Cash released her first single in 1979, a duet with Bobby Bare called "We Don't Need No Memories Hangin' 'Round". Two years later, she had her first country No. 1 (and the biggest commercial hit of her career), "Seven Year Ache". Although Cash was a prominent country star throughout the '80s, alongside fellow decade-defining artists Emmylou Harris, Juice Newton, and Dolly Parton, her music was anything but traditional: She topped the charts with songs written not only by herself, but by her father ("Tennessee Flat Top Box"), John Hiatt ("The Way We Make a Broken Heart"), Tom Petty ("Never Be You") and the Beatles ("I Don't Want to Spoil the Party"), "I Don't Know Why You Don't Want Me", which won her a Grammy in 1985, and "It's Such a Small World", a 1987 duet with Rodney Crowell on his album Diamonds & Dirt, provided further hits. A sampling of these songs and more are included on the compilation Hits 1979-1989. In 1979, she married Rodney Crowell, who was to produce most of her hit records. Their stormy marriage lasted until 1992; its break-up is chronicled in Cash's Interiors and in Crowell's album Life Is Messy. Cash later married John Leventhal, who produced her albums The Wheel, 10 Song Demo, Rules of Travel, and Black Cadillac.
To date, Cash has had more than twenty top 40 country singles, including eleven chart-toppers, but none since 1990, and she has left Nashville in both spirit and body to pursue her artistic vision. Although she had recorded all of her hits for Columbia Records' Nashville division, she released 10 Song Demo for the pop division of Capitol. Cash resurfaced in 2003 with Rules of Travel. The album features guest appearances by Sheryl Crow and Steve Earle, as well as a tune penned by Joe Henry and the Wallflowers' Jakob Dylan. Cash's latest album, entitled Black Cadillac, was released by Capitol Records in January 2006 to critical acclaim. Many of the songs were written by Cash and address the losses (within a 24-month span) of her step-mother, her father, her step-sister (Rosey Nix Adams) and then finally her mother on Cash's fiftieth birthday.
If There's A God On My Side
Rosanne Cash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And no one is there when I fall
The sound of my heartbeat
Is all I have left
But you know once I had it all
The prayers of a fool are spoken in haste
And I'm just the one who would know
'Cause I'm falling deeper
Than I though I could go
If there's a God on my side
Why don't she show me her face
If there's a God on my side
Could she live in this place?
If there's a God on my side
Is she inside these walls?
If there's a God on my side
Why don't she show me her face?
If there's a God on my side
Could she live in this place?
If there's a God on my side
Is she inside these walls?
If there's a God on my side
Could she not hear me call?
And I keep on calling
Oh I keep on calling
Rosanne Cash's song, "If There's A God On My Side," is a melancholic reflection on the singer's internal struggles that seem to be affecting her faith in God. Throughout the song, she conveys a sense of loneliness and abandonment, as she walks through the wind, the snow, and the rain with no one around her to help her roll through her tribulations. She feels like she's walking alone and no one is there to help her when she falls, except the sound of her heartbeat. It's a sad commentary on the human condition where sometimes people feel like they are going through life on their own because nobody really understands them.
Moreover, the song highlights the dissonance between what she believes about God and what she's experiencing in reality. The prayers of a fool are spoken in haste, and she's just the one who would know. She understands that God doesn't answer prayers in a literal sense, and perhaps that's why she's not getting the kind of help she needs. The use of the word "fool" suggests that the singer might be frustrated with herself rather than with God, indicating that she's aware that she might be asking too much of God in the first place. At the same time, she can't help but wonder if it's all worth it. If there's a God on my side, why won't she show herself? Why won't she help her get through this? Ultimately, the singer is conflicted and searching for answers, hoping that God is out there somewhere and can help her.
In conclusion, "If There's A God On My Side," is a poignant song about the internal struggles one can face in life, particularly in the face of their faith. Sometimes, despite one's best efforts, people can feel disconnected from the divine, as if they're walking a path that nobody can help them with. The song highlights this sense of abandonment and yearning for clarification, as well as the disparity between a person's own experience and what they believe about God.
Line by Line Meaning
I walk through the wind, the snow and the rain
I withstand harsh weather and rough conditions, enduring them alone without assistance from anyone else.
And no one is there when I fall
When I face adversity and struggle, there is no one to help me or lift me up.
The sound of my heartbeat
The only thing I can rely on is the beat of my own heart, which symbolizes my will to survive.
Is all I have left
All my other possessions or means of hope have been taken from me, and now all I have is my own will and resilience.
But you know once I had it all
I used to have everything I needed, but now everything has been lost or taken away from me.
The prayers of a fool are spoken in haste
When desperate and uncertain, it's easy to say things you don't mean or to bargain with a higher power through prayer even though you have little faith.
And I'm just the one who would know
I understand my own state of desperation and how it might make me a target for self-deception or delusion.
But I'm sending signals
I am trying to connect with a higher power by sending out messages or desperate calls for help.
'Cause I'm falling deeper
Despite my best efforts, things continue to get worse and I feel myself descending further into despair or hopelessness.
Than I thought I could go
I underestimated the depths of my own emotions or how far I would need to push myself in order to survive my current predicament.
If there's a God on my side
I am questioning whether there is a higher power looking out for me or who could provide me with aid or comfort.
Why don't she show me her face
I am frustrated and feel ignored or abandoned by any potential deity who could help me, wondering why they don't reveal themselves more clearly or intervene to help me.
Could she live in this place?
I am skeptical of whether a higher power would be willing or able to exist in my current environment or situation.
Is she inside these walls?
I am wondering if a higher power could be contained within my current physical surroundings or if they could exist outside of our physical reality altogether.
Could she not hear me call?
Despite my attempts to reach out or connect with a higher power, I am unsure if they are listening or capable of responding to my pleas for help.
And I keep on calling
Despite my doubts and uncertainties, I am still reaching out and trying to establish a connection with a higher power in the hopes of finding some kind of salvation or relief.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Downtown Music Publishing
Written by: ROSANNE CASH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind