Early life
LaMontagne was born in Nashua, New Hampshire, in 1973, one of six children raised by his mother. In his early teens he lived in Morgan, Utah, and was more interested in drawing images of Dungeons & Dragons than in his school work. After graduating from high school, LaMontagne moved to Lewiston, Maine, and found work in a shoe factory. LaMontagne also spent a significant amount of time in Wilton, Maine. Other sources state that by his teen years he was living in Maine, spending time in Turner and Buckfield.
Style
LaMontagne has a unique vocal style which he says is created by singing through his gut instead of through his nose. He cites Stephen Stills, Richard Manuel, and Rick Danko as strong musical influences while critics have compared LaMontagne's music to that of The Band, Van Morrison, Nick Drake, and Tim Buckley.[failed verification] A Rolling Stone review of his album Supernova referred to his voice as an "impeccably weathered tenor croon" and his phrasing as "marble-mouthed."
Awards
For his debut album, LaMontagne won four awards, including three Boston Music Awards (Best Male Singer-Songwriter, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year) and an XM Nation Music Award for Acoustic Rock Artist of the Year. LaMontagne has received a nomination from the Pollstar Concert Industry Awards for Best New Touring Artist, the BRIT Awards for International Breakthrough Act, the MOJO Awards for Best New Act, and was given the title of Best Voice in 2006 by Esquire.
In 2011, Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs received two Grammy Award nominations, and they were awarded the Grammy for the Best Contemporary Folk Album for God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise.
Controversy
On July 23, 2014, during a show at the Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids, Michigan, LaMontagne interrupted a song and walked off stage as a result of two fans talking during his concert, after having previously asked the audience to quiet down. The incident included yelling profanity at the couple before walking off stage. Once the couple was escorted away LaMontagne continued the concert.
On September 20, 2016, LaMontagne announced that he was canceling a September 22 show at the Bass Concert Hall at the University of Texas at Austin, due to Texas's recently implemented campus carry law.
Personal life
In 2009, LaMontagne paid $1.05 million for a 103-acre farm in Ashfield, Massachusetts, the former residence of U.S. Ambassador William C. Bullitt, where he lives with his wife, Sarah Sousa, and their two children in the farmhouse built in 1830. Sousa is a published poet via Red Mountain Press and their sons are budding artists. He refers to himself as a "very private person" and rarely gives interviews.
Jolene
Ray LaMontagne Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sold my coat when I hit Spokane
Bought myself a hard pack of cigarettes
In the early morning rain
Lately, my hands they don't feel like mine
My eyes been stung with dust, I'm blind
Held you in my arms one time
Lost you just the same
Jolene
I ain't about to go straight
It's too late
I found myself face-down in a ditch
Booze in my hair, blood on my lips
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
In the pocket of my blue jeans
Still don't know what love means
Still don't know what love means
Jolene
Ah, la, la, la, la, la
Jolene
Been so long since I seen your face
Or felt a part of this human race
I've been living out of this here suitcase for way too long
A man needs something he can hold onto
Nine-pound hammer or a woman like you
Either one of them things will do
Jolene
I ain't about to go straight
It's too late
I found myself face down in a ditch
Booze in my hair, blood on my lips
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
In the pocket of my blue jeans
Still don't know what love means
Still don't know what love means
Jolene
La, la, la, la, la, la, la
Jolene
La, la, la, la, la, la, la
Jolene
The song Jolene by Ray LaMontagne aches with the pain of lost love and addiction. LaMontagne presents the story of someone who seems to have lost everything and longs for stability while grappling with substance abuse. The first verse talks about the singer's addiction, he has cocaine in his bloodstream and has sold his coat to support his habit. He finds himself in Spokane where he buys a pack of cigarettes in the morning rain. The next line talks about the physical toll the addiction has taken, as his hands don't even feel like his, and his eyes are dusty and blind. The verse ends with him recalling holding Jolene, but like everything else in his life, he lost her.
In the second verse, the singer hits rock bottom, face down in a ditch, covered in blood and booze. He relives the pain of losing Jolene and sees a picture of her holding a picture of him in the pocket of his blue jeans. The final verse acknowledges that it's been a long time since he's felt a part of the human race, and he's living out of his suitcase, essentially having nothing to hold onto. He concludes that if he had a woman or a hammer to cling onto, either one would do.
Overall, Jolene is a raw and powerful song about pain, loss, addiction, and longing for stability. The story is one of a lost soul reaching for something to hold onto. The lyrics and LaMontagne's delivery of them evoke a deep sense of sadness and desperation.
Line by Line Meaning
Cocaine flame in my bloodstream
My addiction to cocaine is so strong that it can be felt in my bloodstream.
Sold my coat when I hit Spokane
I was so desperate for money that I had to sell my coat when I arrived in Spokane.
Bought myself a hard pack of cigarettes
I bought cigarettes to distract myself from my problems.
In the early morning rain
I am experiencing this moment in a state of sadness or despair.
Lately, my hands they don't feel like mine
I have lost control over myself and feel like a stranger to my own body.
My eyes been stung with dust, I'm blind
I am feeling overwhelmed or helpless and my vision is clouded.
Held you in my arms one time
I had a brief moment of happiness when I was with you.
Lost you just the same
You were taken away from me even when I wanted to keep you close.
Jolene
Addressing the subject of the song, who may serve as a symbol for some aspect of the singer's life.
I ain't about to go straight
I have no intention of reforming my ways or changing the path that I'm on.
It's too late
I feel like it's too late for me to turn things around or make a change in my life.
I found myself face-down in a ditch
I hit rock bottom and found myself in a hopeless situation.
Booze in my hair, blood on my lips
I have been self-destructive and am suffering from the consequences of my actions.
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
I still long for you and keep a memory of us together close to me.
In the pocket of my blue jeans
The memory is something that I carry with me everywhere I go, even in the simplest item like my jeans.
Still don't know what love means
I am still struggling to understand what love is, even after losing you.
Been so long since I seen your face
It has been a long time since I have had any connection to you.
Or felt a part of this human race
I feel disconnected and like an outsider in the world around me.
I've been living out of this here suitcase for way too long
I have been living a transient or unsettled life, without a permanent home or a sense of stability.
A man needs something he can hold onto
I need something solid or stable to ground me and give me purpose in my life.
Nine-pound hammer or a woman like you
I could use something heavy and tangible like a hammer, or something more abstract like a relationship with a woman like you.
Either one of them things will do
Either choice would be satisfactory to me, as long as it offers me some sense of direction or meaning.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la
A string of meaningless sounds, used to evoke a sense of melancholy or longing in the song.
Lyrics © Hipgnosis Songs Group
Written by: Ray Lamontagne
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@shrikrishnajugtawat4639
Lyrics:
Cocaine flame in my bloodstream
Sold my coat when I hit Spokane
Bought myself a hard pack of cigarettes in the early morning rain
Lately my hands they don't feel like mine
My eyes been stung with dust, I'm blind
Held you in my arms one time
Lost you just the same
Jolene
I ain't about to go straight
It's too late
I found myself face down in the ditch
Booze in my hair
Blood on my lips
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
In the pocket of my blue jeans
Still don't know what love means
Still don't know what love means
Jolene
Ah, La, La, La, La, La
Jolene
Been so long since I seen your face
Or felt a part of this human race
I've been living out of this here suitcase for way too long
A man needs something he can hold onto
A nine pound hammer or a woman like you
Either one of them things will do
Jolene
I ain't about to go straight
It's too late
I found myself face down in the ditch
Booze in my hair
Blood on my lips
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
In the pocket of my blue jeans
Still don't know what love means
Still don't know what love means
Jolene
La, La, La, La, La, La, La
Jolene
La, La, La, La, La, La, La
Jolene
@TheRealForrestGeorge
[Verse 1]
Cocaine flame in my bloodstream
Sold my coat when I hit Spokane
Bought myself a hard pack of cigarettes in the early morning rain
Lately my hands they don't feel like mine
My eyes been stung with dust, I'm blind
Held you in my arms one time
Lost you just the same
[Pre-Chorus]
Jolene
I ain't about to go straight
It's too late
[Chorus]
I found myself face down in the ditch
Booze in my hair
Blood on my lips
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
In the pocket of my blue jeans
Still don't know what love means
Still don't know what love means
Jolene
Ah, La, La, La, La, La
Jolene
[Verse 2]
Been so long since I seen your face
Or felt a part of this human race
I've been living out of this here suitcase for way too long
A man needs something he can hold onto
A nine pound hammer or a woman like you
Either one of them things will do
[Pre-Chorus]
Jolene
I ain't about to go straight
It's too late
[Chorus]
I found myself face down in the ditch
Booze in my hair
Blood on my lips
A picture of you, holding a picture of me
In the pocket of my blue jeans
Still don't know what love means
Still don't know what love means
Jolene
La, La, La, La, La, La, La
Jolene
La, La, La, La, La, La, La
Jolene
@ChristopherCueva-kf9cd
My cousin Homer loved this song, oh do I pray you found the happiness in the afterlife that you were looking for ever so endlessly while you were here, I love you bubba ❤️❤️💪🏼
@jefferywhiting9190
This song... it is not just a song its yearning... its lonelyness fought back with hope ...its love laid waste by times unfeeling hand..its hope of the sun while trapped in ice over the miles, the years,the moments .All the lingering shatterd hearts of those who've loved lost and remained merely here alive yes ,but never truly . No matter the heights a heart may climb to in effert to heal,Or to distract the soul wich cannot let GO of the one fore wich it breathes.unable to stop wandering driven to escape a pain theirs no medicine to permanetly relieve or eleveate . Temperary distraction , always a brief release coming and gone with the morning and such cost is paid gladly even sometimes in tears. So it goes stone human's.
@rachelrichards2373
Well said
@ws294
You should definitely start writing if you're not one already. Only the ones who truly suffered the loss of deep emotional love can grasp exactly what you're saying. Well said 👏
@adityasangore5323
❤️❤️❤️👏🏻👏🏻
@johnreiss7348
I love
@shawzall404
Fuck man. Exactly
@jeremiahgabriel5709
This song makes me miss things I've never had, and places I've never been.
@CheeseLouise92
God damnit this song makes me cry.
@Dixielinemuzik
Wait until it makes you miss things you've had and places you've been