Labi Siffre (born June 25, 1945) is an English poet, songwriter, and singer… Read Full Bio ↴Labi Siffre (born June 25, 1945) is an English poet, songwriter, and singer. Born the fourth of five children to a Barbadian/Belgian mother and a Nigerian father and raised in Bayswater and Hampstead, London, he was educated at a Catholic monastery school, St Benedict's School in Ealing. His musical influences included Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, Charlie Mingus, Jimmy Reed, Wes Montgomery, Billie Holiday, Jimmy Reed, and Mel Tormé. In July 1964, he met his partner Peter Lloyd, and the two officially became partners under the Civil Partnership Act 2004 when the Act entered into force in December 2005.

Siffre released his first six albums of songs between 1970 and 1975, and a further three albums between 1988 and 1998. During this period he had several solo hits, including "It Must Be Love" (No. 14, 1971) (later covered by and a No. 4 hit for Madness, for which Siffre himself appeared in the video); "Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying" (No. 11, 1972); and "Watch Me" (No. 29, 1972). In 1978 two of his songs, "Solid Love" (performed by Siffre) and "We Got It Bad" (co-written and performed by Bob James) reached the UK finals of the BBC's A Song for Europe. His 1987 hit "(Something Inside) So Strong", which reached No. 4, was an anti-Apartheid anthem that won the Ivor Novello Award for "Best Song Musically and Lyrically", and has since been used in Amnesty International campaigns, a television advertisement and Alice Walker's film against female genital mutilation: Warrior Marks.

In 1997, Siffre's play "DeathWrite" was staged at the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff and later televised.

His song "I Got The..." was sampled in rapper Eminem's hit single "My Name Is," Siffre, who is openly gay, said in an interview that he turned down the offer to approve the song at first until the original sexist and homophobic lyrics were removed: "Dissing the victims of bigotry – women as bitches, homosexuals as faggots – is lazy writing. Diss the bigots not their victims." Siffre eventually allowed its usage when he was sent a censored "clean" version, not realizing that he was also allowing the riffs use on the alternative "dirty" versions with the original lyrics.

In 1984 Siffre began writing poetry and has since released three books of poetry: "Blood on the Page" 1995 and "Monument" 1997. His poetry addresses a variety of themes, from theology and childhood to sociology, love, hate, language, critical thinking, and communication. In 2006, he released a new album, The Last Songs.

Dreamer
Labi Siffre Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Dreamer, dream away the night
When you wake I will be here
To greet you with the light

Dream on, the moon is on the wane
When you wake we will be here
The sun to light the way
Me here to love you

And how we spin and how we turn
And now we lose and now we learn
And now we win and now we're burning
Dream on dreamer
When you wake you will be loved

Rainbow, colours of the light
Brightly paint a warning
To the clouds upon the heights
Sorrow, please be gone away
I have no time to fight you now
The dreamer wakes
I made a vow to love her

And how we spin and how we turn
And now we lose and now we learn
And now we win and now we're burning
Dream on dreamer
When you wake you will be loved

Slow motion smile, oh the dawn breaks
Blinking your eyes, oh oh oh my heart aches
Slowly you rise, oh my arms take
Touching inside, oh oh oh

Dreamer, the love I want to say
Words in mind so hard to find
My heart gets in the way
Dream on, the night and through the day
See the light, the dream is clear
When you wake I will be here to love you

And how we spin and how we turn
And now we lose and now we learn
And now we win and now we're burning
Dream on dreamer
When you wake you will be loved

Dreamer (dream on dreamer) dream away the night

Overall Meaning

"Dreamer" by Labi Siffre is a melodic ballad with lyrics that can be interpreted in a couple of ways. One interpretation is that the song is about the power of dreaming and how it can help get us through the difficult times. The lyrics describe a person who is dreaming, and the singer assures them that when they wake, they will be greeted with light and love. The singer talks about how they win and lose in their dreams, but ultimately they are burning with the passion to succeed.

The song sends a message of hope and encouragement to the listener, telling them to dream on and to believe in their dreams. The lyrics also mention a "slow motion smile" and a "dawn break", portraying the beauty and serenity of nature. The singer expresses his love and devotion to the dreamer, saying that he made a vow to love her, and that he will be there to support her when she wakes up from her dreams.

This song is a beautiful reflection of Siffre's poeticism and songwriting ability. He provides us with a melody that is easy to love, and lyrics that carry a message of optimism and hope. It allows listeners to escape their worries and immerse themselves in a dream world full of endless possibilities.

Line by Line Meaning

Dreamer, dream away the night
Begin your dreaming, let your mind wander and explore while you sleep

When you wake I will be here To greet you with the light
Upon waking, I will be there to console and guide you out of the darkness of the night

Dream on, the moon is on the wane When you wake we will be here The sun to light the way Me here to love you
Allow yourself to continue to dream, for soon the night will end and the day will bring new possibilities. I will be here to guide and love you when you wake

And how we spin and how we turn And now we lose and now we learn And now we win and now we're burning Dream on dreamer When you wake you will be loved
Life is about twist and turns, learning from our failures and celebrating our successes. So, keep dreaming because when you wake up, you will be loved

Rainbow, colours of the light Brightly paint a warning To the clouds upon the heights
The rainbow and its vibrant colors act as a warning, signaling to the clouds above that a storm may be coming

Sorrow, please be gone away I have no time to fight you now The dreamer wakes I made a vow to love her
I ask for sorrow to depart because I don't have the energy to deal with it now; the dreamer is awake and I have promised to love her

Slow motion smile, oh the dawn breaks Blinking your eyes, oh oh oh my heart aches Slowly you rise, oh my arms take Touching inside, oh oh oh
As you wake up and the dawn approaches, I can't help but smile at the sight of you. My heart fills with aching love as you open your eyes, and I can barely contain my excitement as I slowly embrace you, making a deep emotional connection within

Dreamer, the love I want to say Words in mind so hard to find My heart gets in the way
Dreamer, I have so much love to express to you, but my thoughts become jumbled and hard to articulate because my heart is so full of emotion

Dream on, the night and through the day See the light, the dream is clear When you wake I will be here to love you
Keep dreaming, whether it be during the night or in the light of day, and know that I will be here to love you when you awake

Contributed by Alice D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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