Tarnation originally comprised just Frazer on vocals and guitar, but she was joined in 1993 by Brandan Kearny on lap steel guitar and Brent Johnson on guitar and vocals.
Musicians Michelle Cernuto, Lincoln Allen and Matt Sullivan soon joined the band. With this line-up, Tarnation released the album I’ll Give You Something To Cry About on Nuf Sed Records in 1993.
Cernuto, Allen and Sullivan left the band in May 1995, after recording the album Gentle Creatures. It was released on 4AD later that year, featuring seven re-worked songs from I’ll Give You Something To Cry About.
Frazer quickly reformed Tarnation, with a line-up including Alex Oropeza on guitar, Bill Cuevas on bass and lap steel guitar and Joe Byrnes on drums.
Jamie Meagan joined on bass in 1997, in time to take part in the recording sessions for the band's final album, Mirador.
After the break-up of Tarnation, Oropeza and Byrnes continue to play in their own band, Broken Horse, while Frazer continues as a solo artist.
Leaving on a Jet Plane
Tarnation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm standing here outside your door,
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye.
But the dawn is breakin',
It's early morn,
The taxi's waitin'
He's blowin' his horn,
Already, I'm so lonesome I could die.
Kiss me and smile for me,
Tell me that you'll wait for me,
Hold me like you'll never let me go.
'cause I'm leaving on a jet plane,
Don't know when I'll be back again,
Oh, babe, I hate to go.
There's so many times I've let you down
So many times I've played around,
But I tell you now, they don't mean a thing.
Every place I go I'll think of you,
Every song I sing I'll sing for you,
When I come back I'll bring your wedding ring.
Kiss me and smile for me,
Tell me that you'll wait for me,
Hold me like you'll never let me go.
'cause I'm leaving on a jet plane,
Don't know when I'll be back again,
Oh, babe, I hate to go.
Now the time has come to leave you,
One more time let me kiss you,
Then close your eyes I'll be on my way.
Dream about the days to come
When I won't have to leave alone,
About the times I won't have to say:
Kiss me and smile for me.
Tell me that you'll wait for me,
Hold me like you'll never let me go.
'cause I'm leaving on a jet plane,
Don't know when I'll be back again,
Oh, babe, I hate to go.
I'm leaving on a jet plane,
Don't know when I'll be back again,
Oh, babe, I hate to go
The opening lines of Tarnation's song, Leaving On A Jet Plane, surrounds the anxiety felt when about to embark on a new journey. The singer has packed all their bags, they're standing outside their partner's door, waiting for their ride to the airport. The singer expresses their reluctance to say goodbye as they hate to wake their partner up, but the break of dawn and the impatient taxi driver disrupt any plan of staying longer. The song brings across the fear that's inherent in any new journey, especially one that might last a while, as the thought of being alone triggers emotions strong enough to cause physical discomfort.
The second part of the song, however, expresses the singer's love for their partner. Though they've let their partner down in the past, the singer promises that their time away will not affect the love they share. They assure their partner that they will think of them every step of the way and will bring back a wedding ring. The song ends with the singer asking their partner to wait for them, hold them like they'll never let them go, and smile for them. They then express their sadness that they must leave, and how they hate it, but they must go anyway.
The song's lyrics are a reflection of the uncertainty and fear that people feel when they must leave the safety of what they know to face something new. The singer's mix of anxiety and emotion is relatable to anyone who's been forced to confront the unknown. The song came to be in 1967 by John Denver, and since then, there have been multiple covers of the song by other artists. It's a beautiful song that continues to touch people's hearts many decades after its creation.
Line by Line Meaning
All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go,
I have packed all my things and I am prepared to depart.
I'm standing here outside your door,
I'm outside your door saying goodbye.
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye.
I don't want to disturb your sleep to say goodbye.
But the dawn is breakin',
It is early in the morning.
It's early morn,
It's early in the morning.
The taxi's waitin',
The taxi is ready and waiting for me.
He's blowin' his horn,
The taxi driver is honking his horn to alert me that he is ready.
Already, I'm so lonesome I could die.
I am already feeling so lonely that it feels like it could kill me.
Kiss me and smile for me,
Give me a kiss and smile, please.
Tell me that you'll wait for me,
Promise me that you will wait for me.
Hold me like you'll never let me go.
Embrace me as if you never want me to leave.
'cause I'm leaving on a jet plane,
I'm leaving on a plane.
Don't know when I'll be back again,
I'm unsure of when I'm coming back.
Oh, babe, I hate to go.
Oh, my love, I hate to leave you.
There's so many times I've let you down
There were several occasions when I disappointed you.
So many times I've played around,
I did many foolish things.
But I tell you now, they don't mean a thing.
Now, I'm telling you that those things don't matter to me.
Every place I go I'll think of you,
I will think of you no matter where I go.
Every song I sing I'll sing for you,
I will sing every song for you.
When I come back I'll bring your wedding ring.
I will bring your wedding ring when I return.
Now the time has come to leave you,
It's now time for me to depart.
One more time let me kiss you,
Let me kiss you one last time before I leave.
Then close your eyes I'll be on my way.
After kissing you, I will leave while you close your eyes.
Dream about the days to come
Dream about the future.
When I won't have to leave alone,
When I won't have to leave by myself.
About the times I won't have to say:
Think about the times when I won't have to say...
I'm leaving on a jet plane,
I'm leaving on a plane.
Don't know when I'll be back again,
I'm unsure of when I'm coming back.
Oh, babe, I hate to go.
Oh, my love, I hate to leave you.
I'm leaving on a jet plane,
I'm leaving on a plane.
Don't know when I'll be back again,
I'm unsure of when I'm coming back.
Oh, babe, I hate to go.
Oh, my love, I hate to leave you.
Contributed by Hudson R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.