Kravitz plays guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, percussion, and sitar. He often plays these instruments on each recorded track, but frequently collaborates with other musicians as well when recording.
His 1989 debut album Let Love Rule was a moderate success. In 1991 he released his second album, Mama Said, which reached the top 40 of the Billboard album charts. In 1993, the album Are You Gonna Go My Way was released, reaching #12 on the Billboard 200 and Kravitz earned a Brit Award for best international male artist in 1994. He released the Circus album in 1995, which reached number 10 on the Billboard chart on the back of his past achievement. With 5 (1999), Kravitz embraced digital technology such as Pro Tools and samplers for the first time. He would win the first of his four consecutive Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards of 1999.
His cover version of The Guess Who's hit "American Woman" won him another Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards of 2000. Kravitz released a Greatest Hits compilation in 2000. It proved to be his most successful album. The single "Again" would earn him his third consecutive Grammy for the Best Male Rock Vocal in the Grammy Awards of 2001. Kravitz released his sixth album Lenny in October 2001. He won his fourth consecutive Grammy for Best Male Rock Vocal at the Grammy Awards of 2002. Kravitz's seventh album Baptism was released in May 2004. His album, It Is Time For A Love Revolution was released in 2008. He has always edited his albums on Virgin Records America. The lead single from Kravitz’s ninth album, Black and White America, "Stand" was released on June 3, 2011. (Stand Songfacts).
He is the son of Ukrainian-Jewish American NBC television news producer Sy Kravitz, and Bahamian American actress Roxie Roker, best known as her character Helen Willis on the hit 1970s television sitcom The Jeffersons. Black and White America's title track is an autobiographical look back at his upbringing in New York. (Black and White America Songfacts).
Artist website: www.lennykravitz.com
A Long and Sad Goodbye
Lenny Kravitz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who's to blame
Why you never had your fortune and fame
Papa what did you gain
To leave the love you had for a two-bit dame
Papa
Why did you turn your back
Why did you leave and make her cry
Papa
You meant the world to me
Why did you abandon me
Now it's a long and sad goodbye
Papa
What is this game
With all that cheating you did you're gonna go insane
Papa
I am in pain
'Cause on the day that you left
You said I'd do the same
Papa
Why did you turn your back
Why didn't you stay on track
Why did you leave and make her cry
Papa
You meant the world to me
Why did you abandon me
Now it's a long and sad goodbye
Papa, Papa, Papa
No
Oh Papa, Papa, oh papa
No
Oh Papa
Why did you turn your back
Why didn't you stay on track
Why did you leave and make her cry
Papa
You meant the world to me
Why did you abandon me
Now it's a long and sad goodbye
Papa, Papa, Papa
No
Oh Papa, oh papa, oh papa
No, no, stay
The lyrics to Lenny Kravitz's song "A Long and Sad Goodbye" tell the story of a son who questions his father's actions and his decision to abandon his family for a woman who was not worth it. The song is a lament about the effects of a father's absence on his son, and speaks to the long-lasting pain that can be caused by a parent's abandonment.
The lyrics use the word "Papa" throughout the song as if to emphasize the son's longing for his father's presence and to address him with an air of respect. The son is struggling to come to terms with his father's infidelity and his decision to walk away from his family, leaving them in emotional turmoil. The lyrics communicate the son's feelings of betrayal, abandonment, and confusion, as he tries to understand why his father made the choices he did.
In the chorus, the son asks his father why he turned his back, why he didn't stay on track, and why he left and made his mother cry. He wonders what his father gained by leaving behind the love that they all shared and accuses him of playing a game that drove him insane. The son is also in pain, as his father predicted he would be when he left, and he questions why his father would make such a prophetic statement.
In conclusion, "A Long and Sad Goodbye" is a poignant and insightful song that explores the devastating effects of parental abandonment on a child. It touches on issues of betrayal, infidelity, loss, and pain, and speaks to the heart of anyone who has experienced the loss of a loved one.
Line by Line Meaning
Papa
Addressing the singer's father
Who's to blame
Asking who is responsible for the father's lack of success
Why you never had your fortune and fame
Questioning why the singer's father was never able to achieve wealth and notoriety
Papa what did you gain
Asking what the father gained from leaving his family for another woman
To leave the love you had for a two-bit dame
Expressing disgust at the father's decision to leave his family for someone without much worth or value
Why did you turn your back
Asking why the father abandoned his family and responsibilities
Why didn't you stay on track
Asking why the father didn't stick to his obligations and promises to his loved ones
Why did you leave and make her cry
Asking why the father hurt the artist's mother by leaving her
Papa You meant the world to me
Stating the father's importance to the artist
Why did you abandon me
Asking why the father left his child behind and deserted them
Now it's a long and sad goodbye
Reflecting on the sadness and finality of the situation
What is this game
Asking what the point of the father's cheating and infidelity was
With all that cheating you did you're gonna go insane
Warning the father of the potential mental consequences of his actions
I am in pain
Acknowledging the hurt and emotional anguish the singer is going through
'Cause on the day that you left You said I'd do the same
Recalling the father's hurtful words implying that the singer would abandon their loved ones as well
Papa, Papa, Papa No
Continuing to address the artist's father and expressing rejection and disbelief
Oh Papa, Papa, oh papa No
Addressing the father with a mix of sadness and frustration
Why did you turn your back Why didn't you stay on track Why did you leave and make her cry
Reiterating the questions and concerns regarding the father's actions
Papa You meant the world to me
Repeating the father's importance to the singer
Now it's a long and sad goodbye
Affirming the finality and heaviness of the situation
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CRAIG DAVID ROSS, LENNY KRAVITZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Paela Peterson
on American Woman
There's you some GUITAR!