The band has featured international personnel throughout its career and presently consists of Cave, violinist and multi-instrumentalist Warren Ellis, bassist Martyn P. Casey (all from Australia), guitarist George Vjestica (United Kingdom), keyboardist/percussionist Toby Dammit (United States) and drummers Thomas Wydler (Switzerland) and Jim Sclavunos (United States). The band has released sixteen studio albums and completed numerous international tours, and has been considered "one of the most original and celebrated bands of the post-punk and alternative rock eras in the '80s and onward".
The band was founded in 1983 following the demise of Cave and Harvey's former group the Birthday Party, the members of which met at a boarding school in Victoria. By the release of their fifth studio album Tender Prey in 1988, they shifted from post-punk towards an experimental alternative rock sound, later incorporating various influences throughout their career. For example, the 2008 album Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! and the side-project Grinderman were strongly influenced by garage rock. Synthesizers and minimal guitar work feature prominently on Push the Sky Away (2013), recorded after Harvey's departure from the band in 2009.
The project that would later evolve into Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds began following the demise of The Birthday Party in August 1983. Both Cave and Harvey were members of the Birthday Party, along with guitarist Rowland S. Howard and bassist Tracy Pew. During the recording sessions of the Birthday Party's scheduled EPs Mutiny/The Bad Seed, internal disputes developed in the band. The difference in Cave and Howard's approach to songwriting was a major factor, as Cave explained in an interview with On The Street: "the main reason why The Birthday Party broke up was that the sort of songs that I was writing and the sort of songs that Rowland was writing were just totally at odds with each other." Following the departure of Harvey, they officially disbanded. Cave also said that "it probably would have gone on longer, but Mick has the ability to judge things much more clearly than the rest of us."[8]
Cave and guitarist Kid Congo Powers during the band's 1986 tour.
An embryonic version of what would later become Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds was formed in the Birthday Party's then-home of London in September 1983, with Cave, Harvey (acting primarily as drummer), Einstürzende Neubauten guitarist Bargeld, Magazine bassist Barry Adamson, and Jim G. Thirlwell. The band was initially formed as a backing band for Cave's intended solo project Man Or Myth?, which had been approved by the record label Mute Records. During September and October 1983, they recorded material with producer Flood,[9] although the sessions were cut short due to Cave's touring with the Immaculate Consumptive, another project formed with Thirlwell, Lydia Lunch and Marc Almond.[10] In December 1983 Cave returned to Melbourne, Australia, where he formed a temporary line-up of his backing band, due to Bargeld's absence, that included Pew and guitarist Hugo Race. The band performed their first live show at Seaview in St. Kilda on 31 December 1983.
Following a short Australian tour, and during a period when they were without management, Cave and his band returned to London. Cave, Harvey, Bargeld, Race and Adamson formed the project's first consistent line-up, while Cave's longtime girlfriend Anita Lane was credited as a lyricist on the band's debut album.[citation needed] The group, which up to this time had been nameless, adopted the moniker Nick Cave and the Cavemen, which they used for the first six months of their career. However, they were later renamed Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in May 1984, in reference to the final Birthday Party EP The Bad Seed.[citation needed] They began recording sessions for their debut album in March 1984 at London's Trident Studios and these sessions, together with the abandoned Man Or Myth? sessions from September–October 1983 that were recorded at The Garden studios, formed the album From Her to Eternity, released on Mute Records in 1984.
Lovely Creature
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There she stands, there she stands
With her hair full of ribbons
And green gloves on her hands
So I asked this lovely creature
Yes, I asked
Yes, I asked
Through this night so vast
She took my hand, this lovely creature
"Yes", she said, "Yes", she said
"Yes, I'll walk with you a while"
It was a joyful man she led
Over hills, this lovely creature
Over mountains, over ranges
By great pyramids and sphinxes
We met drifters and strangers
Oh the sands, my lovely creature
And the mad, moaning winds
At night the deserts writhed
With diabolical things
Through the night, through the night
The wind lashed and it whipped me
When I got home, my creature
Was no longer with me
Somewhere she lies, this lovely creature
Beneath the slow drifting sands
With her hair full of ribbons
And green gloves on her hands
The song Lovely Creature by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds is a hauntingly beautiful piece of music that tells the story of a man who meets a lovely creature in the night, and together they traverse the vast unknown. The song speaks of adventure, love, and loss. It is a metaphorical journey that speaks directly to the soul. The opening line, "There she stands, this lovely creature", sets the tone for the entire song as it introduces the listener to the mysterious and enchanting figure that will be the central character.
As the song progresses, we see the singer and the lovely creature walking together through the night. They cross over hills and mountains and meet up with drifters and strangers along the way. They journey past the great pyramids and sphinxes, and even in the desolate deserts, they find beauty. However, the mood shifts when the wind becomes harsh and lashes out at the singer as they journey into the night. By the time the two return home, she is no longer with him, and the final verse speaks of her lying beneath the slow drifting sands.
The lyrics of Lovely Creature are exceptionally poetic and full of symbolism. The song speaks of love, adventure, and loss in a powerful and emotional way that lingers in the listener's memory long after the song has ended.
Line by Line Meaning
There she stands, this lovely creature
The singer observes a beautiful being in front of him.
With her hair full of ribbons
The creature has decorated herself elaborately, putting on ribbons in her hair.
And green gloves on her hands
The creature is also wearing green gloves to accentuate her appearance.
So I asked this lovely creature
The artist initiates a conversation with the enchanting creature.
Yes, I asked
The artist sought permission to approach for a conversation.
Would she walk with me a while
The singer requests the lovely creature for a walk together.
Through this night so vast
The singer proposes to traverse the seemingly endless darkness of the night.
She took my hand, this lovely creature
The creature agrees to accompany the artist while holding his hand.
"Yes", she said, "Yes", she said
The creature eagerly grants the artist's request to walk with him.
"Yes, I'll walk with you a while"
The creature consents to accompany the artist for some time.
It was a joyful man she led
The singer feels ecstatic as he follows the creature's guidance.
Over hills, this lovely creature
The duo traverses over hills, enjoying the views.
Over mountains, over ranges
The creature and the singer cross mountains and mountainous areas.
By great pyramids and sphinxes
They encounter and explore large pyramids and sphinxes.
We met drifters and strangers
The two come across unknown people who appeared to come from various places.
Oh the sands, my lovely creature
The artist reminisces about the sand-covered areas they explored.
And the mad, moaning winds
He also recalls the ghostly and eerie sounds of the wind that they felt.
At night the deserts writhed
The singer remembers how the desert seemed to twist and writhe during the night.
With diabolical things
The singer suggests that the desert appeared to be the home of Satan and his minions.
Through the night, through the night
The artist reiterates that they journeyed through the night.
The wind lashed and it whipped me
The wind viciously whipped the artist during the trip.
When I got home, my creature
The artist finally returns home with his lovable companion.
Was no longer with me
Sadly, he regrettably finds that he's all alone.
Somewhere she lies, this lovely creature
The creature is no longer with the artist and he announces that she must be lying somewhere.
Beneath the slow drifting sands
The singer's sorrowful musings suggest that the creature is buried under slow-moving sand.
With her hair full of ribbons
The creature still has her hair decorated with lovely ribbons.
And green gloves on her hands
The creature's hands remain adorned with the green gloves she had on earlier.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Mute Song Limited
Written by: Blixa Bargeld, Martyn Casey, Michael Harvey, Nicholas Cave, Thomas Wydler
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind