Richard Hawley (born Richard Willis Hawley, 17 January 1967, Sheffield, Uni… Read Full Bio ↴Richard Hawley (born Richard Willis Hawley, 17 January 1967, Sheffield, United Kingdom) is a critically-acclaimed guitarist, singer, songwriter and producer. Hawley initially found success as a member of Britpop band Longpigs in the 1990's, and formerly Treebound Story. When a drug-filled torpor after an extensive tour of America brought the band to the brink of extinction in 1997, Hawley was asked to play with Pulp by his close friend and Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker. "They saved my life," Hawley later recalled, "I was going mental with drink and drugs." The subsequent world tour in support of Pulp's album This Is Hardcore left Hawley emotionally and physically drained on his return to his home city. During this time, he even considered leaving the music industry altogether.

It was an encounter at Hawley's Sheffield home that led the longtime collaborator out of the shadows. Impressed by a home demo of his songs, both Pulp's Jarvis Cocker and Steve Mackey urged Hawley to head into the studio and begin work on his first solo release. 2000's eponymous mini album encouraged Hawley to return to the studio once more. In 2001 Late Night Final, named after the cry of vendors selling the Sheffield Star evening newspaper on the streets of the city, was released to positive reviews from the press, if unspectacular sales. Two years later Hawley released Lowedges, another Sheffield reference, this time to the curiously named suburb of the city that had so entranced the young Hawley when he had seen it on the destination board of a bus. NME called Lowedges the "first great album of 2003" and it topped an end of year poll held by Virgin Radio.

In 2004 Hawley signed to Mute Records, a division of the giant EMI. Legal wrangling delayed Cole's Corner, Hawley's fourth release, until September 2005. Again Hawley mines the theme of his beloved home city, this time referencing the location where courting lovers meet. Cole's Corner eventually gained a nomination for the acclaimed Mercury Prize in 2006.

Hawley's work as a session musician and producer remains in high demand. After contributing towards her eponymous 2004 release, Hawley also supported Nancy Sinatra on her European tour in 2005. In the past, Hawley has also worked with artists as diverse as New York's A Girl Called Eddy, All Saints (he played the guitar solo on their cover of "Under the Bridge"), Nellee Hooper's soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann's Romeo and Juliet and with Jarvis Cocker's Relaxed Muscle project.

Aside from his solo and session work, Hawley occasionally tours with The Feral Cats, a side project that enables him to explore his interest in rockabilly music.

Possibly due to his aforementioned rockabilly interest, Hawley once auditioned for the role as guitarist in the rockabilly-inclined Morrissey's band.

Fiercely proud of his working class upbringing, Hawley recently described himself as "jurassic labour" in response to a question about the New Labour project. He lives in Sheffield, with his wife and children and is an avid Sheffield Wednesday supporter.

In 2007 Hawley released a new studio album, Lady's Bridge (the title refers to a bridge Hawley regulary crosses in his native Sheffield) again to much critical acclaim.

Hawley's album Truelove's Gutter was released in September 2009 and followed that October by a UK nationwide tour. The album was nominated for, and won the Mojo record of the year.

Following the success of his award-winning, hugely acclaimed 2009 album 'Truelove's Gutter', Richard Hawley will release his sixth studio album, 'Standing At The Sky's Edge' - his first for new label Parlophone - on 7th May.

Recorded at Sheffield's Yellow Arch Studio in 2011, 'Standing At The Sky's Edge' marks a seismic shift in direction for Hawley. The album is a euphoric, sonic assault on the senses, channelling elements of psychedelia, space rock and ragas with heavy riffs and raw, visceral guitar solos - as well as more familiar, tender moments - which will surprise Hawley's fans and peers alike.
www.richardhawley.co.uk

Just Like The Rain
Richard Hawley Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Walking silent through the snow
Drifting softly to your door,
I'm coming home, I'm coming home.

I feel so strange, I feel so weak
I've walked a world of empty streets
In search alone, I've searched alone.

But you're still in my mind
You're still in my mind
And here's where the sound
Of my tears hits the ground
Just like the rain
Just like the rain.

When we walked along the shore
My darkness shaded, all we saw
I was unkind, I was unkind

I feel so strange, I feel so weak
I've walked a world of empty streets
In search alone, I've searched alone.

But you're still in my mind
You're still in my mind
And here's where the sound
Of my tears hits the ground
Just like the rain
Just like the rain.

But you're still in my mind
You're still in my mind
And here's where the sound
Of my tears hits the ground
Just like the rain
Just like the rain

Just like the rain
Just like the rain.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Richard Hawley's song "Just Like The Rain" depict a person who has been wandering aimlessly and alone through the streets, searching for someone or something. The singer seems to be in a state of emotional disarray, feeling weak and strange. The chorus repeats the phrase "you're still in my mind" emphasizing that the character is still consumed by thoughts of someone, and the tears they shed hit the ground like the rain.

The second verse adds another layer to the story. Walking along the shore with someone, the singer wasn't kind to them. The darkness that shaded their experience, it seems, has coloured the singer's memory of the situation. The lyrics hint at remorse, that the person they were with had moved on, but the singer finds themselves unable to forget.

Overall, the song expresses a sense of melancholy and longing. The cry of the singer's tears falling "just like the rain" suggests that the emotional turmoil the character is experiencing is not yet over, yet there is a palpable sense of hope that they will be able to come home to the person they cannot forget.

Line by Line Meaning

Walking silent through the snow
Quietly journeying through a snowy landscape

Drifting softly to your door
Slowly and gently approaching your home

I'm coming home, I'm coming home.
Returning to the place where I belong

I feel so strange, I feel so weak
Experiencing confusion and vulnerability

I've walked a world of empty streets
Traveling through a bleak and lonely world

In search alone, I've searched alone.
Looking for something by myself, without help

But you're still in my mind
Thinking about you constantly

And here's where the sound
Here is where you can hear

Of my tears hits the ground
The sound of my crying

Just like the rain
Similar to the sound of falling rain

When we walked along the shore
Thinking about a time we spent by the sea