Currently Martyn Jacques, Adrian Stout, Adrian Huge (Past member Phil Butcher)
Their surreal style has been described as dark, darkly humorous, strangely humorous, Brechtian, and gypsy cabaret. They are also notorious for singing controversial songs involving bestiality, prostitution and blasphemy.
The Tiger Lillies were originally buskers, playing songs about the criminals, pimps and whores of Soho, London, England. Over time, the band became involved in several theatrical productions around the world, including the critically acclaimed Shockheaded Peter. Known for their intense, outlandish, and dark performances, they have garnered both controversy and critical acclaim.
Also "The Tiger Lillies", "The Tigerlilies" and "The Tigerlillies" may refer to Indie rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio that formed in 1989.
Bio:
Cincinnati's power pop stalwarts the Tigerlillies formed in 1989 and set out to fuse glam rock, roots rock, and post-punk into an aesthetic they called "More Pop than Jesus." Led by vocalist/guitarist Pat Hennessy, the band also included former members of the Chrome Cranks, the Candy Snatchers, and G.G. Allin & the Murder Junkies before settling on the lineup of Hennessy, guitarist/vocalist William Weber, bassist Brian Driscoll, and drummer/vocalist Steve Hennessy.
Discography:
Deep (1992)
Space Age Love Songs (1997)
Ceci N'est Ces Pop (2003)
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Bones
The Tiger Lillies Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And waits for her memory to fade
If she tells you she's got a messiah
It's one that she's already made
She's no longer taking shortcuts
In her village of Rome
And nobody's home
By the time that the summer is over
She smiles and looks slightly frightened
As you walk past she wants to cry
The daffodils bloom in the garden
Her head is buttered and fried
On a good day the great was seen clearly
On a bad she's hardly aware
And waits for the reaper to bear
Her doormat is left propped up
Since Wednesday when they came to clean
Her apartment has been re-vacated
Perhaps she is now in a home
Or perhaps she is just bone
Or perhaps she is just bone
Or perhaps she is just bone
Just bone
Just bone
Just bone
Just bone
The lyrics of the song Bones by The Tiger Lillies tell the story of a woman who is losing her memory and fading away. She sits in the sunlight each morning, hoping her memory will fade away. The mention of a self-made Messiah raises questions about her delusional state of mind. She is no longer taking shortcuts and seems to be lost in her thoughts. The reference to Rome could be her hometown or the metaphorical idea that her life is a ruin. The line "nobody's home" echoes the emptiness she feels inside, and nobody is there to help her.
As the summer ends, she disappears, and nobody knows where she has gone. Even when she sees people passing, she looks frightened and sad, wanting to cry. Her head is "buttered and fried" indicating her mind is confused and fried. On a good day, she sees things clearly, but on a bad day, she is hardly aware of anything, waiting for the reaper to take her. The reaper symbolizes death.
Her apartment is empty, and the doormat is left propped up since Wednesday when someone came to clean. Her apartment has been re-vacated, indicating she may have moved to a home, or maybe she is dead, and all that is left is her bones. The repetition of "perhaps she is just bone" emphasizes the idea that she's no longer there, and all that's left is her skeleton.
Overall, Bones is a hauntingly beautiful song that portrays the harsh realities of life and death through memory loss, confusion, and the inevitability of mortality.
Line by Line Meaning
She sits in the sunlight each morning
Every morning she goes and sits in the sun to start her day.
And waits for her memory to fade
She waits for her memories to fade away and forget the past.
If she tells you she's got a messiah
If she tells you she has a savior or protector,
It's one that she's already made
then it's not someone else, it's made up by her.
She's no longer taking shortcuts
She's stopped taking easy ways out of things.
In her village of Rome
In her small and perhaps isolated world.
And nobody's home
There's no one around, maybe even in her mind.
By the time that the summer is over
During summer, when everything should be livelier,
She's nowhere to be seen
she will disappear and no one will know where she's gone.
She smiles and looks slightly frightened
Whenever someone walks by, she looks both happy and scared.
As you walk past she wants to cry
When you walk past her, she wants to cry for help.
The daffodils bloom in the garden
The flowers bloom, but this doesn't change how she feels.
Her head is buttered and fried
She has a headache and feels confused or overwhelmed.
On a good day the great was seen clearly
On good days, she sees things more clearly and feels hopeful.
On a bad she's hardly aware
On bad days, she's barely aware of her surroundings and lost in her thoughts.
And waits for the reaper to bear
She's waiting for death to come for her.
Her doormat is left propped up
Her doormat is still standing up, meaning no one has entered or left.
Since Wednesday when they came to clean
Since Wednesday when someone came to clean up her place,
Her apartment has been re-vacated
her place was emptied and cleaned out,
Perhaps she is now in a home
Maybe she's in a nursing home or rehabilitation center.
Or perhaps she is just bone
Or maybe she's already dead and just bones now.
Just bone
Only bones are left.
Just bone
No flesh or life left, only bones.
Just bone
Only the remains of what was once a living entity.
Just bone
A symbol of death and decay.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management
Written by: PETER JACQUES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind