Doiron started playing guitar (later switching to bass) in Eric's Trip at age 18, having joined the band under the insistence of her then-boyfriend, Rick White, also of Eric's Trip. Shortly before the band's break-up in 1996, she released a solo album under the name Broken Girl, which followed two previous 7" EPs under that name. All of her subsequent material, however, has been released under her own name.
In 1999, Doiron recorded an album with the Ottawa band Wooden Stars, the first time she had worked with a band since the end of Eric's Trip. She was honoured with a Juno Award for Julie Doiron and the Wooden Stars in March of 2000. She has also appeared as a guest musician on albums by The Tragically Hip, Gordon Downie and Herman Düne, and has also released a split record co-credited to the alternative country band Okkervil River.
Although most of her solo material has been written and performed in English, she has also released an album of French language material, Désormais.
Apart from her musical career, Doiron is an avid photographer, having published a book of her photographs entitled The Longest Winter with words by Ottawa writer Ian Roy. She often does her own promotional photos and cover artwork along with her husband, painter Jon Claytor.
The Songwriter
Julie Doiron Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It holds your name
It holds your spark
'Till you come home
It stays in touch
Without a right
Take away all the reasons why I care
I have this coat I wear
It keeps me warm
I wear it well
'Till you come home
I had it cleaned
To remove the smell
To remove you
But it ain't right
Take away all the reasons why I care
Take away the reasons
Take away all the reasons why I care
Take away the reasons
They call me a songwriter
But you, you're a songwriter
Storyteller, where are you?
They call me the songwriter
Take away all the reasons why I care
Take away the reasons
Take away all the reasons why I care
Take away the reasons
I have a jealous heart
It holds your name
It holds your spark
'Till you come back
It stays in touch
Without a right
Take away all the reasons why I care
Take away the reasons
Take away all the reasons why I care
Take away all my reasons
The lyrics of Julie Doiron's song "The Songwriter" evoke the complexity of human emotions related to love and separation. The opening lines "I have a jealous heart, it holds your name, it holds your spark" reveal the intense attachment the singer feels towards someone who is not present. The image of the "jealous heart" implies that the person might be struggling with feelings of possessiveness or insecurity, which the absence of the loved one exacerbates. The repetition of the phrase "until you come home" emphasizes the longing for the other person's return, and the feeling of being incomplete without them.
The chorus of the song, with the repeated line "take away all the reasons why I care, take away the reasons," conveys a sense of powerlessness and vulnerability. The singer seems to recognize that their attachment to the other person is not entirely rational, and that they cannot simply choose to stop caring. The line "they call me a songwriter, but you, you're a songwriter, storyteller, where are you?" suggests that the singer might be a musician or performer, and that they find solace in expressing their emotions through their art. Overall, the lyrics of "The Songwriter" capture the intensity and complexity of human emotions related to love, longing, and separation, and invite the listener to reflect on their own experiences of these feelings.
Line by Line Meaning
I have a jealous heart
My heart is full of jealousy
It holds your name
The object of my jealousy is you
It holds your spark
Your vibrant energy fuels my jealousy
'Till you come home
My jealousy persists until you return
It stays in touch
My jealousy remains present
Without a right
I know that my jealousy is not justified
Take away all the reasons why I care
If I had no reason to care, I would not be jealous
Take away the reasons
If the reasons for my jealousy were gone, jealousy would disappear
I have this coat I wear
I have a metaphorical coat that protects me
It keeps me warm
It provides a sense of comfort
I wear it well
I use the coat effectively to shield myself
'Till you come home
I rely on the coat only until you return
I had it cleaned
I removed any traces of you from my protective mechanism
To remove the smell
To erase your lingering scent
To remove you
To eliminate any influence you had on me
But it ain't right
Despite my efforts to protect myself, I know that this is not the right way to deal with my jealousy
They call me a songwriter
I am known as a songwriter
But you, you're a songwriter
But you have the true talent for songwriting
Storyteller, where are you?
I wish to connect with your storytelling abilities
They call me the songwriter
But I am not as gifted a songwriter as you
Take away all the reasons why I care
If I did not care about you or our relationship, there would be no reason for jealousy
Take away the reasons
If the reasons for my jealousy disappeared, my jealousy would dissipate
Take away all the reasons why I care
Without reasons to care, my jealousy would not exist
Take away all my reasons
If I had no valid reasons for my jealousy, I would have to confront and deal with my emotions
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
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