Bonamassa was born in Utica, New York. He started playing guitar at age four, encouraged by his father, who was an avid music fan and exposed him to British blues rock records by Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck, greatly inspiring him. At 11 years old Joe was mentored and trained by American guitar legend, Danny Gatton. When he was 12 years old, he had his own band called Smokin' Joe Bonamassa, which gigged around western New York and Pennsylvania, including cities such as Scranton and Buffalo, but only on weekends since Joe had school on weekdays. Bonamassa played a crimson 1972 Fender Stratocaster he called "Rosie", which his father had bought in Utica, New York.
When he was 12 years old, Bonamassa opened for B.B. King. In the last 13 years Bonamassa has put out 15 solo albums through his independent record label J&R Adventures, of which 11 have reached number 1 on the Billboard Blues charts. Bonamassa has played alongside such artists as Stephen Stills, Eric Clapton, Blondie Chaplin, Foreigner, Buddy Guy, Steve Winwood, Warren Haynes, Solomon Hicks,and Derek Trucks among others.[4] His career highlights include performances at the Royal Albert Hall and has had three Grammy Award nominations in 2013, for his collaboration album with Beth Hart "Seesaw", in 2016 for the album "Live at the Greek Theatre" and 2022 for the album "Royal Tea". In addition to his music career, Joe Bonamassa runs a nonprofit organisation called the Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation, whose mission is to further music education by funding scholarships and providing music education resources to schools in need. in 2020, he added an extension to the foundation. Called Fuelling Musicians, it provides $1500 cheques to struggling musicians affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
in 2021, he broke his own record for having more #1 Billboard blues albums than anyone in history. The album "Time Clocks" clocked up his 25th #1 album.
He is also known for his enormous collection of vintage guitars and related gear.
Quarryman's Lament
Joe Bonamassa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But you weren't the one who was shattered
Now your calling back to me
I've been gone, who knows where
My life will lead, I give you all my love
All my soul, now I'm growing cold
Restless night, corner of the valley, listen to the wind scene
Now your calling back to me
I've been gone, who knows where
My life will lead, I give you all my love
All my soul, now I'm growing cold
Holding down, trying to tell myself life is what it seems
So you want that bad ass house that means nothing to me
You couldn't make up your mind, when we slept in the same bed
Now you're back, now you're crying
Tell me it's all in my head
Restless night, corner of the valley, listen to the wind scene
But you weren't the one who was shattered
Now your calling back to me
I've been gone, who knows where
My life will lead, I give you all my love
All my soul, now I'm growing cold
Yeah tonight all about forgiveness, that's what you see
But you refuse to answer, make peace for what you did
Broken hearts don't matter, gonna live my life instead
I was always there for you, but you left me feeling dead
Restless night, corner of the valley, listen to the wind scene
But you weren't the one who was shattered
Now your calling back to me
I've been gone, who knows where
My life will lead, I give you all my love
All my soul, now I'm growing cold
In Joe Bonamassa's song "Quarryman's Lament," the lyrics seem to convey a sense of a lost love that is coming back around. The opening lines describe a restless night in the corner of a valley, listening to the wind, feeling a sense of coldness. The singer then says, "but you weren't the one who was shattered," suggesting that it is their former partner who has done the hurting. The chorus repeats this pattern, with the singer saying they have been gone and their life is uncertain, but they are offering up all their love and soul.
The second verse takes a more bitter turn, with the singer seemingly resentful of their former partner's desire for material things like a "bad ass house" that means nothing to the singer. The partner couldn't make up their mind when they shared a bed, but now they're back and crying, denying any wrongdoing. The final stanza seems to suggest that forgiveness is on the table, but the partner is refusing to acknowledge their actions and make peace. The singer is done with broken hearts and plans to live their life instead, and they feel like it is the partner who left them feeling dead in the first place.
Line by Line Meaning
Restless night, corner of the valley, listen to the wind scene
Joe is experiencing an sleepless night in a remote part of the valley. He takes in the sounds of the wind around him.
But you weren't the one who was shattered
Joe is reminiscing about a time when he was hurt by someone who was not the listener.
Now your calling back to me
The person who hurt Joe is now reaching out to him.
I've been gone, who knows where
Joe has been traveling and hasn't been in contact with the other person for some time.
My life will lead, I give you all my love
Joe's life has taken him in different directions, but he still loves the other person.
All my soul, now I'm growing cold
Joe feels like he's losing a part of himself and his warmth due to the distance and time apart.
Holding down, trying to tell myself life is what it seems
Joe is trying to convince himself that life is as it appears and not to read too much into the other person's contact.
So you want that bad ass house that means nothing to me
The other person values material possessions, whereas Joe does not find them meaningful.
You couldn't make up your mind, when we slept in the same bed
The other person was indecisive about their feelings towards Joe, even when they shared a bed.
Now you're back, now you're crying
The other person is reaching out to Joe in a state of emotional distress.
Tell me it's all in my head
Joe wonders if the other person's emotional display is a trick or if it's all in his mind.
Yeah tonight all about forgiveness, that's what you see
The other person appears to be asking for forgiveness and trying to make amends with Joe.
But you refuse to answer, make peace for what you did
Joe is hesitant to offer forgiveness and resolution for the pain the other person caused him.
Broken hearts don't matter, gonna live my life instead
Joe realizes that his emotional health is more important than trying to fix a broken relationship with the other person.
I was always there for you, but you left me feeling dead
Joe gave a lot to the other person emotionally, but they caused him emotional harm in return.
Lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing
Written by: JOE BONAMASSA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
SexyBanjo
so much going on in this song that is great. it is my fav from the new album. the music is beautiful, the singing is incredible, lyrics are great, and the solo is perfect.
ABM
Thanks for the superb sound quality .... Amazing song !
Mark Russell
who are the assholes that put a thumbs down? Amazing album
Redmutschke
Goosebumps!!!!
homestudio35
one more exellent work of joe....thanks!!!!!!!!!!!
Luis Carlos Villanueva
EXCELLENT!!! 110%%%%
Matte blues Johansson
super 💣💣💣
Maria Wróblewska
This unbelievable man - the best
guitarist and singer, and songwriter and musician and teacher is my private own Universe... I'm 68 y.o
Lyndsay Kerton
Brilliant!!!!!!
Mr. T. Robb
how do you do it ,Joe the melodies flow like sweat out of you on your tunes.?