Her eponymous debut album was released to major acclaim in 1971 and was followed two years later by Heart Food. She recorded demos for a third album in 1974 and they were released in 2005 under the title Dreams Come True.
Sill was heavily influenced by Bach's metric forms and suites, while lyrically her work drew substantially on Christian themes of rapture and redemption.
Judee's father and brother both died in separate incidents when Judee was quite young. Her mother's subsequent marriage to Tom and Jerry animator Kenneth Muse was marked by heavy drinking, and this, combined with her rebellious nature, drove her away from home and into a life of crime and drug use in her teens.
Having learned her signature gospel-inflected keyboard style during her incarceration for writing bad checks, Sill kicked her heroin addiction and decided to pursue songwriting. Now a talented pianist, organist and guitarist, Sill returned to the West Coast where she encountered Graham Nash and David Crosby (touring with them for a time as their opening act) and David Geffen who offered her a contract with his nascent label. Her albums were received well by critics but found little commercial success. Judee struggled with drug addiction during phases again following a car accident and its resulting physical pain and dropped out of the music scene and died of a drug overdose in November of 1979.
It was through Geffen that she met Graham Nash, who quickly became a fan, and produced the first single for her album, "Jesus Was a Cross Maker." The rest of Judee Sill was orchestrated and produced by Bob Harris, Sill's ex-husband. Judee Sill was released in 1971 to immediate acclaim. Lushly orchestrated, the album featured Sill's voice in multiple overdubs, often in a four-part chorale or fugue. The album fit in well with the light rock/folk-rock underpinnings of what came to be known as the "Laurel Canyon sound" associated with other female singer-songwriters such as Carole King and Joni Mitchell (Mitchell, also signed to Asylum, was at work on Ladies of the Canyon at the time). A tour as the opening act for Nash and David Crosby exposed her intimate songwriting and skillful guitar playing to a larger audience, but her record failed to make much of an impact, despite the somewhat heavy airplay of "Jesus Was a Cross Maker." A self-professed perfectionist, one song could often take her a year to write, and it wasn't until late 1972 that Sill returned to record and release her second and last album, Heart Food. It too received enthusiastic reviews but did poorly commercially. Sill took over the chores of both orchestrating and arranging Heart Food, with the production relying more heavily on multilayered strings and lush expanse. Unable to draw a sizable crowd yet unwilling to play as a support act, Sill's name and moderate fame both receded, and she disappeared from view entirely. Rumors abound as to what happened next, although it is definitely known that she returned to her heroin addiction as well as becoming heavily involved with cocaine. Graham Nash has said that he learned as early as 1974 that Sill had died of an overdose, a claim that would later prove to be incorrect, but considering how closely the two had worked only a few years earlier it does illustrate just how completely Sill had dropped out by this time.
Her first success was the selling of her song "Lady-O" to The Turtles. Long after her death, she has been lauded by many musicians, including Jim O'Rourke who mixed the posthumous collection of unreleased material, Dreams Come True. Her two original albums have been reissued as a double CD with a number of live recordings and demos as bonus tracks.
Lady-O
Judee Sill Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A crescent moon is laying at your feet
With hope that's made of sand,
You don't think you can,
But you have held it all in your hand,
Lady-O
I've been trying hard to keep from needing you
My heart just rolled and flowed
I've seen where it goes
And still somehow my love for you grows,
Lady-O
So on my heels I'll grow wings
Gonna ride silver strings
But I'll see you in my holiest dreams,
Lady-O
I've been trying hard to keep from needing you
But from the star,
My heart just rolled and flowed
I've seen where it goes
And still somehow my love for you grows,
Lady-O
So on my heels, I'll grow wings
Gonna ride silver strings
But I'll see you in my holiest dreams,
Lady-O
The lyrics to Judee Sill's song "Lady-O" are a contemplative reflection on the experience of love and the power it holds over the heart. The crescent moon motif in the first verse symbolizes the uncertain nature of love, as it is always shifting and changing like the phases of the moon. The sand represents the fragility of hope and the fear of losing something that is so precious. Despite these tumultuous emotions, the singer acknowledges that she has held it all in her hand, indicating that even in moments of uncertainty, there is still a sense of control and power in the experience of love.
Later in the song, the singer confesses that she has been trying hard to resist the pull of love and the need for this person in her life. However, the heart has a will of its own, and the singer finds herself unable to resist its pull. She recognizes that her love for this person continues to grow, even when she tries to push it away.
The final verse speaks to the idea of transcendence and the power of the imagination. The singer declares her intention to grow wings and ride silver strings, indicating a desire for freedom and escape from the restrictions of earthly love. However, even in her wildest dreams, she will still hold onto the memory of this person, indicating that love is a force that cannot be vanquished completely.
Overall, "Lady-O" is a poignant reflection on the complexities of love and the way it shapes our lives, even in moments when we try to resist its pull.
Line by Line Meaning
While you sit and seek,
As you contemplate and search for something,
A crescent moon is laying at your feet
The moon, which represents the cycle of life, is present while you make your search
With hope that's made of sand,
Even though hope can be fleeting and unstable like sand,
You don't think you can,
You may not believe in your own ability to handle what comes your way,
But you have held it all in your hand,
You have already had control over the situation, despite your doubts,
Lady-O
A nickname for the addressee of the song with a regal connotation
I've been trying hard to keep from needing you
I have been attempting to avoid any dependence on you,
But from the start,
Since the beginning of the relationship,
My heart just rolled and flowed
My emotions have remained fluid and uncontrollable,
I've seen where it goes
Although I have witnessed the path these emotions lead to,
And still somehow my love for you grows,
My love towards you continues to flourish in spite of my efforts to suppress it,
So on my heels I'll grow wings
I will change my mindset to enable me to move forward,
Gonna ride silver strings
I will allow myself to experience moments of joy,
But I'll see you in my holiest dreams,
My love for you will remain even in my most intimate and personal moments,
Lady-O
The song ends with a reaffirmation of this nickname as a way to express the singer's enduring affection.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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