Saloman was originally in a band known as the Bevis Frond Museum in the late 1960s and in 1979 was in a band called the Von Trapp Family. The Bevis Frond, however, was a one man band from the start with the release of a 250 copy pressing of Miasma in 1987. Saloman's desire was to "record the kind of music I'd like to listen to...I wanted a Hendrix/Wipers, Byrds sound but with a distinctly British feel." Subsequent albums were also recorded in a home studio until after the release of his sixth album, Any Gas Faster, when he began to record in an outside studio. This is also the point that he began touring. Another 1990 album, Magic Eye, was a collaboration with Twink of the Pink Fairies.
Early albums were usually entirely recorded by Saloman although most later albums have been recorded by the current touring band. For performances, The Bevis Frond usually has Adrian "Ade" Shaw on bass. Bevis Frond material is typically released on Saloman's own Woronzow Records label, and is frequently featured in the Ptolemaic Terrascope magazine and accompanying records/CDs. The Bevis Frond also record with and write much of the material for US singer Mary Lou Lord. The song "Lights Are Changing" was chosen for inclusion on Children of Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the Second Psychedelic Era, 1976-1995.
Our Number
The Bevis Frond Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We put our trust in electrical wire
For what reason? Does anyone know?
It don't seem worth it, but there you go
And unprotected under your gaze
We beg forgiveness for deviant ways
And we seek approval for being ourselves
Ad if you leave me then I'll have no-one
You must have feelings, come on and show some
And if you ask; I'll tell you true
That it's not easy pleasing you
There's no vibration, there's nothing to mend
No indication of when it'll end
But I can't help thinking it isn't too far
And that's our number and here we are
In The Bevis Frond's song Our Number, the lyrics depict a sense of vulnerability and a desperate search for acceptance. The first few lines talk about taking risks, walking on a tightrope over fire and trusting electrical wire, metaphorically indicating the risks we take in life by making certain choices. The chorus then moves on to seeking forgiveness and approval for being true to oneself, as if the person feels that they need to make amends for being who they are. The second verse talks about feeling unprotected under someone's gaze while begging for forgiveness for deviant ways, indicating a possible power dynamic between two individuals. The chorus repeats, underlining the theme of trying to please someone in order to not feel alone, while also acknowledging the difficulty of doing so. The bridge then speaks of a lack of connection, a sense of detachment, with no indication of when this will end. The song concludes with a sense of finality, with the line 'And that's our number and here we are,' indicating a sense of resignation to one's fate.
Line by Line Meaning
We walked a tightrope over the fire
We took a big risk and put ourselves in danger
We put our trust in electrical wire
We relied on something that could hurt us if it failed
For what reason? Does anyone know?
We don't even know why we do things that could go wrong
It don't seem worth it, but there you go
Even though it doesn't make sense, we do it anyway
And unprotected under your gaze
We feel vulnerable and exposed when you're watching us
We beg forgiveness for deviant ways
We apologize for not following the norm
And we seek approval for being ourselves
We crave validation for being true to ourselves
Cos that's the one thing we do well
Being ourselves is the only thing we're good at
Ad if you leave me then I'll have no-one
If you abandon us, we'll be alone and lost
You must have feelings, come on and show some
We need you to demonstrate that you care
And if you ask; I'll tell you true
If you inquire, I'll speak the truth
That it's not easy pleasing you
It's challenging to make you happy
There's no vibration, there's nothing to mend
There's no sign of improvement or hope for fixing things
No indication of when it'll end
There's no way to know when this will be over
But I can't help thinking it isn't too far
We believe that the end is near, even if we can't see it yet
And that's our number and here we are
This is our situation, and we're stuck with it
Contributed by Luke W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.