… Read Full Bio ↴There are at least four different artists who recorded under this name:
1. Sylvia Jane Hutton Kirby (born December 9, 1956), also known mononymously as Sylvia, is an American country music and country pop singer and songwriter. Her biggest hit (a crossover chart topper), was her single "Nobody" in 1982. It reached number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 5 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, number 9 on the Cashbox Top 100, and number 1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart. The song earned her a gold record certification and a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. Her other country chart hits include "Drifter" (number one in 1981), "Fallin' in Love", "Tumbleweed" and "Snapshot". She was named Female Vocalist of the Year by the Academy of Country Music for 1982. She is also credited with making the first "concept" music video clip to air on Country Music Television (CMT), with "The Matador".
When her contract with RCA ended, Sylvia took a break from touring and recording to focus on developing as a songwriter. In 1988 and 1989, she guest-hosted TNN's Crook and Chase show and her own Holiday Gourmet cooking special. Sylvia's first independent album, The Real Story, was released in 1996 on her own label, Red Pony Records. In a May 1998 People magazine review, Ralph Novak wrote, "Sylvia always sang with more intensity and resonance than most country singers... and she can still sing a story song better than almost anyone around."
In 2002, she followed with Where in the World, a set that marked the culmination of an 11-year musical collaboration with John Mock. Songwriter Craig Bickhardt contributed the song "Crazy Nightingale". Bickhardt had previously performed with Sylvia from 1984, and wrote the title cut to One Step Closer. Also in 2002, Sylvia released, A Cradle in Bethlehem, her first Christmas album. In 2016, the album, It's All in the Family, was released on Red Pony Records. In 2018, Sylvia released Second Bloom: The Hits Re-Imagined, an album of some of her hits she re-recorded with a more acoustic yet fully produced approach and, in 2022, Sylvia's new album, Nature Child: A Dreamer's Journey, was released on February 22.
2. Sylvia Robinson Vanderpool (May 29, 1935 – September 29, 2011), known mononymously as Sylvia, was an American singer, record producer, and record label executive. Robinson achieved success as a performer on two R&B chart toppers: as half of Mickey & Sylvia with the 1957 single "Love Is Strange", and her solo record "Pillow Talk" (1973). She later became known for her work as founder and CEO of the hip hop label Sugar Hill Records.
Robinson is credited as the driving force behind two landmark singles in the hip hop genre: "Rapper's Delight" (1979) by the Sugarhill Gang, and "The Message" (1982) by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, both of which she produced. At the 11th Annual Rhythm and Blues Awards Gala in 2000, she received a Pioneer Award for her career in singing and for founding Sugarhill Records. Several publications have dubbed her the "Mother of Hip Hop". In 2022, she was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the Ahmet Ertegun Award category for being a major influence on the creative development of hip-hop's early successes, and is the first woman to receive the award unaccompanied by another person.
3. Sylvia Vrethammar is a popular vocalist from Sweden who made a big success with an English version of "Y Viva España".
4. Sylvia is also a black/thrash metal band from somewhere around Portland, Oregon, United States. Their current line up is Candy, Andrew, Sean and Reuben. They released a demo entitled 'Lizard Birdman', which is available on their Bandcamp website.
5. Sylvia was a progressive experimental band from Southern California. The band consisted of lead singer, guitarist, songwriter and producer Riz Story, drummer Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters), guitarist Sean Murphy and Jon "Juano" Davison (Yes), and dissolved when Hawkins joined Alanis Morissette's band. This led to Story's formation of Anyone in 1995.
6. Sylvia is also the name of a northern soul singer ('It's A Good Life', 1968), possibly the same singer as the one listed as #1 (?).
Mirage
Sylvia Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Made a romantic night
Perfect in every way
Till you vanished from sight
You were just a mirage all the time
Just a mirage a trick of the mind
You were just a mirage your eyes were blue
Just a mirage
It was only the song
And the mood I was in
Cause when the music was through
You were missing again
You were just a mirage all the time
Just a mirage a trick of the mind
You were just a mirage your eyes were blue
Just a mirage I never saw you
Just a mirage
It was only the wind
Softly touching my hair
Cause when I reached for you
You were no longer there
You were just a mirage all the time
Just a mirage a trick of the mind
You were just a mirage your eyes were blue
Just a mirage I never saw you
Just a mirage
Sylvia's song "Mirage" is a beautiful ballad about a romantic night under the moon and the milky way that ends in heartbreak. The singer describes the night as perfect in every way until the person they thought they were with suddenly vanished from sight. The lyrics suggest that this person was only a mirage all along, a trick of the mind that appeared real in the moment.
Throughout the song, Sylvia emphasizes the idea that this person was never truly there. The singer says that they never saw them, even though they thought this was their perfect night. It becomes clear that the person they were with was only present through the singer's perception of the moment, something that became all the more apparent when the music stopped and the person was nowhere to be found. The lyrics describe how the singer reached for this "mirage," but could never quite grasp them; the wind, instead, was the only thing they could touch.
Overall, "Mirage" is a poignant reminder of the power of perception, and how our desires can shape what we see and feel. The song speaks to themes of loss, heartbreak, and the ephemeral nature of our experiences in life. As a ballad, it is a slow, powerful meditation on the beauty and pain of love.
Line by Line Meaning
The milky way and the moon
The beautiful night sky filled with the Milky Way and the moon set the perfect romantic mood.
Made a romantic night
The combination of the beautiful sky and the lovely atmosphere created a night full of romance.
Perfect in every way
The night was perfect and everything seemed right.
Till you vanished from sight
But suddenly, the person being addressed disappeared from view.
You were just a mirage all the time
The person being addressed was like a mirage that was not real.
Just a mirage a trick of the mind
The person being addressed was only an illusion, a figment of the imagination.
You were just a mirage your eyes were blue
The person being addressed was a mirage with blue eyes that captured the singer's attention.
Just a mirage I never saw you
The person being addressed was not really there, and the artist never actually saw them.
Just a mirage
The person being addressed was nothing more than a fleeting illusion.
It was only the song
The artist realized that the romantic mood was only created by the music they were listening to.
And the mood I was in
The atmosphere of the night was a product of the singer's emotional state at the time.
Cause when the music was through
Once the music stopped playing, the illusion created by the atmosphere was gone.
You were missing again
The person being addressed had disappeared once more.
It was only the wind
The singer realized that the sensation of being touched was actually caused by the breeze.
Softly touching my hair
The wind was blowing gently, making the singer's hair sway.
Cause when I reached for you
As the artist tried to make contact with the person being addressed,
You were no longer there
they discovered that the person they thought was there was once again gone.
Contributed by Jack H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.