you just being kind?
Or am I losing
Losing my mind?
All afternoon
Doing every little chore
The thought of you stays bright.
Sometimes I stand in the middle of the floor
Not going left
Not going right.
Or am I losing my mind?
You said you loved me
Or were you just being kind?
Or am I losing my mind?
Or were you just being kind?
Or am I losing my mind?
Losing my mind
Losing my mind
Losing my mind.
Holly Cole's "Losing My Mind" is a soulful testimony of the psychological impact of a lost love. The song begins with the singer waking up, and the first thing that comes to mind is the person they miss. Throughout the day, the singer is constantly thinking about this person, even when they're performing their daily chores or speaking with friends. The thought of them is like a nagging presence, an obsession, so strong that it's "like I'm losing my mind." The singer spends sleepless nights thinking about them and wonders if they truly loved them, or if they were just being nice.
The singer's psychological torment is further expressed through the repetition of the phrase "losing my mind." This phrase is an indication of spiraling anxiety, bordering on mania. The singer is so consumed by their thoughts that they no longer know what's real or if they're just imagining things. The repeated refrain of the chorus only intensifies this vulnerability, which is underscored by the airy, melancholic melody. The phrase "Not going left, not going right" is symbolic of the singer's disorientation, their inability to make sense of their emotions, and their entrapment in this state of mental turmoil.
Line by Line Meaning
The sun comes up
As soon as the morning starts, I think about you.
I think about you
I can't stop myself from thinking about you all the time.
The coffee cup
Even while having coffee in the morning, I can't help but think about you.
I want you so
I desperately long for your presence.
It's like I'm losing my mind.
Thinking about you has become a haunting obsession.
The morning ends
Even as the day progresses, thoughts about you continue to linger in my mind.
I talk to friends
I try to distract myself by talking to my friends, but my thoughts keep coming back to you.
And do they know? It's like I'm losing my mind.
I wonder if my friends can sense how obsessed I am with you, and this thought makes me feel like I'm going crazy.
All afternoon
Even throughout the day, the thought of you stays with me.
Doing every little chore
I try to keep myself busy by doing chores, but even then, thoughts about you remain bright in my mind.
Sometimes I stand in the middle of the floor
I find myself frozen, unable to move, as thoughts about you consume me.
Not going left
I can't make any decisions or take any actions because I'm too preoccupied with thoughts of you.
Not going right.
I'm unable to move forward or make progress because thoughts of you are holding me back.
I dim the lights and think about you
I create a calm and introspective atmosphere to think about you more deeply.
Spend sleepless nights to think about you.
At night, I'm unable to sleep because you're constantly on my mind.
You said you loved me
You told me you loved me, but I'm not sure if it was sincere.
Or were you just being kind?
I don't know if your words were genuine or if you were just trying to be polite.
Or am I losing
Am I falling apart due to my obsession with you?
Losing my mind?
Is my preoccupation with you leading me to insanity?
Or were you just being kind?
I still can't tell if your words were truthful or if you were just trying to be polite.
Or am I losing my mind?
Am I continuing to spiral out of control due to my obsessive thoughts about you?
Losing my mind
I'm becoming unbalanced and irrational because of my intense feelings for you.
Losing my mind
I can't seem to shake off these persistent thoughts about you, and it's driving me crazy.
Losing my mind.
As time goes on, my fixation on you is becoming more and more detrimental to my mental health.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: STEPHEN SONDHEIM
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind