2. Melanie: Midwest Auckland emo four piece Melanie released their full length album 42 Losers in May 2020 and have been playing a fine selection of gigs and house parties since
1. Born on the 3rd February 1947 in Astoria, New York deceased 23rd January 2024, Melanie made her first recording, "Gimme a Little Kiss", when she was five.
She first found chart success in Europe. Her 1969 song "Bobo's Party" reached number one in France. Later that year she had a hit in the Netherlands with "Beautiful People" before performing at Woodstock. Apparently, she was inspired to write "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" by the audience lighting candles during her set; the song became a hit in both Europe and the USA. Her biggest hit in the USA was "Brand New Key", also known as "The Roller Skate Song". She has been awarded three gold albums.
Three of Melanie's compositions were hits for The New Seekers: "Look What They've Done to My Song Ma", "Beautiful People", and "The Nickel Song".
With one exception her albums have been produced by her husband, Peter Schekeryk. Her three children - Leilah, Jeordie and Beau-Jarred -are also musicians. Beau-Jarred is a guitarist and accompanies his mother on The 2003 Australian hip-hop track "The Nosebleed Section" by The Hilltop Hoods sampled Melanie's "People in the Front Row".
In 2004 Melanie released Paled by Dimmer Light, which is co-produced by Peter and Beau-Jarred Schekeryk.
In 2010 the last album co- produced by her now late husband Peter Schekeryj and their son Beau Jarred Schekeryk was released: Ever Since You Never Heard Of Me
Melanie, who became the voice of an era in one magical instant onstage at Woodstock, has been putting the pieces in order.
Pieces of a career, scattered by the winds of experience and assembled again by the force of love into the most personal and brilliant moments of her musical journey.
Melanie is poised to enlighten new generations about what it means to sing with both passion and eloquence, to write at once with intelligence and emotion, and to inspire through song… and nobody does this better than Melanie.
Others learned this that night at Woodstock, where as a New York kid barely known outside of the coffeehouse circuit in Greenwich Village, she sang her song "Beautiful People" and inspired the first panorama of candles and cigarette lighters ever raised at a concert event. That, in turn, moved the young singer to write "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain"), which sold more than one million copies in 1970 and
prompted Billboard, Cashbox, Melody Maker, Record World, and Bravo to anoint her
as female vocalist of the year. Her single "Brand New Key," an infectious romp about
freedom and roller skates, topped the charts in 1971.
And so her story began.
With guitar in hand and a talent that combined amazing vocal equipment, disarming
humor, and a vibrant engagement with life, she was booked as the first solo pop/rock
artist ever to appear from the Royal Albert Hall to Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan
Opera House, and later opened the New Metropolitan Opera House in New York, the
Sydney Opera House, and in the General Assembly of the United Nations, where she
was invited to perform on many occasions as delegates greeted her performances
with standing ovations.
The top television hosts of all time -- Ed Sullivan, Johnny Carson, and Dick Cavett --
battled to book her. (After her stunning performance on his show, Sullivan goggled
that he had not seen such a "dedicated and responsive audience since ElvisPresley.")
Accolades rolled in, from critics ("Melanie's cult has long been famous, but it's a cult
that's responding to something genuine and powerful -- which is maybe another way
of saying that this writer counts himself as part of the cult too," wrote John Rockwell
in The New York Times) as well as peers ("Melanie," insisted jazz piano virtuoso
Roger Kellaway, "is extraordinary to the point that she could be sitting in front of us in
this room and sing something like 'Momma Momma' right to us, and it would just go
right through your entire being.")
In the years that followed Melanie continued to record, continued to tour.
UNICEF made her its spokesperson; Jimi Hendrix's father introduced her to the
multitude assembled for the twentieth anniversary of Woodstock. Her records
continued to sell -- more than eighty million to date. She's had her songs covered by
singers as diverse as Cher, Dolly Parton, and Macy Gray. She's raised a family, won
an Emmy, opened a restaurant, written a musical about Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity
Jane…
She has, in short, lived a rare life. But all of it was just a prelude to what's about to
come.
"For the first time, I'm not afraid to voice exactly what I feel. I used to feel that I didn't
want to say too much, but now I can say anything. I feel like a person who's never
been heard. Maybe people think they've heard me, but they never really have. I'm a
new artist who is having so much fun with my voice -- a person shouldn't be allowed
to have so much fun. I'm the woman I wanted to be when I was sixteen and going for
Edith Piaf. It's me -- I'm back."
(Written by Robert L. Doerschuk)
Foolin' Yourself
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
fooling yourself? - Are you fooling
fooling yourself?
Are you fooling
fooling yourself! - Are you fooling
fooling yourself?
To think I was a fool and I've been beaten -
A thought like that just kind of cramps my style.
And from my face you're gonna see a smile.
You should have never told me
that you love me
You knew I'd start believing it some day.
And now you say
you're leaving me for lonely -
Someone else is gonna come my way.
you better take some time and think of what you're doing
Before you through away this harmony.
I don't think you know just who's been loosin'
'cause you've been fooling yourself when you think you're fooling me.
Now I'm the kind of girl who don't mind cryin'
But I ain't gonna shed a tear for you.
Unless you change your ways and stop your lying
I'm gonna change my mind about lovin' you.
You should have never told me
that you love me
. . .
You better take some time and think of what you're doin'
Before you through away this harmony.
'cause you don't realize just who's been loosing
Are you think you're fooling me ?
fooling
fooling yourself -
Are you fooling
fooling yourself ?
Are you fooling
fooling yourself ?
Foolin yourself.
In Melanie's song "Fooling Yourself", she addresses the issue of cheating in a relationship. She questions her partner's sincerity and asks if they are fooling themselves by thinking they can get away with cheating on her. She becomes aware of the infidelity and decides to take the matter into her own hands. Melanie acknowledges her own feelings and admits that even though she's been hurt, she's not going to shed a tear for her partner. She makes it clear that she is aware of the cheating and is not going to allow herself to be fooled any longer.
The refrain "Are you fooling, fooling yourself?" is repeated throughout the song, emphasizing the theme of deceit and self-deception. Melanie hints at her partner's hypocrisy and accuses them of trying to deceive her with their lies. Even though she is hurt by the cheating, she remains strong and vows to move on if her partner doesn't change their ways.
Overall, the song is a powerful statement about the importance of honesty and trust in a relationship. Melanie's words encourage listeners to be aware of the dynamics in their own relationships and to confront any behavior that is harmful or dishonest.
Line by Line Meaning
Are you fooling
Asking if the person is deceiving themselves
fooling yourself?
Questioning if the person is deluding themselves
Are you fooling
Reiterating the question of whether the person is lying to themselves
fooling yourself!
Stressing the importance of realizing the truth rather than living in self-delusion
To think I was a fool and I've been beaten
Reflecting on past mistakes and being hurt
A thought like that just kind of cramps my style.
Feeling constrained by negative thoughts
But I'll get you some day for all your cheating
Promising retribution for the other person's infidelity
And from my face you're gonna see a smile.
Vowing to stay strong in spite of hurt
You should have never told me
Blaming the other person for leading them on
that you love me
Specifically referencing the other person's deception
You knew I'd start believing it some day.
Accusing the other person of leading them on intentionally
And now you say
Referencing the other person breaking up with the singer
you're leaving me for lonely -
Expressing betrayal and sense of abandonment
Someone else is gonna come my way.
Looking towards the future with hope for new love
you better take some time and think of what you're doing
Warning the other person to reconsider their choices and reflect on their actions
Before you throwaway this harmony.
Urging the other person to consider the effects of their actions on the relationship
I don't think you know just who's been loosing'
Explaining that the other person is underestimating the cost of their actions
'cause you've been fooling yourself when you think you're fooling me.
Pointing out the other person's failing attempts to deceive the singer
Now I'm the kind of girl who don't mind cryin'
Acknowledging the emotional pain of the situation
But I ain't gonna shed a tear for you.
Rejecting the other person's hold on the singer's emotions
Unless you change your ways and stop your lying
Giving the other person a way to reclaim the singer's love and loyalty
I'm gonna change my mind about lovin' you.
Expressing a willingness to move on if the other person can't change
Foolin yourself.
Repeating the chorus to drive home the message of self-delusion
Contributed by Anna F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.