Born Janis Eddy Fink on 7th April 1951 to a Jewish family in New York City, she was primarily raised in New Jersey, initially on a farm, and attended East Orange High School and the New York City High School of Music & Art. Her parents, Victor (a music teacher) and Pearl, ran a summer camp in upstate New York, and, in that Cold War era, were frequently under government surveillance because of their left-wing politics. (Ian alluded to these years later in her song "God and the FBI"). Young Janis admired the work of folk pioneers such as Joan Baez and Odetta. At the age of twelve, Ian wrote her first song, "Hair of Spun Gold", which was subsequently published in the folk publication Broadside and was later recorded for her debut album.
At the age of thirteen she legally changed her name to Janis Ian, using as her new last name her brother Eric's middle name. Also in that year, Ian wrote and sang her first hit single, "Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)", about an interracial romance forbidden by a girl's mother and frowned upon by her peers and teachers; the girl ultimately decides to end the relationship, claiming the social norms of the day have left her no other choice. Produced by George "Shadow" Morton and released three times between 1965 and 1967, "Society's Child" finally became a national hit on its third release, after Leonard Bernstein featured it in a television special: Inside Pop: The Rock Revolution. The song's content was taboo for some radio stations, and they withdrew or banned it from their playlists; in her 2008 autobiography Society's Child, Ian recalls receiving hate mail and death threats as a response to the song, and mentions that a radio station in Atlanta that played it was burned down. In the summer of 1967, "Society's Child" reached number fourteen on the Billboard Hot 100.
Her most successful single in the United States was "At Seventeen", released in 1975, a bittersweet commentary on adolescent cruelty, the illusion of popularity, and teenage angst, as reflected upon from the perspective of a twenty-four-year-old. It reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Adult Contemporary chart. It won the 1975 Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance - Female. The song's album, Between the Lines, reached number one on Billboard's Album chart. It was quickly certified gold, and later earned a platinum certification for sales of over a million copies sold in the U.S.
Ian finally became one of the first "indie artists", resurfacing in 1993, with the worldwide release of Breaking Silence and its title song about incest. She also came out as a lesbian with that release. Her most recent album, Folk Is the New Black, was released in 2006; it is the first in over twenty years for which she did all the songwriting herself.
Day By Day
Janis Ian Lyrics
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Right from the start
Tearing us apart
Hour by hour, my-why soul
Love takes its toll
More than you can know
Loving like I never wanted to
Loving love isn't loving you
But nothing looks the same
When you're calling out my name
Hour by restless hour
I tell the dark
It's only just a spark
Night after longing night
'Til there's no more wrong or right
And nothing's worth the fight
Of loving in the shadow of desire
Caught between the fury and the fire
Day by day until we've satisfied
The longest night, side by si-ide
And love won't be denied
Day by day, we steal
All that is real
From everything we feel
Hour by hour, the heart
Learns how to start again
Calling you friend
Captured by the shadows of desire
Living in the fury and the fire
Higher and higher-er
Day by Day-ay
Day by-why day
Day-ay by-why day
Day by-why day (fade)
The song “Day By Day” by Janis Ian tells the story of a rocky romantic relationship that is tearing her apart. Right from the start, her heart has been torn apart by the love that takes its toll on her soul, more than she can handle. She's struggling to balance her love for the person in the relationship with the overwhelming desire that jeopardizes it. She admits that loving someone as she never wanted to is confusing because, even though they're now together, she doesn't know what to do. Love, in this context, isn't a sentiment that is returned; everything changes when he calls out her name.
The song’s chorus shows its day-by-day progression, as the relationship develops from one stage to another. It shows how the relationship is taking over her life, bit by bit until they make it through the longest night side by side, and ultimately, their love won't be denied. The song's repetitive nature depicts the cyclic nature of their relationship, which continues from day to day, making it challenging to break free from it. The verses present the struggle's darker moments, while the chorus illustrates the hope that one day they will make it through stronger.
Line by Line Meaning
Day by day, my-why heart
My heart is changing gradually over time
Right from the start
It began at the beginning
Tearing us apart
Causing conflict between us
Hour by hour, my-why soul
My soul is also changing gradually with time
Love takes its toll
Love requires a lot from us
More than you can know
It's difficult to quantify how much love requires from us
Loving like I never wanted to
I'm loving in a way I never thought I would
Now we're here I don't know what to do
I'm uncertain about the future of our relationship
Loving love isn't loving you
I'm not sure if I'm in love with you, or just the idea of love
But nothing looks the same
Everything has changed
When you're calling out my name
Your presence makes things different
Hour by restless hour
Every hour feels restless and uneasy
I tell the dark
I confide in the darkness
It's only just a spark
Our relationship is fragile
Night after longing night
I spend countless nights longing for something
'Til there's no more wrong or right
My perception of right and wrong becomes distorted
And nothing's worth the fight
The struggle isn't worth it anymore
Of loving in the shadow of desire
Our love is overshadowed by our desires
Caught between the fury and the fire
Torn between our passion and our anger
Day by day until we've satisfied
We're trying to make things work, day by day
The longest night, side by si-ide
We'll support each other through the longest night
And love won't be denied
We'll keep working on our love, and won't let it die
Day by day, we steal
We take things gradually
All that is real
Our relationship is all we have
From everything we feel
Other emotions are clouding our judgement
Hour by hour, the heart
Our hearts are constantly changing
Learns how to start again
We learn to love again, even after heartbreak
Calling you friend
We're trying to build our relationship on a foundation of friendship
Captured by the shadows of desire
Desire is still prevalent in our relationship
Living in the fury and the fire
Our love is still passionate and intense
Higher and higher-er
Our love continues to grow
Day by Day-ay
Our relationship grows gradually
Day by-why day
Our relationship changes with time
Day-ay by-why day
Our lives continue to change
Day by-why day (fade)
Our love story continues
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: GIORGIO MORODER, JANIS IAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind