Josephine Foster is an American singer-songwriter and musician from Colorad… Read Full Bio ↴Josephine Foster is an American singer-songwriter and musician from Colorado. In addition to her solo recordings, she has performed with Born Heller (a duo featuring bassist Jason Ajemian) and The Children's Hour (an indie pop band with songwriter Andrew Bar), plus she has releases under the name Josephine Foster and the Supposed and Josephine Foster & The Victor Herrero Band.

As an adolescent Foster worked as a funeral and wedding singer, and aspired to become an opera singer. After her studies she began to record demos of her own songs, resulting in the early recordings There Are Eyes Above (2000), an album of ukulele accompanied songs strongly influenced by Tin Pan Alley, and an album of children's songs, Little Life (2001).

For several years she worked as a singing teacher in Chicago, recording and performing with a variety of musical acts on the side including Born Heller, a project with free jazz-bassist Jason Ajemian, and The Children's Hour, a pop band formed with songwriter Andrew Bar. In 2004, joined by her occasional backing band The Supposed (Brian Goodman on guitar and Rusty Peterson on drums), she released an album of psychedelic rock called All the Leaves Are Gone which has drawn comparison to Patti Smith and Jefferson Airplane.

The songs on her first solo studio album Hazel Eyes, I Will Lead You (2005, Locust Music) evoke American folk and blues forms of the early 20th century. A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, released in 2006, features unorthodox interpretations of 19th century German Lieder. This Coming Gladness, was released in 2008 and featured the contributions of Victor Herrero on electric guitar and percussion by Alex Neilson. In early 2009 she released an album of 27 Emily Dickinson song settings entitled Graphic as a Star with UK label Fire Records. Thereafter began her work in rural Spain with her husband Victor Herrero collecting and arranging collections of folk songs resulting in the recordings Anda Jaleo (a resetting of Garcia Lorca´s piano/voice transcriptions of Spanish songs) and Perlas (a selection of Spanish songs made by Foster herself) respectively.

In 2012 she returned to Colorado to record a new solo album Blood Rushing which took inspiration from local themes from her childhood such as the western geography, native rhythms, and imagined mythology. The album was recorded in a Boulder yoga studio by the Andrija Tokic and featured the ensemble of Victor Herrero on classical and electric guitars, Paz Lenchantin on bass, Heather Trost on violin, and Ben Trimble on pueblo skin drums.

Foster released a new full-length album, I'm A Dreamer on November 12th, 2013.

I'm A Dreamer
Josephine Foster Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I'm a dreamer
I dream a lot
I go upstairs and I ease my cares
Yeah
A dreamer
I'm a dreamer
And I dream of you.

Are you a dreamer?
Do you dream a lot?
Would you come upstairs?
Would you ease my cares?
Cause I'm a dreamer
I'm a dreamer
And I dream of you.

I'm a dreamer
I'm the dreamer

I'm the dreamgirl
And I dream of you.

Overall Meaning

The song "I'm a Dreamer" by Josephine Foster is a heartfelt ode to the beauty of dreaming and the hope that comes with it. The first few lines of the song, which are repeated throughout, emphasize the dream-like state in which the singer exists. She is a dreamer who dreams a lot, and when she goes upstairs, she can ease her cares. This might suggest that dreaming is a source of escape or solace for the singer.

The repeated refrain of "I dream of you" adds a layer of emotional depth to the song. Who is the "you" that the singer dreams of? It could be a specific person or a representation of something that the singer desires or hopes for. Regardless, the repetition underscores the intensity of the singer's longing and her belief in the power of dreams to bring her closer to her desires.

The final verse, in which the singer proclaims herself to be the "dreamgirl," adds a touch of whimsy and perhaps even self-awareness to the song. It acknowledges that the singer is fully immersed in the dream world, but also suggests that she is comfortable and confident in this state. Altogether, "I'm a Dreamer" is a dreamy, romantic tune that celebrates the beauty of yearning and the power of the imagination.

Line by Line Meaning

I'm a dreamer
I am someone who holds imaginative thoughts and ideas.

I dream a lot
I frequently imagine things in my mind.

I go upstairs and I ease my cares
I retreat to a private space where I can alleviate my worries and anxieties.

Yeah
An expression of agreement or affirmation.

A dreamer
Someone who has a fondness for daydreaming or fantasizing.

I'm a dreamer
I am someone who holds imaginative thoughts and ideas.

And I dream of you.
My mind wanders and I think about you in my dreams.

Are you a dreamer?
Do you share my propensity for envisioning things in your mind?

Do you dream a lot?
Do you frequently imagine things in your mind?

Would you come upstairs?
Would you be willing to come to my private space with me?

Would you ease my cares?
Would you help alleviate my worries and anxieties?