Vanessa's sixth studio album, Love Is An Art, releases on March 27th, 2020 through Dine Alone Records.
Vanessa's fifth studio album, Liberman, was released on October 23 2015, through Dine Alone Records. It marks her first release since signing with Dine Alone Records. The title of the album comes from an oil painting made by Carlton's late maternal grandfather, whose given surname was "Liberman".
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Vanessa Carlton first began playing the piano as a toddler, continuing on an artistic road with her attendance at the School of American Ballet in New York, a path she would eventually abandon in favor of songwriting. She re-embraced the piano and began performing in bars and clubs across Manhattan. While studying at Columbia University, Carlton was signed to Interscope Records, but made her formal debut on A&M under veteran producer Ron Fair.
Her debut album in April 2002, Be Not Nobody, resonated with audiences of all ages world-wide, especially the hit piano single “A Thousand Miles,” which reached the Top 5 on Billboard’s Hot 100 Singles chart, #1 in Australia, and Top 10 in the UK. Carlton went on to earn 2003 Grammy nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist (“A Thousand Miles”). The album witnessed global success, reaching Gold status in over 10 countries, and Platinum status in Asian territories, such as Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Taiwan.
Her second album Harmonium (2004), which yielded the single “White Houses,” continued to inspire an increasingly loyal global fan base and garnered some the best reviews of her career.
Her record release in 2007, Heroes & Thieves “might be my first thematic record,” Carlton says, adding that the songs reveal themselves like chapters in a book, one that fans can crack open (Vanessa has often explained during her live shows that the second single from "Heroes & Thieves" entitled "Hands On Me" is the second chapter to the album). Paying homage to the area of Manhattan where most of its songs were written, the first single off of the 2007 record, appropriately dubbed “Nolita Fairytale,” is a syncopated, upbeat piece that paints a dramatic musical landscape. “ That song is really about finding joy in unexpected environments. How sometimes losing things makes you realize what you have, which is like a quasi fairytale,” says Carlton. Heroes & Thieves was recorded in the San Francisco studio of Third Eye Blind founder Stephan Jenkins and the Los Angeles studio of producer/songwriter Linda Perry.
Vanessa's fourth studio album, "Rabbits On The Run" was released on July 26th, 2011. Material for this album was produced by Steve Osborne (U2, B-52’s, KT Tunstall), and was recorded in the UK at Peter Gabriel's well-renowned Real World Studios.
Speaking with Songfacts about the lead single Carousel in a 2011 interview, Carlton explained that she wrote the song in a dream where the "da na na na na" tune was floating around.
Other facts:
Vanessa's uncle is jazz musician Larry Carlton.
In 2003, Vanessa portrayed Dusty Springfield on the television show "American Dreams" on Heartache (episode #1.14) and performed a cover of the song "Wishin' And Hopin'".
One of Vanessa's touring guitarists, Ari Ingber, (other than being credited as a group vocalist on "More Than This) is the lead vocalist/guitarist for the band The Upwelling. Ari also co-wrote the song "About to Break" from Third Eye Blind's "Ursa Major".
One of Vanessa's touring bassists, Jon Evans, (other than being credited as bassist on Heroes & Thieves and bass guitarist on Third Eye Blind's "Ursa Major") is part of the band Redfish, Bluefish and has also performed with Tori Amos.
One of Vanessa's touring guitarists, Mark Beauchemin, (other than performing with Vanessa on the song "More Than This (Campfire Take)" for the album "Songs For Tibet - The Art of Peace") used to be part of the band SR-71 and currently has his own band.
Besides having Stevie Nicks do backing vocals on her song "The One" and Stephan Jenkins (of Third Eye Blind) do backing vocals on select songs on Heroes & Thieves, Vanessa has made several contributions to works of other artists and bands including: Vocals on the song Big Yellow Taxi with Counting Crows; backing vocals on the song Moving On by Kimya Dawson; piano on the song Everybody's Got To Learn Sometime by Zucchero; vocals on the song M A K E L O V E T O M E with 7 Aurelius; co-writing 3 songs with The Matrix; Providing vocals on the various artist compilation song "Put A Little Love", created for a Gap clothing company campaign which also featured Al Green, Melissa Etheridge, Kelly Rowland, Stephan Jenkins, Ginuwine, Musiq, Heather Headley and Gavin DeGraw; Providing vocals and piano on the various artist compilation song "Love Revolution", a cover of Lenny Kravitz's song, created for a Kohl's clothing company campaign which also featured Avril Lavigne, Lenny Kravitz, Plain White T's and The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus; Performing live with artists/bands including a cover of Elton John's song "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" with Elton John's band, duets with Shlomo, Shlomo and the Vocal Orchestra, Stevie Nicks, Goo Goo Dolls and Counting Crows and backing vocals on select songs with Counting Crows.
Vanessa is credited with providing piano on the track "Company" and backing vocals on "Faster" from Third Eye Blind's album "Out of the Vein".
Vanessa is also credited as being a performer on The Upwelling's debut album "An American Stranger" which Stephan Jenkins also produced.
The Tall Tales for Spring
Vanessa Carlton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the wicked in me is surely the wicked in you
We pray to a ghost that we never met
Time turns for a cure, from the scientists for
Madness, madness of the heart
But you knew it, you knew it from the start
My eyes saw the chaos that started everything
Maybe it's faith, when the sadness takes hold
Still stars through a window, will they ever know this
Madness, madness of the heart
But you knew it, you knew it from the start
There's a madness, a madness of the heart
But you knew it, you knew it from the start
Stare a sleepy smile into a sunbeam
Is this nothing more than a daydream?
Color stained glass cathedral
Confess a past that will let you go
God rest your head Sunday afternoon
And the wicked in me is surely coming through
And pray to a ghost that I've never met
Still searching for someway out of this mess
It's the heart
It's the heart
And there's madness, a madness in the stars
But you knew it, we knew it from the start
Vanessa Carlton’s song “The Tall Tales for Spring” speaks to the madness of the world, the human heart, and our inherent search for meaning. The song begins with an invocation to a god who rests, ‘the wicked in me is surely the wicked in you,’ and follows with acknowledgement of the human desire to pray to an unseen figure for a cure, while scientists search for a physical cure for madness. The repeated refrain of ‘madness, madness of the heart, but you knew it, you knew it from the start’ speaks to the idea that we are all inherently flawed and marked with a kind of madness that defines our very existence.
The second half of the song speaks to the tension between faith and reason: the invocation of Stephen Hawking suggests the search for scientific answers. In contrast, the singer asks whether stars will ‘ever know’ the chaos that started everything, followed by the repetition of ‘madness, madness of the heart,’ implying that the heart may be the seat of knowledge not accessible by reason alone. The song finishes with the repeated refrain of ‘there’s madness, a madness in the stars, but you knew it, we knew it from the start,’ providing a sense of unity with humanity’s shared experience of madness.
Line by Line Meaning
God rest his head Sunday afternoon
A quiet moment in time where we can take comfort and rest from our busy lives.
And the wicked in me is surely the wicked in you
The darkness that lies within us all connects us, united by our own inner demons.
We pray to a ghost that we never met
Our faith grasps onto the unknown, the mysterious, the inexplicable in our search for deeper meaning in life.
Time turns for a cure, from the scientists for
Science offers a hope for a solution to our troubles and struggles, but it takes time and effort to achieve.
Madness, madness of the heart
Our emotional struggles and turmoil are a form of madness that we all must face and deal with in our lives.
But you knew it, you knew it from the start
Despite the difficulties we face in life, we have a deep inner knowledge of our own struggles and the ways we can overcome them.
And Hawking will tell us no tall tales this spring
The knowledge and wisdom of notable figures such as Stephen Hawking can help us navigate the world and understand our place in it.
My eyes saw the chaos that started everything
Amidst the turmoil and confusion that surrounds us, there lies a profound sense of order and meaning that we can begin to unravel if we look closely enough.
Maybe it's faith, when the sadness takes hold
Amidst our pain and heartbreak, we cling to our beliefs and faith as a way of making sense of the world and our place in it.
Still stars through a window, will they ever know this
Even as we gaze up at the stars and marvel at their beauty, we wonder if they have any awareness or understanding of the world below them, and our struggles as humans.
Stare a sleepy smile into a sunbeam
A moment of peace and serenity, basking in the warmth of the sun and feeling content in the moment.
Is this nothing more than a daydream?
We question whether our moments of contentment are real, or merely figments of our imagination, fleeting and ethereal.
Color stained glass cathedral
A beautiful, intricate place of worship that inspires awe and reverence in those who behold it.
Confess a past that will let you go
In order to move forward, we must confront and reconcile with our past, and find a way to let go of the pain and trauma that we carry with us.
God rest your head Sunday afternoon
Amidst the chaos of our lives, we all need moments of rest and respite in order to recharge and rejuvenate.
And the wicked in me is surely coming through
Despite our best efforts to be good and kind, the darkness within us can sometimes take hold and lead us astray.
Still searching for someway out of this mess
Even amidst our struggles and trials, we hold onto the hope that there is a way out, a way to overcome our challenges and find peace.
It's the heart
At the core of our being lies our heart, our deepest desires and passions that drive us forward in life.
And there's madness, a madness in the stars
Even as we gaze up at the beauty and majesty of the stars, we recognize that there is a kind of madness and chaos to the universe that we can never understand or fully comprehend.
But you knew it, we knew it from the start
Despite the vastness and complexity of the world around us, we have an instinctual understanding and connection to the world that we inhabit.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: VANESSA CARLTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind