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," though Siffre objected to what he described as "lazy writing" and it had to be edited to get the sample cleared.

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.

Make My Day
Labi Siffre Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Pretty little girl
Pretty little girl in a blue dress
Pretty little girl in a blue dress playing in the sand
Make my day, smile for me

Sun in the sky
Sun in the blue sky
Sun in the blue sky above my head

Make my day, shine for me

Why is today, a day like any other day
sadder than yesterday?
Minutes or hours separate me
from yesterday's man with a grin
Whatever happened to him?

Butterfly, flying by, how could you ever know?
You and your mind haven't the time
to think about things that you do
How I wish I was like you

Pretty little girl
Pretty litte girl in a blue dress

Pretty litte girl in a blue dress playing in the sand
Make my day, smile for me

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Labi Siffre's song "Make My Day" depict a longing for happiness and a sense of nostalgia for a happier past. The first verse describes a pretty girl in a blue dress playing in the sand, prompting the singer to ask her to smile and make his day. The second verse describes the sun in the blue sky shining above the singer's head and the longing for it to shine for him, further emphasizing his desire for happiness. The third verse then poses the question of why today, a day like any other, feels sadder than yesterday, and wonders what happened to the man from yesterday with a grin.

The fourth and final verse employs the use of a butterfly as a symbol of simplicity and lack of worry, and expresses a desire to be like the butterfly and not be burdened by the anxieties and worries of life. Throughout the song, there is a sense of yearning for the past or for a simpler life, alongside a desire for happiness and positivity in the present moment.

Line by Line Meaning

Pretty little girl
Addressing a girl he finds attractive

Pretty little girl in a blue dress
Describing the girl's attire

Pretty little girl in a blue dress playing in the sand
Narrating what the girl is doing

Make my day, smile for me
Asking the girl to smile and make him happy

Sun in the sky
Referring to the sun in the sky

Sun in the blue sky
Adding more detail to the description of the sky

Sun in the blue sky above my head
Narrating where the sun is located

Make my day, shine for me
Asking the sun to shine and make him happy

Why is today, a day like any other day sadder than yesterday?
Questioning why he feels more sad today than yesterday

Minutes or hours separate me from yesterday's man with a grin
Reflecting on how much time has passed since he was happier

Whatever happened to him?
Questioning what caused him to become less happy