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
Virgin Bride
Morphine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
annie met gary
they moved to eachother
so in love
the future was their canvass
and life was their paint
until their wedding day
gary said, "ok annie. that's alright I can wait."
"But let's get married right away"
soon enough that wedding day rolled around
and it was a very beautiful wedding
you know the kind
after the wedding everybody went back to a big reception
at annie's mother's house
and it was a great party
there was a band, there was food
there was so much love in the air
and annie
annie grabbed a bottle of champagne
she grabbed gary by the hand and they snuck away
from the party
they went downstairs
down to the laundry room
down int he basement
down to the laundry room
soon they were rolling around in the laundry
down in the laundry room
rolling around rolling around
rolling around rolling around
then gary
hit his head on the dryer
he hit it pretty hard
in fact
gary is dead
oh, gary's dead! oh!
if she hadn't waited, then they couldn't say it
a virgin bride is a virgin widow today
if she hadn't waited, then they couldn't say it
a virgin bride is a virgin widow today
The song "Virgin Bride" by Morphine tells a tragic story of a couple named Annie and Gary. The song describes how they met and fell in love, planning their future together in detail, with love being the foundation of their relationship. Annie asks Gary to wait until their wedding day before they make love, to which Gary agrees. The wedding is beautiful and everything they had envisioned. After the reception, Annie and Gary sneak away to the laundry room and continue their romantic evening. However, in a sudden twist of events, Gary hits his head on the dryer, resulting in his death. The final lines of the song reflect on the tragic irony of Annie's decision to wait until marriage, as now she is a virgin widow.
The lyrics are poignant and demonstrate how life can be so unpredictable, as Annie and Gary's happiness is shattered within a few moments. The focus of the song is the irony of the "virgin bride" becoming a "virgin widow" because of her desire to adhere to societal norms and expectations of waiting until marriage. The song also touches on the fleeting nature of life and how we cannot predict what the future holds or how many moments we have left to spend with our loved ones. Overall, the song is a heart-wrenching reminder of how tragedy can strike in the most unexpected of ways.
Line by Line Meaning
it was just a couple of summers ago
The story took place only a few summers ago.
annie met gary
Annie met Gary and started a relationship.
they moved to each other
They got together and started living together.
so in love
They were deeply in love with each other.
the future was their canvas
They had their whole lives ahead of them to plan a beautiful future.
and life was their paint
They had the freedom to create and shape their lives according to their wishes.
but annie, she wanted gary to wait to do it
Annie wanted Gary to wait until their wedding day to have sex.
until their wedding day
Annie wanted them to abstain from sex until they got married.
gary said, "ok annie. that's alright I can wait."
Gary agreed with Annie's request to abstain from sex until they got married.
"But let's get married right away"
Gary proposed to Annie that they should get married without much delay.
soon enough that wedding day rolled around
The day of their wedding came shortly after.
and it was a very beautiful wedding
Their wedding was a very beautiful event.
after the wedding everybody went back to a big reception
After the wedding ceremony, there was a grand reception.
at annie's mother's house
The reception was held at the house of Annie's mother.
and it was a great party
The reception was a great party with lots of fun and merrymaking.
there was a band, there was food
There was a live band playing music, and lots of food to enjoy at the party.
there was so much love in the air
There was lots of love and happiness surrounding the newly-married couple.
annie grabbed a bottle of champagne
Annie picked up a bottle of champagne to celebrate her wedding with Gary.
she grabbed gary by the hand and they snuck away from the party
Annie took Gary by the hand and they both sneaked away from the reception.
they went downstairs
They went to the downstairs area of the house.
down to the laundry room
They went down to the laundry room in the basement.
down in the basement
They were in the basement of the house.
down to the laundry room
They were in the laundry room to be precise.
soon they were rolling around in the laundry
They were having sex in the laundry room.
rolling around, rolling around, rolling around, rolling around
They were having sex while rolling around together in the laundry room.
then gary hit his head on the dryer
While having sex, Gary hit his head on the dryer.
he hit it pretty hard
Gary hit his head with enough force to cause some serious injury.
in fact
In reality or truth.
gary is dead
The injury caused Gary to die.
oh, gary's dead! oh!
The death of Gary was a heartbreaking and shocking event.
if she hadn't waited, then they couldn't say it
If Annie had not requested Gary to wait until their wedding day to have sex, the tragedy would not have occurred.
a virgin bride is a virgin widow today
Annie became a widow on the same day she got married, and she had not had sex before she got married.
if she hadn't waited, then they couldn't say it
If Annie had not requested Gary to wait until their wedding day to have sex, the tragedy would not have occurred.
a virgin bride is a virgin widow today
Annie became a widow on the same day she got married, and she had not had sex before she got married.
Contributed by Abigail F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Rodrigo Perez Gallardo
One of the best song I had heard.
Such a kind of story, that only Mark can say in that way ... Romantic, tragic, funny, super, super low. Genius , it moved me so deeply.
Richard Wainwright
Such a great photo. Such a great song
QuasiTraction
It's funny, sometimes this pops in my head when I'm down in the laundry room.
Damian Piovaroli
I love your channel! Greetings from Argentina!