History
Early years
Their origins sprung from Oxford, United Kingdom in 1984 with the formation of a group called Shake Appeal, named after a song from one of their main influences, The Stooges. Consisting of vocalist/guitarists Adam Franklin and Jimmy Hartridge, lead vocalist Graham Franklin (Adam's brother), bassist Adi Vines, and drummer Paddy Pulzer; Shake Appeal went ahead reproducing the sounds of American garage rock of the late 60's and early 70's. The group wrote what would become Swervedriver's first classic "Son of Mustang Ford," however after a few years the band began to fall apart when both Graham and Paddy left.
The remaining three members drafted drummer Graham Bonnar, but by this time the group's sound mutated significantly under the influence of re-invented guitar music by American bands like Dinosaur Jr., and Sonic Youth. So with a new lineup and new sound came a new name, Swervedriver. Their hometown colleagues from fellow shoegazing group Ride passed their re-recorded demo of "Son of Mustang Ford" to Alan McGee of Creation Records; who, as legend has it, played the tape for the first time while cruising the inner streets of Los Angeles in a limo. The experience caused him sign the band immediately.
First album and possible breakup
Merging the whirling qualities of the shoegazer genre with heavy distorted guitars, and lyrics often featuring cars and escapism, the group debuted with a series of EPs; "Son of Mustang Ford," "Rave Down" and "Sandblasted," before issuing their full-length album debut "Raise" in 1991. Then after a U.S. tour in support of Soundgarden, Bonner left the band; the departure of Vines followed shortly afterwards. Bonner and Vines would eventually go on to form a new group called Skyscraper. Swervedriver's final release with the original lineup, 1992's "Never Lose That Feeling" EP, appeared to be the group's last.
Release of Mezcal Head
But in 1993, Swervedriver re-emerged with the core of Franklin and Hartridge along with newly recruited drummer Jez, and released their landmark album "Mezcal Head." If "Raise" was a product featuring a love of Americana, escapism and the open highway, then "Mezcal Head" was all that, but broadcast in IMAX with Dolby surround sound. Production and sound were greatly improved, and the album gave them their most successful single "Duel," hailed as one of the premier songs of the shoegazer genre. The album clearly forged a permanent link with their American fans, and made them more popular there than in their own native Britain. During this era, the fabled b-side "The Hitcher" found a release on the "Last Train to Satansville" EP. "The Hitcher" is widely considered to be a fan favorite.
Ejector Seat Reservation & Britpop
1994 found the band adding new bassist Steve George, along with extensive touring of the U.S. (supporting The Smashing Pumpkins), Japan and Europe. However by then the shoegazing genre in Britain was dead, replaced by the more mainstream Britpop movement hi-lighted by bands such as Oasis and Blur. The massive rise of Britpop caused Creation Records to drop the band just one week after the U.K. release of 1995 album "Ejector Seat Reservation." It was never released in the U.S. where they could have capitalized on the momentum of "Mezcal Head." ESR was another leap forward for the band, incorporating a wider number of influences from Elvis Costello to Bob Dylan. It saw the group grow into rebel visionaries and received the highest critical acclaim; however without any record company support it was doomed to be their poorest selling venture. This began a period of protracted record label problems for the band which fans dubbed the Swervedriver label curse.
Final years
In 1996, Swervedriver signed on with Geffen Records with a multi-record deal, and promptly began recording their fourth album. However their contract was terminated when their A&R (Artists & Repertoire) representative was fired in a corporate downsizing. Once the legal dust settled the band was awarded their own recording studio along with the finished album, however it was still a major setback. Their fourth and final album "99th Dream" was finally released in 1998 after signing on with Zero Hour Records of the U.S., and it continued the evolution that began with "Ejector Seat Reservation." Drawing less from their earlier ‘grunge' sound, the band never the less maintained their swerving, pyschedelic guitar rifts coupled with Franklin's magical lyrics and droning vocals, and was another brilliant body of work. The group continued to draw on a broader range of musical influences; for example the title track "99th Dream" was written as a prequel to Bob Dylan's song "115th Dream." Despite this album easily containing a half dozen possible hit singles, and a successful tour of the U.S., Britain and Australia; they did not break out beyond their traditional cult following. The "Wrong Treats" EP released in 1999 would become the bands last body of work as an extant group; they announced a hiatus later that year that persists to this day. Adam Franklin continues to release albums under his new band Toshack Highway.
In 2005, Castle Music released a Swervedriver anthology album titled "Juggernaut Rides" which brought together 33 songs; including many only available on rare EPs, and four that were previously unreleased..
In Late 2007 the Creation Records web site confirmed Swervedriver was reuniting for a 2008 tour.
Origins of name
How Swervedriver settled on their name has been the subject of debate among their fans for many years. During interviews whenever questioned on this topic, the band would simply respond that it was just a name; as The Beatles were just a name (in reference to that band's simple response in many early interviews). However Adam Franklin had once mentioned the band liked the connotation of a speeding driver, swerving and ultimately losing control of their car.
Discography
Full length albums
* Raise (1991)
* Mezcal Head (1993)
* Ejector Seat Reservation (1995)
* 99th Dream (1998)
* Juggernaut Rides 1989-1998 (2005) - 2 CD set
*I Wasn't Born to Lose You(2015)
*Future Ruins(2019)
Singles/EPs
* Son of Mustang Ford (1991)
* Rave Down (1991)
* Sandblasted (1991)
* Reel To Real (1991)
* Never Lose That Feeling (1993)
* Duel (1993)
* Last Train To Satansville (1993)
* My Zephyr (1994)
* Magic Bus (1994) - from Day Tripper movie soundtrack
* Last Day on Earth (1995)
* Swervedriver / Sophia Split (1996)
* 93 Million Miles From the Sun ... and Counting (1997)
* Space Travel Rock 'n' Roll (1998)
* Wrong Treats (1999)
Over
Swervedriver Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't say it's true
Don't say it's over
Don't say we're through
I can't believe it's over
I can't believe it's true
I can't believe it's over
Don't say it's over
Don't say it's true
Don't say it's over
Don't say we're through
The ocean drops
She cups her hands over me
We drift out to sea
And now I can see
The saving danger waves
But I wanna see it all
I want to see
I wanna breathe it all
I want to breathe
I want to breathe
Wanna breathe
I wanna
It's all I can do
To swim closer to you
The big wide world
Is beating me around the ears
At first glance, "Over" appears to be a simple plea for a lover to not call an end to the relationship. However, as the song progresses, it becomes clear that the subject is struggling to come to terms with the idea that the relationship might actually be over. The repetition of "I can't believe it's over" reinforces this idea that the singer is in disbelief that the relationship has ended. The chorus, "Don't say it's over, don't say it's true, don't say we're through," is a desperate plea to somehow avoid the inevitable.
The second half of the song takes a turn as the lyrics shift towards a metaphorical representation of the relationship. The ocean drops over the singer, followed by the plea to see it all and breathe it all. This imagery could be interpreted as a desire to explore the depths of the relationship and take in everything it has to offer. The phrase "saving danger waves" could also represent the highs and lows of the relationship - both dangerous and life-saving at the same time. The last stanza brings it back to reality, with the idea that the big wide world is beating the singer around the ears, suggesting that the relationship is a safe haven in a chaotic world.
Overall, "Over" is a bittersweet reflection on the difficulties of love and the struggle to accept the end of a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't say it's over
Please don't claim that it's ending between you and me
Don't say it's true
Please don't let the reason for this heartbreak be true
Don't say it's over
Please don't suddenly declare that our relationship is coming to an end
Don't say we're through
Please give me a chance to make things right instead of ending it completely
I can't believe it's over
I refuse to accept that our love story is coming to an end
I can't believe it's true
It's impossible to believe that we are falling apart at the seams
I can't believe it's over
Even though it feels like we are drifting apart, I can hardly come to terms with the idea that it's actually happening
I can't believe we're through
I can't bear to accept that we are no longer an item
The ocean drops
It's raining heavily
She cups her hands over me
I feel her hands wrapped around me to give comfort and security
We drift out to sea
We get caught up in our emotions and let them drag us to an unfamiliar place
And now I can see
Now that things are calm, I can see clearly and understand what must be done
The saving danger waves
We are in the midst of tumultuous waters, but we hope that it will help us come out the other end stronger
But I wanna see it all
I want to experience all facets of our relationship, even the difficult parts
I want to see
I long for clarity in this murky situation
I wanna breathe it all
I want to face and power through each challenge and obstacle, rather than give up
I want to breathe
All I want is to feel the love, the highs and lows, just one more time
Wanna breathe
Inhaling deeply, hoping to be filled with courage and determination to make things work
I wanna
I desire to make this relationship work because I believe in us
It's all I can do
It's the only thing left to be done in a final attempt to save our love story
To swim closer to you
To make one last attempt in salvaging what we share and making it stronger
The big wide world
The universe, with all its temptations that threaten to tear us apart
Is beating me around the ears
It feels like life's struggles and tribulations are forcing us apart and testing our bond
Contributed by Julian L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Hébréophone Івритомовний
Who knew a swervedriver b-side is gonna turn out to be the best song ever created. Welp, you live you learn
Lou Weed
Fantastic tune
lmw_blue
Haha! Love this cover, with the “S” in Shell blown out so it just says HELL. Clever!
Daniel Tikhonov
love this song
rosanna navarro
whoo!!! Guitar mayhem, i want to throw my guitar on the amp!
Martín
amazing !
Michael
It Should've Been Nirvana and Swervedriver for the biggest bands of the 90's not Pearl Jam.
Michelangelo
blowoutmasterpiece
Running Around
great
Colton Roberts
16326 Swervedriver and Dinosaur Jr.