Born in Montreal, Quebec, Furey trained as a classical violinist, and at age 11 performed as a soloist in the Matinées pour la jeunesse concert series of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. He later studied at the Juilliard School in New York City. In 1972, he began playing and recording his own rock music compositions. In the ensuing years, he produced three albums of pop music: Lewis Furey (1974), The Humours Of (1976) and The Sky is Falling (1978). Distinguishing features of the albums were Furey’s Lou Reed-like vocal stylings, a number of songs with gay content (particularly the local Montréal radio hit Hustler’s Tango), and exotic arrangements featuring unusual uses of violin and banjo as well as elements of klezmer music.
In 1975, he began a very successful new venture as a composer for films. His first film score, for director Gilles Carle’s La Tête de Normand St. Onge (1975), won a Canadian Film Award. In 1976 he worked on the Gilles Carle film L'Ange et la femme along with his future wife, the actress and singer Carole Laure. This project involved more than composing alone; Furey and Laure are famously seen performing a sex act in the film. Furey also composed for the Allan Moyle film The Rubber Gun, which despite the risqué-sounding title was about families affected by drug use. Later in the 1970’s, Furey and Laure produced a number of successful stage reviews in Paris. Furey also served as producer and frequently also as songwriter for a series of albums by Carole Laure, beginning with Alibis (1978), a hit in Québec in 1978. In 1979, Furey wrote the music for another Gilles Carle film, Fantastica, which starred Laure in the lead role of Lorca. Furey also acted in the film and was nominated for a Genie Award in Canada for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role.”
Furey further developed his career in film and television music with productions such as a 1983 Gilles Carle movie, Maria Chapdelaine, based on the classic Québec-based Louis Hémon novel of the same name. His score for this film won a Genie Award. His 1985 directorial debut was in the film Night Magic, with script co-written by Leonard Cohen.
Based in France since the late 1970’s, Furey has continued to score film and television work as well as producing and writing for successful albums by Laure, such as She Says Move On (1991) and Sentiments naturels (1997). A stage production based on the latter ran for over a month in Paris in 1998.
The Walls
Lewis Furey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How did it get so late?
(Judy) What was it we were thinking of?
(Michael & Judy) We didn't want this,
did we?
(Michael) What was it I forgot to tell you?
(Judy) What was it I forgot?
There was a promise here
A child who knew me
A bitter bedtime story
(Michael & Judy) Another house of some forgotten family
It's very late
There must be some mistake
And now this place
for none
(Michael) There was a woman here
A woman who knew me
A table set before me
(Michael & Judy) It is the walls
it is the victory of the walls
It is the room
it is the distance of the room
(Michael) Without her...
(Judy) Without you
The lyrics to Lewis Furey's song The walls are rich in ambiguity, and the words themselves are sparse, leaving a lot of room for interpretation. The first few lines are a lament about the passage of time, and how quickly it seems to have flown by. Michael and Judy are left feeling as though they have missed something important, asking themselves what they could have been thinking of. They are clearly unsatisfied with where they are and what they have accomplished, feeling as though they have missed out on something important.
As the lyrics continue, there is a reference to a promise, and a child who knew Michael. This could be interpreted in a number of ways, but it seems to suggest that Michael has failed to live up to a commitment he made, and that some innocent person has been hurt in the process. There is also a reference to a woman who knew Michael, and a table set before him, which could suggest some kind of betrayal or unfaithfulness on his part. The lines "it is the walls, it is the victory of the walls, it is the room, it is the distance of the room" are particularly poignant, suggesting that the characters are trapped in a space where they are unable to connect with each other or the world around them. They are surrounded by walls that have become a symbol of their isolation, and they are unable to break free from the confines of their situation.
One interpretation of the song is that it is a commentary on the human condition, and the ways in which we can become trapped by our own weaknesses and limitations. Michael and Judy are unable to connect with each other, despite being in the same room, and they are unable to escape the walls that surround them. The song suggests that we are all to some extent trapped by the circumstances of our lives, and that our attempts to break free are often unsuccessful.
Line by Line Meaning
(Michael) It's late, it's very late
I can't believe how late it is, how did we let the time slip away from us?
(Judy) What was it we were thinking of?
We've lost focus and can't remember what our original intention was.
(Michael & Judy) We didn't want this, did we?
We've arrived at a place we didn't intend to end up at, and are questioning our choices and paths taken.
(Judy) There must be some mistake
We're questioning whether we've made the right decisions, and if there's still a way to change things.
(Michael) What was it I forgot to tell you?
There's something I should have mentioned to you but didn't, and now it could possibly impact where we are now.
(Judy) What was it I forgot?
Similar to the previous line, there's something Judy forgot that might have altered the course of things.
There was a promise here
There was an expectation of something to happen that did not come to fruition.
A child who knew me
The child is a metaphor for an earlier version of the persona, who is now struggling to understand where they are and who they've become.
A bitter bedtime story
The realization that something that was once comforting and familiar now brings feelings of discomfort and bitterness.
(Michael & Judy) Another house of some forgotten family
The environment around them is familiar but foreign, as if they are in a place they've never visited but with memories of other occupants.
It's very late
Time has passed beyond what they expected, and it feels like they can never go back to where they were before.
There must be some mistake
Their current surroundings must be a mistake, they are not where they intended to be at this moment in time.
And now this place for none
The realization that everything around them is without purpose or value, leaving them without direction or motivation.
(Michael) There was a woman here
A woman who knew me
A table set before me
A reminder of a past relationship, presenting a time where the persona felt loved and appreciated.
(Michael & Judy) It is the walls
It is the victory of the walls
It is the room
It is the distance of the room
The walls around them represent the barriers hindering their progress or escape, trapping them within their current emotional state.
(Michael) Without her...
Without the person from his past, Michael feels lost and disconnected from the world around him.
(Judy) Without you
Judy also recognizes that without the support of others, including Michael, she is also immobilized and unsure of what to do.
Contributed by Alexandra M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.