While "Good" earned the band critical notoriety and substantial underground cred, they did not -- with this release or any subsequent -- break into the mainstream. After the release of Good, the band replaced Dupree with Billy Conway, a former bandmate of Sandman. Morphine's 1992 release of Cure for Pain, promoted by heavy touring, received some mainstream positive attention, selling over 300,000 copies worldwide and spawning a chart hit in many countries with the single Buena
Subsequent releases include Yes and Like Swimming.
On July 3, 1999, Mark Sandman collapsed on stage in Palestrina, Italy, a suburb of Rome. He was pronounced dead of a heart attack at the scene. He was 46. Morphine released The Night -- arguably their best effort -- posthumously in 2000.
After Sandman's death, the remaining band members reformed and continued to record as Twinemen and later as The Ever Expanding Elastic Waste Band
In 2004, the Mark Sandman box set Sandbox was released by Hi-n-Dry, Mark Sandman's own label. It contains two CDs and a DVD of previously unreleased material spanning Sandman’s musical career. The DVD features clips from early Sandman shows, interviews from the Morphine tours, and various videos from other Sandman solo and group projects, such as Treat Her Right.
"Some day there'll be a cure for pain,
And that's the day I throw my drugs away" - Mark Sandman
Links:
The Other Side - A Morphine Fanzine
Morphine at Myspace
Night
Morphine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You're a folk tale, the unexplainable
You're a bedtime story. The one that keeps the curtains closed.
I hope you're waiting for me cause I can make it on my own.
I can make it on my own.
It's too dark to see the landmarks. I don't want your good luck charms.
You're the night, Lilah. You're everything that we can't see.
Lilah, you're the possibility.
You're the bedtime story. The one that keeps the curtains closed.
And I hope you're waiting for me cause I can make it on my own.
I can make it on my own.
Unknown the unlit world of old. You're the sounds I never heard before.
Off the map where the wild things grow. Another world outside my door.
Here I stand I'm all alone. Drive me down the pitch black road.
Lilah you're my only home and I can't make it on my own.
You're a bedtime story. The one that keeps the curtains closed.
And I hope you're waiting for me cause I can make it on my own.
I can make it on my own.
You're the paint can falling off the wall at the door that slams at the end of the hall where the kid rings sounds of basketball. The battle of the earth of the angels. The shifting snow drifts so realistic, so realistic - call you carpet of stars. See there is something in the yard. It's awful dark. With the painted strings, the cross, the good luck charm, the prayer, the extra layer. The group ?
The lyrics to Morphine's "The Night" paint a picture of a personified concept, Lilah, who represents the night. Lilah is described as a "little girl lost in the woods" and a "folk tale" - something that is unexplainable and mystical. She is also compared to a bedtime story that "keeps the curtains closed", implying that she is something that is hidden and not easily understood.
The singer in the song expresses a hope that Lilah is waiting for them, because they believe they can make it on their own. However, the darkness of the night makes it difficult to see landmarks and the singer doesn't want good luck charms - they want Lilah's guidance across the stars.
As the song goes on, Lilah is further described as representing the unknown and unlit world of old. She is the "sounds I never heard before" and the entrance to "another world outside my door". The image of Lilah as a bedtime story recurs, and the singer emphasizes their hope that Lilah is waiting for them because they "can't make it on [their] own".
Overall, the lyrics to "The Night" use Lilah as a metaphor for the mysteriousness and potential of the night. The singer is seeking guidance and comfort from her, emphasizing that Lilah represents the possibility of exploration and growth.
Line by Line Meaning
You're the night, Lilah. A little girl lost in the woods.
You're mysterious and elusive, like a young girl wandering aimlessly in a forest.
You're a folk tale, the unexplainable
You're like a legend that can't be defined or understood.
You're a bedtime story. The one that keeps the curtains closed.
You're a tale that makes us feel safe and secure, even in the dark.
I hope you're waiting for me cause I can make it on my own.
I'm confident that I can succeed, but I still hope you're there for me.
It's too dark to see the landmarks. I don't want your good luck charms.
I'm lost and disoriented, but I don't want false hope to guide me.
I hope you're waiting for me across your carpet of stars.
I hope you're out there somewhere, shining like a star in the night sky.
You're everything that we can't see. Lilah, you're the possibility.
You're the unknown and the potential that lies beyond our understanding.
Unknown the unlit world of old. You're the sounds I never heard before.
You're something new and unfamiliar, like the sounds of an unexplored realm.
Off the map where the wild things grow. Another world outside my door.
You're like a hidden world full of untamed wonders, just beyond my reach.
Here I stand I'm all alone. Drive me down the pitch black road.
I'm alone and afraid, but I still want to venture into the unknown.
Lilah you're my only home and I can't make it on my own.
You're the only place where I feel safe and comfortable, and I need you.
You're the paint can falling off the wall at the door that slams at the end of the hall where the kid rings sounds of basketball.
You're the unexpected and chaotic moments of life that remind us of its unpredictability.
The battle of the earth of the angels. The shifting snow drifts so realistic, so realistic - call you carpet of stars.
You're the perceived conflict between reality and the magical, beautiful things in life.
See there is something in the yard. It's awful dark. With the painted strings, the cross, the good luck charm, the prayer, the extra layer. The group ?
There's something ominous and unknown lurking outside, and we're grasping at anything that might bring us comfort and protection.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVID JAMES JR. MINEHAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind