His parents were battlers with a dream of one day rising from the dust and hard work they endured to owning their own property and sinking deep, long-lasting roots. It was to this end that young Steve spent most of his early childhood moving from town to town across NSW with his family. Where there was good work to be had, that's where the family would go. It was in these early years that simple life philosophies were deeply ingrained into this young man.
Discipline, hard work and the pursuit of ones dream were the life food served at the Forde's table.
Today Steve Forde is a farmer and landowner in his own right.
He is a singer, a songwriter and a serious touring country star. Although retired now, Steve was a successful bull rider and bareback bronc rider. What ever Steve sets out to do, he does it well and still today draws heavily on his family's ethos of: "Hard Work, Long Days, Hard Work, Hard Play".
Steve Forde is the real deal, make no mistake.
Moving to the South Coast, the rawboned 18 year old with fire in his belly joined his first band and tasted the life of a touring country musician, the late nights, the poor money, the long miles but he was loving it and knew this was something he wanted to do. It was also during this time that like all young, developing sensible, sensitive artists Steve decided that Bull riding looked like a good idea and a heap of fun and so without care or concern to his guitar hands or the rest of his body he climbed on his first angry beast and away he went. As a rising rodeo, singing star, overseas travel appeared on the young mans horizon and in 1998 he boldly said goodbye to the farm and his band and headed to the USA for a bit of a look. Landing in Texas, he did as you do and bought himself a whopping, great, clunky heap of '63 Dodge Polara, filled her up with fuel, checked the oil and set himself loose on the highways and open roads of the USA. Steve lucked into some top blokes, now good mates in Texas and joined their band playing country music and doing the fabled American miles through Colorado, South Dakota and into Canada. When the gigs were lean the young Aussie Bloke from Cowra could be found working in bars, building fences or riding bareback broncos in Lubbock Texas making a name for himself as fearless, tough or just that crazy Aussie guy.
Sadly, tragedy stuck Steve when his traveling mate from Brisbane broke his back riding bareback and had to be flown home to Australia leaving Steve concerned for his mate's welfare but also now short of a traveling companion and his rodeo buddy. That old Dodge was dying, blowing black smoke and money was tight but Steve made it to Kansas in search of Dorothy, but she was long gone so took up a contract harvesting corn instead. Cashed up again and armed with his guitar and a kit bag full of new songs Steve headed off to Nebraska.
On the way the old Dodge dropped its gearbox, curled up its toes and died. Like Woody Guthrie in the dustbowl and a long way from home Steve hitched a ride to Missouri where he met a bloke in a bar heading to a rodeo in Franklin, Tennessee. Steve took another lift to the rodeo and chanced his luck on winning some much-needed money.
A smashed thumb later, a lot of pain and some impressive Australian colloquialisms Steve headed back to Nashville where he was introduced to songwriter Dan Roberts. (Beaches of Cheyenne, The Old Stuff, The Fever, Dan also toured as opener for Garth Brooks for two years.) Hitting it off well with Dan he moved in for a time and had the pleasure of playing songs and working on new material with this wonderful writer and friend.
Steve headed back to Australia when he heard that his father needed help on the farm and he went to work head down bum up on the land only to disappear on weekends to compete in rodeo's around the country.
He bought his farm, near Grenfell and set about getting it cleaned up, stocked up and productive while still helping his father on his farm and finding time to getaway riding broncos.
In 2000 Steve started his band and a new day was upon the busy boy. The band started playing small shows throughout their immediate area, then moved on to Tamworth and then again onto the national Rodeo Circuit, people were talking and the talk was all good.
Steve Forde had arrived.
Enthused by the great response the band was getting Steve sent some demos to Nashville producer Mark Moseley who liked what he heard and contacted Steve and they set about recording the debut album.
Steve Forde's debut album "Livin' Right" was released in May 2002. The first film clip Rodeo Freak was released on the back of the successful debut.
The album continued to build momentum and attract both recognition and accolades including two Golden Guitar nominations at the Tamworth 2003 awards and the second single "What I'm talking about" spending twenty-six weeks in the CMC top twenty.
Overdrive is a good word for what happened next, with the release of "Livin' Right" and successful subsequent tours Steve decided the music was where his heart was and with consultation with his family, his younger brother took over running the farms so Steve could go hard on his rapidly rising popularity.
"Wild Ride" (album two) was again recorded in Nashville in December 2003 with Mark Moseley although this time Steve co-produced the recording process as well as penning all of the tracks. The first single "The Letter" was released and promptly entered the CMC charts in the top ten and it stayed in the No.1 position for three weeks.
"Wild Ride" (VES0001) which was released on July 15 2004, contains a bonus CD enhanced version of CMC's No.1 video clip, The Letter.
So climb on, hang on, close your eyes, and grit your teeth because we are all in for a wild ride.
The Letter
Steve Forde Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like the kind she use to five me back when we were still together
Show how she cared, I knew that writing anywhere
Postmark said it got sent from up a Cairns
She always liked the warmer weather so I guess it makes sense
Why she'd leave me, and life we'd lead
Now all of those food old days are just good old memories
How I miss the moon lit nights
Wrapped up by a fire light
Her next to me, I could feel her breathe
That thing she did with her hair
I'd touch her lips and hold her near
I'm going crazy, Oh, I miss my baby
And the us we were making
I couldn't help but wonder as I pulled the flap from under
If it might have neen touched by those pretty red lips
Mine used to kiss, but no can only miss
A few lines of small talk it made me smile
And I hadn't been called butter cake in a while
It's hard to be sad, when she makes me laugh
It hit me like a shot from a gun
When the tone of her words changed
She said I've got something to tell you baby
And I hope you feel the same
How I miss the moon lit nights
Wrapped up by a fire light
Your holding me, I could feel you breathe
Oh, baby I miss my man
I'm going crazy, Oh, I miss my baby
And the us we were making
How I miss the moon lit nights
Wrapped up by a fire light
Her next to me, I could feel her breathe
That thing she did with her hair
I'd touch her lips and hold her near
I'm going crazy, Oh, I miss my baby
The song "The Letter" by Steve Forde is a heartfelt story of a man who receives a letter from his former lover. As the postman hands him a little red letter, memories of the past flood back to him. He remembers the love that they shared, the good times they had together, and how deeply he misses the woman he used to call his baby. The letter is postmarked from Cairns, a place where she always wanted to go because of the warmer weather. As he reads the letter, he can't help but wonder if her pretty red lips had touched it as she once used to kiss his. The letter starts with small talk and reminisces about the days when they used to call each other pet names like 'butter cake.' However, the tone of the letter changes, and the woman tells him that she has something to say, and she hopes he feels the same. The man realizes how much he misses his lover and the moonlit nights they spent together wrapped up in each other's arms by the firelight.
The song is full of strong emotional imagery that evokes deep sympathy in the listener. The song comes alive with the haunting vocals of Steve Forde as he sings the lyrics with a deep passion. The song's use of strong visual imagery and metaphorical language helps in painting an evocative story for the listener.
Line by Line Meaning
Postman handed me a little red letter
I received a letter from my ex-girlfriend through the post.
Like the kind she use to five me back when we were still together
The letter reminded me of the notes she used to give me when we were still in a relationship.
Show how she cared, I knew that writing anywhere
The letter showed that she still cares about me, and I could recognize her handwriting anywhere.
Postmark said it got sent from up in Cairns
The letter was sent from Cairns, which makes sense because she always enjoyed warmer weather.
She always liked the warmer weather so I guess it makes sense
She enjoyed the weather in Cairns and it makes sense that she would go there, leaving me behind.
Why she'd leave me, and life we'd lead
I wonder why she left me and the life we had together.
That she had the bluest eyes I'd ever seen
I remember her beautiful blue eyes, now just a memory.
Now all of those food old days are just good old memories
The happy times we shared together are now just memories.
How I miss the moon lit nights
I miss spending romantic nights under the moonlight.
Wrapped up by a fire light
We used to keep warm by the fire when we were together.
Her next to me, I could feel her breathe
I miss the feeling of having her next to me, and feeling her breath on my skin.
That thing she did with her hair
I miss the way she used to play with her hair, it was one of her quirks.
I'd touch her lips and hold her near
I miss the intimacy we shared, holding each other close and kissing.
I'm going crazy, Oh, I miss my baby
I'm losing my mind because I miss her so much.
And the us we were making
I miss the life we were building together as a couple.
I couldn't help but wonder as I pulled the flap from under
I couldn't help but wonder what was inside the letter.
If it might have been touched by those pretty red lips
I wondered if her lips had touched the letter, which was a bittersweet thought.
Mine used to kiss, but no can only miss
I miss her kisses, but now I can only remember them.
A few lines of small talk it made me smile
Her letter included some small talk that made me smile.
And I hadn't been called butter cake in a while
She called me by a cute nickname that she used to use, which made me feel nostalgic.
It's hard to be sad, when she makes me laugh
Even though I miss her, her letter made me laugh and feel a little bit better.
It hit me like a shot from a gun
The news in her letter hit me hard and fast.
When the tone of her words changed
I could tell that her letter was about to take a serious turn.
She said I've got something to tell you baby
She was about to tell me something important.
And I hope you feel the same
She wanted me to have the same feelings towards her as she did towards me.
Your holding me, I could feel you breathe
She remembers how it felt when we were together and holding each other, feeling each other's breath.
Oh, baby I miss my man
She misses me just as much as I miss her.
Contributed by Eliana G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.