Born and raised in rural Victoria, Cave studied art before fronting The Birthday Party, one of Melbourne's leading post-punk bands, in the late 1970s. They relocated to London in 1980, but, disillusioned by life there, evolved towards a darker, more challenging sound, and acquired a reputation as "the most violent live band in the world". At this time, Cave, with his shock of black hair and pale, emaciated look, became an unwilling gothic rock poster boy. Soon after the band's break-up in 1983, Cave formed Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Much of the band's early material was set in a mythic American Deep South, drawing on spirituals and Delta blues, while Cave's preoccupation with Old Testament notions of good versus evil culminated in what has been called his signature song, "The Mercy Seat" (1988). The 1990s saw Cave achieve greater commercial success with quieter, piano-driven ballads, notably the Kylie Minogue duet "Where the Wild Roses Grow" (1996), and "Into My Arms" (1997). More recent releases, including the band's 17th and latest LP, Ghosteen (2019), feature increasingly abstract lyrics from Cave, as well as elements of ambient and electronic music. Grinderman, Cave's garage rock side project, has released two albums since 2006.
Cave co-wrote, scored and starred in the 1988 Australian prison film Ghosts... of the Civil Dead (1988), directed by John Hillcoat. He also wrote the screenplay for Hillcoat's bushranger film The Proposition (2005), and composed the soundtrack with frequent collaborator Warren Ellis. The pair's film score credits include The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007), The Road (2009), Lawless (2012), and Hell or High Water (2016). Cave is the subject of several films, including the semi-fictional "day in the life" 20,000 Days on Earth (2014), and the documentary One More Time with Feeling (2016). Cave has also released two novels: And the Ass Saw the Angel (1989) and The Death of Bunny Munro (2009).
Cave's work has become the subject of academic study, and his songs have been covered by a wide range of artists, including Johnny Cash ("The Mercy Seat"), Metallica ("Loverman") and Snoop Dogg ("Red Right Hand"). He was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2007, and named an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2017.
Orpheus
Nick Cave Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wondering what to do
With a lump of wood, and a piece of wire
And a little pot of glue
Oh mama, oh mama
He sawed at the wood with half a heart
And glued it top to bottom
He was feeling something rotten
Oh mama, oh mama
Orpheus looked at his instrument
And he gave the wire a pluck
He heard a sound so beautiful
He gasped and said "Oh my God"
Oh mama, oh mama
He rushed inside to tell his wife
He went racing down the halls
Eurydice was still asleep in bed
Like a sack of cannonballs
Oh mama, oh mama
Look what I've made, cried Orpheus
And he plucked a gentle note
Eurydice's eyes popped from their sockets
And her tongue burst through her throat
Oh mama, oh mama
"Oh God, what have I done," he said
As her blood pooled in the sheets
But in his heart he felt a bliss
Which nothing could compete
Oh mama, oh mama
Orpheus went leaping through the fields
Strumming as hard as he did please
Birdies detonated in the sky
Bunnies dashed their brains out on the trees
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Orpheus strummed 'til his fingers bled
He hit a G minor 7
He woke up God from a deep, deep sleep
God was a major player in heaven
Oh mama, oh mama
God picked up a giant hammer
And He threw it with a thunderous yell
It smashed down hard on Orpheus' head
And it knocked him down a well
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Well, the well went down very deep
Very deep went down the well
Well, the well went down so very deep
Well, the well went down to hell
Oh mama, oh mama
Poor Orpheus woke up with a start
All amongst the rotting dead
His lyre tucked safe under his arm
His brains all down his head
Oh mama, oh mama
Eurydice appeared brindled in blood
She said to Orpheus
"If you play that fucking thing down here
I'll stick it up your orifice!"
Oh mama, oh mama
"This lyre lark is for the birds," said Orpheus
"It's enough to send you bats
Let's stay down here, Eurydice, dear
We'll have a bunch of screaming brats"
Oh mama, oh mama
Orpheus picked up his lyre for the last time
He was on a real low down bummer
He stared deep into the abyss and said
This one is for Mama
Oh mama, oh mama
Oh mama, oh mama
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
The song "The Lyre of Orpheus" by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds tells the story of Orpheus, the legendary musician, poet, and prophet of ancient Greek mythology. The story goes that after Orpheus's wife, Eurydice, died, he went down to hell to retrieve her. He charmed the creatures of the underworld with his music and convinced Hades, the god of the dead, to allow him to take Eurydice back to the world of the living with one condition, he must not look back until they reached the upper world. However, Orpheus looked back at Eurydice just as they reached the upper world, causing her to be lost forever. The lyrics focus on Orpheus's creation of a lyre and his journey to hell in an attempt to bring his wife back.
The first verse talks about Orpheus's crafting of a lyre from a lump of wood, a piece of wire, and a little pot of glue. The second verse describes Orpheus's amazement at the beautiful sound produced by the lyre. The third verse follows Orpheus as he rushes to tell his wife about the lyre, but upon entering the bedroom, he accidentally plucks a string of the instrument, causing her death. The fourth verse depicts Orpheus's rampage through the fields, causing the destruction of numerous animals. The final verse finds Orpheus in the underworld with his wife, deciding to stay there and have children rather than attempt to return to the world above.
Overall, the lyrics of "The Lyre of Orpheus" explore themes of creativity, love, loss, grief, and the desire for immortality. The story of Orpheus and Eurydice has been retold in various forms throughout history, and these lyrics add another layer to the enduring myth.
Line by Line Meaning
Orpheus sat gloomy in his garden shed
Orpheus was sitting sadly in his garden shed
Wondering what to do
He was thinking about what he should do
With a lump of wood, and a piece of wire
He had a piece of wood and a wire with him
And a little pot of glue
He also had a little bit of glue
Oh mama, oh mama
These are simply repeated lines that express Orpheus' feelings of despair
He sawed at the wood with half a heart
Orpheus began working on the wood with a feeling of disinterest
And glued it top to bottom
He glued pieces of wood to each other
He strung a wire in between
Then he put a wire in between the glued wood
He was feeling something rotten
Orpheus was feeling quite unhappy
Orpheus looked at his instrument
Orpheus looked at the thing he created
And he gave the wire a pluck
He tested the instrument by plucking the wire
He heard a sound so beautiful
He was surprised by how beautiful the sound was
He gasped and said "Oh my God"
Orpheus was astonished and said "Oh my God"
He rushed inside to tell his wife
Orpheus went inside to tell his wife about what he made
He went racing down the halls
He was running through the halls
Eurydice was still asleep in bed
His wife Eurydice was still sleeping in bed
Like a sack of cannonballs
She was sleeping soundly
Look what I've made, cried Orpheus
Orpheus exclaimed that he made something
And he plucked a gentle note
He plucked a note again to show his wife
Eurydice's eyes popped from their sockets
Eurydice's eyes opened widely in surprise
And her tongue burst through her throat
Her tongue popped out with surprise
"Oh God, what have I done," he said
Orpheus realized he made a mistake
As her blood pooled in the sheets
Blood from the popped artery stained the sheets
But in his heart he felt a bliss
Despite the horror, Orpheus felt an unexplainable bliss
Which nothing could compete
This feeling was unmatchable
Orpheus went leaping through the fields
Orpheus ran through the fields happy and excited
Strumming as hard as he did please
Playing his instrument happily as much as he wanted
Birdies detonated in the sky
The loud sound of the instrument caused birds to fly away
Bunnies dashed their brains out on the trees
Rabbits ran into trees and died
Orpheus strummed 'til his fingers bled
He continued playing until his fingers hurt a lot
He hit a G minor 7
He played a certain chord called G minor 7
He woke up God from a deep, deep sleep
The powerful sound woke up God from sleep
God was a major player in heaven
God was a prominent figure in heaven
God picked up a giant hammer
God picked up a huge hammer
And He threw it with a thunderous yell
He threw the hammer with a loud yell
It smashed down hard on Orpheus' head
The hammer hit Orpheus' head and smashed it badly
And it knocked him down a well
He was knocked out and fell down a well
Well, the well went down very deep
The well was very deep
Very deep went down the well
The well went down a lot deep
Well, the well went down so very deep
Again, he repeats the depth of the well - it was extremely deep
Well, the well went down to hell
The well went all the way down to hell
Poor Orpheus woke up with a start
Orpheus woke up suddenly
All amongst the rotting dead
He woke up surrounded by dead bodies
His lyre tucked safe under his arm
His instrument was still safe under his arm
His brains all down his head
His brain was damaged and coming out of his head
Eurydice appeared brindled in blood
His wife Eurydice appeared and was covered in blood
She said to Orpheus
Eurydice spoke to Orpheus
"If you play that fucking thing down here
Eurydice was angry that Orpheus brought his instrument
I'll stick it up your orifice!"
She threatened to harm him with it
"This lyre lark is for the birds," said Orpheus
Orpheus realized that his instrument was not important and not worth the trouble it caused
"It's enough to send you bats
He thought it was crazy and could cause trouble
Let's stay down here, Eurydice, dear
He suggested that they stay in hell together
We'll have a bunch of screaming brats"
He promised that they would have children
Orpheus picked up his lyre for the last time
Orpheus picked up his instrument for the final time
He was on a real low down bummer
Orpheus had a feeling of despair
He stared deep into the abyss and said
Orpheus looked into the depths
This one is for Mama
He dedicated his final performance to his mother
Oh mama, oh mama (oh mama, oh mama)
He repeats his mother's nickname to himself as he plays the final tune. It reflects his feeling of love and longing towards his mother.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Mute Song Limited
Written by: Jim Sclavunos, Martyn Casey, Nicholas Cave, Warren Ellis
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
moenbase
on Nick Cave & Enya - (Don't Fear) The Reaper
Don't fear the reaper isn't sung by Cave. It's H.I.M. And... the lyrics is from a completely different song; Disco 2000, original by Pulp, but yea, also sung by Cave.