Biography
Early Life
Born and raised outside of Peterborough, Ontario, Royal Wood grew up in a household filled with music. He began playing piano by ear at the age of four and started lessons at age eight. With the support of his school music program, he had access to a variety of different instruments, and by his teens, he became well-versed in many different instruments, including the guitar, bass guitar, drums, clarinet, and trumpet.
After high school, he studied business at McGill University. During this time, he had limited access to a piano, and focused on his guitar playing while trying to find his voice as a songwriter.
Career
Wood released his first EP, entitled The Milkweed EP, in 2002. This collection of songs were written, arranged, performed and produced by Wood himself. The release garnered much critical acclaim, and critics drew comparisons with Randy Newman, Jeff Buckley, and Tom Waits.
Following the release of his debut EP, Wood set out to create an over-the-top pop record for his full-length debut. Drawing inspiration from The Beatles and The Beach Boys, Wood once again undertook production duties during the recording sessions. In 2004, he released his full-length debut record, Tall Tales on Maple Music. The record’s ornate sound and layered arrangements garnered much critical attention, and Wood was praised for his vocal style and infectious lyricism.
With the goal of creating a more mature and pristine sound, Wood entered Toronto's Reaction Studios in 2005 to begin recording the follow-up to his full-length debut. During the recording session, he used a Steinway grand piano, scored a full string quartet, and also enlisted the help of many well-known musicians, including Hawksley Workman and Kurt Swinghammer. The result was A Good Enough Day, which was released in 2007 on Dead Daisy Records in Canada, and in 2008 on Rounder Europe. The record received much radio attention domestically and abroad, and Wood was praised by critics for his fluent piano playing, melodic lyrical style and production ability.
The record spawned three singles and three music videos, “A Mirror Without”, “Juliet” and “I’m So Glad”. Music from the record has also been featured on several TV and movie soundtracks, including TMN/Movie Central's Regenesis, the CBC series This is Wonderland, the CTV movie Playing House, the film The End of Silence, and the Food Network’s The Surreal Gourmet. Internationally, A Mirror Without was featured on an episode of Grey's Anatomy.
With the success of A Good Enough Day, Wood was invited to share the stage with numerous Canadian songstresses, including Emm Gryner, Sarah Harmer[16], Kathleen Edwards, Sarah Slean, Jill Barber and Serena Ryder.
In support of the Rounder Europe release of the record, he also embarked on a European tour in 2008.
Constantly evolving, Wood wanted to focus his next effort on the lyrics and string arrangements. The result was the 2009 release The Lost and Found EP. With a consistently growing fan base, Wood embarked on his first headlining tour in Western Canada in November, 2009 in support of the new EP. Joined by Atlantic Canadian singer-songwriter Rose Cousins, Wood played to capacity crowds during three-week tour.
In 2010 he released "The Waiting" after which he was named iTunes Songwriter of the Year. With the release of The Waiting he has an upcoming national theatre tour with David Gray and more in the works.
Discography
The Milkweed EP (2002)
Tall Tales (2004)
A Good Enough Day (2007)
The Lost and Found EP (2009)
The Waiting (2010)
The Island
Royal Wood Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Waiting for the descent
The gift to bring me water
The drought that ends thereafter
I tread my foot most lightly
Past the day left nightly
And striving to be honest
But hopeless without ballast
For the light did sweep across the sea
You were the keeper of the key
And the holder of my destiny
A thousand poems for the sight I’ve seen
I’ve found myself the island
A tree will bend and offer
The branch to give the altar
My promise will not falter
To you my dearest lover
And now we lay
Down the day
In this we’re safe
We know the way
Where we’re going
The lyrics of Royal Wood's "The Island" are imbued with a sense of patience, hope, and devotion. The singer has been waiting for some kind of breakthrough or transformation, symbolized by the gift of water that will end a drought. The singer strives to be honest but feels helpless without a source of stability or ballast. However, the light sweeps across the sea and the singer recognizes the key holder of their destiny, their beloved. The sight of their love has inspired a thousand poems and the singer feels as though they've found themselves on an island - a place of safety, peace and security.
The singer then pledges to offer everything they have to their lover, using the metaphor of a tree bending its branch as an offering to an altar. They promise not to falter in their devotion. Finally, they lay down at the end of the day, finding safety in the knowledge that they know where they're going.
Line by Line Meaning
I spent my life so patient
I have spent my entire life waiting patiently for something
Waiting for the descent
I have been waiting for a downward trend in my life that will bring me something I need
The gift to bring me water
I have been waiting for a gift that will provide me with something essential, like water
The drought that ends thereafter
I have been waiting for a period of scarcity to come to an end
I tread my foot most lightly
I am trying to be cautious in my actions
Past the day left nightly
I am moving on from the events of the night before
And striving to be honest
I am trying to be truthful in my actions and words
But hopeless without ballast
However, I feel like I am adrift without any sort of anchor or guiding force
For the light did sweep across the sea
I saw a light shining from across the sea
You were the keeper of the key
You had the power to unlock something important for me
And the holder of my destiny
You had control over the fate of my life
A thousand poems for the sight I’ve seen
I have seen something so beautiful that I could write a thousand poems about it
I’ve found myself the island
I have realized that I am the only one who can provide myself with what I need to survive and thrive
A tree will bend and offer
Even something as sturdy as a tree will be flexible and helpful if necessary
The branch to give the altar
The tree will provide something to offer as a sacrifice or a gift
My promise will not falter
I am determined to keep my promise, no matter what happens
To you my dearest lover
I am making this promise to someone I love deeply
And now we lay
We are now resting
Down the day
The day is coming to an end
In this we’re safe
We are safe and secure in this moment
We know the way
We are confident in our direction and our path
Where we’re going
We know where we are headed
Contributed by Carter C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.