While at school, Allen featured in a number of school bands, playing drums. On one occasion Jon became the lead singer and realized that he was a natural show off. He later attended the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (LIPA) on a songwriting course. Through this he learnt how to become a more self-disciplined writer. After graduating Jon moved to London, after one of his demos received a five-star review in the magazine Making Music. Management offers in London soon followed, prompting Jon to immerse himself in the live music scene and surround himself with like-minded people. Since moving to London, Allen found himself sharing the stage with artists as Emmylou Harris, Mark Knopfler, KT Tunstall and Jose Gonzalez.
After selling more than 20,000 downloads via his website of Going Home Jon is steadily building up a strong and supportive fan base in the UK. In 2009 he released his debut album Dead Mans Suit which featured the singles 'In Your Light', 'Dead Mans Suit', 'When The Morning Comes' and 'Down By The River'.
On May 22nd 2011, Allen released his second album 'Sweet Defeat' through Monologue Records. His first single from the album, 'Joanna' was playlisted on Radio 2.
'Sweet Defeat' was released in the US via OK! Good Records and can be purchased or streamed here:
http://www.okgoodrecords.com/blog/2012/03/13/jon-allen-sweet-defeat/
Friends
Jon Allen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just like I've done before
Don't drag me over old ground
And call me to your door
Cause though it's hard to say it
It won't be hard to see
That friends we never were babe
And friends we never will be
Why can't we keep the memory
That once we two were dear
That once the chimes of our love
Were ringing true and clear
Cause I don't want them sounding
So dead and out of key
When friends we never were babe
And friends we never will be
We could talk about the weather
Or the promises we made
Of all we thought was sacred
That we were gonna save
And maybe there'd be some things
On which we could agree
But friends we never were babe
And friends we never will be
But darling don't be thinking
Our love was all a waste
If I don't come a calling
If you don't see my face
Cause I gave you all of my heart
And you the same to me
But friends we never were babe
And friends we never will be
The lyrics of Jon Allen's song Friends seem to be a reflection on a past romantic relationship that did not work out, with the singer exerting effort to convince the other individual to move on and accept the reality of their situation. The song starts with the singer requesting the other party not to call him back or remind him of their past memories, suggesting that it is not helpful for their present predicament. The singer emphasizes that they were not friends, nor could they be. Even though they once cherished each other's company, they must not force themselves to revive their relationship and accept that it is over.
The song's chorus illustrates the sad truth of their failed relationship but indicates it is better for them not to force the issue. They used to be in love and happy, but now things are different, and they both need to move on. The singer reinforces this notion by using a metaphor about music. The bells of their love rang genuinely and clearly before, but it's time to move on before they chime again, sounding dead and out of tune. He then tries to find common ground with his ex by suggesting they talk about things they might agree on. However, he is quick to remind them that this does not change the fact that they were never genuinely friends and never will be.
Overall, Jon Allen's Friends is a song that captures the pain and struggle of moving on from a troubled romantic relationship. It highlights the importance of accepting the reality of a failed relationship and moving on rather than trying to revive it.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't make me come to you now
I don't want to have to come to you now, like I've had to do before.
Just like I've done before
I don't want to have to do this again, but it seems like I might have to.
Don't drag me over old ground
I don't want to hash out old issues that we've already talked about and put behind us.
And call me to your door
I don't want you to reach out to me, inviting me to come back into your life.
Cause though it's hard to say it
I know it's difficult to admit, but it's the truth.
It won't be hard to see
It will be obvious to anyone who looks at us: we were never really friends.
That friends we never were babe
We've never really been friends, despite what we've called our relationship.
And friends we never will be
There's no point in trying to be friends now, it's too late for that.
Why can't we keep the memory
Why can't we just remember the good times we shared and leave it at that?
That once we two were dear
We used to be close and important to each other.
That once the chimes of our love
Once upon a time, we were in love and happy together.
Were ringing true and clear
Our love was solid and undeniable, we both knew it was real.
Cause I don't want them sounding
I don't want those memories to be tainted by the current state of things between us.
So dead and out of key
I don't want those happy memories to sound false and depressing.
We could talk about the weather
We could make small talk and pretend that everything is fine.
Or the promises we made
We could talk about the things we used to promise and how things have changed since then.
Of all we thought was sacred
We could talk about all the things that we used to think were important and meaningful in our lives.
That we were gonna save
We could talk about our goals together and what we had planned for our future.
And maybe there'd be some things
Perhaps we would be able to find some common ground, some things we still agree on.
On which we could agree
There might be a few topics we could discuss without arguments or disagreements.
But friends we never were babe
We weren't really friends then, and we can't be friends now.
And friends we never will be
It's too late for us to become friends, and it's not worth trying.
But darling don't be thinking
I don't want you to get the wrong idea or feel like I regret our time together.
Our love was all a waste
I don't regret our time together, even if things didn't work out the way we wanted.
If I don't come a calling
If you don't hear from me again.
If you don't see my face
If we never see each other again.
Cause I gave you all of my heart
I loved you completely and genuinely.
And you the same to me
You loved me with the same level of commitment and passion.
But friends we never were babe
Despite our love for each other, we were never really friends.
And friends we never will be
Trying to be friends would only make things worse, so let's leave it at that.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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