Beam was raised outside Columbia, South Carolina, United States where his father worked in land management and his mother was a schoolteacher. He graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a bachelor's degree and the Florida State University Film School with an MFA degree. Until the first Iron & Wine album, Beam's main source of income was as a professor of film and cinematography at the University of Miami and Miami International University of Art & Design. He had been writing songs for over seven years before a friend lent him a four-track recorder. His friends handed out copies of demos that he had made, and the owner of Sub Pop Records personally contacted Beam and proposed a deal.
Beam released his first album, The Creek Drank the Cradle, on the Sub Pop label in 2002; Beam wrote, performed, recorded, and produced every track on the album by himself at a studio in his home. The album features acoustic guitars, banjo, and slide guitar; its music has been compared, variously, to that of Nick Drake, Simon and Garfunkel, Neil Young, Elliott Smith, and Ralph Stanley.
In 2003 The Sea & The Rhythm was released, an EP collecting other home-recorded tracks along the same lines as those on the debut. Beam's second album, Our Endless Numbered Days (2004), was recorded in a professional studio with a significant increase in fidelity. The focus still lies on acoustic material, but the inclusion of other band members gives rise to a very different sound.
Beam released an EP titled Woman King in February 2005, and the EP In the Reins, a collaboration with Calexico was released in September 2005. This joint work mostly features new full-band versions of previously recorded Iron and Wine rarities.
One of his most famous songs is a cover, which was featured on a commercial for M&Mβs candies and in the 2004 film βGarden Stateβ (and on its popular soundtrack), of "Such Great Heights" by The Postal Service.
"Kiss Each Other Clean" is the fourth studio album by Iron & Wine, released January 25, 2011. The album's title is taken from the lyrics of track 10, "Your Fake Name Is Good Enough for Me". The album marks a further change in style β in an interview with SPIN magazine, Beam said βItβs more of a focused pop record. It sounds like the music people heard in their parentβs car growing upβ¦ that early-to-mid-β70s FM, radio-friendly music."
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This Solemn Day
Iron & Wine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We won't keep them very long
Watch the window curtain blowing in the breeze
Keep your blessed memories
It's not what we talk about
When the table gossip turns
Someday you might find a circle of my friends
And they'll cry when you walk in
But he's not there to cut it down
Grey cat walking through the yard
Stops short and turns around as if he heard a sound
And we'll forget this solemn day
We'll be always young again
But I'll remember him, the one who's left us now
And hold you close as you'll allow
The lyrics of Iron and Wine's "This Solemn Day" carry a sense of bittersweet nostalgia, as the song melancholically remembers moments of the past while acknowledging the fleeting nature of time. The opening verse, "Touch me while we both have hands, we won't keep them very long," sets the tone for the song's meditations on mortality and impermanence. The line "the grass is high on grandpa's farm, but he's not there to cut it down" further highlights the theme of loss, as the absence of the grandfather from the farm is a reminder of his passing.
Throughout the song, there is an offhand reference to the "table gossip" and the possibility of the singer's friends crying when the listener walks in, perhaps indicating a past disagreement or separation. However, this conflict is juxtaposed with the desire to forget the "solemn day" and hold onto the moments of happiness and youth. The final verse, "And we'll forget this solemn day, we'll be always young again, but I'll remember him, the one who's left us now and hold you close as you'll allow," elevates the song to a deeply personal level, as the singer grapples with the pain of loss while valuing the connections they have in the present.
Overall, "This Solemn Day" is a poignant meditation on the passage of time and the importance of cherishing the present moment in the face of mortality and loss.
Line by Line Meaning
Touch me while we both have hands
Let's make the most of the time we have together while we are both healthy and able to touch and feel each other's presence.
We won't keep them very long
Our physical bodies are impermanent and will eventually fail us, so we should cherish our time together while we can.
Watch the window curtain blowing in the breeze
Take in the beauty of the simple things around us, like the sight of a curtain gently moving with the breeze.
Keep your blessed memories
Hold onto the happy and special memories we share together as a source of comfort in tough times.
It's not what we talk about when the table gossip turns
Our love is not based on shallow, trivial topics discussed during gossip sessions with others, but goes much deeper than that.
Someday you might find a circle of my friends
One day, you may meet the people who are closest to me, who can offer you a glimpse into my life beyond what you see now.
And they'll cry when you walk in
My friends will be touched by your presence and the love we share, and they will be overwhelmed with emotions and may shed tears of joy.
The grass is high on grandpa's farm
The scenery and natural surroundings around us are constantly changing, and this particular image refers to the growth of the grass on grandpa's farm.
But he's not there to cut it down
Unfortunately, grandpa is no longer with us and unable to tend to the farm on which the grass grows, further emphasizing the transience of life.
Grey cat walking through the yard
A neutral and benign image of a grey cat wandering through the yard, perhaps symbolizing the fleeting nature of existence and the tendency of life to simply carry on.
Stops short and turns around as if he heard a sound
The sudden change in direction of the cat hints at an acute awareness of its surroundings, which could be interpreted as a metaphor for being present and mindful in our own lives.
And we'll forget this solemn day
Eventually, the memories of this particular moment in time will fade into the past and lose their present significance.
We'll be always young again
Despite the inevitability of aging and the changes it brings, our love for each other will transcend time and make us feel youthful and alive again.
But I'll remember him, the one who's left us now
Despite moving forward with our lives, we will still carry the memory of those we have lost with us and keep them close in our hearts.
And hold you close as you'll allow
I will always cherish our physical proximity and closeness, but will respect your boundaries and comfort levels around physical touch.
Contributed by Eva R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@bobgarcia9925
Touch me while we both have hands
We won't keep them very long
Watch the window curtain blowin' in the breeze
But keep your blessed memories
It's not what we talk about
When the table gossip turns
Someday you might find a circle of my friends
And they'll cry when you walk in
The grass is high on grandpa's farm
And he's not there to cut it down
Grey cat walkin' through the yard stops short
And turns around as if he heard a sound
We'll forget this solemn day
We'll be always young again
But I'll remember him the one who's left us now
And hold you close as you'll allow
This Solemn Day
Samuel Beam
@MatteoBusa
The grass is high on grandpa's farm
But he's not there to cut it down
Grey cat walking through the yard
Stops short and turns around as if he heard a sound
And we'll forget this solemn day
We'll be always young again
But I'll remember him, the one who's left us now
And hold you close as you'll allow
My God, those Lyrics...
@jules-yi8rn
Times can change and people can come and go in our lives, but Sam's voice just feels like 'home'.....and that's a pleasant feeling nowadays.
@losteyesight
This is AMAZING! I'm literally glad to be alive long enough to hear this, but also very sad to realize how many fans have passed away and will never hear this.
@1...MusicVideo
βΆοΈπββοΈπΈ
@jaimachado9234
Iron and Wine salvou e continua salvando a minha vida. Sam Beam, vocΓͺ Γ© gigante.
@sera_sarzad
NICE. More Iron & Wine. He's honestly one of my favorite artists ever.
@1...MusicVideo
βΆοΈπββοΈπΈ
@jermainemickell9753
Iron and wine early songs was amazing. Every though I wasn't a fan of his older work. I hope he can get back making song like each coming night or archive 1. Song that being peace and amazing story telling
@Pilafcg
One of the best lyricist i know, and the way he blends it with this simple music just destroys me
@sazidh.shipan9219
Another class of Iron and Wine!
Made my day.<3
@sazidh.shipan9219
Listening from Bangladesh!