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)
If I Needed You
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I've gotten used to an empty bed...sometimes
We used to be glowing
But I wouldn't be going now
If I needed you
If I needed you
Oh love, you know I could hold you long
And I may be blowing it
But I wouldn't be growing now
If I needed you
I'll take this space in time
For what I need to say
Some race within the limit
Winning 'cause their needs are in it
Mine have always got in my way
But, I'll sing along to the life and times
Just go wandering alone and learn that I'm the guide
At least it keeps me believing
But I wouldn't be needing now
If I needed you
I wouldn't be bleeding now
I may be blowing it
But I wouldn't be growing now
I would be lying
But I wouldn't be crying now
This might be living
But I wouldn't be dying now
I may be blowing it
But I wouldn't be growing now
I would be lying
But I wouldn't be crying now
If I needed you
The lyrics to Melanie's song If I Needed You seem to be about a person who's gotten over a broken relationship and has learned to live on their own. They've let go of their guilt and innocence and have grown accustomed to sleeping alone. The chorus repeats the phrase "If I needed you" suggesting that although they may have once relied on their partner, they're now at a point where they can live independently. The lyrics also suggest that the person has become more aware of themselves as a result of being alone, that they have learned to take the time to listen to their own needs, and that they are now their own guide.
The lines "Some race within the limit, Winning 'cause their needs are in it, Mine have always got in my way" suggest that the person has been held back by their own needs in the past, but now they have learned to prioritize themselves. There's also a sense of determination to this song to reclaim one’s identity: "I'll sing along to the life and times, Just go wandering alone and learn that I'm the guide, At least it keeps me believing."
Overall, the song seems to convey a sense of empowerment that comes from being able to live on one's own terms, in spite of the difficulties that come with it.
Line by Line Meaning
I've gotten rid of my g(u)ilt and my lily white
I have let go of my past mistakes and facade of purity.
And I've gotten used to an empty bed...sometimes
I've accepted being alone, but sometimes I still feel lonely.
We used to be glowing
Our relationship was once full of life and energy.
But I wouldn't be going now
I wouldn't be leaving you now, if it wasn't for my personal growth.
If I needed you
If I truly needed you, I would stay.
Oh love, you know I could hold you long
I could hold onto our relationship for a long time, out of comfort.
But the holding has turned to lean upon
However, now I have been relying on our relationship too much for support.
And I may be blowing it
I might be making a mistake by leaving.
But I wouldn't be growing now
But I know that leaving is necessary for my personal growth.
I'll take this space in time
I will take this moment to express myself.
For what I need to say
To say what I need to say.
Some race within the limit
Some people compete within their boundaries.
Winning 'cause their needs are in it
They win because their needs are a driving force.
Mine have always got in my way
However, my own needs have always hindered me.
But, I'll sing along to the life and times
But, I will still enjoy life and its moments.
Just go wandering alone and learn that I'm the guide
I will wander and learn to depend on myself for guidance.
At least it keeps me believing
But at least it keeps me hopeful.
But I wouldn't be needing now
If I truly didn't need to leave, I would stay.
I wouldn't be bleeding now
I wouldn't be hurting if it wasn't necessary.
I would be lying
I would be lying if I said I didn't care.
But I wouldn't be crying now
But I wouldn't be crying if I didn't feel the pain.
This might be living
This might be how I'm meant to live my life.
But I wouldn't be dying now
But I wouldn't feel like a part of me is dying if it wasn't necessary.
I may be blowing it
I may be making a mistake, but it's necessary for my growth.
But I wouldn't be growing now
But I wouldn't be growing if I didn't make necessary changes.
I would be lying
I would be lying if I said I didn't care about you.
But I wouldn't be crying now
But I wouldn't be crying if I didn't feel the pain of leaving you.
If I needed you
If I truly needed you, I would stay.
Contributed by Luke C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
drew Roberts
she absolutely blows it out of the park with this one....one of her most gorgeous ballads ever
Barbara Holley
Thanks for all the effort, putting in the lyrics. She is so easy to sing along with.
warren herman
I agree with Ian. She is incredible talent with so much heart. 45 years later her songs, voice,are incredible. Still even a song Melanie didn't write becomes her very own
B Lyndon
This is one of my absolute favorite pop ballads--it's as perfect a song, arrangement and performance as I've ever heard. I love Melanie anyway, but on the Photograph sessions she excelled herself. Thanks so much for posting!
Ian Walker
You're very welcome Brad. Thanks for reminding me...
Judy Perry
Beautiful
Hugh Fathers
I count myself very lucky to have seen Melanie when her Photograph Tour hit Western Australia in the late 70's . . .
Awesome concert, great album . . .
Anthony Vincent
Beautiful song from a great double cd.
Dale McCamish
What a voice!!!!
Richard Smith
The way she changes the meaning of "If I needed you" is poetic magic.