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)
Life Will Not Go Away
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Close friends mourned and loved one cried
I wanted to shout down from my dream and say
Life will not go away
You can die in battle, you can die in sleep
Even though you lose most everything
There's always something you will keep
Life will not go away
Li di di di di . . .
Life will not go way
You can't take it with you but there is this little part
That goes and continues in the realm of the heart
So rejoice in living and let the music play
Life will not go away
Well you won't take baggage when your time has come
Dreams go with you and deeds will be undone
So remember every promise and don't be lead astray
Life will not go away
Li di di di di . . .
Life will not go away
I will leave the planet quieter than it was yesterday
Life will not go away
Li di di di di . . .
Life will not go away
Well you won't take baggage when your time has come
Dreams go with you and deeds will be undone
So remember every promise and don't be lead astray
I will leave the planet quieter than it was yesterday
Life will not go away
The song "Life Will Not Go Away" by Melanie is a powerful reminder that even though death is inevitable, life is a precious gift that should be cherished. The lyrics describe a dream in which the singer dies, and witnesses her loved ones mourning and crying for her. Despite the sadness, she feels the need to tell them from beyond the grave that life will go on. The song emphasizes the idea that even if we lose everything we have, there is always something that we will keep. It might not be tangible, but it lives on in the realm of the heart.
Throughout the song, the singer reassures herself and those around her that life will continue on after she is gone. She encourages her listeners to rejoice in living and to let the music play. As she faces the inevitability of death, she reminds us that we can't take our baggage with us, but we can take our dreams and memories. It's important to remember our promises and not be led astray, in order to make the most of our time on this earth. The song ends with the singer acknowledging that she will leave the planet quieter than it was yesterday, but that life will not go away.
Overall, the lyrics of "Life Will Not Go Away" are a poignant reminder of the fleeting nature of life and the importance of cherishing every moment we have. The song encourages listeners to focus on what really matters and to make the most out of our time on this earth.
Line by Line Meaning
The other night I dream I died
Melanie dreamt that she died
Close friends mourned and loved one cried
Her close friends were grieving and her loved ones were shedding tears
I wanted to shout down from my dream and say
Melanie had a desire to communicate something important from her dream
Life will not go away
Even after death, life persists and carries on
You can die in battle, you can die in sleep
Death can happen in different ways
Even though you lose most everything
Despite losing almost everything in life
There's always something you will keep
You will still hold onto something valuable
You can take my body but I will not die
Her physical body may die but her spirit and essence will continue to live on
Li di di di di . . .
Non-lyrical part
You can't take it with you but there is this little part
When you die, you can't take material possessions but a part of you will remain
That goes and continues in the realm of the heart
That part which continues is something that resides in the emotional core of a person
So rejoice in living and let the music play
Enjoy the life you have and keep moving forward
Well you won't take baggage when your time has come
You can't take the burden of regrets and mistakes with you when you die
Dreams go with you and deeds will be undone
All your aspirations and achievements will disappear once you die
So remember every promise and don't be lead astray
Keep your word and stay true to your values
I will leave the planet quieter than it was yesterday
Melanie's death will make the world a quieter place
Contributed by Jasmine O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.