Her father was pop guitarist Joe Brown and her mother was a popular backing singer Vicki Brown. She appeared as singer with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, and in 1977 she was a backing singer on the Small Faces' final album In the Shade. Later, together with her mother as The Lillettes, she was a backing singer on Steve Marriott's Packet of Three: Live.
She recorded her debut album Stop! with her guitarist brother Pete Brown as producer. In 1988 the single "Stop" was released and almost a year later it topped the charts in Holland and Germany, reached number four in the U.K. charts; the album did likewise and went on to sell 2.5 million worldwide. Despite more chart singles, the follow-up April Moon (1990) managed only something over half a million sales, and sales of her third album 43 Minutes (1993) were also poor. Her independently-released album Box (1997) made 17,000-odd sales.
She spent some time as featured vocalist with Jools Holland & His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra, and was a backing singer on Pink Floyd's Division Bell tour in 1994. In 2000 the album Reboot was released. In April 2003 the BBC broadcast an interview with her, playing her ukulele and singing "Kiss of Love". Her most recent releases (2007) are Of the Moment and an EP of acoustic arrangements, Ukulele and Voice, recorded with her father.
Some new tracks have also been made available for listening on her Myspace profile, and her official fan club site [url=[officialsite]http://www.onecandle.co.uk]One Candle offers two demo tracks of the album.
Merry Go Round
Sam Brown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Head in her hands sat on the stairs
Bitter tears locked up inside
Fighting her heart fighting her mind
It's merry go round
You can never get off
It's merry go round
What is she wife keeper or friend
She has no more give or lend
And someone said
"What is full of care
We have no time to stand and stare"
It's merry go round
You can never get off
It's merry go round
It will never stop
She has to break away
She wants to leave
Now she has made her own bed
But she can't sleep
It's merry go round
You can never get off
It's merry go round
It will never stop
The lyrics in Sam Brown's song Merry Go Round deal with the struggle of a woman who is trapped in a never-ending cycle of pain and confusion. The first verse paints a picture of a woman who is visibly distressed, biting her nails and pulling out her hair, while sitting on the stairs with her head in her hands. She is fighting an internal battle, torn between her heart and her mind, and the tears she sheds are trapped inside. The chorus suggests that her struggles represent a never-ending cycle, a merry go round from which she can never escape.
The second verse deepens the sense of dissatisfaction and confusion. The woman is described as having no more to give or lend, as if she has exhausted herself in attempting to solve her problems. A quote is referenced to suggest that modern life has left us too busy to pause and consider our troubles, indicating that the woman is not alone in her struggle. Nonetheless, she is still caught in the cycle, from which she cannot get off.
The final verse turns more towards the sense of frustration and despair. The woman wants to break away, but she is unable to sleep and she has made her own bed. The sense is that the cycle has become so ingrained that it is impossible to break away from it, despite the desire to do so. Overall, the song portrays a sense of unrelenting unhappiness and struggle, with a bleak outlook for any potential escape.
Line by Line Meaning
Bitten nails handfuls of hair
She's anxious and stressed, she's biting her nails and pulling at her hair
Head in her hands sat on the stairs
She's sitting on the stairs, feeling overwhelmed and defeated, with her head in her hands
Bitter tears locked up inside
She's holding back all of her sadness and pain without letting it out
Fighting her heart fighting her mind
She's struggling with a decision between what she knows is right (her mind) and what she feels (her heart)
It's merry go round
Her problems are ongoing and don't seem to ever end, it's like a repeating cycle
You can never get off
There's no escape from her constant emotional turmoil
What is she wife keeper or friend
She questions the nature of her relationship and where she stands in it
She has no more give or lend
She feels she's given all she can and has nothing left to offer
And someone said "What is full of care we have no time to stand and stare"
Someone has told her that life is full of problems and we don't have time to dwell on them or feel sorry for ourselves
She has to break away
She knows she needs to leave the tumultuous situation she's in
She wants to leave
She's longing for an escape from her troubles
Now she has made her own bed but she can't sleep
She's made a decision but it's not bringing her peace or resolution
It's merry go round
Her problems continue to repeat themselves and she's stuck in a never-ending cycle
You can never get off
There's no way to break free from the unending cycle of her issues
It's merry go round
Her problems continue to repeat themselves and she's stuck in a never-ending cycle
It will never stop
There's no end in sight for her ongoing struggles
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Spirit Music Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: LAWRENCE RUSSELL BROWN, IRWIN LEVINE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind