Things kicked into high gear when he replaced John Foxx as the singer of the famous electronic music group Ultravox in 1979. Shortly afterwards, the New Wave band had a huge U.K. hit with "Vienna", and it became one of Britain's most popular groups for several years. As well, later that year, Ure also formed the band Visage. In 1980, Ure and Thin Lizzy leader Phil Lynott co-wrote Lynott's biggest solo hit, titled "Yellow Pearl". A re-recording of the song done in 1981 was used as the theme for 'Top of the Pops', a music-centered television series.
In 1984, Ure co-wrote, with Bob Geldof, the Band Aid hit, "Do They Know It's Christmas?". He was one of the few featured stars who did not sing solo on the recording. The following year, Ure scored his one and only solo U.K. number one single with "If I Was", a wistful track that's since been considered his 'signature song'. This was followed by an album titled 'The Gift'. With Ure's mind clearly on other matters, Ultravox took second place and soon dissolved.
Ure's solo career continued into the 90s with sporadic success. However, "Breathe" was an international hit single, helped by its inclusion in a TV advertising campaign for Swatch watches. Ultravox songs with his work remained popular among many electronic music fans.
Ure more recently organized the Live 8 concerts with Bob Geldof with the aim of pressuring G8 leaders into following his recipe for ending world poverty. In 2005 he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to music and charity.
Ure has been married twice: to actress and writer Annabel Giles (with whom he has one daughter, Molly) and to Sheridan Ure (with whom he has three daughters, Kitty, Ruby and Flossie).
His daughter Molly has followed her father into the music industry, as the guitarist and vocalist of all-girl group The Faders.
Sweet 'n Sensitive Thing
Midge Ure Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How sweet the memories and souvenirs
In a moment all the pieces just blew away
Lost forever
All the daydreams, lay shattered by your side
All you cling to is empty love and pride
All your comfort is all the tears you cried
I built my world around you
Dreamed of a life beside you
I laid my heart upon the ground
My sweet and sensitive thing
What price the luxuries I own
That breaks a high, a heart, a home
In a lifetime it's the only thing I achieved
Lost forever
All the sweet dreams, lay shattered by my side
All I cling to is empty love and pride
All the comfort is all the tears I've cried
That echo round this lonely heart
I built my world around you
Dreamed of a life beside you
I laid my heart upon the ground
My sweet and sensitive thing
I built my world around you
Dreamed of a life beside you
I laid my heart upon the ground
My sweet and sensitive thing
All the daydreams, lay shattered by your side
All you cling to is empty love and pride
All your comfort is all the tears you've cried
That echo 'round this lonely heart
I built my world around you
Dreamed of a life beside you
I laid my heart upon the ground
My sweet and sensitive thing
I laid a deep foundation
Displayed a new elation
I bared my soul to all the world
My sweet and sensitive thing
Midge Ure's song "Sweet 'n' Sensitive Thing" delves into themes of love and loss over time. Ure reflects on how memories and souvenirs can be sweet, but they can also become lost forever. He speaks to the shattered dreams that come alongside lost love and pride, and how the only comfort is often found in the tears that are shed. The repetition of the chorus emphasizes the depth of emotional attachment the singer feels towards what he refers to as his "sweet and sensitive thing" - likely a former love interest.
The second verse shifts focus to the consequences of prioritizing material luxuries over what truly matters - love and relationships. Ure discusses the heartbreak that comes with recognizing that these things have been lost forever, paralleling the sentiment from the first verse. The final verse brings the song full circle, with Ure emphasizing the depth of emotion and vulnerability that he had shared with this love interest - he had built his world around them and dreamed of spending his life beside them. Ure closes the song with the phrase "My sweet and sensitive thing," underscoring just how much this person means to him, despite their relationship being lost.
Line by Line Meaning
So strange how it changes through the years
It is strange how things change over the years
How sweet the memories and souvenirs
The memories and souvenirs are sweet
In a moment all the pieces just blew away
All the pieces just disappeared in a moment
Lost forever
They are lost forever
All the daydreams, lay shattered by your side
All the daydreams are shattered by your side
All you cling to is empty love and pride
All you have left is empty love and pride
All your comfort is all the tears you cried
The only comfort is the tears you cried
That echo 'round this lonely heart
The echo is heard around a lonely heart
I built my world around you
I centered my world around you
Dreamed of a life beside you
I dreamt of a life with you
I laid my heart upon the ground
I exposed my heart
My sweet and sensitive thing
You are my sweet and sensitive thing
What price the luxuries I own
What was the cost of the luxuries I own
That breaks a high, a heart, a home
That breaks a spirit, a heart and a home
In a lifetime it's the only thing I achieved
It's the only thing I achieved in a lifetime
All the sweet dreams, lay shattered by my side
All the sweet dreams are shattered by my side
All I cling to is empty love and pride
All I have left is empty love and pride
All the comfort is all the tears I've cried
The only comfort is the tears I've cried
That echo round this lonely heart
The echo is heard around this lonely heart
I laid a deep foundation
I established a strong base
Displayed a new elation
Showed a newfound joy
I bared my soul to all the world
I revealed my deepest thoughts and feelings to the world
My sweet and sensitive thing
You are my sweet and sensitive thing
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind