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)
I Am Being Guided
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I am being guided
I have got a guider
I am being driven
I am not the driver,ah
I am not the driver
I am not the driver, ah no
A little gift to living
Living's nothing more than
Giving back to life
Give back to life
Give back to life
I am being guided
I have got a guider
I am being driven
I am not the driver, no
I am not the driver, Ah
I am not the driver
I am not the driver
I am not the driver
I am not the driver
In the lyrics of Melanie's song "I Am Being Guided," the artist speaks about the idea of guidance and surrendering control. The lyrics suggest that the artist feels as though they are being led or guided, rather than being in control of their own life's path. They describe themselves as not being the driver, but instead being driven by something beyond their own control. The repeated use of the phrase "I am not the driver" emphasizes the idea of surrendering control and allowing oneself to be guided.
The lyrics go on to suggest that the purpose of life is to give back to the world in some way, and that the artist sees themselves as a small gift to the greater good. The repetition of the phrase "give back to life" emphasizes the importance of contributing to the world around us. The overarching theme of the song seems to be one of surrender and trust, allowing oneself to be guided towards a greater purpose.
Overall, the lyrics of Melanie's "I Am Being Guided" speak to the idea of letting go of control and trusting in the guidance of something greater than oneself. It encourages listeners to let go of the need to be in control and instead surrender to the journey of life, with the intention of giving back to the world in some way.
Line by Line Meaning
I am being guided
Something or someone is leading and showing me the way.
I have got a guider
I have a guide who helps me navigate through life.
I am being driven
I am being compelled to follow a certain path or course of action.
I am not the driver,ah
I am not in control of my own journey.
I am nothing more than
I am just a small part of something bigger than myself.
A little gift to living
I am here to contribute and bring something positive to the world.
Living's nothing more than
The true purpose of life is to give back and make a difference.
Giving back to life
Returning the favor to life and the world for all that it has given us.
Give back to life
Continuously contributing and helping others is important in life.
Give back to life
Continuously contributing and helping others is important in life.
I am not the driver, no
Once again, I am not in complete control of my own journey.
I am not the driver, Ah
Reiterating the fact that I am not the one steering the wheel.
I am not the driver
A final reminder that I am not the one leading my own life.
I am not the driver
A final reminder that I am not the one leading my own life.
Contributed by Ian H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Groovy Guru
The video is a perfect accompaniment to this gorgeous Melanie song thanks once again Sky Vibes
Sky Vibes
Thanks Groovy!
Randy InCanton
My deepest condolences and prayers for Tiger Lily. How many ways can I say "Thank You" for this, and all the others? I have been hoping for one of your brilliant videos to this song...I have arranged this song in my mind so many times, as the one song of Melanie's I would love to record. Once again, "Thank You!"
Sky Vibes
Thanks Randy, it was the best thing for her in the end, it feels weird without her though. And thank you for being a supporter of my channel, it's heartwarming to know that there are people who appreciate one's efforts, and I'm glad I got around to making a video for this song, it took Tiger Lily's demise to trigger it, and Melanie's words of course. All the others? Yes, I've surprised myself with how I've managed to be inspired to make hundreds of videos, most of them quite different, maybe not so much in style, but definitely in content, and I'm hoping that the "muse" will continue, one never knows when the ideas may cease. Take care, my friend!
Dave Henderson
Sorry about your cat Sky Vibes. Happy next life Tilly. Sad.
Sky Vibes
Thanks Dave, she had a good, long life, and she's free from the pain she's been enduring these last few months, I'm sure she'll be happy in Cat Heaven.