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)
Tell Me Why
Melanie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oooh
We could have had it all
But you turned your back
We started with dreams
We started a team
But you weren't as true as you always seemed
You promised to love
Yet you turned your back and walked out on me
What made you think
That without me
Your life would be so much better but now you see (oh-oh, but now you see)
That without me
Your hopes and dreams (your hopes and your dreams)
Will never be as good as what you had with me
Tell me why, oh why (so tell me why)
Did we end up this way
When we tried, we tried (we tried)
To make everything okay (oooh)
Tell me why, oh why
Did you feel you couldn't stay
When we could have stayed together
But you wanted it this way
You never thought
That I would find out
All of the things you said about us
When you're the one who
Decided to
Erase all our plans and say you approved
What made you think
That without me
Your life would be so much better but now you see (so much
better, but now you see)
That without me (without me)
Your hopes and dreams (they will never)
Will never be as good as what you had with me (had with me)
Tell me why, oh why (tell me why)
Did we end up this way (did we end up this why)
When we tried, we tried (when we tried)
To make everything okay (yes we did)
Tell me why, oh why
Did you feel you couldn't stay (did you feel you couldn't stay)
When we could have stayed together (we could have stayed)
But you wanted it this way
Tell me why, oh why (did we end up this way)
Did we end up this way (I thought it was okay)
When we tried, we tried
To make everything okay (we tried, tried, tried so hard)
Tell me why, oh why
Did you feel you couldn't stay (but it was you who wanted to leave)
When we could have stayed together
But you wanted it this way
Now tell me was it
Your plan all along
To try and use me, and then let go
Now where is the trust
We had between us
I guess that you, never played by the rules
Can you tell me
Tell me why, oh why
Did we end up this way
When we tried, we tried
To make everything okay (we tried, we tried again)
Tell me why, oh why (yes we did)
Did you feel you couldn't stay
When we could have stayed together
(you felt you couldn't stay, but you wanted it this way)
But you wanted it this way
Tell me why, oh why (oh tell me why)
Did we end up this way
When we tried, we tried (we always tried again)
To make everything okay (we always tried again)
Tell me why, oh why (somebody tell me why)
Did you feel you couldn't stay
When we could have stayed together
But you wanted it this way (you wanted this way)
Tell me why, oh why (whoa-oh tell me why)
Did we end up this way (yeah-yeah-yeah)
When we tried, we tried
To make everything okay
Tell me why, oh why
Did you feel you couldn't stay
When we could have stayed together
But you wanted it this way
In Melanie's song "Tell Me Why," the singer is questioning why her relationship ended and why her partner left her. She feels as though they had a promising future together, but he turned his back on their dreams and promises. She struggles to understand why he believed that his life would be better without her and why he felt he couldn't stay with her. Melanie also reveals that she found out he spoke negatively about their relationship to others, which shattered her trust.
The lyrics in this song reveal the pain and confusion that comes with a failed relationship. Melanie's vocals are raw and emotional, emphasizing the hurt and betrayal she feels. The chorus repeats the question "tell me why," reflecting the singer's desperation for answers and closure. Overall, "Tell Me Why" is a powerful ballad that captures the complex feelings that come with heartbreak.
Line by Line Meaning
Spice Girls, Darkchild, Let's Dance
This line is the introduction of the song and the artists involved in creating it.
Oooh
This line is an exclamation sound of the singer expressing her emotion towards the situation.
We could have had it all
This line expresses the regret of the singer towards the lost potential of their relationship.
But you turned your back
This line refers to the betrayal of the singer's partner by abandoning her.
We started with dreams
This line talks about the beginning of their relationship, filled with aspirations for the future.
We started a team
This line refers to the notion of the singer and the partner working as a team towards their shared goals.
But you weren't as true as you always seemed
This line refers to the partner's deceptive behavior and not being true to their promises.
You promised to love
This line is a reference to the partner's commitment to love the singer unconditionally.
No matter what
This line emphasizes the unconditional aspect of the promise mentioned earlier.
Yet you turned your back and walked out on me
This line is an explicit statement of the partner's betrayal as they left the singer when she needed them the most.
What made you think
This line is a question asked by the singer to the partner, questioning their actions and motives.
That without me
This line refers to the partner's belief that their life would be better without the singer.
Your life would be so much better but now you see (oh-oh, but now you see)
This line refers to the realization of the partner that their life without the singer is not as great as they thought it would be.
Your hopes and dreams (your hopes and your dreams)
This line refers to the partner's aspirations and their future plans.
Will never be as good as what you had with me
This line expresses the singer's belief that the partner's life will never be as good as it was when they were together.
Tell me why, oh why (so tell me why)
This line is the chorus of the song, questioning the partner's decision to leave and their actions.
Did we end up this way
This line is a question asked by the singer to the partner regarding the current situation of their relationship.
When we tried, we tried (we tried)
This line highlights the singer's effort to work on the relationship and the partner's lack of effort.
To make everything okay (oooh)
This line is a reference to the singer's desire to restore their relationship to its former state.
Did you feel you couldn't stay
This line is a question asked by the singer to the partner, questioning the partner's motives behind leaving the relationship.
When we could have stayed together
This line is a statement made by the singer, stating that their relationship could have continued if the partner chose to stay.
But you wanted it this way
This line is a statement made by the singer, pointing out that it was the partner's decision to end the relationship.
You never thought
This line is a statement made by the singer, referring to the partner's lack of foresight in ending the relationship.
That I would find out
This line is a statement made by the singer, referring to the partner's deception, and how she found out about it.
All of the things you said about us
This line is a reference to the things the partner said to others about their relationship.
When you're the one who
This line is a statement made by the singer, pointing out the partner's hypocrisy and deception.
Decided to
This line is a reference to the partner's decision to end the relationship.
Erase all our plans and say you approved
This line is a reference to the partner cancelling their plans together, but acting as if the singer approved of it.
Now where is the trust
This line is a statement made by the singer, expressing her disappointment in the lack of trust in their relationship.
We had between us
This line is a reference to the trust that the singer and the partner shared in their previous relationship.
I guess that you, never played by the rules
This line expresses the singer's realization that her partner never abided by the rules and broke her trust.
Now tell me was it
This line is a statement made by the singer, asking the partner to confess their true intentions behind leaving the relationship.
Your plan all along
This line refers to the possibility that the partner had planned to use the singer and leave her all along.
To try and use me, and then let go
This line is a statement made by the singer, accusing the partner of using her and then abandoning her.
Somebody tell me why
This line is a plea made by the singer to understand why the partner chose to leave the relationship.
Whoa-oh tell me why
This line is a reiteration of the earlier line, emphasizing the singer's pleading tone.
Yeah-yeah-yeah
This line is an expression of the singer's emotion towards the situation.
Lyrics © DistroKid, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DENNIS BROWN, JAY HOLT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind