After signing a contract with Warner Bros, Laurie released a blues album Let Them Talk , which was released initially in France on April 18, 2011 and later in the UK on May 9th.
He has written one novel, "The Gun Seller," and another one, "The Paper Soldier," is tentatively scheduled for September 2009. Mr. Laurie has some musical talent, notably the piano and mouth trumpet (he can make convincing trumpet sounds using just his mouth). He played '20s numbers on the piano in the TV series "Jeeves and Wooster" (again with Stephen Fry) in addition to some original comic songs in "A Bit Of Fry & Laurie." He is currently a member of "Band from TV" with several other TV personalities. He is married with children, although he has become somewhat of an absentee father due to his work on American television while his family stays in London.
Swanee River
Hugh Laurie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Far, far away.
That's where my heart is yearning ever,
Home where the old folks stay.
Way down upon the Swanee River,
Far, far away-hey.
Wo, that's where my heart is yearning ever,
Home where the old folks stay.
All up and down the whole creation,
Sadly I roam.
I'm a still a-longin' for the old plantation,
Oh, for the old folks at home.
Ah-oh-oh!
Oh, my my!
Well, way down upon the Swanee River,
Far, far away-hey.
Wo, that's where my heart is yearning ever,
Home where the old folks stay.
All up and down the whole creation,
Sadly I roam.
I'm still a-longin' for the old plantation,
And for the old folks at home.
All the world is sad and dreary,
Ev'rywhere I roam.
Oh, darkies, how my heart grows weary,
Far from the old folks at home
Far from the old folks at home
Far from the old folks at home
Far from the old folks at home.
The lyrics of Hugh Laurie’s song “Swanee River” tell a story of homesickness and nostalgia for a simpler time, a time when the world was less difficult to navigate. The repetitious rhyme scheme and undulating melody of the song capture the longing and heartache of its subject matter. The first stanza describes the emotional state of the singer- longing to return home to the place where his heart truly belongs, with the old folks he grew up with. The second stanza emphasizes the singer’s current state of dissatisfaction- he is wandering aimlessly and is still yearning for what he left behind. The final stanza describes the universal condition of sadness and longing- even though the singer is a dark-skinned person, deep down he shares the same desires and feelings as people of all races and walks of life. By the end of the song, the repetition of “Far from the old folks at home” cements the singer’s loss and the impossibility of ever truly returning to what he left behind.
Line by Line Meaning
Way down upon the Swanee River,
I am far away from where I long to be, the Shwanee river.
Far, far away.
I am great distance from there.
That's where my heart is yearning ever,
My heart always longs for the way things were on the Shwanee river.
Home where the old folks stay.
This is the place where the old folks, the people I love and miss, continue to reside.
All up and down the whole creation,
Everywhere I go, throughout the world and beyond.
Sadly I roam.
I wander aimlessly, with a heavy heart.
I'm a still a-longin' for the old plantation,
I still yearn for the land I once lived upon.
Oh, for the old folks at home.
I miss the people who once lived with me on that land.
Ah-oh-oh!
An exclamation of emotion, possibly grief or longing.
Oh, my my!
Another exclamation of emotion, possibly surprise or disappointment.
All the world is sad and dreary,
The world seems bleak and unhappy to me.
Ev'rywhere I roam.
No matter where I go, this feeling remains.
Oh, darkies, how my heart grows weary,
A term of address towards other African-Americans, expressing how tired and homesick the singer feels.
Far from the old folks at home
Again expressing how distanced and isolated the singer is from the people they love and miss.
Far from the old folks at home
Reiteration of the previous line.
Far from the old folks at home.
Finalizing the idea of how far the artist feels from where they belong.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: STEPHEN COLLINS FOSTER, PETER MEYER-BITS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@onelostmind
You know I wish I could have been in the crowd for this. He did an amazing job everyone did an amazing job
@marcosaugusto9201
2021 e eu ainda curto o Hugh Laurie
@grimftl
Laurie told a tale that when he was a lad, he took piano lessons, he patiently went through a book of songs, because he wanted to play Swanee River, which was at the very end.
His teacher turned the page, made some dismissive remark about 'syncopation' and went on to the next book.
Laurie was so disappointed, he decided to take his musical education into his own hands.
He did rather well.
@grimftl
@Eun-Sol Kim - I can't originally remember, but here's one source.
@virginiaconnor8350
You never know! Another "dr."actor can also play instruments:David McCallum player oboe and English horn. He also sang with Nancy Sinatra and on his own when he was younger.
@lagatita1623
That makes me like him more
@curtisbeattie5571
How not to teach piano, see this example.
@raysanford5100000000
@Grim The OP
@user-nb5sv7cr6g
Never knew you sang and played the piano! Wow.....love it. Very soothing to the soul. I'll look to put it on my play list. You are truly gifted.
@oszkarpetz8079
Furthermore he plays drums, saxophone, guitar, mouth harmonica as well.