In 1978, A&M Records released Tim Curry's debut solo album. Entitled Read My Lips, the album featured an eclectic range of songs (mostly covers) performed in diverse genre. Highlights of the album are a reggae version of the Beatles song "I Will", a rendition of "Wake Nicodemus" with full bagpipe backing, and an original bar-room ballad, "Alan".
The following year, Curry's second and most successful album was released. Titled Fearless, the LP was more rock-oriented than Read My Lips and mostly featured original songs rather than cover versions. The record included Tim Curry's only US charting songs: "I Do the Rock" and "Paradise Garage".
Curry's third and final album, Simplicity, was released in 1981, again by A&M Records. This record did not sell as well as the previous offerings, due in part to a less appealing, more maudlin sound. This record combined both original songs and cover versions, and is commonly held to be the weakest of the three albums.
In 1989, A&M released The Best of Tim Curry on CD and cassette, featuring songs from his albums (including a live version of "Alan") and a previously-unreleased song, a live cover version of "Simple Twist of Fate".
Curry toured America with his band through the late 1970s and the first half of the 1980s.
Curry's first full-time role was as part of the original London cast of the musical Hair in 1968. Here he first met Richard O'Brien, who went on to create his next full-time and perhaps still most famous role, that of Frank N. Furter in the Rocky Horror Show.
Originally Curry rehearsed the character with a German accent and peroxide blonde hair, but the character evolved into the sly, very upper-class English (He says 'dine' instead of down, 'brine' instead of brown etc) drag-wearing mad scientist incarnation that carried over to the movie version and made Curry both a star and a cult figure. He continued to play the character in London, Los Angeles and New York until 1975.
For many years, Curry was reluctant to talk about Rocky Horror, feeling that it was a trend that had gone too far and had distracted attention away from his later roles. However, in recent years he has been much more open about discussing the show and now recognises it as a "rite of passage" for many young people.
SOS
Tim Curry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In waters so deep
Much too far from shore
To see the light of reason anymore
And I'm sinking slowly to the bottom
No emotions to save me
I ain't got 'em anymore
Night and day
Much too far from home
Where the fires of passion keep me warm
And I'm miles away from where we started
No I don't know the reason that we parted anymore
S.O.S.
I'm gonna do my best
To get a message through to you
Make contact
The way we always did before
S.O.S.
I'm gonna get no rest
'Til I come sailing home to you
Through this storm
And if my voice
Starts suddenly shaking
Don't be confused anymore
It's just the sound of my heart breaking
Ship to shore
S.O.S.
In "SOS," Tim Curry sings about feeling lost at sea and struggling to find his way back to shore. He describes himself as sinking slowly to the bottom, with no emotions to save him. He speaks about drifting farther away from home and the fires of passion that kept him warm. He's miles away from where they started, and Curry doesn't know the reason for their separation anymore.
In the chorus, he reaches out to his loved one, saying he's going to do his best to get a message through to them. He's going to make contact the way they always did before. He's determined to come sailing home to them and won't rest until he does. He acknowledges that his voice may start shaking, but it's only because his heart is breaking.
Line by Line Meaning
Look at me
I am in distress and need your attention
In waters so deep
I am metaphorically drowning in my emotions
Much too far from shore
I am feeling lost and disconnected from stability
To see the light of reason anymore
I cannot see a way to make sense of my situation
And I'm sinking slowly to the bottom
My mental state is deteriorating and I am losing myself
No emotions to save me
I am detached and unable to control my feelings
I ain't got 'em anymore
I no longer have my emotions under control
Night and day
I am constantly struggling
I keep drifting farther away
I feel myself growing distant from what is familiar
Much too far from home
I am metaphorically far from the comfort and familiarity of home
Where the fires of passion keep me warm
Where I once found comfort and satisfaction
And I'm miles away from where we started
I have lost my way from where my journey began
No I don't know the reason that we parted anymore
I am unsure of the cause of our separation
S.O.S.
I desperately need help and assistance
I'm gonna do my best
I will try my hardest
To get a message through to you
To communicate with you and make my struggles known
Make contact
To reach out and connect with you
The way we always did before
In the way that we are accustomed to communicating
I'm gonna get no rest
I won't stop until I find resolution
'Til I come sailing home to you
Until I find my way back to you
Through this storm
Despite the difficulties and hardships I must face
And if my voice
If I seem emotional or unstable
Starts suddenly shaking
If my voice wavers or trembles
Don't be confused anymore
You don't need to be concerned or unsure
It's just the sound of my heart breaking
I am expressing the agony and pain in heartbreak
Ship to shore
A line of communication between two points
S.O.S.
I am in desperate need of help and assistance
Lyrics © Spirit Music Group
Written by: DICK WAGNER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind