Born Keren Ann Zeidel in Caesarea, Israel on 10th March 1974, she lived in the Netherlands and Israel until the age of eleven, when her family moved to France. Her first group, KAB (for Keren Ann Band), lasted three years. In 1997, she wrote the song "Father" for the film K by Alexandre Arcady, in which she also acted a small part. The next year, at the age of twenty-four, she formed Shelby with two other women; the group released one album and had a small success with the song "1+1+1", whose composer Benjamin Biolay became an important collaborator. In 2000 she began her solo career with La biographie de Luka Philipsen -- "Luka" in homage to the Suzanne Vega song, "Philipsen" after her maternal grandmother -- written with and produced by Biolay, who also co-wrote and -produced its follow-up, La disparition. (In return, she helped write his debut album, Rose Kennedy.) The pair also wrote several songs for Henri Salvador's best-selling, prize-winning 2000 comeback album, Chambre avec vue.
Lady & Bird is a collaboration with Bardi Johannsson of the Icelandic group Bang Gang.
Not Going Anywhere, which includes several songs from La disparition re-sung in English, was her first U.S. release, but her American breakthrough came with its follow-up, Nolita. Recorded in Paris and New York, it is named for Nolita, her neighborhood in lower Manhattan; it is sung half in French and half in English.
Greatest You Can Find
Keren Ann Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To wash it all off my face
The world's fastest train
To take me away
And leave me out there
I want this Sunday breeze
To put out the candle
And love is much more than one can handle
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find here
I want the morning rain
To tell you what's on my mind
No, you're not vain
But definitely not one of a kind
How can someone be
So impossible to break?
This one's on me
Love is much more than one can take
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find here
Ahhh ba ba ba ba...
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find
The lyrics of Keren Ann's song "Greatest You Can Find" is full of imagery, metaphors, and ambiguities, which make it difficult to discern the exact meaning of the lyrics. The song is about love, but it is not as straightforward as most love songs. Keren Ann opens the song with a desire to wash off something from her face, something that she wants the morning rain to take away. This could be a literal or a metaphorical desire, but it suggests a yearning for the rain to take away all the pain or negative emotions that Keren Ann feels.
Keren Ann then shifts to a longing to be taken away, perhaps to escape from all the noise and chaos of the world. The world's fastest train represents a desire for speed and escape. But where does she want to go? She doesn't reveal it, but it is safe to assume that she wants to go somewhere beautiful and peaceful.
The chorus of the song is the most significant part, where Keren Ann expresses her love for someone. She says that their love is greater, the greatest one can find. She repeats this line twice, emphasizing the enormity and scope of her love, suggesting that it is something beyond measure or limitation. The lyrics are ambiguous, and one can interpret them in multiple ways, but the overall mood of the song is that of longing and love, desire and escapism.
Line by Line Meaning
I want the morning rain
I wish for a refreshing cleanse to wash away my worries and concerns, represented by the metaphor of morning rain.
To wash it all off my face
I desire for my problems to be literally and metaphorically washed away from my face.
The world's fastest train
A representation of a swift escape from the current situation which seems debilitating.
To take me away
I need a change of scenery and pace to cope with my current state of mind.
And leave me out there
The desire to be left alone to gather oneself, in the context of an overwhelming situation.
I want this Sunday breeze
A request for a refreshing and revitalizing wind, symbolized by a breeze blowing on a Sunday.
To put out the candle
To make the pain, represented by the flame of a candle, go away.
Some air to breathe
An aspiration to take in the fresh air literally and metaphorically, to clear the mind and rejuvenate the spirit.
And love is much more than one can handle
A realization that love can be overwhelming, almost too much to bear.
Your love is greater
The love this person feels for me is intense, and surpasses all other kinds of love.
The greatest you can find
The love this person possesses is the highest form of love that one can attain.
Your love is greater
The love this person feels for me is intense, and surpasses all other kinds of love.
The greatest you can find here
The love this person possesses is the highest form of love that one can attain, and it is present right here, where we are.
I want the morning rain
I desire again for a refreshing cleanse, possibly to communicate deep emotions and feelings to the person the singer is addressing.
To tell you what's on my mind
The singer wishes for an opportunity to express the thoughts and feelings that are running through their mind to a particular person.
No, you're not vain
An assurance given to the person that they are not self-centered, possibly in response to criticism from others.
But definitely not one of a kind
A partial acknowledgment that the person may be unique, but not in a way that makes them not a part of the larger schema of things.
How can someone be
Referring to a particular person, the singer is expressing disbelief at how that person can be so unbreakable or unaffected by life's struggles.
So impossible to break?
The singer is pondering how someone can exhibit such an extreme resilience to difficult situations in their life.
This one's on me
The artist takes the responsibility and the consequences of the difficult situation they both may be facing, as they may have previously blamed the particular person for life's struggles.
Love is much more than one can take
Acknowledgment that love can be overwhelming and difficult to handle at times. It can be considered a burden when the feeling is rather intense.
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find
The greatest you can find
Reiteration that the love this person possesses is the highest form of love that one can attain.
Your love is greater
The greatest you can find
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: KEREN ANN ZEIDEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dulce S.
Dear Keren Thanks for upload your songs. Your voice is angelical and give me peace on my mind.
Regards from Mexique :)
권새벽 DAWN KWON
hello this song is my favorite song.
when I learned this song in a magazine when I was a kid.
i want to cover this song.
can you send to me inst?
have a nice day keren ann!