Since her career began in 1981, Gerrard has been involved in a wide range of projects. She received a Golden Globe Award for the music score to the film Gladiator, on which she collaborated with Hans Zimmer.
Lisa Gerrard was born on 12 April 1961 in Melbourne, and grew up in the suburb of Prahran with her Irish immigrant parents. She has said that she grew up with "Mediterranean music blaring out of the houses" and that this influenced her music, particularly on later Dead Can Dance albums and in her solo and collaborative works.
Gerrard's first foray into forming bands and creative music-making was in Melbourne's little band scene, an experimental post-punk scene which flourished from 1978 until 1981. It was at one of these little band events that she first met Dead Can Dance co-founder Brendan Perry. Perry recalls, "It never occurred to me that we would one day collaborate musically together because at the time I thought her music was too avant garde. I particularly remember one song that she sang about finding a man in the park and asking her mother if she could bring him home to keep in her wardrobe as she attacked this chinese dulcimer with two bamboo sticks".
Dead Can Dance originally formed as a quartet in 1981 in Melbourne, but in 1982 moved to London with members Gerrard, Brendan Perry and bass player Paul Erikson. Shortly after coming to England, Erikson flew back to Australia, leaving the band as a duo. Dead Can Dance recorded eight albums on the 4AD Records recording label beginning with the self-titled Dead Can Dance LP in 1984. In 2005, the song "Nierika" became part of the opening titles for Mexican television station TV Azteca's soap opera "La Chacala". The band split in 1998, but reunited in 2005 for a world tour. In 2012, the band announced a new world tour to coincide with the release of their new album, Anastasis.
Gerrard possesses the vocal range of a contralto but can also reach upward into the mezzo-soprano range. Her voice has been described as rich, deep, dark, mournful and unique.
Examples of Gerrard's mezzo-soprano range include the songs "The Host of Seraphim", "Elegy", "Space Weaver", "Come This Way" and "One Perfect Sunrise". Gerrard however performs more predominantly in the dramatic contralto range in her other songs, "Sanvean", "Sacrifice", "Largo", "Lament" and "Not Yet".
Gerrard sings many of her songs, such as "Now We Are Free", "Come Tenderness", "Serenity", "The Valley of the Moon", "Tempest", "Pilgrimage of Lost Children", "Coming Home" and "Sanvean" in idioglossia. With respect to such work she has said, "I sing in the language of the Heart. It's an invented language that I've had for a very long time. I believe I started singing in it when I was about 12. Roughly that time. And I believed that I was speaking to God when I sang in that language."
Gerrard was married to Polish graphic design artist and music producer Jacek Tuschewski, with whom she has a daughter (born 1992).
Her nephew Jack Gerrard plays for Cairns post-hardcore act Almost a Square as the drummer and back-up vocalist.
Come Tenderness
Lisa Gerrard Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Doing anything just to get you off of my mind
But when the morning comes and I"m back where I started again
Trying to forget you is just a waste of time
Baby, come back
Any kind of fool could see
There was something in everything about you
Baby, come back
You can blame it all on me
I was wrong and I just can't live without you
All day long wearing a mask of false bravado
Trying to keep up a smile that hides a tear
But as the sun goes down I get that empty feeling again
How I wish to God that you were here
Baby, come back
Any kind of fool could see
There was something in everything about you
Baby, come back
You can blame it all on me
I was wrong and I just can't live without you
Now, that I've pulled it up all together
Give me the chance to make you see
Have you used up all the love in your heart
Is there nothing left for me, is there nothing left for me?
Baby, come back
Any kind of fool could see
There was something in everything about you
Baby, come back
You can blame it all on me
These lyrics are a heartfelt plea from a person who is struggling to move on from a past relationship. The person has tried everything they can think of to forget about their former lover but has found that it's impossible to do so. They spend their nights and all their money going out, but nothing seems to work. The person tries to put on a brave face during the day but as the night approaches they feel empty again, wishing their partner would return. They acknowledge that they were wrong and they take the blame for the relationship falling apart. They desperately want their partner to come back and they are willing to accept responsibility for what went wrong in the past. They ask if there is any love left in their partner's heart for them.
The lyrics are touching because they convey the pain of heartbreak and the difficulty of letting go of a lost love. The person is willing to accept blame and willing to do what it takes to make things right, but they need their partner to come back to them. The song is a reminder of how hard it can be to move on from a relationship and how important it is to take responsibility for our mistakes.
Line by Line Meaning
Spending all my nights, all my money going out of the town
I am going out every night, spending all my money just to forget about you
Doing anything just to get you off of my mind
I am trying anything and everything to stop thinking about you
But when the morning comes and I'm back where I started again
Every morning, I realize that nothing has changed and I am still thinking about you
Trying to forget you is just a waste of time
I know that trying to forget about you is pointless and won't work
Baby, come back
I want you to come back to me
Any kind of fool could see
It is obvious to anyone that we should be together
There was something in everything about you
Every little thing about you was special to me
You can blame it all on me
I take the blame for what went wrong between us
I was wrong and I just can't live without you
I made a mistake and now I realize that I can't live without you
All day long wearing a mask of false bravado
I pretend to be strong and confident all day, but really I am hurting
Trying to keep up a smile that hides a tear
I am trying to hide my pain by putting on a fake smile
But as the sun goes down I get that empty feeling again
At night, when everything is quiet, I feel empty and alone without you
How I wish to God that you were here
I pray that you will come back to me, because I miss you so much
Now, that I've pulled it up all together
I have finally gathered my strength and courage
Give me the chance to make you see
Please give me another chance to show you how much I love you
Have you used up all the love in your heart
I am wondering if you still have any love left for me
Is there nothing left for me, is there nothing left for me?
I am worried that you have moved on and there is no hope for us to be together again
Writer(s): Lisa Gerrard
Contributed by Carson S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@sfinx69
Living in the the darkest hour of times, this is the most comforting to the soul. Light will overcome the dark, good overcome evil
@susanc257
You don’t need to know the words. That doesn’t matter. What matters is what you feel when you hear this.
@mira2467
Bravo za KOMENTAR 🤗♥️
@a5athome
Lisa Gerrard is using the words from her own invented language. Even when you don't understand it - it sounds wonderful 😢😊
@cesarvidelac
She is older than the earth, she is the voice that made us sleep when the world was magic
@AndreaWehren-hb5zy
💜
@wrensgarden
In recent weeks my husband passed into spirit after much suffering with cancer...This video is deeply a depiction of my soul~body~heart journey in these grieving days...Thank You for the tender sanctuary this provided me...Kathwren
@banisteriopsiscaapi6446
He is gone, not passing into something. Deal with it
@HighVerbal
@@banisteriopsiscaapi6446 ...............Her husband simply shed the skin suit and changed back into Energy & Consciousness , which are never gone , never destroyed . Immortal
@banisteriopsiscaapi6446
@@HighVerbal and you now because you read some some books