Neil Hannon, Originally from Derry, has been the only ever-present member of the band, being its founder in 1989 when he was joined by John McCullagh and Kevin Traynor. Their first album, the heavily R.E.M.-influenced and now-deleted Fanfare for the Comic Muse, enjoyed little success though. A couple of equally unsuccessful EPs - Timewatch (1991); Europop (1992) - were to follow, with newly-recruited member John Allen handling lead vocals on some tracks. After the commercial failure of the latter EP, this line-up soon fell apart.
Hannon, however, was not deterred in his efforts and re-appeared in 1993 with Liberation. Featuring a fairly diverse musical outlook that goes from the tongue-in-cheek synth pop of Europop(nearly unrecognisable from the previously-released version) to the classical stylings of Timewatching.
Indeed, it was only some minor success in France that really enabled Hannon to proceed to his second effort Promenade. Released in 1994, this was heavily driven by classical influences, with Michael Nyman's stylings clearly an influence. Hannon himself acknowledged this when he apparently sent a copy of his new album to the composer, jokingly asking him not to sue. Essentially a concept album about a day spent by two lovers, it also received similar critical acclaim to that which Liberation was afforded. Commercial success, though, was not forthcoming.
At around the same time, Hannon also wrote and performed the theme music for the TV sitcom Father Ted (which would subsequently be incorporated into the song Songs of Love on the album Casanova), and later wrote the music for the deliberately bad mock-Eurovision song My Lovely Horse for one episode. Hannon resisted widespread requests from fans to release the track as a single for the Christmas market, but it was eventually released in 1999 as the third track on the CD-single Gin Soaked Boy. This would not be the only time they would be responsible for a TV theme, as In Pursuit Of Happiness was also used by the BBC science and technology show, Tomorrow's World. Hannon also recently composed the music for the comedy series "The IT Crowd".
The album Casanova (1996), and in particular the single Something for the Weekend led to the band's first major successes, with Neil Hannon becoming a distinctive, albeit unlikely, popstar in an immaculate suit, and always appearing the elegant dandy. At the height of their commercial success, the band put out A Short Album About Love (a reference to the Krzysztof Kieślowski movie A Short Film About Love), recorded live at soundcheck with the Brunel Ensemble in preparation for a concert at the Shepherd's Bush Empire, from which several songs were released as b-sides. It was aptly released on Valentine's Day in 1997. Subsequently, the band contributed a reworking of Noel Coward's I've Been to a Marvellous Party to a compilation of covers of the writer's songs, with Hannon affecting a Cowardesque lilt (albeit interspersed with an aggressive electronic musical backing).
The foppish image, but not the suit, was ditched for the more sombre album Fin De Siècle in 1998, although its biggest hit, the jaunty National Express, a song about the national coach operators, belied its more intimate, soul-searching tone. Maintaining the balance between these poles, 1999's Secret History - the Best of The Divine Comedy included a re-recording of Liberation track The Pop Singer's Fear of the Pollen Count and two new songs (Gin-Soaked Boy and Too Young to Die) alongside the band's main hits. In the same year, the band also collaborated with Tom Jones on a cover version of Portishead's All Mine, featured on his album Reload.
A serious side to the band was also in evidence in 2000's collaboration with Ute Lemper on her album Punishing Kiss, most of which featured The Divine Comedy as Lemper's backing band.
The 2001 album Regeneration attempted to remove the band still further from its association with comedy. Hannon hired famous producer Nigel Godrich to "remake" the band. Neil ditched the suit and donned the Britrock band image. However, the album was a greater critical than commercial success, and soon after its release it was announced that The Divine Comedy were splitting up. However within a year Hannon was touring again with a revised band line-up, playing a series of joint-headline gigs in the USA, UK and Ireland featuring both The Divine Comedy and Ben Folds, who would cover The Divine Comedy's Songs of Love on his Sunny 16 EP.
Eventually a new album surfaced in the form of 2004's Absent Friends. Striking a balance between the occasionally earnest sound of the band's later material and the lighter tone of the more popular releases, it encapsulated the essence of The Divine Comedy. 2004 saw two dates of particularly acclaimed performances, one at the London Palladium (which was later released as a live DVD) and one at the Royal Albert Hall.
In January 2005, Hannon announced that he had acquired the worldwide copyrights to all of his recorded output with his former record label, Setanta Records. He declared on the band's official website that he would be launching his own record label Divine Comedy Records in order to re-release his 1990s output.
Hannon's ninth album under the Divine Comedy moniker, Victory for the Comic Muse (a reference to his debut), was released in June 2006. It is suggested by fans to be less personal and more free-approach in tone than his most recent albums. The bulk of the record was recorded in just two weeks, hence the more spontaneous sound, and features appearances from Travis bass player Dougie Payne.
Hannon collaborated with Thomas Walsh of Pugwash to create an album themed around the sport of cricket. Released under the alias The Duckworth Lewis Method, the self-titled album was released in 2009 to critical acclaim.
The following year saw the tenth Divine Comedy album and first on his own label, Bang Goes the Knighthood.
If I were you
The Divine Comedy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And fail to see the things I see in you
If I were you and if I were you
I wouldn't let the shit you get
From me get the better of you
If I were you
Don't you ever wonder why
Well, if I were you I'd ride away
To a pasture new where I could graze
On the grass so succulent and sweet
If I were you
I'd be through with me
If I were you I wouldn't need
To always read the magazines that I do
Huh, they make me blue!
So if I were you I'd make the break
Before I take my frustrations out on you
Just break on through
Don't you ever, in your dreams
Take a lover and make her scream?
Well, if I were you I'd ride away
To a pasture new where I could graze
On the grass so succulent and sweet
If I were you
I'd be through with me
Well, if I were you I'd ride away
To a pasture new where I could graze
On the green, green grass
Of virgin country
I'd live real fast and die real young
You see if I were you I'd end my days
In a field of stupid sheep just grazing
The grass so succulent and sweet
If I were you
I'd be through with me
The Divine Comedy's "If I Were You" is a reflective song about the complexities of relationships and the ups and downs that come with them. The first stanza explores the idea of self-perception and how one can fail to see the positive aspects in oneself that others see. The use of the conditional "if I were you" suggests that the singer is aware of their flaws and is projecting their negative self-image onto their partner.
The second stanza touches on the dynamic of power and control in relationships. The singer acknowledges that their actions and behavior can be hurtful to their partner, but also recognizes that their partner has agency and the ability to break away from the toxicity. However, the final lines of the stanza hint at a desire for revenge or punishment, as the singer wonders why they have been unable to make their partner cry.
The third and final stanza is a continuation of the previous ideas, but with a heavier focus on escapism. The singer suggests that if they were in their partner's position, they would leave and find a new, fulfilling life elsewhere. The imagery of grazing on a "pasture new" and "green, green grass" suggests a utopia of sorts, free from the struggles and pain of the current relationship. The final lines, "if I were you, I'd be through with me", serve as a realization and acknowledgement of the pain and harm that the singer has caused.
In summary, "If I Were You" is a song that contemplates the difficulties of relationships, the complexities of self-perception, and the desire for escape.
Line by Line Meaning
If I were you I'd look at me
If I were in your situation, I would look at myself
And fail to see the things I see in you
And I would fail to see the good things in you that I see now
If I were you and if I were you
If I were in your shoes, if I were in your place
I wouldn't let the shit you get
I wouldn't let the bad things I am causing you
From me get the better of you
To affect you more than they should
Don't you ever wonder why
Have you never wondered why
I could never make you cry?
I have never been able to make you cry
If I were you I'd ride away
If I were in your situation, I would leave
To a pasture new where I could graze
To a new place where I can start anew
On the grass so succulent and sweet
On the fresh and delicious grass
If I were you
If I had your life
I'd be through with me
I would be done with dealing with myself
If I were you I wouldn't need
If I were in your position I wouldn't require
To always read the magazines that I do
To constantly read the same magazines as me
Huh, they make me blue!
But those magazines make me sad
So if I were you I'd make the break
So if I were in your shoes, I would make a change
Before I take my frustrations out on you
Before I start to vent my anger on you
Don't you ever, in your dreams
Have you never, even in your dreams
Take a lover and make her scream?
Had a lover and made her scream?
On the green, green grass
On the lush green grass
Of virgin country
Of untouched land
I'd live real fast and die real young
I would live a fast life and die young
You see if I were you I'd end my days
If I had your life, I would end my days
In a field of stupid sheep just grazing
Surrounded by unintelligent sheep just eating grass
The grass so succulent and sweet
Their only comfort being the fresh and delicious grass
If I were you
If I had your life
I'd be through with me
I would be done with myself
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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