Hearing Kristina Train for the first time is nothing less than a revelation… Read Full Bio ↴Hearing Kristina Train for the first time is nothing less than a revelation: her sunny, easygoing demeanor and youthful good looks belie the heart-wrenching power of her voice. Train’s Blue Note debut, Spilt Milk, is urbane and soulful, lush in its arrangements but intimate in its emotions, built on a foundation of classic and deeply felt southern soul. The title track unfolds with an almost cinematic grandeur, its string-laden chorus swelling with widescreen melancholy. Balancing the sultry with the strong, Train excels on bittersweet breakup/makeup numbers like “Don’t Remember” and “It’s Over Now.” As the aphorism of the album title suggests, the album tells the story of an indomitable spirit. Train knows how, over the course of a song, to walk away from a relationship with tremendous style.

Spilt Milk was recorded in London with Jimmy Hogarth, the sought-after British producer whose recent credits include Duffy, Corinne Bailey Rae and James Blunt. Powerhouse songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and arranger Eg White – Grammy Awards Record of the Year nominee for Adele’s “Chasing Pavements” – co-wrote most of this material. Singer and pianist Ed Harcourt also co-wrote two, including the climactic “Far From the Country,” an especially poignant and personal conclusion to the disc, about the physical and emotional distances one must bridge to keep love alive

For inspiration, Train turns to Aretha Franklin – “There is not a song that Aretha has sung or will ever sing that doesn’t just melt me” – along with blues/R&B cult figures like former Stax star/Raelette Mable John and Bob Dylan-favorite Karen Dalton. Says Train, “I wanted my album to offer glimpses of my influences, not sound like my influences. Jimmy, Eg and I are of similar backgrounds, we appreciate the same music; we have similar tastes. The arrangements are just what we felt the songs needed, they give the songs flavor but don’t try to steal anybody else’s style. I hope the album is a nod to the music I love, while still being modern.”

Music has been at the center of Train’s world since she was a toddler, when her mother encouraged her to play the violin. Train took to the instrument, but, more importantly, she also discovered an innate aptitude as a singer, with unerring pitch and a preternaturally mature delivery from a very young age. Says Train, “There’s depth to my voice and I think it comes from a lot of different places. But the way I sound today is the way I always sounded -- except in a tinier body.”

As an artist, Train could never simply be described as a product of her times and that has allowed her, on Spilt Milk, to create music that can arguably be called timeless. Her mom, who raised Train alone, fashioned what some might view as a sheltered existence for the young Train, keeping her away from television and pop radio. But what she really did was provide a fertile laboratory for Train to freely grow as a young woman and a singer, apart from the vagaries of trends. Train took music and ballet lessons and listened to classical music and opera, along with jazz and blues. Her violin training definitely came in handy: Train has arranging credits on three of her tracks and overdubbed strings on two of them.

Though born in New York City, Train was raised in Savannah, Georgia, and southern soul and gospel, which she sang in church and school choirs growing up, has had the most profound effect on her work. Almost as significant was the moment when, as a teenager, she unearthed her mom’s tucked-away stash of vinyl albums from the sixties and seventies: Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin. Say Train,” I remember hearing Janis Joplin’s records and thinking, what is that all about? We lived in downtown Savannah, in a house kind of like a New York City brownstone. When we had thunderstorms I would go up to the roof and scream at the top of my lungs because I wanted to make my voice raspier. God only knows what that’s done to me!”

By the time Train was 19, she was already singing professionally, albeit locally. A producer based in the south who’d spotted Train arranged to bring her up to New York City to showcase for Blue Note. The label chiefs offered Train a development deal – but her mom had other ideas. She insisted her daughter go to college first. Many a confident and headstrong young artist would rebel and go it alone, accept the deal and take their chances. But Train – reluctantly, she now admits – listened to her mom. She agreed to attend college in Athens, Ga., keeping her hand in music by joining a band and spending far more time rehearsing and gigging than hitting the books. And when she was ready to return to her career full-time, Blue Note was still waiting.

It was time well-spent, Train now realizes: “I know that at 19, I would not have made this record, which is the record I always wanted to make. This is the album that defines who I am. At 19, I don’t know what I would have put out. I believe everything happened for a reason. It took this amount of time for me to get here and to make this record. I always knew it would happen. “

Train made several trips to London over the course of two years, to write with Hogarth and White, but the actual recording moved quickly. In fact, Train was such a natural that some of the vocal performances they chose came straight from the song demos they’d originally done. Right before they were about to embark on their final sessions, though, a disastrous computer glitch during file back-up resulted in the loss of much of what they’d already completed. As Train recalls, “It was the perfect electronic storm.” Undaunted, she and her cohorts went back in and re-cut the vanished material with even more passion and determination, the setback turning out to be far more inspiration than challenge. Looking back, Train says, “I don’t think anything was lost. I don’t think there was this one magic moment that we could never recapture. I love what it is today.” And the experience provided her with an album title. “Don’t cry over spilt milk.”

Train’s confidence and faith in what she has created is part of what makes Spilt Milk so thrilling: “There’s just this magic thing that happens sometimes and you think, I want to sing this song for the rest of my life – I want to live in it, I want to bury myself in it, I want to wriggle around in it.. Every time I finished one, it was like, I can’t believe that, at this point in my life I finally have a song I would fight for, that I believe in 100% percent. And now I have all these songs together on an entire album that I feel this way about. For me, that’s my college degree.”

Sparks
Kristina Train Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Did I drive you away?
Well I know what you′ll say
You'll say, "oh, sing one we know"
But I promise youthis
I′ll always look out for you
Yeah that's what I'll do
I say oh
I say oh

My heart is yours
It′s you that I hold on to
Yeah that′s what I do
And I know I was wrong
But I won't let you down
(Oh yeah I will, yeah I will, yes I will)
I say oh
I cry oh
I saw sparks
Yeah I saw sparks
And I saw sparks
Yeah I saw sparks
Sing it out
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

Overall Meaning

In these lyrics, Kristina Train explores themes of love, regret, and the desire for redemption. The opening line, "Did I drive you away? Well, I know what you'll say. You'll say, 'oh, sing one we know'", suggests a distance or a rift in a relationship. The singer acknowledges their mistake and apologizes for it, promising to always look out for the other person. "My heart is yours, it's you that I hold on to" expresses a deep emotional connection and a commitment to the relationship. Despite admitting their wrong, the singer assures that they won't let the other person down.

However, the most powerful and evocative line in these lyrics is "I saw sparks", which is repeated several times. The repetition emphasizes the intensity of an experience, possibly a sudden realization or a moment of intense emotion. The sparks serve as a metaphor for the electricity and passion that exist in their relationship. It could also symbolize the potential for a renewed connection or a rekindling of love.

Ultimately, these lyrics convey a mix of vulnerability, remorse, and hope. The singer recognizes their mistake, but is desperately seeking forgiveness and a chance to make things right. The repetition of "oh" and the emotive singing in the chorus further amplify the emotional intensity of the song.

Line by Line Meaning

Did I drive you away?
Did my actions or behavior cause you to distance yourself from me?

Well I know what you'll say
I am aware of the response or answer you will provide

You'll say, 'oh, sing one we know'
You will request or suggest that I sing a familiar or popular song

But I promise you this
However, I assure you of this

I'll always look out for you
I will always watch over and protect you

Yeah that's what I'll do
That is my commitment and intention

I say oh
I express my emotions or thoughts with the exclamation 'oh'

I say oh
Again, I express my emotions or thoughts with the exclamation 'oh'

My heart is yours
My affection and love belongs to you

It's you that I hold on to
I cling to you, you are the one who gives me stability and comfort

Yeah that's what I do
That is my way of behaving or living

And I know I was wrong
I acknowledge and admit that I made a mistake

But I won't let you down
Nevertheless, I will not disappoint or betray you

(Oh yeah I will, yeah I will, yes I will)
(Oh yes, I am determined and committed to fulfill my promise)

I say oh
Once again, I express my emotions or thoughts with the exclamation 'oh'

I cry oh
I shed tears while expressing my emotions or thoughts with the exclamation 'oh'

I saw sparks
I witnessed intense emotional or romantic feelings

Yeah I saw sparks
Indeed, I experienced strong indications or signs of attraction

And I saw sparks
Furthermore, I observed flashes or moments of passion

Yeah I saw sparks
Yes, I definitely noticed sparks or chemistry

Sing it out
Express it loudly or passionately

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Uttered sounds to represent intense emotion, surprise, or pleasure

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Repeated uttered sounds to convey heightened emotions

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Further repeated uttered sounds indicating strong emotions

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Continued repetition of uttered sounds expressing intense feelings

Writer(s): Svein Berge, Torbjorn Brundtland, Anneli Drecker

Contributed by Adalyn P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

Saptak Mukherjee

6y↑8

~Lyrics~

Did I drive you away?
Well I know what you'll say
You'll say, "oh, sing one we know"
But I promise you this
I'll always look out for you
Yeah that's what I'll do
I say oh
I say oh
My heart is yours
It's you that I hold on to
Yeah that's what I do
And I know I was wrong
But I won't let you down
(Oh yeah I will, yeah I will, yes I will)
I say oh
I cry oh
I saw sparks
Yeah I saw sparks
And I saw sparks
Yeah I saw sparks
Sing it out
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh