Prior to joining the group, Jackson was a member of the now-defunct The Moondials, a band that released a single on Electric Honey, a label that would later issue Belle & Sebastian's first album, Tigermilk. The Moondials experience was a pleasant one for Jackson, and it took a great deal of work for nominal Belle & Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch to convince him to join his group. At the time, Murdoch was playing the open mic circuit in Glasgow as a solo act, and it was at one of these performances -- at The Halt Bar -- that Jackson first saw Murdoch play.
In the beginning, the band existed mostly as an outlet for Murdoch's songwriting. Since the band's third album, The Boy With The Arab Strap, other members have begun to contribute, Stevie Jackson chief amongst them. All of the band's subsequent full-lengths have featured compositions by Jackson, and he wrote the band's 2001 single "Jonathan David" as well as "To Be Myself Completely" for 2006's The Life Pursuit. His songs are noticeably different from Murdoch's compositions--they tend to be shorter and less introspective, opting for catchy 1960s-style pop more often that the folky melancholia that defined Belle & Sebastian's early releases.
Pure Of Heart
Stevie Jackson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Plain bread "Mother's Pride"
Brown crust on the outside
I couldn't take my eyes off her
She was playing and I was staying pure of heart
From boy to man, the awkward stance
The guitar chords and also-rans
The out of timeness, fashion blindness
All the same I remained pure of heart
Dreaming of fame and all its glory
The main thing I longed for was love
The main thing I longed for was love
The scent of togetherness
The lavender upon her dress
The girl in the garret stepping into time
Lovers, friends, let friends be lovers
Now I know, I'll need no other
I am pure of heart
Explorations there to find
Ego-tripping on my mind
Too late for the garret, to the garret I said goodbye
Lavender girl just shook her head and smiled and said
"Where's the Pure of Heart?"
Flatter all the lovers you call friends
Who knows who is true and who pretends
Back to the starting post
Back to what means the most
Take a look at all that I have learned
Need a friend to be my lover
And I know there'll be other
I'll be pure of heart
Come on take my hand and make me pure of heart
The opening verses of Stevie Jackson's song "Pure of Heart" describe a scene where the singer is sitting with a lunchbox, presumably in a school setting, and is watching a girl play. He is struck by her beauty and seems to be captivated by her. However, there is an innocence to his infatuation - he describes himself as "pure of heart". As the song progresses, the lyrics shift into a description of the singer's progression from boy to man, with all the awkwardness and self-discovery that entails. Jackson sings about dreaming of fame and glory, but ultimately reveals that what he truly longs for is love.
Throughout the song, there is a sense of searching and exploration. The singer is chasing after something, whether it be love, fame, or both. But in the end, he comes to the realization that what he truly needs is friendship - specifically, a friend who can also be his lover. The song ends with a plea to take his hand and make him "pure of heart" once again, to return him to that place of innocence and sincerity that he felt when he was younger.
Line by Line Meaning
Sitting with my lunchbox
I was sitting with my lunchbox
Plain bread 'Mother's Pride'
My lunch was plain sliced bread, from the brand 'Mother's Pride'
Brown crust on the outside
The bread had a brown crust on the outside
I couldn't take my eyes off her
There was a girl who caught my attention and I was staring at her
She was playing and I was staying pure of heart
While she played, I stayed pure of heart
From boy to man, the awkward stance
As I grew from a boy to a man, I was awkward
The guitar chords and also-rans
I learned how to play guitar and played songs that were not popular
The brown suede for the 60's look
I wore brown suede clothes to try and look like I was from the 60's
The out of timeness, fashion blindness
Despite my efforts, I was out of time and bad at fashion
All the same I remained pure of heart
Despite my shortcomings, I stayed pure of heart
Dreaming of fame and all its glory
I dreamed of fame and everything that came with it
The main thing I longed for was love
But what I really wanted was love
The scent of togetherness
The smell of being together
The lavender upon her dress
The girl I was with had lavender on her dress
The girl in the garret stepping into time
The girl I fell for was in an attic
Lovers, friends, let friends be lovers
People who love each other can still be friends
Now I know, I'll need no other
I now know that I won't want anyone else
I am pure of heart
I remain pure of heart
Explorations there to find
There are still places to explore and things to discover
Ego-tripping on my mind
I am thinking too much about myself
Too late for the garret, to the garret I said goodbye
I left the attic where I was with the girl I loved too late
Lavender girl just shook her head and smiled and said
The girl with the lavender dress just smiled and looked at me
"Where's the Pure of Heart?"
She asked where my pure heart went
Flatter all the lovers you call friends
Don't trust every lover you call a friend
Who knows who is true and who pretends
It's hard to tell who is genuine and who is fake
Back to the starting post
I went back to the beginning
Back to what means the most
I went back to what was most important
Take a look at all that I have learned
I reflect on everything I have learned
Need a friend to be my lover
What I truly need is someone who is my friend and my lover
And I know there'll be other
I know there will be others, but not quite like the one I desire
I'll be pure of heart
I will remain pure of heart
Come on take my hand and make me pure of heart
I ask someone to hold my hand and help me stay pure of heart
Contributed by Dylan J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Pirate steve
cant wait for king tuts!!
nobohoboful
What are you doin?