Since 1980, Icehouse has released seven albums, several compilations, and music from collaborations with other artists including dance companies. Their 1987 album 'Man of Colours' was released at the apex of their fame and international success. It is considered by many to be the band's magnum opus.
As 'Flowers', Icehouse built up a strong following as a live act around Sydney, Australia, noted for their distinctive cover versions of songs by a wide range of acts including T-Rex and Brian Eno. After signing to the independent Regular Festival Records label, they released their debut single, "Can't Help Myself", which hit the Australian Top 10 in June 1980. This was followed by their first album 'Icehouse', which also made the Top 10 and became one of year's biggest selling albums in Australia. The album made use of synthesisers, especially the Sequential Circuits Prophet 5.
Further singles "We Can Get Together" and "Walls" both hit the Top 20. A European single from this album, "Icehouse", created some interest in the U.K., partly because of a memorable music video. Sensing the possibility of international success, the band decided to change their name in early 1981 to avoid confusion with Scottish group The Flowers. As Icehouse, they spent most of 1981 touring the UK, Canada and US, where "We Can Get Together" hit #62. A single release, "Love In Motion", recorded by Davies alone but the first to be credited to the band's new name, duly hit the Australian Top 10 in November 1981.
In January 1982, the band's original line up split, resulting in Davies recording Icehouse's much-anticipated second album, 'Primitive Man', on his own, with assistance from Keith Forsey, who later worked with Simple Minds. Released in August 1982, Primitive Man was another huge Australian hit and became Icehouse's international breakthrough. The hit single "Hey Little Girl" reached the UK Top 20 and has remained their most regularly played song. Another strong track from this album was "Great Southern Land", which made the Australian Top 5 and was later featured in the late 1980s film 'Young Einstein'.
In 1985, Davies' musical standing was further enhanced when he was commissioned to compose and record the score for the acclaimed Sydney Dance Company production of Graeme Murphy's dance work 'Boxes'. Icehouse's third album, 'Sidewalk', was far more sombre and reflective, featuring the tracks "I Don't Believe Anymore" and "Someone Like You". After this album the band made further inroads into the U.S. market with their 1986 release 'Measure for Measure', which featured none other than Brian Eno as a listed band member.
Icehouse's next work, 'Man of Colours', was their best-selling album. It contained the hit singles "Crazy" and "Electric Blue" (a song co-written by John Oates from the band Hall and Oates). Both singles reached the US Top 20, with "Electric Blue" hitting the #7 slot. With this album, the band reached an international zenith, never surpassing this level of popularity and exposure again.
In 1995, Davies was again involved with the Sydney Dance Company's production of Berlin. The musical score is a collection of cover versions of songs by David Bowie, Brian Eno, Simple Minds, The Psychedelic Furs, Frank Sinatra, Lou Reed, Roxy Music, XTC, Talking Heads, The Velvet Underground, PiL, The Cure and Killing Joke, which saw him collaborating with pianist Max Lambert in the development of the music.
As well as recording the score to the ballet, Davies performed these songs live with Icehouse at each show. He was an intrinsic part of the ballet, in a role similar to the one in Boxes. Iva was extremely successful in creating a translation from the dancers to the audience. Berlin was an instant success and ran for two seasons. Both shows were the most commercially successful that The Sydney Dance Company have had to date.
On 16 August 2006, Icehouse were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame along side acts such as Midnight Oil, Divinyls and Rose Tattoo. Also in 2006, Icehouse featured prominently on the Triple M Essential 2006 Countdown with 14 songs selected including:
*"Man Of Colours"
*"Electric Blue"
*"We Can Get Together"
*"Don't Believe Any More"
*"Great Southern Land" (which came in at number 12)
Dusty Pages
Icehouse Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dusty pages, broken lines
Is all we have
Candle shadow in the flame
Of the moments that we try
To start again
Too many now that you forget
How can you tell me that it gone
How can you turn and walk away
[Chorus]
Don't say it's over
Don't turn away
A love so fine
Now it's over
Don't turn/give away
A love so fine
The empty room you leave behind
Nothing is, nothing belongs
Nothing belongs
The faded roses by the door
The picture hanging on my wall
No more than this
Of the promises we made
Of the good time that we had
'Cause they don't come to nothing now
Just look again before you go
[Chorus]
Dusty pages, broken lines
So many things that I remember
Too many now that you forget
How can you tell me that it gone
How can you turn and walk away
[Chorus]
Don't say it's over
A love so fine
Now it's over
Don't give away
A love so fine
The lyrics to Icehouse's song "Dusty Pages" describe a relationship that has ended and is now only a memory. The first verse paints a picture of an empty, abandoned room with a window frosted from the rain and only "dusty pages" and "broken lines" left as evidence of the love that once occupied the space. The second verse speaks to the fading memories of the relationship and the promises that were made but never fulfilled.
The chorus pleads for the relationship to not be declared over and for the other person to not turn or walk away from the love they once shared. The final verse repeats the themes of the first two and emphasizes the disparity between what once was and what has become.
Overall, the lyrics evoke a sense of loss and longing for something that can never be regained. It is a beautiful and haunting portrayal of the aftermath of a failed relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Window frosted in the rain
The window is foggy and blurry because of the rain outside, symbolizing the lack of clarity in their relationship.
Dusty pages, broken lines
Their memories of each other are like old, dusty pages of a book that are falling apart; their relationship is crumbling like broken lines on a piece of paper.
Is all we have
Their memories are the only thing they have left of their relationship now that it's over.
Candle shadow in the flame
The shadow of the candle represents the fleeting nature of their relationship, while the flame represents the passion that they once had.
Of the moments that we try
They keep trying to salvage their relationship, but it seems to keep slipping away.
To start again
They want to start over and rekindle their love, but they don't know how or if it's even possible.
Of many things that I remember
There are so many good memories that they shared together, but now they all seem to be overshadowed by the pain of the breakup.
Too many now that you forget
Despite everything they went through together, their love has faded to the point where one of them can't even remember what they once had.
How can you tell me that it's gone
They're struggling to come to terms with the fact that their love is over, especially when they still have so many fond memories together.
How can you turn and walk away
One of them has moved on and is ready to leave the relationship behind, but the other is having a hard time letting go.
Don't say it's over
They're begging their partner not to give up on their love and to keep fighting for their relationship.
Don't turn away
They don't want their partner to turn a blind eye to their love and pretend like it never existed.
A love so fine
Their love was beautiful and special, and they don't want to see it end.
The empty room you leave behind
Their partner has left and now the room feels empty and devoid of love.
Nothing is, nothing belongs
Without their love, there's nothing left in the room that feels like it belongs to either of them.
The faded roses by the door
The roses they once gave each other have lost their color and vitality, just like their love has faded away.
The picture hanging on my wall
The picture represents the memories they shared together and the love that they once had.
No more than this
Now that their love is gone, the picture and the memories are no more than just that - memories.
Of the promises we made
They made so many promises to each other, but they couldn't keep them all and now they're left feeling betrayed and hurt.
Of the good time that we had
They reminisce on the good times they had together, but they know that those times are gone and they can never go back.
'Cause they don't come to nothing now
Despite how special their memories were, they don't really mean anything now that their love is over.
Just look again before you go
They want their partner to take one last look at their shared memories before they walk away forever.
Dusty pages, broken lines
Their memories of each other are still old, dusty pages of a book that are falling apart; their relationship is still crumbling like broken lines on a piece of paper.
So many things that I remember
They're overwhelmed with memories of their love and can't help but think about them, even though their relationship is over.
Don't give away
They're still holding onto the hope that their love can be salvaged and don't want their partner to give up on it just yet.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Ivor Arthur Davies
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Antonio Tapia
Ventana empañada en la lluvia, empolvadas páginas, líneas rotas es todo lo que tengo
Sombra de vela en la vehemencia de los momentos que intentamos empezar de nuevo
Demasiadas cosas que recuerdo muchas que tú ya olvidaste
¿Cómo puedes decirme qué se ha terminado ya?
¿Cómo puedes dar la vuelta y alejarte?
No digas se ha acabado, no regales, un amor así de bueno
Ahora, se ha acabado, no alejes, un amor tan bueno
El cuarto vacío que dejas atrás
No es nada, nada pertenece, nada pertenece
Las marchitas rosas junto a la puerta
La fotografía colgada en la pared, no más que esto
De las promesas que hicimos de cada buen momento que tuvimos
Por que no se convertirán en nada ya, sólo mirá de nuevo antes de que te vayas
No digas se ha acabado, no regales, un amor así de bueno
Ahora, se ha acabado, no alejes, un amor tan bueno.
archerpalms1
This has to be one of there most under rated songs.If a song still gives you goosebumps, you know it is a good song.
S Bee
They are the MOST underrated BAND in the world too.
Carolyn Mattingly
I describe their music/his lyrics as a punch in the throat, in the absolutely best sense. I've had this on repeat this morning, and then have been YouTubing the online concerts. But this song.. it has to be my very favourite. I also wish that they would do it live.
Achtung Baby
An absolute gem of a track - just stunning!
Brian Moore
Best version of this song--wish they released this on the "Sidewalk" album when I first bought it back in 1984. Yes, I said album.
Antonio Tapia
Ventana empañada en la lluvia, empolvadas páginas, líneas rotas es todo lo que tengo
Sombra de vela en la vehemencia de los momentos que intentamos empezar de nuevo
Demasiadas cosas que recuerdo muchas que tú ya olvidaste
¿Cómo puedes decirme qué se ha terminado ya?
¿Cómo puedes dar la vuelta y alejarte?
No digas se ha acabado, no regales, un amor así de bueno
Ahora, se ha acabado, no alejes, un amor tan bueno
El cuarto vacío que dejas atrás
No es nada, nada pertenece, nada pertenece
Las marchitas rosas junto a la puerta
La fotografía colgada en la pared, no más que esto
De las promesas que hicimos de cada buen momento que tuvimos
Por que no se convertirán en nada ya, sólo mirá de nuevo antes de que te vayas
No digas se ha acabado, no regales, un amor así de bueno
Ahora, se ha acabado, no alejes, un amor tan bueno.
Alfredo Barillas
Gracias Antonio, tu traducción y oír esta canción me harán luchar y recomponer mi relación, te hacen reflexionar y no tirar todo a la basura .
Jean Vargas
Antonio Tapia Muchas gracias por la traducción, está muy acertada!
quelium
just one time I would like to go to an icehouse concert and hear this track played. Glam it up Iva :p
neville hobbs
@Carolyn Mattingly Been to 3 of there Concerts they only get better