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.
Better Days
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There were four generations of love on her face.
She was so wise, no surprise passed her eyes,
She'd seen it all.
I was a child, oh, about three or four.
All day I'd ask questions.
At night I'd ask more.
I'd say how can I be sure what is right or wrong?
And why does what I want always take so long?
Please tell me where does God live
And why won't He talk to me?
I'd say, Grandma what is love?
Will I ever find out? and
Why are we so poor, what is life about?
I wanna know the answers before I fall off to sleep.
ohwoohwohwoh...
She sort of smiled as she tucked me in.
Then she pulled up that old rocking chair once again.
But tonight she was slightly, remarkably, different somehow.
Slowly she rocked, lookin' half asleep.
Grandma yawned as she stretched.
Then she started to speak.
What she told me, would mold me, and hold me
Together inside ahahahahah yeah yeah.
She said all the things you ask
You will know someday.
But you have got to live in a patient way.
God put us here by fate
And by fate that means better days.
She said, child we are all moons in the dark of night.
Ain't no morning gonna come 'til the time is right.
Can't get to better days lest you make it through the night.
You gotta make it through the night, yes you do.
You can't get to no better days
Unless you make it through the night.
Oh, you will see those better days
But you gotta be patient.
(Be patient) oh baby, be patient.
Later that year, at the turn of spring,
Heaven sent angels down and gave Grandma her wings.
Now, she's flying, and sliding, and gliding
In better days
And although I'm all grown up
I still get confused.
I stumble through the dark
Getting bumped and bruised.
When night gets in my way
I could still hear my Grandma say
I can hear her say,
I can hear her say.
(Be patient) You can't get to no better days
Unless you make it through the night baby.
(Be patient) Oh, you will see those better days
But you gotta be patient.
Child, do you hear me, yeah.
(Be patient) You can't get to no better days
Unless you make it, you got to make it
you got to make it
You got to make it through the night
(Be patient) Oh Grandma, oh Grandma
Do you see me now, lady
Oh oh oh oh oh...
(Be patient) She used to sit me on her knee
She used to comb my hair
She used to tell me stories.
My Grandma took me everywhere
The song "Better Days" by Various Artists is a tribute to a wise grandmother who imparts valuable life lessons to her grandchild. The lyrics describe the grandmother's physical appearance, with her silver gray hair neatly combed and the four generations of love on her face. The singer, as a curious child, used to ask questions all day and night, and the grandmother patiently answered them all. The lyrics delve deep into the existential questions that bothered the singer, such as the concept of right and wrong, the existence of God, the meaning of love, the purpose of life, and the reason for their poverty. The grandmother replies with wisdom, telling the child that all questions will be answered in time and that patience is essential to make it through the dark of the night to see better days.
The chorus of the song repeats the message of the grandmother, urging the listener to be patient and hold on through the tough times to see the better days. The bridge of the song reveals that the grandmother has passed away, and the singer still gets confused and bump into the dark of the night. But he could still hear his grandmother's advice to be patient, and that gives him hope to see better days.
Overall, the song "Better Days" is a poignant tribute to the wisdom and patience of grandmothers, who are a source of comfort and inspiration to their grandchildren. Through this song, Various Artists has paid homage to the universal themes of faith, hope, and perseverance that apply to all generations.
Line by Line Meaning
Silver gray hair neatly combed in place.
Grandma had neatly combed silver gray hair.
There were four generations of love on her face.
Grandma had love for four generations that could be seen on her face.
She was so wise, no surprise passed her eyes,
She'd seen it all.
Grandma was very wise and experienced, having seen everything.
I was a child, oh, about three or four.
All day I'd ask questions.
At night I'd ask more.
But whenever; she never, would ever, turn me away.
As a child, the artist would ask Grandma questions all day and night and she never turned him/her away.
I'd say how can I be sure what is right or wrong?
And why does what I want always take so long?
Please tell me where does God live
And why won't He talk to me?
The artist would ask Grandma about the uncertainty of right and wrong, why desires take long to be fulfilled, and God's whereabouts and silence.
She sort of smiled as she tucked me in.
Then she pulled up that old rocking chair once again.
But tonight she was slightly, remarkably, different somehow.
Grandma smiled and sat on the rocking chair while tucking the singer in, but tonight she was somewhat different.
Slowly she rocked, lookin' half asleep.
Grandma yawned as she stretched.
Then she started to speak.
What she told me, would mold me, and hold me
Together inside ahahahahah yeah yeah.
Grandma started speaking in a slightly sleepy state and what she said would shape and comfort the singer from within.
She said all the things you ask
You will know someday.
But you have got to live in a patient way.
God put us here by fate
And by fate that means better days.
Grandma told the artist that they will know what they ask over time and they need to be patient since fate can give us better days.
She said, child we are all moons in the dark of night.
Ain't no morning gonna come 'til the time is right.
Can't get to better days lest you make it through the night.
You gotta make it through the night, yes you do.
Grandma compared people to moons in the dark night and said that better days would come only after one gets through tough times.
You can't get to no better days
Unless you make it through the night.
Oh, you will see those better days
But you gotta be patient.
(Be patient) oh baby, be patient.
Grandma reiterated that better days come only after one gets through tough times and the artist should be patient.
Later that year, at the turn of spring,
Heaven sent angels down and gave Grandma her wings.
Now, she's flying, and sliding, and gliding
In better days
Later, in spring of that year, Grandma passed away and she is now in a better place.
And although I'm all grown up
I still get confused.
I stumble through the dark
Getting bumped and bruised.
When night gets in my way
I could still hear my Grandma say
I can hear her say,
I can hear her say.
The artist is now grown but still gets confused and hurt when going through hard times. However, they still remember Grandma's advice.
(Be patient) You can't get to no better days
Unless you make it through the night baby.
(Be patient) Oh, you will see those better days
But you gotta be patient.
Child, do you hear me, yeah.
The singer must get through tough times to reach better days and they should be patient to achieve that.
(Be patient) You can't get to no better days
Unless you make it, you got to make it
you got to make it
You got to make it through the night
(Be patient) Oh Grandma, oh Grandma
Do you see me now, lady
Oh oh oh oh oh...
The singer is reminded that they must persevere through hard times and they ask for Grandma's help and guidance.
Contributed by Bella I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.