Jenkins was born in Neath, Wales, where she and her sister Laura were raised by their parents Selwyn John (1924–1995) and Susan. She has twin half-sisters from her father's first marriage, neither of whom she has met.
Six out of seven of Jenkins's studio albums reached number one in the classical charts between 2004 and 2008, selling a total of more than 4 million copies. After her first album, Premiere, made her the fastest-selling mezzo-soprano to date she became the first British classical crossover artist to have two number one albums in the same year. She is also the first female artist to win two consecutive Classical BRIT Awards: her second album, Second Nature, reached number 16 in the UK pop charts and was Album of the Year in the 2005 BRIT Awards.
On Sunday 25th November 2007, Katherine Jenkins' new album 'Rejoice' entered the 'Official UK Album Chart' at number 3. Katherine beat off stiff competition from the likes of Girls Aloud, Led Zeppelin, Spice Girls, Take That and Celine Dion.
Sweetest Love
Katherine Jenkins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
For wearinesse of thee,
Nor in hope the world can show
A fitter Love for mee;
But since that I 5
Must dye at last, 'tis best,
To use my selfe in jest
Thus by fain'd deaths to dye;
Yesternight the Sunne went hence,
And yet is here to day, 10
He hath no desire nor sense,
Nor halfe so short a way:
Then feare not mee,
But beleeve that I shall make
Speedier journeyes, since I take 15
More wings and spurres then hee.
O how feeble is mans power
That if good fortune fall,
Cannot adde another houre,
Nor a lost houre recall! 20
But come bad chance,
And wee joyne to'it our strength,
And wee teach it art and length,
It selfe o'r us to'advance.
When thou sigh'st, thou sigh'st not winde, 25
But sigh'st my soule away,
When thou weep'st, unkindly kinde,
My lifes blood doth decay.
It cannot bee
That thou lov'st mee, as thou say'st, 30
If in thine my life thou waste,
Thou art the best of mee.
Let not thy divining heart
Forethinke me any ill,
Destiny may take thy part, 35
And may thy feares fulfill;
But thinke that wee
Are but turn'd aside to sleepe;
They who one another keepe
Alive, ne'r parted bee.
The lyrics of Katherine Jenkins’s song Sweetest Love are a reflection on the nature of love and impermanence in life. The singer is addressing their lover and assuring them that their love is true and will not falter despite the inevitability of death. The singer acknowledges that nothing in the world can compare to the love they have for their partner, and they don’t leave because of weariness or lack of options. However, they recognize that death is unavoidable and therefore choose to view life as a jest and “fain’d deaths to dye”. This portrays the idea that in a world where death is inevitable, it is best to live each day to the fullest and not to take anything too seriously.
The second verse begins with a metaphorical comparison of the singer to the sun. They suggest that the sun may disappear at night, but it always returns the next day with no apparent struggle. In contrast, humans have limited power, and even good fortune cannot add another hour to our lives. The singer asserts that although fate may have other plans, they and their lover will remain together in some form, whether it be in life or in death, saying “They who one another keepe/ Alive, ne’r parted bee”. Ultimately, the underlying message of the song is that love is the only constant in an ever-changing world, and it is worth cherishing despite the inevitability of our mortal fate.
Line by Line Meaning
SWEETEST love, I do not goe,
My dearest love, I am not leaving you because I am tired of you,
For wearinesse of thee,
I am not leaving you because you are wearing me thin,
Nor in hope the world can show
And I have not found anyone else in the world who could replace your love for me,
A fitter Love for mee;
There is no other love that could fit me better than your love,
But since that I
But since I know that I
Must dye at last, 'tis best,
will eventually die, it's better
To use my selfe in jest
to use humor to deal with my mortality
Thus by fain'd deaths to dye;
and joke about dying to prepare myself for the inevitable.
Yesternight the Sunne went hence,
The sun went down last night,
And yet is here to day,
but it is already back today,
He hath no desire nor sense,
The sun does not have desires or feelings,
Nor halfe so short a way:
and yet it travels a much shorter distance than I do.
Then feare not mee,
So don't be afraid of my journey,
But beleeve that I shall make
just believe that I will be able to travel faster,
Speedier journeyes, since I take
as I will have more wings and spurs to aid me than the sun does.
O how feeble is mans power
How weak is the power of man
That if good fortune fall,
because even when good things happen,
Cannot adde another houre,
we cannot add more time to our lives
Nor a lost houre recall!
nor make up for lost hours!
But come bad chance,
However, when bad things happen,
And wee joyne to'it our strength,
and we come together to face it head-on,
And wee teach it art and length,
we learn how to deal with it and make it last as long as possible,
It selfe o'r us to'advance.
so we can overcome it and not the other way around.
When thou sigh'st, thou sigh'st not winde,
When you sigh, it is not the wind you are releasing,
But sigh'st my soule away,
but my soul from my body,
When thou weep'st, unkindly kinde,
When you cry, you kindly and cruelly,
My lifes blood doth decay.
drain the life out of me.
It cannot bee
It cannot be possible
That thou lov'st mee, as thou say'st,
that you love me as you say,
If in thine my life thou waste,
if you waste my life with your emotions,
Thou art the best of mee.
you are the most important and best part of me.
Let not thy divining heart
Don't let your intuitive heart
Forethinke me any ill,
think of any bad things that could happen to me before they do.
Destiny may take thy part,
Fate may side with you,
And may thy feares fulfill;
and your fears may come true;
But thinke that wee
But remember that we
Are but turn'd aside to sleepe;
only temporarily turn aside to sleep,
They who one another keepe
and those who keep each other
Alive, ne'r parted bee.
alive will never be separated.
Contributed by Evan F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.