After a short marriage which ended in 1992, Griffin began playing in Boston coffee houses and was scouted by A&M Records who signed Griffin on the strength of her demo tape. This resulted in her debut album Living With Ghosts -- a set of demos featuring only Ms. Griffin and her guitar -- which garnered critical acclaim in 1996. Her sophomore album, Flaming Red, demonstrated a more rocking, full-band sound. The ill-fated Silver Bell album was never released by her record label, however, and the label terminated her recording contract shortly after that. Many of the songs from Silver Bell were re-recorded for subsequent albums.
After switching to ATO Records Griffin brought out three albums in rapid succession: 1000 Kisses and Impossible Dream, which were both nominated for Grammy awards, and A Kiss in Time, a well-received live album. In March 2007, she released Children Running Through to great critical acclaim.
She has penned a wide variety of songs - Long Ride Home, Top of the World, Tony, Forgiveness, Chief, Mad Mission--that touch her listeners deeply. A number of high profile artists have covered Patty's songs, including the Dixie Chicks, Bette Midler, Emmylou Harris, The Wreckers, Solomon Burke and pop star Kelly Clarkson; these have brought her exposure in the more mainstream pop and country worlds outside of folk music circles. Upon hearing Solomon Burke's cover of one of her tunes, she said she almost didn't feel worthy of singing it anymore.
Following her collaboration with Mavis Staples on a tune for a compilation album Peter York, suggested Griffin make an album of gospel songs. Griffin agreed on the condition that Buddy Miller, a friend and bandmate, produced the record. Downtown Church was recorded at the Downtown Presbyterian Church in Nashville with a 2010 release date. The album features long-time friends Buddy and Julie Miller, as well as Shawn Colvin and Emmylou Harris. It also includes songs by Hank Williams, Willie Mae "Big Mama" Thornton, and "All Creatures of Our God and King," a song accredited to St. Francis of Assisi.
Griffin featured on Robert Plant's solo album, Band of Joy, which was released in September 2010
Griffin's album American Kid was released on May 7, 2013
04 Making Pies
Patty Griffin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can walk
Down the block
To TableTalk
Close my eyes
Make the pies all day
Plastic a cap
I used to mind
Now I don't care
I used to mind
Now I don't care
Cause I'm gray
Did I show you this picture of my nephew
Taken at his big birthday surprise
At my sister's house last Sunday
This is Monday and I'm making pies
I'm making pies
Making pies
Pies
Thursday nights
I go and type
Down at the church
For Father Mike
It gets me out
And he ain't hard to like
At all
Jesus stares at me
In my chair
With his big blue eyes
And his honey brown hair
And he's looking at me
Way up there
On the wall
Did I show you this picture of my sweetheart
Taken of us before the war
Of the Greek and his Italian girl
One Sunday at the shore
We tied our ribbons to the fire escape
They were taken by the birds
Who flew home to the country
As the bombs rained on the world
5am
Here I am
Walking the block
To TableTalk
You could cry or die
Or just make pies all day
I'm making pies
Making pies
Making pies
Making pies
In Patty Griffin's song "Making Pies", she describes a simple life of making pies all day long. The song has a melancholic tone to it, with Griffin singing about her mundane life as a pie maker. The first verse talks about how close TableTalk, where she works, is to her and how she spends all day making pies with her eyes closed. The second verse talks about how she used to care about looking nice, but now she wears a cap on her hair to keep it out of the way while she makes pies. She adds that she is now gray-haired. In the third verse, she talks about how she goes to the church to type down notes for Father Mike on Thursday nights. Griffin sees Jesus staring at her on the church's wall, with his big blue eyes and honey brown hair while she is in her chair. Lastly, she talks about walking to TableTalk to start her day of making pies at 5 am. The song ends with her repeatedly singing the line, "Making pies."
Patty Griffin's "Making Pies" is symbolic of the struggles of life. The song is about a woman who lives a routine life, doing the same thing every day, and she is content with that. The lyrics are relatable to anyone who is in a mundane job or a simple life. The song also touches on the theme of change and acceptance. The singer accepts that she is aging, realizes that what she used to care about (like her looks) is less important. She accepts her role as a pie maker and is content with her life. The song is an ode to living in the moment and finding happiness in simple things.
Line by Line Meaning
It's not far
The distance to TableTalk is short
I can walk
Walking is the transportation method
Down the block
The direction to TableTalk is towards the end of the street
To TableTalk
The destination is a place called TableTalk
Close my eyes
The artist has experience making pies several times before
Make the pies all day
The process of making pies takes up much of the singer's day
Plastic a cap
A plastic cap protects the singer's hair from getting in the way while making pies
On my hair
The artist's hair is covered with a plastic cap
I used to mind
Previously, the artist would have been upset by wearing the plastic cap
Now I don't care
The artist has become indifferent to wearing the plastic cap
Cause I'm gray
The singer has gotten older
Did I show you this picture of my nephew
The artist wants to share a photograph of her nephew
Taken at his big birthday surprise
The photograph is of the singer's nephew at a surprise birthday party
At my sister's house last Sunday
The party happened at the singer's sister's house the previous Sunday
This is Monday and I'm making pies
It is now Monday and the singer is making pies
Thursday nights
The artist spends Thursday nights doing something
I go and type
The artist does something involving typing on Thursday nights in the church
Down at the church
The singer goes to a church on Thursday nights
For Father Mike
The purpose for the singer's presence is for Father Mike
It gets me out
Going to the church gets the artist out of the house
And he ain't hard to like
Father Mike is a likable person
Jesus stares at me
A picture of Jesus is hanging on the wall
In my chair
The singer is sitting in a chair
With his big blue eyes
Jesus in the picture has large blue eyes
And his honey brown hair
Jesus in the picture has brown hair
And he's looking at me
Jesus in the picture appears to be looking at the singer
Way up there
The picture of Jesus is hanging high on the wall
Did I show you this picture of my sweetheart
The artist wants to show a picture of her partner
Taken of us before the war
The photograph was taken before the artist's partner went to war
Of the Greek and his Italian girl
The singer's partner is Greek and she is Italian
One Sunday at the shore
The photograph was taken at the beach on a Sunday
We tied our ribbons to the fire escape
The artist and her partner tied ribbons to a fire escape
They were taken by the birds
The ribbons were taken by birds
Who flew home to the country
The birds took the ribbons home to their nests in the country
As the bombs rained on the world
This occurred while there was a war happening
5am
The current time is 5 am
Here I am
The singer is present in the situation being described
You could cry or die
There are different possible reactions one could have
Or just make pies all day
The singer chooses to spend their day making pies
Making pies
The central theme of the song
Pies
The central focus of the artist's day
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: PATRICIA J. GRIFFIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind