She released her debut album, Ruby Blue, in June 2005 in the UK on Echo Records. "Ruby Blue" produced two singles "If We're In Love" and "Sow Into You". She released her second album Overpowered on 15 October 2007.
On 10 January 2008, Overpowered received a nomination for the Choice Music Prize in the Republic of Ireland; the award is given each year to an Irish artist who has proved to produce a critically acclaimed album. Also Overpowered ended at #30 on Metacritic Best of 2007 albums with a score of 82.
Her version of "Slave to Love" by Bryan Ferry is featured in the 2008 Gucci commercial starring actor James Franco. The single "Let Me Know" was produced by Groove Armada. Overpowered produced four singles: "Overpowered," "Let Me Know," "You Know Me Better" and "Movie Star."
In addition to her work with Moloko, Murphy has contributed her vocals to the works of other artists including Handsome Boy Modeling School and Boris Dlugosch, for whom she sang on the track, Never Enough, which became a huge club hit.
On 15 December 2009, Róisín gave birth to her first child; a baby girl she named Clodagh.
‘Róisín Machine’ is the next chapter of that ever unfolding, always compelling tale – a seamlessly edited, 10 years in the making collection of tracks produced in collaboration with her Sheffield pal DJ Parrot, at once her most unabashedly dance-floor ready yet deeply autobiographical work to date.
Ramalama
Róisín Murphy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Could a body close the mind down
Stitch a seam across the eye
If you can be good you'll live forever
If you're bad, you'll die when you die
Hearing only one true note
Unzip my body, take my heart out
'Cause I need a beat to give this tune
(Taking a picture of)
(Taking a picture of)
(Taking a picture of)
Bang Bang
Oh the body swayed to music
Oh the lightning glance
I would give it all, and all
Maybe you would give me less for half a chance
Hearing only one root note
Planted firmly in the ground
Undo my heart unzip my body and
Lend to my ear a clear and a deafening sound
(Unzip my heart)
And if I need a rhythm
It'll be to my heart I listen
If it don't put me too far wrong
(And if I and if I)
And if I need a rhythm
It will be to my heart I listen
If it don't put me too far wrong
Everybody smile, please
Nobody pay no mind to me
Finger in position on the switch
A little flash photography
Taking a picture of you
(To my heart) taking a picture of
Taking a picture of me
Taking a picture
Ramalama, bang bang
Flash bang
Big bang
Bing bong
Ding dong
Dom dom do dom dom
With a hammer bang bang
Flash bang
Press gang
Bing bong
Ding dong
Hum hum ho Hum Hum
With a system of a bang bang
Crash bang
Big bang
Boing boing
Boing boing
Dumb dumb do dumb dumb
With a system of a bang bang
Crash bang
Big bang
Boing boing
Boing boing
Dumb dumb do dumb dumb
Keep on, keep on
Keep on, keep on
And if I and if I need a rhythm (and if I need a rhythm)
Gonna be to my heart I listen
And if I and if I need a rhythm (and if I and if I need a rhythm)
It's gonna be to my heart I listen
And if I and if I need a rhythm (and if I and if I need a rhythm)
It's gonna be to my heart I listen
(Need a rhythm, in my heart a rhythm)(and if I)
(Need a rhythm)
(Need a rhythm)
(Need a rhythm)
(Need a rhythm)
And if I and if I need a rhythm (keep on, keep on)
Keep on, keep on
Keep on, keep on
The lyrics to Roisin Murphy's "Ramalama" speak to the idea of the power of music and rhythm to move and capture the soul. The opening lines suggest a need to shut out the world in order to tap into the music, with the question of whether the body can close the mind down and "stitch a seam across the eye". This creates a sense of tunnel vision where nothing else matters but the one true note that can be heard within oneself. There is a sense of the physicality of music emphasized in the lines "Unzip my body, take my heart out/ 'Cause I need a beat to give this tune", suggesting that music is something that is embodied and felt in a concrete way.
As the song continues, there is a sense of the transcendent power of music, as it is likened to lightning glances and big bangs. The lyrics also suggest a kind of exchange between the listener and the music being played, with the lines "I would give it all, and all/ Maybe you would give me less for half a chance" indicating a hope for something in return from music, as if it might unlock some deeper understanding of the self or the world. The refrain of "keep on, keep on" suggests a desire for the music to never stop, to keep going and going until it becomes a part of the listener's own heartbeat.
Overall, "Ramalama" is a song that challenges us to consider the role of music in our lives, and what it means to truly connect with a beat or a rhythm on a deeper level.
Line by Line Meaning
Bang bang
The start of the song, a loud noise to grab the listener's attention
Could a body close the mind down
Asking if physical desires can overpower logical thought
Stitch a seam across the eye
Asking if someone can ignore the truth by blinding themselves
If you can be good you'll live forever
Criticizing the idea that good behavior guarantees eternal life
If you're bad, you'll die when you die
Suggesting that bad deeds are inherently punished in life itself, rather than after death
Hearing only one true note
Listening to only one pure form of music
I'm the one and only sound
Emphasis on the singer's unique voice and perspective
Unzip my body, take my heart out
Metaphor requesting for the singer's raw emotions to be expressed
'Cause I need a beat to give this tune
The singer needs a rhythmic melody to express her emotions
Oh the body swayed to music
Describing the sensual allure of music
Oh the lightning glance
Referring to the quick, electric connection between individuals in a shared moment of admiration
I would give it all, and all
The singer would sacrifice everything for a deep connection and momentary bliss
Maybe you would give me less for half a chance
Emphasizing the singer's vulnerability and need for validation from her lover or audience
Planted firmly in the ground
Metaphor for roots anchored in stability and tradition within the musical harmony
Undo my heart unzip my body and lend to my ear a clear and a deafening sound
Metaphor for expressing the raw, emotional core of the singer's being
And if I need a rhythm It'll be to my heart I listen
The singer trusts her own emotions as her compass for making music
If it don't put me too far wrong
Qualification that the singer's emotions won't lead her too astray from the emotional expression of music
Everybody smile, please
Directed at the audience, instructing them to lighten up and enjoy the moment
Nobody pay no mind to me
Contradiction to the earlier request for validation, the singer now asks the audience for space to express herself
Taking a picture of you Taking a picture of Taking a picture of me Taking a picture
Metaphor for capturing memories and emotions within the song
Ramalama, bang bang Flash bang Big bang Bing bong Ding dong Dom dom do dom dom
Repetition of rhythmic words to emphasize the primal, energetic pulse of the music
With a hammer bang bang Flash bang Press gang Bing bong Ding dong Hum hum ho Hum Hum
More repetitions of rhythmic words, with added emphasis on hard, percussive sounds
With a system of a bang bang Crash bang Big bang Boing boing Boing boing Dumb dumb do dumb dumb
More expressions of percussion and rhythm
Keep on, keep on
Encouragement to continue the music, to continue to find inspiration even in difficult moments
And if I and if I need a rhythm (and if I need a rhythm) Gonna be to my heart I listen And if I and if I need a rhythm (and if I and if I need a rhythm) It's gonna be to my heart I listen (Need a rhythm, in my heart a rhythm)(and if I) (Need a rhythm) (Need a rhythm) (Need a rhythm) (Need a rhythm)
Reiteration of the singer's trust in her own emotional rhythm for creating music
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Bucks Music Group
Written by: Matthew Herbert, Roisin Murphy
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind