Marc Almond has had a long and varied career spanning circa 40 years. During this time, after a career with Soft Cell and Marc and the Mambas, he has collaborated with an extremely wide range of artists including Antony and The Johnsons, Jools Holland, Siouxsie Sioux, Nick Cave, P.J. Proby, Nico, Kelli Ali of the Sneaker Pimps, Neal X (on the albums Fantastic Star and Open All Night), Marie France, Agnes Bernelle, Lydia Lunch, Gene Pitney on the #1 UK single "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart", Foetus (a.k.a. J. G. Thirlwell), Jimmy Somerville of The Communards and Bronski Beat, Psychic TV, Coil, Sally Timms of Mekons, King Roc, John Cale and David Johansen of The New York Dolls and German band Rosenstolz.
Almond initially shot to fame in the early 1980s as one half of synth duo Soft Cell, whose combination of drama and peep show sleaze set to an electronic beat gave them hits such as "Tainted Love" (UK #1), "Bedsitter" (UK #3), "Torch" (UK #2), "Say Hello Wave Goodbye" (UK #3), "Soul Inside" (UK # 16), "What?" (UK #3) and the club hit "Memorabilia". They were first spotted by David Oddie, boss of Wakefield based Ambergris Records in a Bradford club, who passed his enthusiasm onto Dead Good Records in Lincoln, famous for their Hicks From The Sticks compilation, who in turn approached Polygram, the newly formed amalgam of Polydor and Phonogram. Although Soft Cell disbanded in 1984 just before the release of fourth album, This Last Night In Sodom, the duo reunited in 2001 for live shows and in 2002 released a new album entitled Cruelty Without Beauty, from which the single "The Night" (UK #39) was taken.
His biggest UK hits as a solo artist have been cover versions; the aforementioned 1989 number one duet with Gene Pitney and another near chart-topper in 1991 with David McWilliams' "The Days of Pearly Spencer", which peaked at #4. In 1985, he duetted with Jimmy Somerville and Bronski Beat on a cover of Donna Summer's "I Feel Love (Medley)" and it hit #3. The highest UK positions his self-penned singles have reached so far have been "Stories of Johnny" (#23 in 1985), "Tears Run Rings" (#28 in 1988) and "Adored and Explored" (#25 in 1995).
Almond's work runs the gamut from electronica and dance music to French chanson, traditional piano ballads, and Russian romance songs, as exhibited on his 2003 album Heart on Snow. Influences include David Bowie, a childhood hero of his, as well as early 1960s Northern Soul and disco. Other major influences have been Scott Walker from Walker Brothers and Jacques Brel, 12 of whose songs Almond reworked in English for his 1989 album Jacques. Almond's own lyrics are a creative expression of what he sees and are not to be confused with his own life. He also operates a record label, Blue Star Music, on which he has released many of his solo and collaborative records in the UK.
Almond currently lives in the Bermondsey area of south east London. In his autobiography he describes previously living in Earl's Court, in a converted church in Fulham and most memorably in Soho's Berwick Street, where he lived in a flat overlooking the Raymond Revuebar.
The River
Marc Almond Lyrics
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Framed in candles
And white white light
All is revealed
When all is too bright
You're such a pleasure
A wonderful pain
Makes me never want
But sorrow always comes
To those with fickle fame
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
We are consumed by corruption
Old before our time
Hurt by others' hunger
Scarred by love as greed (how I need)
How cruel the birthday of 17
Youth behind you
The long years ahead
Showing you what you might have been
Instead of drifting, drifting, drifting
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
Foundations crumble
Walls subside
We all break apart
When there's heartache inside
Hold back those years
Those tears
With a futile pride (we're gonna come clean)
Beware of love
And of dark-eyed men
They're sweet and they're tender
But they have no hearts
Just long smashed
Cruel shards of broken glass
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
And all those songs
That made me cry
Keep flooding back
And years of new discovery and you
Disturbing my dreams
Now we're flowing down that river
Heading for the delta
I don't know which way to flow
But my heart's a forest fire
And yours a field of snow
I don't know which way to flow
Don't know which way
Don't know which way
To flow
The song The River by Marc Almond is a hauntingly beautiful piece that deals with the subject of love, loss, and betrayal. The opening lines of the song, "And he dances every night, framed in candles/And white, white light," conjure up an image of someone lost in a trance-like state, dancing alone amidst the glow of flickering flames. The use of the words "framed" and "white, white light" suggest a sense of purity and innocence, but also a kind of otherworldly detachment from reality.
The next lines, "All is revealed when all is too bright/You're such a pleasure, a wonderful pain/Makes me never want to love again," describe the paradox of love - the pleasure and pain that come with it, and the temptation to avoid it altogether. The imagery of "sorrow always comes to those with fickle fame" suggests that love is a fleeting thing, subject to the whims of fate and circumstance.
The chorus, "And the tears are gonna come/The tears are gonna come," emphasizes the inevitability of heartbreak and the need to confront one's emotions. The second verse of the song continues the theme of loss and disillusionment, with lines like "We are consumed by corruption/Old before our time/Hurt by others' hunger/Scarred by love as greed." The image of "youth behind you/The long years ahead/showing you what you might have been" suggests regret and the passing of time.
The song's final verse speaks of the power of love to disturb one's dreams and the uncertainty that comes with it. The image of "flowing down that river/heading for the delta" suggests a sense of being carried along by fate, uncertain of where one is headed. The final lines, "But my heart's a forest fire/and yours a field of snow/I don't know which way to flow," sum up the theme of the song: the complicated, often painful nature of love and human relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
And he dances every night
He dances every night
Framed in candles
Candles frame him as he dances
And white white light
The white light shines on him as he dances
All is revealed
Everything is revealed when the light is too bright
When all is too bright
When the light is too bright
You're such a pleasure
You are a pleasure to be with
A wonderful pain
Being with you is both wonderful and painful
Makes me never want
Being with you makes me never want
To love again
To love again
But sorrow always comes
Sorrow always comes
To those with fickle fame
To those with fleeting fame
And the tears are gonna come
The tears will come
The tears are gonna come
The tears will come
We are consumed by corruption
We are consumed by corruption
Old before our time
We age prematurely due to our experiences
Hurt by others' hunger
Others' hunger for power or love is harmful to us
Scarred by love as greed (how I need)
Love can be as damaging as greed, but we still need it
How cruel the birthday of 17
Turning 17 can be a cruel reminder of youth fading away
Youth behind you
Youth is a thing of the past
The long years ahead
The future years ahead
Showing you what you might have been
The future will reveal what you could have been
Instead of drifting, drifting, drifting
Instead of aimlessly drifting through life
Foundations crumble
Foundations crumble
Walls subside
Walls fall apart
We all break apart
We all break apart
When there's heartache inside
When there's pain, heartbreak, or sadness inside
Hold back those years
Hold back the passing of time
Those tears
Try to hold back tears
With a futile pride (we're gonna come clean)
We try to hide our emotions with a pointless sense of pride, but we will eventually confess our feelings
Beware of love
Be cautious of love
And of dark-eyed men
Be cautious of men who appear dark or mysterious
They're sweet and they're tender
They may seem sweet and gentle
But they have no hearts
But they don't really have hearts, they are cold or indifferent
Just long smashed
Just long ago broken
Cruel shards of broken glass
Their hearts are like sharp and dangerous pieces of broken glass
And all those songs
All those songs
That made me cry
The songs that made me cry
Keep flooding back
Memories of those songs keep coming back
And years of new discovery and you
Years of new discoveries and being with you
Disturbing my dreams
Those experiences are causing me to have disturbing dreams
Now we're flowing down that river
Now we're flowing down a metaphorical river that symbolizes life's journey
Heading for the delta
Heading for the end of the river where it empties into the sea, which represents death or the afterlife
I don't know which way to flow
I don't know which way to go in life
But my heart's a forest fire
My heart is burning with passion or intense emotion
And yours a field of snow
Yours is cold and unfeeling
Don't know which way to flow
Don't know which way to go in life
Don't know which way
Don't know which way
To flow
To go in life
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MARC ALMOND
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Charlie Magri
And he dances every night
Framed in candles
And white white light
All is revealed
When all is too bright
You're such a pleasure
A wonderful pain
Makes me never want
To love again
But sorrow always comes
To those with fickle fame
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
We are consumed by corruption
Old before our time
Hurt by others' hunger
Scarred by love as greed (how I need)
How cruel the birthday of 17
Youth behind you
The long years ahead
Showing you what you might have been
Instead of drifting, drifting, drifting
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
Foundations crumble
Walls subside
We all break apart
When there's heartache inside
Hold back those years
Those tears
With a futile pride (we're gonna come clean)
Beware of love
And of dark-eyed men
They're sweet and they're tender
But they have no hearts
Just long smashed
Cruel shards of broken glass
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
And all those songs
That made me cry
Keep flooding back
And years of new discovery and you
Disturbing my dreams
Now we're flowing down that river
Heading for the delta
I don't know which way to flow
But my heart's a forest fire
And yours a field of snow
I don't know which way to flow
Don't know which way
Don't know which way
To flow
leopold
I've just got back from a gig Marc did at the Royal Northern College of Music and he basically did the entire Mother Fist album. His version of this song was incredible.
Peter Heide
The highest regards for Marc Almond . What a song and what a voice !!!
Valentine Valy
Marc was and is a incredible musician and vocalist, that create every 🎶 as one only magic 🌟
Dizzy Lizzy
What a song....loved Mother Fist..
leopold
Yeah, it’s a really good album. Marc did the whole thing at the RNCM a few years back with a load of musicians playing some pretty strange instruments. When he did this song, I got so lost in it that I felt I was the only person in the room. I’ve never felt like that at a gig before or since.
Lee Hacker
Every time I hear this song, it makes me cry.
Wellenstrom
a powerful song
Nico Magnetto
for the soul and love this song listen
smoking in the night!!!!!!
Charlie Magri
And he dances every night
Framed in candles
And white white light
All is revealed
When all is too bright
You're such a pleasure
A wonderful pain
Makes me never want
To love again
But sorrow always comes
To those with fickle fame
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
We are consumed by corruption
Old before our time
Hurt by others' hunger
Scarred by love as greed (how I need)
How cruel the birthday of 17
Youth behind you
The long years ahead
Showing you what you might have been
Instead of drifting, drifting, drifting
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
Foundations crumble
Walls subside
We all break apart
When there's heartache inside
Hold back those years
Those tears
With a futile pride (we're gonna come clean)
Beware of love
And of dark-eyed men
They're sweet and they're tender
But they have no hearts
Just long smashed
Cruel shards of broken glass
And the tears are gonna come
The tears are gonna come
And all those songs
That made me cry
Keep flooding back
And years of new discovery and you
Disturbing my dreams
Now we're flowing down that river
Heading for the delta
I don't know which way to flow
But my heart's a forest fire
And yours a field of snow
I don't know which way to flow
Don't know which way
Don't know which way
To flow
Nico Magnetto
una masa !!!!!!!!