After an education in the arts, music and drama, by the age of 15, Tzuke spent most of her time writing poems which she turned into songs and playing folk clubs, accompanying herself on acoustic guitar. She went to Island Records to try and get a record deal and after she'd played two songs was asked if she had any more. She replied that she had twenty, which she didn't, and they asked her to come back and record them the following week. She didn't return, but their interest made her realise that she could have a career in music.
In 1977 Tzuke went to see managing director David Croker at Elton John's label 'Rocket Records' as their motto was "a label for artists". She played them a few songs, one of which was "Stay with Me Till Dawn" and was immediately signed to the new label. Judie and collaborator Mike Paxman spent the next six months or so recording her first album Welcome to the Cruise at Air Studios in London, with producer John Punter.
The first single was released in the summer of 1978, entitled "For You" and was greeted with great critical acclaim and substantial air-play but only reached the top 40.
This was to all change with the release of the Welcome to the Cruise album and the single "Stay with Me Till Dawn". The song stayed in the UK charts for 16 weeks, and she made three live appearances on Top of the Pops. The song became a firm favourite and is still played regularly on radio in the U.K. It has appeared on dozens of compilation albums and regularly appears in lists of all time most popular songs.
With the success of her debut album, Judie and Mike put together the first Judie Tzuke band. Paul Muggleton on guitar and backing vocals and Bob Noble on keyboards, along with bass player John Edwards and drummer Jeff Rich.
Tzuke and her band then toured for the next 18 months and made her second album Sportscar at Virgin's Manor studios, in Oxfordshire.
In 1980, Tzuke and her band toured America for three months as support to Elton John. The tour was well received, but during the tour Elton John decided to change the US distribution for his Rocket label from MCA to the new Geffin label. MCA consequently decided to stop all tour support and promotion for the acts on the Rocket label, which meant that Judie was playing to huge audiences, including 450,000 people in New York's Central Park, but no-one knew who she was and her records were not available in the shops.
She recorded her third album I Am the Phoenix, followed by another lengthy UK tour which culminated in appearances headlining the Glastonbury CND Festival and some summer festivals in Europe. She then made the decision to leave Rocket and to sign with Chrysalis Records.
Judie was by this time selling out halls all over the UK and in parts of Europe. Her next album Shoot the Moon was recorded mainly at Rockfield studios in Wales and was released in 1982.
During the spring tour two sell out shows at the Hammersmith Odeon (now The Carling Apollo) were recorded and later that year the acclaimed live album Roadnoise was released.
Judie, Mike and Paul wrote new songs and went to Mayfair studios in London to record her fifth album, augmenting her stage band with a number of other musicians.
Throughout the late 80s and 90s, Judie has continued to record and tour, and has set up her own record label. In addition, she is now successfully writing songs for other artists.
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Both Alone
Judie Tzuke Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, you don't understand, it is out of your hands
Even if I would leave
I'm here for you
You don't have to believe me, but I'm still here
You can turn me away, you can beg me to stay,
But I know either way
Isn't it funny how we see so much pain,
When we look in each others lives.
And I don't really know how to cross that
Bridge, to get to the other side.
It should be so clear,
But somehow it all goes so wrong.
And every time we try,
To run away and hide.
We end up both alone.
I'm here for you.
I can't be who you wanted me to be, but I
Won't bend in the wind, 'cause I know
Where we've been and I'm not giving in.
I'm here for you.
I'll stand still while you circle and bide my time
Because I know in the end I'll always be your friend
But you won't know 'till then
I'm here for you
Isn't it strange that it's been so long
We can't find the right way in
You'd think by now we'd know every road,
By now we'd know everything.
'Cause every time we try,
To run away and hide.
We end up both alone.
The lyrics to Judie Tzuke's "Both Alone" express the frustration of a relationship that seems to be going in circles. The song speaks to the struggle of two people who are unable to connect and seem to always end up "both alone." The singer acknowledges the pain that they see in one another's lives, but admits to not knowing how to cross the bridge to get to the other side. There is a feeling of resignation in the lyrics, as the singer realizes that they cannot be who the other person wants them to be, but will still always be there for them.
The chorus of "I'm here for you" is a declaration of unwavering support, even though the relationship may not be what either person wants it to be. The singer recognizes that things have gone wrong in the past, but vows to remain steady and steadfast as a friend. The second verse repeats the theme of the first, with frustration over the fact that despite multiple attempts to reach each other, the two are still unable to connect. The song ends with the same phrase that it began with, "both alone," but with the added acknowledgement that the singer will still be there for the other person.
Overall, "Both Alone" is a poignant and reflective song that speaks to the complexities and difficulties of relationships. It acknowledges the pain and frustration that can arise when two people are unable to connect, but also emphasizes the importance of unwavering support and friendship, even when things don't go as planned.
Line by Line Meaning
One more drop in the ocean of wasted tears
My tears are meaningless, like a drop in the vast ocean of sadness that I've experienced.
Oh, you don't understand, it is out of your hands
You can't help me, and I know that you don't understand my pain.
Even if I would leave
Even if I left you, in your times of need, I will always be here for you.
I'm here for you
I'll always be here to support you, no matter what.
You don't have to believe me, but I'm still here
You may not believe that I'll always be here for you, but that doesn't change the fact that I am still here.
You can turn me away, you can beg me to stay,
You can ask me to leave, or you can ask me to stay, but either way, I'll still be here for you.
But I know either way
Regardless of what you do, I know that I'll always be here for you.
Isn't it funny how we see so much pain, When we look in each other's lives.
It's strange how we can see so much pain in each other's lives, but when it comes to our own problems, we struggle to find the answers.
And I don't really know how to cross that Bridge, to get to the other side.
I'm not sure how to overcome our problems and move forward in our relationship.
It should be so clear, But somehow it all goes so wrong.
Our problems should be easy to solve, but somehow we always end up making things worse.
And every time we try, To run away and hide. We end up both alone.
Every time we try to avoid our problems, we both end up feeling alone and isolated.
I can't be who you wanted me to be, but I Won't bend in the wind, 'cause I know Where we've been and I'm not giving in.
I can't change who I am to fit your expectations, but I won't give up on our relationship because of our past experiences.
I'll stand still while you circle and bide my time Because I know in the end I'll always be your friend But you won't know 'till then
I'll wait patiently for you to come around and realize that I'll always be here for you, as a friend and supporter.
Isn't it strange that it's been so long We can't find the right way in You'd think by now we'd know every road, By now we'd know everything.
It's strange that we've been together for so long, yet we still can't seem to find a way to solve our problems. After all these years, you'd think we'd have it all figured out.
Contributed by Alexandra R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.