Michael Franks (born 18 September 1944 in La Jolla, California, USA) is a s… Read Full Bio ↴Michael Franks (born 18 September 1944 in La Jolla, California, USA) is a smooth jazz singer and songwriter from the United States. He has recorded with a variety of well-known artists, such as Patti Austin, Brenda Russell, Art Garfunkel, and David Sanborn. His songs have been recorded by The Manhattan Transfer, Patti Labelle, Carmen McRae, Diana Krall, Shirley Bassey and the Carpenters.

Franks grew up in southern California with his father Gerald, his mother Betty and younger sister Christine who is the mother of Connor Sullivan (The lead singer of The Royal Nonesuch). Although no one in his family played music, his parents loved swing music and his early influences included Peggy Lee, Nat King Cole, Ira Gershwin, Irving Berlin and Johnny Mercer. At age 14 Franks bought his first guitar, a Japanese Marco Polo for $29.95 with six private lessons included - the only music education that he received.

At University High in Irvine, Franks discovered the poetry of Theodore Roethke with his off-rhymes and hidden meter. In high school, he began singing folk-rock, accompanying himself on guitar. Studying English at UCLA Michael discovered Dave Brubeck, Patti Page, Stan Getz, João Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Miles Davis. He never studied music in college or later, but earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from UCLA in comparative literature in 1966 and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Oregon in 1968. He had a teaching assistantship in a Ph.D. program in American literature at the University of Montreal before returning to teach part-time at UCLA.

During this time Franks started writing songs, starting with the antiwar musical Anthems in E-flat starring Mark Hamill. He also composed music for the films Count Your Bullets, Cockfighter, and Zandy's Bride, starring Liv Ullmann and Gene Hackman. Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee recorded three of his songs, including "White Boy Lost in the Blues" on their album Sonny & Brownie. Franks played guitar, banjo and mandolin on the album and joined them in touring. In 1973, he recorded an eponymous album, later reissued as Previously Unavailable, which included the minor hit "Can't Seem to Shake This Rock 'n Roll".

In 1975 Franks released his second album The Art of Tea, beginning a long relationship with Warner Brothers Music. The Art of Tea featured Joe Sample, Larry Carlton and Wilton Felder of The Crusaders and included the hit song "Popsicle Toes". His third album, Sleeping Gypsy (1977), which includes the song "The Lady Wants to Know", was partially recorded in Brazil. Around this time, percussionist Ray Armando gave Franks a cabasa, which became a signature instrument for him to play on stage when he was not playing guitar. Burchfield Nines (1978), which includes the song "When the Cookie Jar Is Empty", reflects his move to New York City and features more of an East Coast sound. Since then, Franks has recorded more than 15 albums.

His best known works include "When I Give My Love to You", "Popsicle Toes", "Monkey See, Monkey Do", "Tiger in the Rain", "Rainy Night in Tokyo", and "Tell Me All About It". His biggest hit came in 1983 with "When Sly Calls (Don't Touch That Phone)" from the album Passionfruit. Radio hits include "Your Secret's Safe With Me" from 1985's Skin Dive, and "Island Life" from 1987s The Camera Never Lies.

Wonderland
Michael Franks Lyrics

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Woke up in time to catch the evening news
Sure got some leaders who can spread the blues
I fried some rice up in the frying pan
Headed out the door
Went to wonder, wonder, wonderland
Wonder, wonder wonderland

Down in wonderland I pass the time away

We play the piano But it aint no Steinway
Some fallen angel usually takes my hand and leads me around the corner of wonder, wonder, wonderland
Wonder, wonder, wonderland

All of the people in wonderland have wondrous plans that never come to pass
Life in all her wisdoms made them low
All of the people in wonderland have no regrets they’ve always placed their reigns on debts

Down in wonderland the geals aint joking take you to heaven for a subway token
Each night my woman is with a different man
Leaning on a bar down in wonder, wonder, wonderland
Wonder, wonder, wonderland

All of the people in wonderland have wondrous plans that never come to pass
Life in all her wisdoms made them low
All of the people in wonderland have no regrets they’ve always placed their reigns on debts

Down in wonderland we drown all our sorrows
Got too much yesterdays and no tomorrows
So if you need me I’ll be on the stand,
Fingering the ivories in wonder, wonder, wonderland
Wonder, wonder, wonderland

All of the people in wonderland have wondrous plans that never come to pass (wonderland, wonderland)
Life in all her wisdoms made them low (wonderland, wonderland)
All of the people in wonderland have no regrets they’ve always placed their reigns on debts (wonderland, wonderland)

Life in all her wisdoms made them low (wonderland, wonderland)

Overall Meaning

In "Wonderland" by Michael Franks, the singer wakes up and watches the news featuring leaders who spread negative emotions throughout the world. He cooks some rice and heads out the door to visit Wonderland, a place where time passes differently. He describes how they play the piano there but not on Steinway and his experiences with the people, including a fallen angel who leads him around the corner. Everyone in Wonderland has wondrous plans that never come to pass, made low by the wisdom of life. They have no regrets, but they live in debt, drowning in their sorrows with too much yesterday and no tomorrow.

"Wonderland" is a song that portrays the difficulties and struggles of life. The fallen angel in the song is a metaphor for a metaphorical angel who leads the singer to make the best of what he has in life. He surrounds himself with everyday activities to take his mind off of the negative aspects of life. The lyrics show how people can have wondrous plans, but due to the wisdom of life, they live low lives. The song also describes how people live in debt and drown their sorrows, leading him to play the piano in Wonderland to forget his worries.

Line by Line Meaning

Woke up in time to catch the evening news
I woke up just in time to watch the news broadcast in the evening.

Sure got some leaders who can spread the blues
Our leaders are capable of causing sadness and despair among the people.

I fried some rice up in the frying pan
I cooked rice on the frying pan.

Headed out the door
I left the house.

Went to wonder, wonder, wonderland
I went to a place called Wonderland.

Down in wonderland I pass the time away
I spend my time idling away in Wonderland.

We play the piano But it aint no Steinway
We play the piano, but not a high-quality one like a Steinway.

Some fallen angel usually takes my hand and leads me around the corner of wonder, wonder, wonderland
Some unknown person leads me through the maze-like streets of Wonderland.

All of the people in wonderland have wondrous plans that never come to pass
Everyone in Wonderland has wonderful plans that never materialize.

Life in all her wisdoms made them low
Despite their grand plans, life has brought them low.

All of the people in wonderland have no regrets they’ve always placed their reigns on debts
Nobody in Wonderland has any regrets because they always place their hopes on debts.

Down in wonderland the geals aint joking take you to heaven for a subway token
In Wonderland, the locals are not joking about the transportation that can transport you to heaven for just a subway token.

Each night my woman is with a different man
My partner is with a different person every night.

Leaning on a bar down in wonder, wonder, wonderland
My partner is often found hanging out in a bar in Wonderland.

Down in wonderland we drown all our sorrows
We indulge in drinking to forget our sorrows in Wonderland.

Got too much yesterdays and no tomorrows
We have a lot of regrets from the past and no hope for the future.

So if you need me I’ll be on the stand
If you need me, I'll be playing music on stage.

Fingering the ivories in wonder, wonder, wonderland
I'll play the piano in Wonderland.

Life in all her wisdoms made them low
Despite their grand plans, life has brought them low.

Contributed by Jason C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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