Her self-titled debut album, Mathilde Santing, came out in 1982 and she gas released well over fifteen studio albums since, most of them sung in English, although she sometimes performs and records in her mother tongue as well. Known for her whispery and vulnerable vocal style, Santing is a prominent gay role model in The Netherlands. She sang at the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1998 Gay Games in Amsterdam.
Santing's biggest chart success came in 1999 with the lush ballad 'Wonderful Life', which hit #6 in the Dutch Top 40. The song was taken from the 1999 album To Others To One, which is her highest charting album in her native Netherlands to date, reaching #4 in the Dutch album charts.
Living Without You
Mathilde Santing Lyrics
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The paper hits the door
The subway shakes my floor
And I think about you
Time to face the dawning gray
Of another lonely day
It's so hard
Living without you
Yes it's so hard
So hard
So hard living without you
Everyone's got something
They're out tryin' to get some more
They've got something to get up for
Well, I ain't about to
Nothing's gonna happen
Nothing's gonna change
It's so hard
Living without you
Baby, it's so hard
So hard
So hard
Living without you
The lyrics of Mathilde Santing's "Living Without You" depict the daily struggle of living without a loved one. The song starts with the imagery of a new day beginning; the sun is being hauled up and the paper hits the door, while the subway shakes the singer's floor. Even with these mundane activities taking place, the singer cannot help but think about the person who is no longer with them. Facing another lonely day, the singer feels the weight of living without their loved one. The chorus repeats how hard it is to live without them, emphasizing the pain and difficulty of the situation.
The second verse brings in the perspective of other people and their lives. It seems as if everyone is trying to get something, a reason to wake up and go about their day. But the singer doesn't have that same motivation because they are living without their loved one. Nothing is going to happen, nothing is going to change, and it's still hard. The repeated use of "so hard" emphasizes how difficult it is to keep going without that one essential person in their life. The song ends with a final plea, a cry for the person they're missing, and a final declaration of just how hard it is to live without them.
Line by Line Meaning
The milktruck hauls the sun up
The early morning delivery truck marks the start of a new day
The paper hits the door
The daily newspaper arrives, signaling the start of the day's events
The subway shakes my floor
The underground train that passes below my building has caused my place to shake
And I think about you
I can't help but think about the person who is no longer there with me
Time to face the dawning gray
The depressing reality of a gray, lackluster day dawns on me
Of another lonely day
One more lonely day feels daunting and unbearable
It's so hard Living without you
The absence of that special person makes each day seem like an insurmountable challenge
Yes it's so hard
It is true that living without that person is extremely difficult
So hard So hard So hard living without you
Reinforcing the fact that living without the person is incredibly difficult and painful
Everyone's got something They're out tryin' to get some more
Everyone is striving to achieve something and working towards their goals
They've got something to get up for
Everyone has a reason to wake up every morning with a sense of purpose
Well, I ain't about to
But not everyone is the same. The singer is not motivated like others because of the absence of that person
Nothing's gonna happen Nothing's gonna change
The absence of that special person leaves a void that cannot be filled and life seems stagnant with no sense of progress or growth
It's so hard Living without you
Reinforcing the central theme of the song - being unable to cope without the presence of a loved one
Baby, it's so hard So hard So hard Living without you
The chorus reiterates the difficulty of living life without the person
Contributed by Alaina A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.