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.
Sloe Gin
Tim Curry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tryin' to wash away the pain inside
Well I'm sick and I'm all done in
and I'm standing in the rain
and I feel like I'm gonna cry
I'm so fucking lonely
and I ain't even high
and I feel like I'm gonna die
Mayday, mayday I've been shot down
over the stormy sea
Well I swear that I'm drifteing away
Just can't get a grip on me
Well, I can't even try
I'm so fucking lonely
and I ain't even high
I hate to go home alone
But what else is new?
I'm so fucking lonely
I hate to go home alone
But what else is new?
I'm so fucking lonely
I'm so fucking lonely
You stand and bleeding people pass you by
Don't matter if you live
Don't matter if you die
Sloe Gin, sloe Gin
Tryin' to wash away the pain inside
Well I'm sick and I'm all done in
and I'm standing in the rain
and I fell like I'm gonna cry
I'm so fucking lonely
and I ain't even high
I'm so fucking lonely
The lyrics to Tim Curry's "Sloe Gin" depict a character who is struggling with loneliness and pain. The titular drink serves as a means to cope with this pain and sense of isolation, as the singer tries to "wash away" the hurt inside with sloe gin. The song opens with the singer expressing the depths of their pain, feeling "sick and all done in" and standing in the rain, on the verge of tears. They are lonely and feel like they're going to die, even without needing to use drugs to reach that emotional state.
The song takes a turn into metaphorical territory when the singer references being "shot down over the stormy sea" and drifting away. This could be interpreted as a reference to the singer feeling lost in the midst of their pain, unable to regain control. They assert that they can't even try to get a grip on the situation, which reinforces the feeling of helplessness. The song's final verse is a bleak reminder that even when someone is in pain or danger, others may pass them by without noticing or helping.
Overall, "Sloe Gin" is a poignant and raw depiction of the pain of loneliness and the lengths that people will go to in order to cope with it. It is a lament for those who feel alone and forgotten.
Line by Line Meaning
Sloe Gin, sloe Gin
The singer repeatedly says โSloe Ginโ one of the coping mechanisms he turns to when his pain is overwhelming.
Tryin' to wash away the pain inside
He turns to drinking sloe gin to help ease/hide away the pain he is going through.
Well I'm sick and I'm all done in
The singer is tired, sick and worn out from lifeโs troubles and canโt seem to take it anymore.
and I'm standing in the rain
The artist stands in the rain, perhaps trying to feel again, or perhaps washed clean, as he looks for a better way to deal with his pain.
and I feel like I'm gonna cry
The artist is overwhelmed by his pain and feels like he is about to break down and cry.
I'm so fucking lonely
The singer is dealing with being painfully lonely, a fact that has intensified his pain.
and I ain't even high
The singer is trying to cope without using drugs or alcohol to numb his feelings.
I hate to go home alone
The artist hates the thought of being alone at night.
But what else is new?
The artist has gone through this many times and finds no hope, as itโs a situation he is used to facing.
You stand and bleeding people pass you by
Even in a situation as drastic as bleeding and needing help, some people will pass right by, indifferent to your need for help.
Don't matter if you live
It doesnโt matter if you live, in some cases, people couldnโt care less about helping you.
Don't matter if you die
It doesnโt matter if you die either, some people are unmoved by the struggles of others and are not interested in helping to alleviate it.
Mayday, mayday I've been shot down over the stormy sea
The singer is using these lyrics to describe how he feels, being overwhelmed by the stormy sea of his depression and longing for a way out.
Well I swear that I'm drifting away
Here, the singer seems to be confirming that his experiences have left him feeling detached and existing more in memory than in the present.
Just can't get a grip on me
The singer is losing the very essence of himself, he canโt seem to control the feelings inside him.
Lyrics ยฉ Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: MICHAEL KAMEN, BOB EZRIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jazzyjasper58
One of the best recordings ever made by anyone.
@jerremymander9381
So true
@sneakers6128
Goosebumps for Africa!!
@dsxa918
Right up there with Maggie Estep and The Spitters "skid row wine" or whatever it is called
@camofrogs-gf
My dad showed me this when he was a few years younger, and I really didn't take to it all that much.
Well, he passed away two weeks ago. I get it now, dad.
@franciscaraine6346
Jenny Deegan im so sorry:(
@adinacurtaz
god first time there were tears in my eyes when reading a comment, i'm so sorry :( but you have to carry on, do what makes you happy and meet people! :)
@IgnatiusCheese
BE STRONG I LOVE YOU BUBBY
@tessemo
Jenny Deegan I'm so sorry โค
@agatharose6341
I'm so sorry โค๏ธ :(