Born in Cleveland, Ohio,U.S., Tracy Chapman began playing guitar and writing songs as a child. She received a scholarship through A Better Chance that allowed her to attend Wooster School in Connecticut, and was eventually accepted to Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts.
Tracy Chapman helped restore songwriters to the spotlight in the '80s. The multi-platinum success of Chapman's eponymous 1988 debut was unexpected, and it had lasting impact. Although Chapman was working from the same confessional songwriter foundation that had been popularized in the '70s, her songs were fresh and powerful, driven by simple melodies and affecting lyrics. At the time of her first album, there were only a handful of artists performing such a style successfully, and her success ushered in a new era of songwriters that lasted well into the '90s. Along with 10,000 Maniacs and R.E.M., Chapman's liberal politics proved enormously influential on American college campuses in the late '80s.
Official Website: http://www.tracychapman.com
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I Used to Be a Sailor
Tracy Chapman Lyrics
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Who sailed across the seas
But now I'm just an island
Since they took my boat away from me
Oh no
I don't like being stationary
I like the rocky wavy motions of the sea
I sit and rot behind these padded walls
And set me free
He wrote his epitaph
He wrote his eulogy
It said 'I think that I can die now
For my true love won't come for me'
Oh no
I don't like being stationary
I like the rocky wavy motions of the sea
I sit and rot behind these padded walls
Hoping one day they'll fall
And set me free
I used to be a sailor
Who sailed across the seas
But now I'm just an island
Since they took my boat away from me
Oh no
I don't like being stationary
I like the rocky wavy motions of the sea
I sit and rot behind these padded walls
Hoping one day they'll fall
And set me free
Set me free
Set me free
Set me free
In "I Used to Be a Sailor" by Tracy Chapman, the singer expresses a sense of disillusionment and confinement. She compares herself to an island now, because without her boat she is disconnected from the open ocean that used to be an integral part of her life. She misses the "rocky wavy motions of the sea" and is frustrated by being confined to a stationary existence. The padded walls reference suggest that she is in some kind of institution - a mental hospital or prison - and that this sense of confinement is not only literal, but metaphorical as well. Despite her difficult circumstances, the singer is still holding onto hope. She is waiting for a chance to be reunited with the open ocean and experience the freedom it represents to her.
The second verse, in which the singer writes her own epitaph and eulogy, deepens the theme of confinement and longing. She suggests that without the chance to experience true love - which she connects to the idea of being at sea - her life is essentially over. Without hope and freedom, death might feel more like a relief than a tragedy. However, the final chorus, in which the singer repeats the desire to be "set free," also suggests that this hope has not entirely gone out of her.
Line by Line Meaning
I used to be a sailor
I had a life of adventure and travel on the sea
Who sailed across the seas
I traveled and worked on different oceans and waterways
But now I'm just an island
I am alone and isolated without my boat and my former way of life
Since they took my boat away from me
I lost my source of income, adventure, and independence when I lost my boat
Oh no
I feel powerless and unhappy about my current situation
I don't like being stationary
I miss the movement, excitement, and unpredictability of being on the sea
I like the rocky wavy motions of the sea
I enjoy the physical sensations and challenges of sailing despite its risks and hardships
I sit and rot behind these padded walls
I am stuck in a confined and sterile place that doesn't provide me with any meaning or purpose
Hoping one day they'll fall
I cling to the hope that my circumstances will change and I can return to the sea
And set me free
I long for the freedom, autonomy, and self-reliance that sailing represents to me
He wrote his epitaph
He prepared his own words to be inscribed on his tombstone
He wrote his eulogy
He wrote a farewell speech or praise for himself to be read at his funeral
It said 'I think that I can die now
It expressed his sense of completion, resignation, or despair about his life
For my true love won't come for me'
He gave up on his hopes of finding a soulmate, partner, or meaningful connection in his life
Set me free
His repeated plea or prayer for liberation, escape, or salvation from his current state of mind and body
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: TRACY L CHAPMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind