The term Various Artists is used in the record industry when numerous singers and musicians collaborate on a song or collection of songs. Most often on Last.fm, compilation album tracks appear under the name of Various Artists erroneously because the individual artist is not listed in the album's ID3 information.
Compilation albums, for example.
Sometimes, single releases may be credited to Various Artists when their profits are going to charity and, usually in high-profile cases, are sometimes known by a group name. Examples include Band Aid with their releases of Do They Know It's Christmas? and USA for Africa with We Are The World.
Various Artists is also an actual performance name for Torsten Pröfrock, who runs the German DIN label. Torsten performs also as Dynamo, Erosion, Resilent, Traktor besides some others. He's a good friend of Robert Henke and since the Fall of 2004, he is a member of Monolake.
Various Artists was also a short-lived Bristol punk band formed by brothers Jonjo and Robin Key (originally from Birmingham). Other members were also simultaneously in Art Objects who went on to become The Blue Aeroplanes, the latter the Key brothers also co-wrote some songs and were involved in. When Various Artists imploded, the Key brothers went on to form Either / Or.
Various Artists also appear on tracks from musical theater soundtracks, due to the nature of having many cast members on one song, as well as an ensemble in some cases.
A Spoonful Of Sugar
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There is an element of fun
You find the fun and... snap!
The job's a game
And every task you undertake
Becomes a piece of cake
A lark! A spree!
It's very clear to see
Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
The medicine go do--own
The medicine go down
Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
In a most delightful way
A robin feathering his nest
Has very little time to rest
While gathering his
Bits of twine and twig
Though quite intent in his pursuit
He has a merry tune to toot
He knows a song
Will move the job along
For a
Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
The medicine go do--own
The medicine go down
Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
In a most delightful way.
(musical)
The honeybees that fetch the nectar
From the flower to the comb
Never tire of ever buzzing to and fro
Because they take a little nip
Fom every flower tht they sip
And hence. (echo)
They find... (echo)
(duo) Their task is not a grind
Ah (musical scale)
The lyrics to "A Spoonful of Sugar" convey a message about finding enjoyment in everyday tasks. The song suggests that there is always an element of fun to be found in any job or task, and that if you can tap into that joy, the work becomes easier and more enjoyable to complete. The comparison to medicine is used to emphasize that even unpleasant tasks can be made more pleasant if they are approached with a positive attitude. The song uses playful imagery, such as the robin singing while gathering twigs or the bees gathering nectar, to illustrate this point.
Line by Line Meaning
In every job that must be done
There is an aspect of enjoyment in any task
There is an element of fun
There is something amusing in each job
You find the fun and... snap!
Once you find the enjoyable part, you are ready to proceed
The job's a game
The task becomes like a game to play
And every task you undertake
For anything that you decide to do
Becomes a piece of cake
It becomes more comfortable and simpler to do
A lark! A spree!
It becomes an enjoyable experience
It's very clear to see
It's easy to comprehend
That... a...
That it does so through
Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
Adding something sweet to a bitter experience makes it easier to handle
The medicine go do--own
The medicine go down
The medicine go down
The medication becomes easier to ingest
Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
This change of taste helps makes it easier to swallow
In a most delightful way
The process of getting through the hardship becomes more accessible and agreeable
A robin feathering his nest
The bird takes time to make its home comfortable
Has very little time to rest
But, the bird has to work continuously to gather supplies
While gathering his
While he collects for his nest
Bits of twine and twig
Straw and twigs for the nest's foundation
Though quite intent in his pursuit
Even if its work requires concentration
He has a merry tune to toot
He still finds a way to make it an enjoyable experience
He knows a song
He knows from experience
Will move the job along
The joy of it helps the work move quicker
For a
Because of
Spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
The same metaphor is repeated
The medicine go do--own
The medicine go down
The medicine go down
The medication becomes easier to ingest
Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down
Again, repeating what works for medicine also would work elsewhere metaphorically speaking.
In a most delightful way.
The process becomes effortlessly and joyfully workable
(musical)
The honeybees that fetch the nectar
The bees collecting honeycomb
From the flower to the comb
Try to get just the right amount of honey in the hive
Never tire of ever buzzing to and fro
The bees keep moving tirelessly
Because they take a little nip
The bees sample a small taste
Fom every flower tht they sip
From several different kinds of flower
And hence. (echo)
And thus
They find... (echo)
They discovered
(duo) Their task is not a grind
Their work is not monotonous
Ah (musical scale)
Writer(s): Richard Sherman, Robert Sherman
Contributed by Blake F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.