Originally called "Arabicus Pulp" (although they shortened it to Pulp within a year), the band achieved sudden success some thirteen years after their formation and became known during the Britpop era as much for their music as for frontman Cocker's antics (notably conducting a stage invasion during Michael Jackson's performance of Earth Song at the 1996 BRIT Awards).
Achieving little success off the back of a Peel session in 1981, Pulp were finally able to release their debut album, It, in 1983. This album and its 1986 follow-up, Freaks, showcased a Pulp keen on Nick Drake (notably on the It single, My Lighthouse), with strong folk roots and little sign of the tendencies for storytelling and acid house music which would eventually bring forth success.
After the release and commercial flop of "Freaks", the band disbanded for a year, but reformed a year later to record a third album, Separations. Delayed for three years after its recording, Separations showed Cocker's increasing exposure to acid house, featuring multiple synths, and a hit single, My Legendary Girlfriend, which helped Pulp's career start to rocket.
Their next single, Babies, which would eventually feature on their 1994's commercial breakthrough His 'n' Hers, and it was the first example of the Pulp-sound most listeners associate with the band--cheap synths, rolling guitars, and Cocker's deadpan vocals telling a story. "His 'n' Hers" in sound, was lumped in with the Britpop movement of the time, receiving commercial and critical acclaim. However, it was the 1995 single Common People, which finally saw them become known, eventually charting at number 2 in the UK charts. Awash with Britpop guitars, catchy keyboard lines and that trademark Cocker vocal performance it has remained a favorite. A successful appearance at Glastonbury that summer cemented their fame, and their success was subsequently confirmed by the release of Different Class, which arrived at the peak of the Britpop movement and featured this song and other UK hits as Disco 2000 and Sorted for E's & Wizz.
Their last two albums, 1998's darker This Is Hardcore, -an album that marked the end of the Britpop era- and 2001's more downbeat We Love Life were commercial successes, but Pulp were no longer as famous or trendy as they had been in the height of Britpop. Following their curation of a music festival, Auto, in 2002, the band announced that they would be embarking on an "indefinite hiatus".
In 2003, Jarvis Cocker released an album as Relaxed Muscle and then two solo efforts, 2006's Jarvis and 2009's Further Complications.
On 8th November 2010, it was announced that the band with its most relevant lineup will reform to play a series of gigs in summer 2011.
Discography:
It 1983
Freaks 1986
Separations 1992
His 'n' Hers 1994
Different Class 1995
This Is Hardcore 1998
We Love Life 2001
Official website:
http://www.pulppeople.com
The Trees
Pulp Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Your skin so pale against the fallen Autumn leaves &
No-one saw us but the trees.
Yeah, the trees, those useless trees produce the air that I am breathing.
Yeah, the trees, those useless trees; they never said that you were leaving.
I carved your name with a heart just up above - now swollen,
The smell of leaf mould & the sweetness of decay
Are the incense at the funeral procession here, today.
In the trees, those useless trees, etc.
You try to shape the world to what you want the world to be.
Carving your name a thousand times won't bring you back to me.
Oh no, no I might as well go & tell it to the trees.
Go & tell it to the trees, yeah.
The song "The Trees" by Pulp is a cynical reflection on lost love, where the singer contemplates the futility of trying to hold on to something that has already slipped away. The opening lines set the tone for the rest of the song as the singer shoots a magpie with his air rifle and watches it die without a sound. The image of the lifeless bird, juxtaposed against the beauty of the fallen autumn leaves and the pale skin of his lost love, seems to suggest that death and decay are an inherent part of life.
The chorus of the song is a rebuke to nature itself, as the singer condemns the trees for being "useless" even as they produce the air he breathes. The irony of the situation is not lost on the singer, who acknowledges that the trees had no say in his lover's decision to leave him. The image of carving his lover's name with a heart above it, only to see it become unrecognizable over time, is a poignant metaphor for the fleeting nature of love and the inevitable decay of all things.
The song ends with the singer acknowledging the pointlessness of his efforts to hold on to what is lost. Carving his lover's name a thousand times won't bring her back to him, and he might as well go and tell his sorrows to the trees. The final lines of the song underline the irony of the situation once again, as the singer acknowledges that the trees won't bring him any comfort, and his pain will remain as pointless as ever.
Line by Line Meaning
I took an air-rifle, shot a magpie to the ground & it died without a sound.
I shot a magpie with an air-rifle, and it died without any noise.
Your skin so pale against the fallen Autumn leaves &
Your pale skin contrasting with the fallen autumn leaves,
No-one saw us but the trees.
No one witnessed what happened except for the trees.
Yeah, the trees, those useless trees produce the air that I am breathing.
Although I refer to them as useless, the trees are responsible for producing the air that I breathe in.
Yeah, the trees, those useless trees; they never said that you were leaving.
Even though they are unresponsive, the trees didn't tell me that you were leaving me.
I carved your name with a heart just up above - now swollen,
I etched your name with a heart above it, and now it's swollen,
Distorted, unrecognisable; like our love.
Much like how our love has become indistinct and unrecognizable.
The smell of leaf mould & the sweetness of decay
The aroma of decay and decomposing leaves,
Are the incense at the funeral procession here, today.
This fragrance acts as incense at our funeral procession today.
In the trees, those useless trees, etc.
In these trees, who I previously deemed useless, and so on.
You try to shape the world to what you want the world to be.
You attempted to form the world into what you wanted it to be.
Carving your name a thousand times won't bring you back to me.
Carving your name thousands of times won't bring you back to me.
Oh no, no I might as well go & tell it to the trees.
I might as well as tell my troubles to the trees.
Go & tell it to the trees, yeah.
Go ahead and tell it to the trees, yes.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: ANGEL LAFAELE NOA, ARMANDO CHRISTIAN PEREZ, DAVID VURDELJA, DRAZEN KVOCIC, RONALD RAY BRYANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@wawandarmawan880
took an air-rifle, shot a magpie to the ground & it died without a sound.
Your skin so pale against the fallen Autumn leaves &
No-one saw us but the trees.
Yeah, the trees, those useless trees produce the air that I am breathing.
Yeah, the trees, those useless trees; they never said that you were leaving.
I carved your name with a heart just up above - now swollen,
Distorted, unrecognisable; like our love.
The smell of leaf mould & the sweetness of decay
Are the incense at the funeral procession here, today.
In the trees, those useless trees, etc.
You try to shape the world to what you want the world to be.
Carving your name a thousand times won't bring you back to me.
Oh no, no I might as well go & tell it to the trees.
Go & tell it to the trees, yeah.
@nochannel3918
Im obsessed with the fact pulp are releasing so much old content
@Vichedges
“Obsessed”?
Why? All bands do it, especially ones who aren’t making anything new and haven’t for decades.
It’s not like this stuff hasn’t been available, they’re just trying to get people to buy it. I already did, a few decades ago.
@alan-sk7ky
Great isn't it 🙂
@kmaggs7804
@@Vichedgesnice one centurion😂 made my day.
@Sergei__v
name modern songs that can match "The trees" in lyrics and musical quality. @@Vichedges
@SIM-be9ow
Mature Pulp. This song is genuinely genius.
Keep breathing! ;p x
@Psilocybin77
Music is the only loyal constant in my life. I have loved PULP for decades and this song is often playing in my head unprompted and unannounced.
@zhennanzv
I love this song so much 🤍
@GodzillaesquivenGaribo2021
Yo también
@ohstella_277
the imagery is insane and i love how well it goes with the song 🤍