Adrian Thaws (born 27 January 1968), better known as Tricky, is a rapper an… Read Full Bio ↴Adrian Thaws (born 27 January 1968), better known as Tricky, is a rapper and musician from Knowle West, Bristol, England who is important in the trip-hop scene (despite loathing the tag) and remains influential on the British scene more generally.

He is noted for an asthmatic whispering lyrical style that is half-rapped, half-sung. As a producer and a musician he is known for having an aversion to perfection preferring to build up a dark, rich and layered sound. Culturally, Tricky bridges white and black Britain particularly in his fusion of rock and hip-hop, high art and pop culture. He drew his influences from rap (Public Enemy) to post-punk (he covered a Siouxsie and the Banshees's song Tattoo).

Throughout his work, Tricky blurs the normally clear sexual definitions found within hip hop. Despite the heavy influence he drew from American hip hop in his debut album, Maxinquaye, he fights against typical sexual representations by, for example, dressing as a woman on the side sleeve of his album cover. Within many of his tracks he blends elements of varying types of music, and use his lyrics to create a much more ambiguous and blurry reality of sexuality.

Maxinquaye remains his most commercially and critically successful album to date. About it, Tricky originally said in an interview with Raygun in October 1996 that he wanted to make an 'out-an-out punk record' and that "I thought it was going be heavier. I thought it was just going to be an out-an-out punk record. But you end up straying. What I wanted to do was a total fast album. Some of the tracks are fast and hard, but they didn't come out like that." He also said that he hated being stuck with the trip-hop tag so "That's why I did Nearly God, and that's why I did Pre-Millennium Tension. You can't see them as trip-hop albums. So I just keep running away from it. But the farther you run, it's still there. They'll find you." Ever since, Tricky' style has evolved away from obscure, sample-based textures to a more contemporary, electronic sound.

Tricky was in Massive Attack and appeared in the movie The Fifth Element as well as the music video for Parabola by Tool. He has collaborated extensively with other artists on tracks on his various releases, including Bjork, Alanis Morissette, Cyndi Lauper, Anthony Kiedis , John Frusciante and Flea (of the Red Hot Chili Peppers), Martina Topley-Bird, and Alison Goldfrapp of Goldfrapp also many others.

After his initial success in the latter 1990's, he started his own label called Durban Poison. Currently he is heading a new imprint called Brown Punk.

Together Now
Tricky Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Into the morning
Got me through the night
I've seen the light
I see the light
I love of what I need
I've got greed
I've been a sinner for as long as I know
So help me understand

The little that I know
Shadow dancing with my spirit
Got to face your demon on your own
Take my body and put it through the dust
I've been buried in the crust
Together now
So help me understand
The little that I know
Together now, together now
It's us now, It's us now
And there's them, and there's them
And should we start again
Together now, together now
It's us now, it's us now

The descendants of Christ
And it's you
Will you help me I'm confused
What you gonna do
With the little that I know
With the little that I got
We're together now, we're together
It's us now
And there's them, and there's them
And should we start again

Together now, together now
It's us now, it's us now

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Tricky feat. Neneh Cherry's "Together Now" express a sense of confusion and desperation for understanding. The words "Into the morning, got me through the night, I've seen the light, I see the light" suggest the character has made it through a difficult period and has seen a glimmer of hope, but it's not enough. The phrase "shadow dancing with my spirit" implies that there is something the character is wrestling with internally, perhaps a personal demon or issue that they need to confront by themselves.

The chorus of the song is a plea for help, "so help me understand, the little that I know, together now." The character acknowledges that they don't have all the answers, but they need someone to help them unravel the complexities of their experience. The lines "It's us now, it's us now, and there's them, and there's them, and should we start again" suggest that the character feels isolated and wants to bridge that divide between themselves and those who are different.

The song has a sense of urgency to it, with the repeated use of "together now," which gives an impression that time is running out and there is a need for immediate action. The message conveyed by the lyrics of "Together Now" is about finding common ground, connection and understanding.

Line by Line Meaning

Into the morning
As the night turned into morning

Got me through the night
I was able to make it through the night

I've seen the light
I have finally achieved clarity and understanding

I see the light
I am now able to clearly see the truth

I love of what I need
I am infatuated with what I require

I've got greed
I possess a strong desire for material possessions

I've been a sinner for as long as I know
I have committed immoral acts for as long as I can remember

So help me understand
Assist me in comprehending

The little that I know
The limited knowledge I possess

Shadow dancing with my spirit
My soul is consumed by darkness

Got to face your demon on your own
You must confront your own inner demons alone

Take my body and put it through the dust
Allow my physical form to deteriorate

I've been buried in the crust
I have been entombed beneath the earth's surface

Together now
United in this moment

It's us now, It's us now
We are now one

And there's them, and there's them
Others exist, separate from us

And should we start again
If we have the opportunity to begin anew

The descendants of Christ
Those who are descendants of Jesus Christ

And it's you
You are one of them

Will you help me I'm confused
Could you provide guidance, as I am confounded

What you gonna do
What action will you take

With the little that I know
With my limited knowledge

With the little that I got
With my modest assets

We're together now, we're together
We are now united

It's us now
We are one

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MARK SAUNDERS, NENEH CHERRY, ADRIAN NICHOLAS MATTHEW THAWS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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