Anderson also had this to say about the renewed partnership with Bernard Butler: “For years and years after Bernard left Suede it was me running the show, but now the stakes are raised. I feel like we are duelling with each other, in some kind of friendly competition. When we were at our best it was always like that, each trying to better each other.”
The band played their first ever live show on December 14, 2004 at the Oxford Zodiac. Things went as expected for the "new" band, and most new songs were received well by those attending the first set of shows. When asked during a concert by a fan to play the famous Suede song, The Drowners, Anderson replied saying, "Did somebody say they want us to play The Drowners? They came to the wrong gig".
Apart from relatively minor reviews of the first clutch of live shows, The Tears first press, a review of Refugees, interview with Anderson and a poster(!)was in The Sun on 15 April. The next major article was by Alex Petridis in The Guardian, which ended on an extremely optimistic note: "the pair seem artistically reinvigorated by each other's company. Anderson talks excitedly of Tears songs like the ballad Asylum, inspired by his father's struggle with depression, as having moved away from "Suede cliches or Brett Anderson cliches ... it's not, you know, opiated fop territory". There's even a hint of the old provocative flash and arrogance when talk turns to the future: Here Comes the Tears feels like a debut. It will be massively bettered. On this at least there's no hint of disagreement. "This album's like rocking the boat a bit. There's been a few splashes," nods Butler. "Next time, I want to get rid of the sails and see what happens."
From the start, Anderson and Butler were very insistent that the band would not be playing any songs by Suede. Things would change over time, however, as the band ended up playing a b-side of Suede's titled The Living Dead to an enthusiastic reception, during an encore for their show at the Sheffield Leadmill in April. On April 25, 2005, the band's first single, Refugees, was released. The single was very much a success and jumped into the top ten singles chart at number nine.
The band's debut album, Here Come The Tears followed on June 6, 2005. It was released to stellar reviews that helped solidify the duo's comeback, yet it failed to crack the top 10. In late June, the band played a set at the John Peel stage at the Glastonbury Festival. The second single from the debut album, entitled Lovers, was released on June 27. Though a significantly lower charting than the previous single, it still managed a decent spot in the top 25.
More than a month later, singer Anderson announced that he would release his long awaited solo album in between the touring and the release of the band's follow up album. After playing a few festivals and international gigs, the band announced a European tour with dates in October and November. However, to the disappointment of many fans, they later cancelled the tour in favour of beginning work on their second album. Shortly after, the band were dropped from their label most likely due to insufficient touring or low sales.
In late April of 2006, Anderson posted a message on the band's message board announcing the band were on temporary hiatus because "no one ever wanted this thing to get caught up within the drudgery of the whole tour/record/tour cycle anyway". In addition, he announced that he had completed his debut solo album and that it would see light in early 2007, hinting that the second Tears record would most likely come after that, if at all.
By the end of August 2006, their website and forum are officially closed, leaving dimmer hope for the future of the band.
In September of 2006 Butler posted on his website: ".....actually tears are the same as ever....i guess coming from the suede trajectory it would look odd to make a record and not stick to the brand name plugging away endlessly at one thing....but if you take my shocking career line over 12 years its just par for the course....im on top of the world working constantly on terrific records from 1990's the mescalitas on offs, and soon we will be making the Duffy record ....
yes i always loved more than i thought"
The Ghost Of You
The Tears Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like yesterdays flowers
I tried to erase the past
But it won't go away
And those where the curtains
That you had made
One thing's for certain
I painted the second room
And cleared out the basement
And smelled some of your perfume
On the scarf that you made
The Salvation Army collected your things
I gave them the jewelery, all the bracelets and rings
Your clothes in black bin bags I gave them away
I tried to move on but the ghost of you stays
The ghost of you stays
The ghost of you stays
I threw out the photographs
Like yesterdays flowers
I tried to erase the past
But it won't go away
I wake in the morning
And try to be brave
But it's hard to move on
When the ghost of you stays
It's hard to move on
When the ghost of you stays
The ghost of you stays
The ghost of you stays
The lyrics to The Tears' song "The Ghost Of You" provide a poignant and evocative portrayal of the struggle to move on from a past relationship. The singer describes how they have tried to erase all traces of their former partner from their life, throwing out photographs and donating their belongings. However, despite these efforts, the "ghost of you" still remains - haunting the singer and making it difficult to move on.
The reference to "yesterday's flowers" and the act of throwing out old photographs convey a sense of finality and closure, as if the singer is trying to bury the past and move on. However, this is contrasted with the repeated refrain of "the ghost of you stays", which suggests that memories of the past relationship continue to haunt the singer. There is a sense of sadness and longing in these lyrics, as the singer struggles to let go and move on with their life.
Overall, "The Ghost Of You" is a beautifully written song that captures the pain and difficulty of letting go of a past relationship. The lyrics are emotive and powerful, and are sure to resonate with anyone who has ever experienced heartbreak.
Line by Line Meaning
I threw out the photographs
I got rid of the pictures we took together
Like yesterdays flowers
In the same way people throw flowers away after they wither and die, I threw away our memories
I tried to erase the past
I attempted to forget about our time together
But it won't go away
But the memories and feelings are still present in my mind and heart
And those where the curtains
These are the curtains that you made for me
That you had made
You put effort into creating something special for me
One thing's for certain
Regardless of what happens, there's one thing that remains true
The ghost of you stays
The memories I have of you are still alive, even though you're gone
I painted the second room
I changed things in the house to try and make it feel like a different space
And cleared out the basement
I cleaned up the clutter and tried to make the space feel new
And smelled some of your perfume
I caught a whiff of your fragrance
On the scarf that you made
On the scarf that you carefully crafted
The Salvation Army collected your things
I got rid of your belongings by donating them to charity
I gave them the jewelery, all the bracelets and rings
I gave away all the jewelry you owned, including the bracelets and rings
Your clothes in black bin bags I gave them away
I donated your clothes in black garbage bags
I tried to move on but the ghost of you stays
I attempted to move on, but I can't escape the memories of you
The ghost of you stays
The memories and feelings I have of you continue to haunt me
I wake in the morning
Every day, I wake up
And try to be brave
I attempt to face the day with courage
But it's hard to move on
But it's difficult to move on
When the ghost of you stays
When the memories of you linger in my mind
It's hard to move on
I find it difficult to move on from our relationship
When the ghost of you stays
When the memories of you continue to exist, almost like a ghost
The ghost of you stays
The memories of you persist, even though you're no longer a part of my life
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BERNARD JOSEPH BUTLER, BRETT ANDERSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind