Doing what she loves most, making beautiful music, Kate Ceberano found she shared a musical connection with Mark Isham. After performing together recently in the US and forming a great musical bond, our Australian singer, songwriter, actor and multiple ARIA award winner and Grammy Award winner Mark Isham were joined on a quest based on their mutual love for “bitter-sweet, brokenhearted love song” from the 30's, 40's and 50's.
Both Mark and Kate set about listing their favourite songs from the era and found that they had many in common. One month later they recorded a beautiful album with Alan Pasqua, Tom Warrington, and Peter Erskine filling out the band on piano, bass and drums respectively.
A whirlwind adventure in the studio resulted in 15 spectacular tracks, all recorded live, and full of love and longing. An album that could only be aptly titled, ?Bittersweet', joining the already long list of Kate Ceberano's achievements. With five Platinum albums, four Gold albums and over 1 million albums sold in Australia alone, Kate's bittersweet musical journey is set to continue.
2008 saw the release of Kate Ceberano's 17th album So Much Beauty, the summation of everything that has made this Australian singer exceptional in the past and makes her exceptional still. This is where she's come to, thanks in part to where she's been. In 2007, Kate saluted the 80's with her album Nine Lime Avenue, a tribute to a decade that she holds close to her heart. In fact, the album was named after her childhood street. Nine Lime Avenue was recorded in an unbelievable three weeks, whilst Kate was also tearing up the stage on season six of Channel 7's Dancing With The Stars, of which she was crowned champion. The show was the third highest rated TV program of 2007, beaten only by the AFL and NRL Grand Finals.
“The songs are recorded in Melbourne and are nostalgic. I hope they inspire others to
reminisce in time as well.” Says Kate Ceberano.
Inspire they did, as we saw the album shoot to #5 in the ARIA charts, and achieve Platinum sales. Kate followed this success by embarking on her national Nine Lime Avenue theatre tour along with Dancing With The Stars partner John-Paul Collins, which was a sell-out.
These albums follow a string of award winning accomplishments. Ceberano has released 17 albums and has six Platinum and four Gold records under her belt. She has performed countless sell-out tours, starred in acclaimed feature films and hosted her own television show Kate & Friends.
Kate first found fame with her funk band I'm Talking, a group that was managed by Ken West, who went on to found the Big Day Out with partner Vivien Lees. The group's album produced three top ten singles, went Platinum and won Best New Talent (1984) at the Countdown Awards. Kate won Best Female Vocalist (1985) at the Countdown Awards as well as Best Female Singer (1985) at the Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) Awards. However after just one album, the group broke up and Kate went solo, and it was in the late 80s that she started to gain reputed success for her soul, jazz and pop repertoire.
“I get so frustrated with how I see people give up too soon in this industry,” says Ceberano who has been nominated for ARIA awards seven times, a figure matched only by Kylie Minogue. “You can be dissuaded from wanting to continue in the music business, but you have got to weather out the hard knocks. My mother gave me the greatest compliment of my life when she said; the thing with Kate is that she recovers fast. And that is how you have to be. You just can't give up; everyone is going to have an opinion about you. Everyone is going to love and hate you. You just have to soldier on.”
Kate's first solo album was the live set Kate Ceberano and Her Septet (1987). Her following album You've Always Got The Blues (1988) earned her an ARIA Award for Best Female Artist (1988). One year later, she won another ARIA for Best Female Artist (1989), as well as one for Highest Selling Single (1989) for Bedroom Eyes from her triple platinum album, Brave. At the end of 1990, she received three prestigious MO Awards for Jazz Performer, Female Rock Performer and Contemporary Concert Performer of the Year.
IIn 1992, Kate performed the role of Mary in Jesus Christ Superstar. The show (which also featured John Farnham) toured nationally, and the album was the biggest hit of the year – going an incredible 4 x Platinum. Kate followed this with her own late-night cabaret-style show on ABC TV called Kate Ceberano And Friends (1993-1994). In 1996 Kate released her next solo album Blue Box, which went Gold and saw her nominated for another Best Female Arist ARIA. In 1997 Kate wrote and released what has become an Australian classic – Pash. It went Gold and established Kate as one of our leading female songwriters.
Many fabulous and widely acclaimed albums were to follow, including 19 Days In New York, an album of jazz favourites recorded whilst living in New York, and 2005's LIVE with the West Australian Sympony Orchestra, which Kate considers to be one of the highlights of her career.
Like many high-profile musicians, Kate Ceberano is known to use her celebrity to support and bring awareness to causes close to her heart; recently being appointed the Victorian Ambassador for the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Her role sees her help raise funds and awareness about an illness that affects many lives. “I like to be as involved as I possibly can in causes I feel strongly about,” says Ceberano of her appointment. “Yes I am a musician, but if I can do more to help others then I will.” As a female artist that has been in the Australian music industry for over twenty-five years, Kate Ceberano has defied all the odds and continues to find success in all that she does.
“I know I am privileged to be where I am at in my career. I don't take anything for granted,” she says. “I am very thrilled to have this opportunity to follow my love of music, but I work hard to be where I am.”
Sympathy
Kate Ceberano Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You ask me, is everything alright
Only you could know, and I can't give in
Your sympathy destroys me.
don't say you love me when you know
How hard its been to stay away
And I can let you down
But I can't give in
don't ask me questions
I won't cry
don't make me answer
I don't want to lie
Please be still those thoughts
I'm begging you
Ohh, it's your sympathy that will destroy me
So don't call me in the middle of the night
and don't ask me if everything is alright
and I don't want to hear too much honesty
Your sympathy destroys me
ohh ohh please bestill those thoughts
I'm begging you
Coz, it's your sympathy that will destroy me,
that will destroy me.
(There's nothing else left to say, what am I running from)
don't call me
(There's nothing else left to prove, what am I running from)
don't call me in the middle of the night
Coz, its your sympathy that will destroy me
The song "Sympathy" by Kate Ceberano is a ballad about the difficult decision to break up with someone, particularly when their sympathy and affection makes it even harder to let go. The song begins with the lover calling in the middle of the night and asking whether everything is alright. The singer acknowledges that only the lover could understand how she feels but states that she cannot give in to their sympathy because it destroys her. She pleads with the lover to be still, realizing that their sympathy will ultimately destroy her.
The chorus is repeated twice, emphasizing how the lover’s sympathy has made it difficult for the singer to stay away. She cannot give in or let them down, but she also acknowledges that she cannot answer difficult questions or be too honest because it would only lead to more pain. The singer is tired of running and knows that there is nothing else left to say, which is why she ultimately asks the lover not to call her anymore. She realizes that their sympathy is too much to bear and that it will ultimately destroy her.
Overall, the song "Sympathy" is a powerful lamentation about the end of a relationship and the difficulty of breaking up when one party is still emotionally invested. The lyrics are poignant and introspective, evoking a deep sense of pathos and melancholy. The slow tempo and soulful instrumentation add to the emotional weight of the song, making it a standout track in Ceberano's discography.
Line by Line Meaning
You call me, in the middle of the night.
You reach out to me at an inconvenient time.
You ask me, is everything alright
You inquire about my well-being.
Only you could know, and I can't give in
You have a deeper understanding than I do and I can't give in to my emotions.
Your sympathy destroys me.
Your efforts to console me have a negative impact on me.
don't say you love me when you know
Don't express your love if you know it will only make things worse.
How hard its been to stay away
My struggle to keep my distance.
And I can let you down
But I can't give in
I can disappoint you, but I can't give in to you emotionally.
don't ask me questions
I won't cry
Don't probe me, I won't show my vulnerability.
don't make me answer
I don't want to lie
Don't force me to answer, I don't want to be dishonest.
Please be still those thoughts
I'm begging you
Ohh, it's your sympathy that will destroy me
Please stop offering your sympathy, it's causing harm to me.
So don't call me in the middle of the night
and don't ask me if everything is alright
and I don't want to hear too much honesty
Your sympathy destroys me
Please refrain from reaching out to me and offering your concern, as it's not helpful.
ohh ohh please bestill those thoughts
I'm begging you
Coz, it's your sympathy that will destroy me,
that will destroy me.
Please, I'm pleading with you to stop offering your empathy because it's causing me pain.
(There's nothing else left to say, what am I running from)
don't call me
There's no more to discuss, so please don't bother calling.
(There's nothing else left to prove, what am I running from)
don't call me in the middle of the night
There's no point in trying to prove anything, so please don't call me during unsociable hours.
Coz, its your sympathy that will destroy me
It's your sympathy that's causing me harm.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JACOB BRASS, CATHERINE YVETTE CEBERANO, PETER JOHN VETTESE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind