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.
This Time
Vanessa Carlton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Waiting for the thoughts to fade
I flick a ring of all of my mistakes
And as the light starts creeping in
I slowly feel
The day missing
But I wont even know where to begin
I fall too fast
A moment never seems to last
And will I stop long enough to know
Cos everybody burns
And when it starts to hurt
I cry
I feel it in my veins
I just cant walk away, this time
Your words circle in my head
And weigh so heavy on my chest
And I'm crushed by your expectation
I only want to do some good
To dumb to know if I could
And I just wanna feel the days I'm in
And do I go too far
Not far enough
Why cant I keep my big mouth shut and do
And lead the life that we should
And everybody burns
And when it starts to hurt I cry
I feel it in my veins
I just cant walk away, this time
Did I say too much again?
I'm just a girl in a panic
If I tell you my truth
Am I getting through?
And it just seems I should confess
Who am I to pretend?
This is more than I can carry
Cause everybody burns
And when it starts to hurt
I cry
I hold my head up high
I know ill be alright, this time
I feel it in my veins
I just cant walk away this time
This time
This time
This time
This time
Its 4 am and I'm wide awake
Waiting for my thoughts to fade
And its time like these I see your face
The lyrics of Vanessa Carlton's song, This Time, suggest an internal struggle with self-doubt and insecurity. The song opens with the singer being unable to sleep at 4 am, waiting for their thoughts to fade. They reflect on their past mistakes as the light starts creeping in, suggesting a fresh start and new day. However, they struggle with pushing too hard, falling too fast, and having moments that never seem to last. The singer also questions whether they will ever stop long enough to know what went wrong.
As the song progresses, the focus shifts to the singer being weighed down by someone else's expectations. They only want to do good but are unable to escape the feeling of failure. The lyrics convey a sense of inner turmoil, where the singer wonders if they go too far or if they don't go far enough, and questions why they can't keep their big mouth shut. The chorus 'Cause everybody burns, and when it starts to hurt, I cry' suggests that it is okay to break down, and everyone experiences pain.
The song concludes with the singer admitting that they are just a girl in a panic, questioning if anyone will hear their truth, finally, holding their head up high, and promising themselves that they will be alright, this time. The lyrics convey a powerful message of self-acceptance and hope that things will eventually get better.
Line by Line Meaning
It's 4 am and I'm wide awake
The singer is awake at an uncommon hour
Waiting for the thoughts to fade
They are anticipating mental relief
I flick a ring of all of my mistakes
The singer is ruminating on past regrets
And as the light starts creeping in
The sun is beginning to rise
I slowly feel
The artist is experiencing a change in mood
The day missing
The singer is feeling unfulfilled
But I wont even know where to begin
They are uncertain how to address their problems
Do I push too hard
The artist is questioning their behavior
I fall too fast
The artist is prone to emotional attachment
A moment never seems to last
The artist is disappointed in the fleeting nature of happiness
And will I stop long enough to know
The singer wants to slow down and assess their life
Cos everybody burns
Everyone experiences pain
And when it starts to hurt
The singer feels emotional pain
I cry
The singer is expressing their sadness
I feel it in my veins
The singer feels pain on a visceral level
I just cant walk away, this time
The artist is unable to just move on from their pain this time
Your words circle in my head
The artist is being haunted by someone's words
And weigh so heavy on my chest
The singer feels burdened by the words
And I'm crushed by your expectation
The singer feels overwhelmed by someone's expectations
I only want to do some good
The artist has a desire to do something positive
To dumb to know if I could
They doubt their ability to do good
And I just wanna feel the days I'm in
The artist wants to be present in their current moment
And do I go too far
The singer is wondering if they behave in an extreme manner
Not far enough
They potentially worry they aren't doing enough
Why cant I keep my big mouth shut and do
They are frustrated with themselves for not being able to act and stay quiet
And lead the life that we should
The singer wants to live according to some perceived ideal
Did I say too much again?
The singer is self-conscious about speaking too candidly
I'm just a girl in a panic
The artist feels overwhelmed and vulnerable
If I tell you my truth
The artist wants to be honest
Am I getting through?
The singer questions the efficacy of their words
And it just seems I should confess
The singer believes they should come clean about something
Who am I to pretend?
The artist recognizes the futility of pretending to be someone they're not
This is more than I can carry
The artist feels weighed down by their emotional baggage
I hold my head up high
The artist tries to maintain their confidence
I know ill be alright, this time
The singer is optimistic about overcoming their struggles
This time
The repeated phrase suggests a newfound determination to handle their issues head-on
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Royalty Network
Written by: LINDA PERRY, VANESSA CARLTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind