Tanya Donelly (born July 14, 1966, in Newport, Rhode Island) is an American… Read Full Bio ↴Tanya Donelly (born July 14, 1966, in Newport, Rhode Island) is an American singer/songwriter and guitarist based in New England who cofounded Throwing Muses with stepsister Kristin Hersh, then went on to work in The Breeders and Belly in the 1990s. In the late 1990s, she settled into a solo recording career, working largely with musicians connected to the Boston music scene.

Donelly is best known for her Grammy-nominated work in the mid-1990s as lead vocalist and songwriter for Belly, when she scored a national radio and music television hit with her composition "Feed the Tree." Belly recorded on Sire/Reprise Records and 4AD; Donelly's solo works have been released on Warner Brothers Records and 4AD.

Over the years she has listed several musical influences. In one interview she named her guitar-playing influences as Marc Ribot, the Beatles, and former bandmate Hersh. More recently she mentioned Leonard Cohen as a songwriting hero, citing her then-current listening favorites as Lucinda Williams and Joan Wasser, and listing Boston-based groups like the Dambuilders, Pixies, and Count Zero as past favorites. Although Donelly mainly performs her own original songs, she has in recent years added covers by Robyn Hitchcock, Nina Simone, and the Beatles to her repertoire.

The Promise
Tanya Donelly Lyrics

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Hey, what I meant to say
Let's get lost and find our way
And chance might shine on us, today

We fight we win
We fight we lose ...we fight
We get lost and call it a night
Our mouths will tire before our devils do

There's a promise hidden in my blood
In the name of everything I love

I will draw the crescent down
And set it in your crown

Remember what you said
Better to run than play dead
Here's our chance to prove it
Let's just do it
I have a dream and we are looking back and laughing
And there's a promise hidden in my blood
In the name of everything I love

I will draw the crescent down
And set it in your crown

Overall Meaning

The Promise by Tanya Donelly is a song about taking a risk in the name of love. The singer expresses a desire to get lost and find their way with their partner, and sees a glimmer of hope in chance shining on them. Despite the ups and downs of fighting and winning or losing, they stubbornly persist in the pursuit of their dreams. They acknowledge that their mouths may tire before their devils do, meaning that their flaws or negative impulses will persist despite their best efforts. However, the singer believes that there is a promise hidden in their blood, connected to everything they love. They vow to draw the crescent down and set it in their partner's crown, which could be interpreted as a symbol of protective love and devotion.

Line by Line Meaning

Hey, what I meant to say
I have something important to say

Let's get lost and find our way
Let's take risks and see where it leads us

And chance might shine on us, today
There's a possibility that things will work out in our favor

We fight we win
We can achieve victory through perseverance

We fight we lose ...we fight
Even if we fail, we shouldn't give up

We get lost and call it a night
Sometimes we need to take a break and regroup

Our mouths will tire before our devils do
It's easy to talk about our problems, but harder to overcome our inner demons

There's a promise hidden in my blood
I have a strong belief in something

In the name of everything I love
This belief is fueled by my passion

I will draw the crescent down
I will make a change or sacrifice to see my belief through

And set it in your crown
I will impart this belief onto others