Though born in California, Vega has lived most of her life in New York City. There, she attended the High School of the Performing Arts (the school seen in the feature film musical Fame), where she studied modern dance. Vega realized that her talent in dance was not sufficient to make her living. While pursuing a degree in English at Columbia University, she penned many songs, and performed in college and community coffeehouses inside and outside the New York City area.
She was discovered in 1984, releasing her eponymous debut the following year. However, it was not until her 1987 sophomore effort, Solitude Standing, that Vega entered the U.S. mainstream with the lyrically unlikely hit Luka. Three years later, a remix of the album's opening track "Tom's Diner" became an American and European hit for "DNA Featuring Suzanne Vega."
Having continuously built and maintained a loyal fanbase since her fame's peak, Vega has a prolific catalogue, and in 2003 she released a retrospective collection. Beauty & Crime, her seventh album, was released in 2007. Inspired by the city where Vega grew up and still currently resides, Beauty & Crime revolves around her experiences in New York.
Vega has a daughter, Ruby Froom, with her ex-husband Mitchell Froom. In early 2006, Vega remarried to a man named Paul Mills.
For additional information, including photographs, visit Suzanne Vega's official website, www.SuzanneVega.com.
In Liverpool
Suzanne Vega Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On Sunday
No traffic
On the avenue
The light is pale and thin
Like you
No sound, down
In this part of town
He's crazy, he's throwing himself
Down from the top of the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
He's ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
He sounds like he's missing something
Or someone that he knows he can't
Have now and if he isn't
I certainly am
Homesick for a clock
That told the same time
Sometimes you made no sense to me
If you lie on the ground
In somebody's arms
You'll probably swallow some of their history
And the boy in the belfry
He's crazy, he's throwing himself
Down from the top of the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
He's ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
He sounds like he's missing something
Or someone that he knows he can't
Have now and if he isn't
I certainly am
I'll be the girl who sings for my supper
You'll be the monk whose forehead is high
He'll be the man who's already working
Spreading a memory all through the sky
In Liverpool
On Sunday
No reason to even remember you now
Except for the boy in the belfry
He's crazy, he's throwing himself
Down from the top of the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
He's ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
He sounds like he's missing something
Or someone that he knows he can't
Have now and if he isn't
I certainly am
In Liverpool
In Liverpool
The song "In Liverpool" by Suzanne Vega paints a bleak picture of a lonely Sunday in the city of Liverpool. The opening lines set the tone, describing a desolate avenue with no traffic, where the light is "pale and thin" like the singer's companion. The only sound comes from the boy in the belfry, who is "crazy" and throwing himself down from the top of the tower like a "hunchback in heaven." He has been ringing the church bells for the last half an hour, sounding like he's missing something or someone he can't have. The singer strongly identifies with this feeling, and wonders whether the boy is the only one in Liverpool mourning the loss of something important.
The second verse contains some cryptic lines that may be difficult to interpret. The singer declares that they're "homesick for a clock that told the same time," which could be interpreted in different ways. Perhaps they long for a time when everything was more certain and predictable, or for someone whose rhythms and routines were in sync with their own. The next line, "sometimes you made no sense to me," suggests that the singer is addressing someone specific, perhaps the person they're missing. The final two lines echo the theme of history and memory that runs through the song, saying that if you lie on the ground in somebody's arms, you'll probably "swallow some of their history."
The final verse of the song returns to the boy in the belfry, describing him as a "crazy" figure who is both unsettling and captivating. The singer seems to feel a kinship with him, as if they share a sense of loss and longing. The last lines of the song leave Liverpool behind, saying that there's "no reason to even remember you now," but the image of the boy in the belfry lingers on. Perhaps he represents something eternal and unchanging amidst the transitory world around him.
Line by Line Meaning
In Liverpool
The song is set in Liverpool, a city in England
On Sunday
The events in the song occur on a Sunday
No traffic
The streets are quiet, with no traffic on the road
On the avenue
The song is set on a street, or avenue, in Liverpool
The light is pale and thin
The lighting is weak, dim, and barely noticeable
Like you
The light, being weak and pale, is compared to the singer's love interest, who is also weak and pale
No sound, down
There is no noise in the area, making it soundless and bleak
In this part of town
The silence is limited to this specific area
Except for the boy in the belfry
The only sound that is heard is coming from the bell tower, more specifically, a boy who is located in the belfry
He's crazy, he's throwing himself Down from the top of the tower
The boy seems to be in a panicked state and is harming himself by throwing himself off the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
The boy is compared to the legendary Quasimodo, who was a hunchback living in a church tower in Victor Hugo's novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame
He's ringing the bells in the church
Along with throwing himself off the tower, the boy is also ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
The boy has been doing these things for the past thirty minutes
He sounds like he's missing something
The boy's actions and words convey a sense of longing or missing something important
Or someone that he knows he can't
The boy is either missing someone he can't be with or something he cannot have
Have now and if he isn't
If the boy is not missing something or someone, the artist is certainly missing something, perhaps her love interest
I certainly am
The artist is missing her love interest and feeling homesick
Homesick for a clock
The singer is longing for something familiar, like a clock that helped her keep track of time
That told the same time
The clock the singer is missing used to tell the same time as their love interest, and she misses that sense of synchronicity
Sometimes you made no sense to me
The artist's love interest sometimes said or did things that she couldn't understand
If you lie on the ground
The artist is giving advice on the dangers of laying on the ground
In somebody's arms
The artist warns that if you lay in someone's arms, you can absorb the history and baggage of that person
You'll probably swallow some of their history
The singer warns that physical proximity and closeness can often lead to emotional and mental burdens
I'll be the girl who sings for my supper
The artist resolves to make a living with her singing
You'll be the monk whose forehead is high
The singer's love interest is compared to a monk whose forehead is high, which means he is wise and knowledgeable
He'll be the man who's already working
The singer speaks of someone else, possibly another love interest, who is already working hard
Spreading a memory all through the sky
The other man is spreading a memory or reputation far and wide
No reason to even remember you now
The artist has moved on and no longer feels the need to remember her previous love interest
In Liverpool
The song is set in Liverpool, a city in England
In Liverpool
The song is set in Liverpool, a city in England
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: SUZANNE VEGA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Roiy Benkel
In Liverpool
On Sunday
No traffic
On the avenue
The light is pale and thin
Like you
No sound, down
In this part of town
Except for the boy in the belfry
He's crazy, he's throwing himself
Down from the top of the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
He's ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
He sounds like he's missing something
Or someone that he knows he can't
Have now and if he isn't
I certainly am
Homesick for a clock
That told the same time
sometimes you made no sense to me
if you lie on the ground
in somebody's arms
you'll probably swallow some of their history
And the boy in the belfry
He's crazy, he's throwing himself
Down from the top of the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
He's ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
He sounds like he's missing something
Or someone that he knows he can't
Have now and if he isn't
I certainly am
I'll be the girl who sings for my supper
You'll be the monk whose forehead is high
He'll be the man who's already working
Spreading a memory all through the sky
In Liverpool
On Sunday
No reason to even remember you now
Except for the boy in the belfry
He's crazy, he's throwing himself
Down from the top of the tower
Like a hunchback in heaven
He's ringing the bells in the church
For the last half an hour
He sounds like he's missing something
Or someone that he knows he can't
Have now and if he isn't
I certainly am
In Liverpool [X2]
ceejay960
One of the most hauntingly beautiful songs I've ever heard. What a gift to us. Thank you Suzanne.
Michael Press
Yes, and thank you for using the word “hauntingly, “ perfect description!!
Waleed Ahmed Ghazali
Truly underrated gem of an artist. Still listening in 2023
bluebuggo
23.
seizedkeyboard
+1
Bijan Kardouni
This song becomes more beautiful by the passage of time, just like a magnificent wine.
marco brenni
+Bijan Kardouni You're right indeed. Such a high quality is rare nowadays !
Only the English DIDO is on her high level: they are quite similar in real class and style
Feelin' Like Job
+Bijan Kardouni Totally agree. Something about the video accentuates the beauty of the song...makes it mesmerizing for me.
Arne Rudiger
So true
Sean Roddick
Very true. This song grows on you.