MacColl began her career in the late 1970s UK punk rock scene, singing backing vocals for Drug Addix. Her UK hits included the 1981 single "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis", a cover of Billy Bragg's "A New England" in 1985, a duet with Shane MacGowan of The Pogues on "Fairytale of New York" in 1987, and a cover of The Kinks' song "Days" in 1989. She was probably most recognizable in the United States as the writer of "They Don't Know" a hit in 1979.
After a break from the music industry for much of the 1990s, several trips to Cuba and Brazil restored MacColl's creative muse, and the world music-inspired (particularly Cuban and other Latin American forms) Tropical Brainstorm, often described as her finest work, was released in 2000.
On 18 December 2000, while swimming in a restricted diving area with her family on a holiday in Cozumel, she was killed in a collision with a powerboat while managing to drag her son out of its path. The boat was owned by Mexican supermarket millionaire Guillermo González Nova (owner of Comercial Mexicana), who was on board with several members of his family. A boathand, José Cen Yam, claimed to have been driving the boat and was found guilty of culpable homicide and, under Mexican law, allowed to pay a fine of 1034 pesos (about USD 90) in lieu of a prison sentence of that many days. However, eyewitnesses contradict Cen Yam's claim to have been driving and also González Nova's claim that the boat was travelling at a speed of only one knot. MacColl's family are campaigning for a judicial review into the events surrounding her death, including an application to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. The BBC has featured on several of its channels a documentary by Olivia Lichtenstein, entitled Who Killed Kirsty MacColl?
In 2001, a bench was placed by the southern entrance to London's Soho Square as a memorial to her, after a lyric from one of her most poignant songs: "One day I'll be waiting there/ No empty bench inSoho Square.
Não Esperando
Kirsty MacColl Lyrics
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And she reaches for the tin where she keeps important things
A cigarette, a magic bean, a page torn from a magazine
And a letter that he sent full of promises and dreams
Of how he walked across the jungle
Across the desert to the bright shiny city by the sea
She's not waiting anymore
Não esperando seu amor
Now the sun is up the spell is broken
She's not waiting anymore
Não esperando seu amor
(She's not waiting for her love)
Now the sun is up the dream has flown away
Another day, now his words have worn away
And his face, well she can't quite remember
And she sighs with remorse, all her dreams are flying north
Where they wear fancy clothes, painted nails and long blonde hair
And where they fly across the jungle
Across the desert to the bright shiny city by the sea
She's not waiting anymore
Não esperando seu amor
(She's not waiting for her love)
Now the sun is up the spell is broken
She's not waiting anymore
Não esperando seu amor
(She's not waiting for her love)
Now the sun is up the dream has flown away
See her fly across the jungle
Across the desert to the bright shiny city by the sea
She's not waiting anymore
Não esperando seu amor
(She's not waiting for her love)
Now the sun is up the spell is broken
She's not waiting anymore
Não esperando seu amor
(She's not waiting for her love)
Now the sun is up the dream has flown away
The song "Nao Esperando" by Kirsty MacColl tells the story of a woman who wakes up and finds herself no longer waiting for the love of her life. She goes through her daily routine and reaches for her tin where she keeps important things, such as a cigarette, a magic bean, a page torn from a magazine, and a letter from her lover full of promises and dreams. However, as the day progresses, she realizes that his words no longer hold the same weight, and she can't even remember his face. She feels remorse for all the time she spent waiting, while her dreams fly away to where people wear fancy clothes, painted nails, and long blonde hair.
The lyrics describe the emotions of a woman who has finally come to the realization that waiting for someone who may never come back is a waste of time. She has finally broken the spell of waiting and has accepted that her dreams are no longer with the person she thought she loved. Even though she has a letter with full of promises, she realizes that they are just words and that actions matter more. Hence, she decides to fly across the jungle and desert to the bright, shiny city by the sea, where her spirit can soar again.
Line by Line Meaning
She awakes when the sun has found her face
She wakes up as soon as the sun touches her face.
And she reaches for the tin where she keeps important things
She takes a tin where she stores things that hold value to her.
A cigarette, a magic bean, a page torn from a magazine
She has kept a cigarette, a magic bean, and a torn magazine page in the tin.
And a letter that he sent full of promises and dreams
She also kept a letter from someone who promised her future and dreams.
Of how he walked across the jungle
The letter described him walking through jungles.
Across the desert to the bright shiny city by the sea
He traveled across the deserts to reach a city by the sea.
She's not waiting anymore
She has stopped waiting.
Não esperando seu amor
This line means 'She's not waiting for her love.'
Now the sun is up the spell is broken
Now that the sun has risen, the charm has been broken.
She's not waiting anymore
She has stopped waiting.
Não esperando seu amor
This line means 'She's not waiting for her love.'
Now the sun is up the dream has flown away
With the sun rising, her dream has vanished.
Another day, now his words have worn away
The next day came, and his words have lost their significance.
And his face, well she can't quite remember
She can't recall his face clearly anymore.
And she sighs with remorse, all her dreams are flying north
She exhales with regret and sadness as her dreams head towards the north direction.
Where they wear fancy clothes, painted nails and long blonde hair
She envisions people in the north dressed in ornate clothes, painted nails, and blonde hair.
And where they fly across the jungle
She imagines people flying through the jungle.
Across the desert to the bright shiny city by the sea
She imagines people traversing across deserts to reach a city by the sea.
See her fly across the jungle
She herself fantasizes about flying over the jungle.
She's not waiting anymore
She has stopped waiting.
Não esperando seu amor
This line means 'She's not waiting for her love.'
Now the sun is up the spell is broken
Now that the sun has risen, the spell has faded away.
She's not waiting anymore
She has stopped waiting.
Não esperando seu amor
This line means 'She's not waiting for her love.'
Now the sun is up the dream has flown away
With the rising sun, her dream has faded away.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: KIRSTY ANNA MAC COLL, PETER WILFRED GLENISTER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind