1) The Bongos … Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist with this name, including:
1) The Bongos was an American pop band active in the 1980s.
2) The Bongos was a New Zealand rock band formed in Auckland in October 1981.
1) The Bongos was an American pop band active in the 1980s. They formed in Hoboken, New Jersey and were led by Richard Barone (vocals, guitar). The band also included Rob Norris, formerly of the Zantees (bass) and Frank Giannini (drums). James Mastro (guitar), later of The Health & Happiness Show, joined the band after the release of their first LP.
The group grew out of a band called, "a", which had included the three original Bongos and Glenn Morrow, who later formed the The Individuals and helped found Bar/None Records. "a" were the first band to play Maxwell's, a rock and roll club in Hoboken.
The Bongos recorded their early singles and their well-received debut EP for UK-based Fetish Records. Their debut U.S. album, Drums Along The Hudson, compiled from the band's British singles, was released in 1982 to mostly favorable reviews on both sides of the Atlantic. While Trouser Press suggested that the group "may trade a certain amount of substance for easy appeal," it added that "there's no better musical equivalent of whipped cream anywhere." Writing in the Village Voice, Robert Christgau dryly commented that "for all their jumpy originality [the songs are] still slight, and Richard Barone's lyrics are so oblique you have to wonder what his angle is." Regardless, in 2007, Jim DeRegotis wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times: "The initial impression of naivete is offset by deceptively simple lyrics that actually hint at deep, dark mysteries and unfathomed mystical enigmas." The group's cover of T. Rex's "Mambo Sun" reached #72 on the Billboard Dance Chart.
In 1983, the group was signed to RCA Records, which subsequently released the album, Numbers With Wings. New York Times' critic Robert Palmer -- coincidentally also a former Hoboken-based musician with The Insect Trust -- subsequently marked this as the beginning of the Bongos' creative decline, lamenting the "slick, overproduced records which vitiated the raw vitality the group had originally displayed." However, the album spawned a popular MTV video of the title song (nominated for 'Best Direction' on the first, 1984 MTV Video Music Awards, while the song itself remained at the number one spot on the College Music Journal (CMJ) chart for six consecutive weeks), as well as the tribal, dancefloor hit "Barbarella". Their follow-up album, Beat Hotel, along with relentless touring, raised the Bongos' profile further. The band split up in 1987. Barone subsequently released a series of solo albums, including one currently in progress for 2008 release, and has established a career as a producer of recordings and major concert events.
In 2006, the original three Bongos re-entered the studio with long time fan Moby producing to create bonus material for a CD reissue of the group's debut album. The remastered, 27-track Special Edition of Drums Along The Hudson, which was released by Cooking Vinyl Records in June, 2007, includes rare, live bonus tracks and new studio recordings. An accompanying video for "Bulrushes 2007," a reprise of the band's early single, "The Bulrushes" featuring Moby, was released simultaneously.
The original three Bongos also reunited for two shows at Joe's Pub at The Public Theater in Greenwich Village in October 2006, and two in February 2007. On September 30, 2007, the foursome played again in Hoboken for the first time in twenty years to an overflowing and appreciative crowd, and received a Proclamation from Mayor David Roberts commending them for their contributions to Hoboken's culture and heritage. They headlined a day-long bill that featured the Chris Stamey Group, Glenn Mercer (formerly of the Feelies) and The Health and Happiness Show.
2) The Bongos was a New Zealand rock band formed in Auckland in October 1981.
Come Back To Me
The Bongos Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The birds of prey are swarming
Like in a silent movie
You left without a word to me
Come back
Come back
Come back
Come back to me
Went to a fortune teller
Said I'd receive a letter
I thought her cards were teasing me
She said that you were leaving me
It's the madness
In her eyes
She's crazy like the river
Can't you see it in her eyes?
Like the river running wild
She's just a little child
Like the river running wild...
All day I'm sitting wondering why
How you could leave and make me cry
Come back
Come back
Come back
Come back
Come back to me.
In The Bongos's song Come Back To Me, the singer is expressing their feelings about a sudden and unexplained departure of their loved one. The lyrics are composed of two verses, a chorus, and a bridge, and describe the agony and confusion the singer is going through. The first verse talks about how the person left without warning or any explanation, while the second verse details how the singer visited a fortune teller, hoping to find out what's going on. The fortune teller revealed that the person has indeed left, making the singer feel worse. The chorus is a plea for the person to return, while the bridge talks about the singer's constant torment, trying to get to the bottom of why they were left.
The lyrics of Come Back To Me reflect a well-known pattern in romantic relationships, where one person suddenly takes off without any warning, leaving the other person feeling disoriented and in pain. The song captures the haunting and heartbreaking feeling of being left behind and hoping that the missing person will sooner or later return. The verse "It's the madness in her eyes, she's crazy like the river, can't you see it in her eyes?" seems to refer to the intensity of emotions that the singer is feeling, as well as the futility of trying to understand the other person's motives. In general, the song is both emotive and cathartic, and it captures the spirit of many people who've gone through similar experiences.
Line by Line Meaning
You left without a warning
You departed without any notice or indication
The birds of prey are swarming
The predatory creatures are assembling, as though ready to strike
Like in a silent movie
Your departure took place silently and dramatically, like a scene from a film
You left without a word to me
You exited without conveying any message or explanation to me
Come back
Return to me, reenter my life
Went to a fortune teller
I visited someone who claimed to be able to foresee the future
Said I'd receive a letter
She predicted that I would receive some kind of message
I thought her cards were teasing me
I believed that the fortune teller was misleading or playing with me
She said that you were leaving me
She divined that you were departing from my life
It's the madness
The situation is characterized by chaos or insanity
In her eyes
The way the fortune teller looks suggests this madness
She's crazy like the river
Her mind is turbulent, like a rushing stream
Can't you see it in her eyes?
Can't you perceive the madness in the way she looks?
Like the river running wild
Just as the uncontrolled river flows, so does her mind
She's just a little child
Despite her experience or age, she still seems immature or naive
All day I'm sitting wondering why
Throughout the day, I'm constantly contemplating the reason for your departure
How you could leave and make me cry
The fact that you left and caused me pain is perplexing and hurtful
Come back
Return to me, reenter my life
Come back
Return to me, reenter my life
Come back
Return to me, reenter my life
Come back
Return to me, reenter my life
Come back to me.
Please return to me so we can be together again.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: RICHARD A. BARONE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Hervis Francisco Fantini
Awesome Pop Song!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Scott EM-50
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟