Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined local band Automatic Dlamini as a vocalist, guitarist and saxophonist. The band's frontman, John Parish, became her long-term collaborator. In 1991, she formed an eponymous trio called PJ Harvey and subsequently began her career as PJ Harvey. The trio released two studio albums called Dry (1992) and Rid of Me (1993) before disbanding, after which Harvey continued as a solo artist. Since 1995, she has released a further nine studio albums with collaborations from various musicians including Parish, former bandmate Rob Ellis, Mick Harvey and Eric Drew Feldman, and has also worked extensively with record producer Flood.
Among the accolades Harvey has received are both the 2001 and 2011 Mercury Prize for Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000) and Let England Shake (2011), respectively, making her the only artist to have been awarded the prize twice. She has also garnered eight Brit Award nominations, seven Grammy Award nominations and two further Mercury Prize nominations. Rolling Stone awarded her three accolades: 1992's Best New Artist and Best Singer Songwriter, and 1995's Artist of the Year. Rolling Stone also listed Rid of Me, To Bring You My Love and Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea on its list of their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In 2011, she was awarded for Outstanding Contribution To Music at the NME Awards. In the 2013 Birthday Honours, she was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to music.
Medicinals
PJ Harvey Lyrics
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Thinking about medicinals, how they used to grow there
When the ground was a marshland
Undisturbed by human hands, and I heard their voices:
Sumac said we're always here
Witch hazel we're always here
Bluestem grasses always here
I looked about, and what I see?
Medicinals grow around me, rising from the gravel
Sumac and the witch hazel
Come to soothe our primal sores, come to soothe our troubles
Sumac said we're always here
Witch hazel we're always here
Sassafras we're always here
Bluestem grass is always here
But do you see that woman, sitting in the wheelchair?
With her redskins cap on backwards
What's that she's singing?
As from inside a paper wrapper
She sips from a bottle
A new painkiller
For the native people
The lyrics to PJ Harvey's song Medicinals are an exploration of the power of nature to heal the human body and soul. The singer is walking through the national mall and is struck by the presence of the medicinals that used to grow there. The ground used to be a marshland, undisturbed by human hands, and the singer hears the voices of the plants calling out to her. The plants include sumac, witch hazel, sassafras, and bluestem grasses, and they all say "we're always here." The singer sees the plants growing around her, rising up from the gravel to soothe our primal sores and troubles.
However, the scene is disrupted by the sight of a woman in a wheelchair. She is wearing a redskins cap backwards and singing as she sips a new painkiller for the native people from inside a paper wrapper. This image contrasts with the natural healing powers of the medicinals that the singer has just observed. It suggests that the healing power of nature has been replaced by the pharmaceutical industry's products, which are often designed to numb or suppress pain rather than heal the underlying causes.
Overall, the lyrics to Medicinals celebrate the healing power of nature while critiquing the ways in which society has turned to synthetic solutions instead of relying on the natural world. The plants' voices remind us that they have always been here to soothe our wounds and that we should not forget the power of the natural world.
Line by Line Meaning
I was walking through the national mall
The singer is walking through the national mall.
Thinking about medicinals, how they used to grow there
The singer is thinking about the history of medicinal plants that used to grow in the national mall.
When the ground was a marshland
The singer is thinking about a time when the land was a marsh.
Undisturbed by human hands, and I heard their voices:
The artist imagines hearing the voices of the plants she is thinking about.
Sumac said we're always here
The artist personifies the plant sumac, suggesting that it is always present.
Witch hazel we're always here
The singer personifies the plant witch hazel, suggesting that it is always present.
Sassafras we're always here
The singer personifies the plant sassafras, suggesting that it is always present.
Bluestem grasses always here
The artist suggests that the plant bluestem grass is also always present.
I looked about, and what I see?
The artist begins to look around and take notice of the plants growing around her.
Medicinals grow around me, rising from the gravel
The artist sees that there are medicinal plants growing around her, even in unlikely places such as the gravel.
Sumac and the witch hazel
The singer sees the medicinal plants sumac and witch hazel.
Come to soothe our primal sores, come to soothe our troubles
The artist imagines that these plants have a soothing effect on people's physical and emotional pain.
But do you see that woman, sitting in the wheelchair?
The singer notices a woman in a wheelchair.
With her redskins cap on backwards
The singer notes that the woman is wearing a cap with the Redskins logo facing backwards.
What's that she's singing?
The singer wonders what the woman is singing.
As from inside a paper wrapper
The artist sees that the woman is drinking from a bottle that is wrapped in paper.
She sips from a bottle
The woman in the wheelchair is taking sips from a bottle.
A new painkiller
The singer realizes that the woman is drinking a new kind of painkiller.
For the native people
The painkiller is for the indigenous people of the area.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
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