The band started in May 1994 when vocalist John Grant and bassist Chris Pearson had a chance meeting at Rock Island, a club in Denverโs lower downtown warehouse district. It took over a year to pull a complete band together and play their first show. The early years were slow, but recording began with local music icon Bob Ferbrache in 1995, who produced the first two albums. Contrary to press releases, the band actually self-released two albums, โMoodswingโ and โLa Brea Tar Pits of Routineโ on their own label, Velveteen Records in 1995 and 1997, the later was sent to Cocteau Twins' Bella Union in London. Bella Union thought there was some promise and a follow-up five-song demo was quickly recorded and sent to Cocteauโs Simon Raymonde. He offered the band a four album deal soon after. The Czars would be the first American band to sign with London's Bella Union. A string of local opening gigs followed with opening slots for Low, the Dirty Three, and Ween
Recording on โBefore...But Longerโ was initiated at Londonโs September Sound studio in September โ98, and Raymonde finished production on the album in December.
By the end of โ99 The Czars were named Best Rock Band by Westword (a local Denver music magazine). The following year the band was approached to compose the soundtrack for an independent film, โIโd Rather Be โฆ Gone" again through the connections of Bella Union. Although it never saw the light of day outside of the Gay and Lesbian film festival in San Francisco, the soundtrack mini EP was released by Toronto's Absalom Recordings that November. Self-produced by the band in Denver with Colin Bricker at NFA studios this remains a collector's item.
Even though, the band didnt sell many records, the label stuck with them, and next up was the second album โThe Ugly People vs. The Beautiful People.โ Recorded in Denver over a month in early 2001, when Simon Raymonde took more time away from his family and label back home in London and produced it out of his love for the band. It was released in October with cover art featuring asses and tattoos. After 23 takes at โBlack and Blueโ the band nearly killed each other, but the recording was finished and accolades poured in, winning the 2002 album of the year in Westword and receiving critical praise from Mojo, Q, and NME. The band signed to Manifesto Records for a one-record deal for the United States.
The Czars toured Europe opening for David Gray, 16 Horsepower, and The Flaming Lips. Three small US tours followed. The band recorded and self-produced the tour EP โX Would Rather Listen to Y Than Suffer Through a C of Zโsโ, a reference to Johnโs linguistics book on Russian sentence structure.
Despite all the touring, the band were not making any kind of critical breakthrough, despite Bella Union's best efforts in bringing the band over to Europe several times and releasing several singles. The band recorded "Goodbyeโ with money donated by fans. Work was completed in June 2004, and โGoodbyeโ was released to much acclaim last September. Picked as the 38th on the Top 50 albums of the year by Mojo, it beat out such luminaries as The Shins, Morrissey, and Bjork. Still the breakthrough wasn't on the horizon and whilst fellow labelmates like Explosions in The Sky and Midlake were also selling records as well as picking up plaudits, The Czars remained an enigma. The band were rarely happy in each other's company and recording and touring always seemed traumatic. Perhaps the audience picked up on this in someway.
In 2004, the core of the band would dissolve away over the course of the ultimately prophetic last album entitled โGoodbyeโ. Over the span of nine months would see the departure of five out of six members, including original founding members Jeff and Chris, plus long-time guitarists Andy and Roger, as well as violinist Elin Palmer.
Paint the Moon
The Czars Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A nightmare to be exact
We couldn't take the heat
And the sweat dripped from our backs
I didn't go I waited for the
Midnight sun
I didn't want to leave you
Cause I don't have anyone
Don't paint the sun anymore
Paint the moon, and the stars
In an autumn sky
Paint me cool blue waters, with
Shades of gray, just don't let me
Live my life this way
Without you
Let it go, let it go
Let it fall down from the sky
And leave this world behind
I saw you suffering, so I knelt
Down by your side, I saw that you
Were fading, that you were leaving
Your own mind
I gave you water just to soothe your
Failing heart and take away the fear
Of what we both know we will find
Don't paint the sun anymore
Paint the moon, and the stars
In an autumn sky
Paint me cool blue waters, with
Shades of gray, just don't let me
Live my life this way
Without you
The lyrics to "Paint the Moon" by The Czars, explore the pain of separation and desperation in a relationship. The singer talks about having a nightmare where they were unable to handle the heat and sweat, which can be interpreted as a representation of the difficulties in their relationship. The singer chooses to wait for the midnight sun as opposed to choosing to leave, signifying their indecisiveness and apprehension about leaving their loved one behind.
Furthermore, the lyrics express a plea for a separation that is bearable. The singer urges the other person in the relationship to not paint the sun but instead paint the moon, which represents calmness and peace. They want the separations to be gentle, like soft cool blue waters, with shades of grey, conveying sadness yet also soothing. The singer expresses their fears of living a life without their partner and their desire not to be separated in a cold and harsh way.
Towards the end, the singer speaks of their concern for their partner, who is struggling and fading, and describes themselves taking care of them. They want to make their partner feel better and remove any fear that they might have. The lyrics all together convey a message of insecurity, uncertainty, guilt, and hopelessness while in a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
I had a dream last night
The singer had a dream last night.
A nightmare to be exact
The dream was a nightmare.
We couldn't take the heat
The singer and someone else were unable to deal with a difficult situation.
And the sweat dripped from our backs
The situation was causing them to sweat profusely.
I didn't go I waited for the
Despite the difficult situation, the singer stayed put.
Midnight sun
The singer waited until the middle of the night.
I didn't want to leave you
The singer didn't want to leave someone else behind.
Cause I don't have anyone
The singer doesn't have anyone else in their life.
Don't paint the sun anymore
The singer is urging someone to stop romanticizing or idealizing a situation.
Paint the moon, and the stars
The singer is suggesting a different approach to finding beauty.
In an autumn sky
The singer wants this beauty to be found in the fall.
Paint me cool blue waters, with
The singer is asking for a specific image to be created.
Shades of gray, just don't let me
The singer still has a request for this image.
Live my life this way
The singer doesn't want to continue living in a certain way.
Without you
The singer is asking someone not to leave their life.
Let it go, let it go
The singer is urging someone to move on from a situation.
Let it fall down from the sky
The singer wants this situation to be separated from their lives.
And leave this world behind
The singer wants to move on from this situation and not look back.
I saw you suffering, so I knelt
The singer saw someone else in pain.
Down by your side, I saw that you
The singer was close to this person.
Were fading, that you were leaving
This person was becoming distant and leaving the singer's life.
Your own mind
The person was struggling with something internally.
I gave you water just to soothe your
The singer attempted to help this person.
Failing heart and take away the fear
The singer wanted to provide comfort and support.
Of what we both know we will find
The singer and this person are both aware of something that will happen.
Paint me cool blue waters, with
The singer reiterates their request for a specific image to be created.
Shades of gray, just don't let me
The singer still wants this specific image and feels strongly about it.
Live my life this way
The singer doesn't want to continue living their life in a certain way.
Without you
The singer wants this person to continue to be a part of their life.
Lyrics ยฉ BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: JOHN GRANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Juanmacm
Lyrics
I had a dream last night
A nightmare, to be exact
We couldn't take the heat
And the sweat dripped from our backs
I didn't go, I waited for the midnight sun
I didn't want to leave you
'Cause I don't have anyone
Don't paint the sun anymore
Paint the moon
And the stars in an autumn sky
Paint me cool blue waters
With shades of grey
Just don't let me live my life this way
Without you
Let it go, let it go
Let it fall down from the sky
And leave this world behind
I saw you suffering
So I knelt down by your side
I saw that you were fading
That you were leaving your own mind
I gave you water
Just to soothe your failing heart
And take away the fear
Of what we both know we will find
Don't paint the sun anymore
Paint the moon
And the stars in an autumn sky
Paint me cool blue waters
With shades of grey
Just don't let me live my life this way
Without you
@Juanmacm
Lyrics
I had a dream last night
A nightmare, to be exact
We couldn't take the heat
And the sweat dripped from our backs
I didn't go, I waited for the midnight sun
I didn't want to leave you
'Cause I don't have anyone
Don't paint the sun anymore
Paint the moon
And the stars in an autumn sky
Paint me cool blue waters
With shades of grey
Just don't let me live my life this way
Without you
Let it go, let it go
Let it fall down from the sky
And leave this world behind
I saw you suffering
So I knelt down by your side
I saw that you were fading
That you were leaving your own mind
I gave you water
Just to soothe your failing heart
And take away the fear
Of what we both know we will find
Don't paint the sun anymore
Paint the moon
And the stars in an autumn sky
Paint me cool blue waters
With shades of grey
Just don't let me live my life this way
Without you
@bunnycats
thank you
@Juanmacm
You're welcome. I love this song.
@rezan4187
Thank u ๐น
@Ladygraph
Thank you so much for posting the album version of this song. I've been waiting for this. This song is pure beauty.
@thewildbirds6070
My favourite song by the Czars; one of my top all time tracks actually. Heartbreaking, but so good musically.
@thewildbirds6070
@Livros Livros Try our cover version. It's on our channel (click on the coloured light and you're there)
@ulloalagunasraul5661
Gracias Juan Manuel por esta hermosa cancion...nunca dejo de escucharla...este grupo es del uno...!!!!
@hjlim384
This song touched my heart
@AnaliaDecaminos
Hermosa canciรณn.