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.
C'est la vie
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She'd seen a lady sell her baby
For ten or twenty dollars maybe
And everybody thinks she's crazy
They're too blind to see
She never failed to call attention
To the things we never mention
Real horror, daily, courtesy of your TV
A woman came and said to me
Now listen very carefully
There's brother killing brother
People living on their knees
Biting sugar coated bullets
For the pain of this disease
C'est La Vie
A woman came and said to me
She had a husband on an island
Found his body on a wasteland
Soldiers came and took him
Just to torture her you see
All alone she mourned her lover
Crossed the sea to find a brother
Maybe he could help her get her baby back for free
C'est La Vie
A woman came and said to me
Now listen very carefully
There's brother killing brother
People living on their knees
Biting sugar coated bullets
For the pain of this disease
C'est La Vie
The song "C'est La Vie" by Various Artists is a powerful commentary about the harsh realities of life. The song begins with the narration of a woman who has witnessed another lady selling her baby for a meager price of ten or twenty dollars, and everyone thinks that she is crazy. This exposes the society's apathy to the sufferings of others and the neglect of certain harsh realities that occur in society. The woman who witnessed the incident constantly calls attention to things that are conveniently ignored by society, such as the daily occurrence of real horror courtesy of the television.
As the song progresses, the woman comes back with more revelations about how brothers are killing each other and how people are living in servitude to their oppressors. She describes how the pain of the disease is so unbearable that people are forced to bite sugar-coated bullets, which highlights the bitter reality of life. Another story of a woman's plight is narrated where soldiers took her husband's body and tortured her. She mourns her lover all alone and crosses the sea to find her sibling to get her baby back for free.
Overall, the song reveals the bitter truths that society often chooses to ignore, such as oppression, corruption, murder, and poverty. The women's stories reflect the lives of those around the world who suffer from such injustices. Instead of accepting these harsh realities, the song encourages its listeners to "take the reins and ride your life away" and make a change in their lives and perhaps in the world around them.
Line by Line Meaning
A woman came and said to me
A woman approached me and told me something important
She'd seen a lady sell her baby
The woman had witnessed a horrific event where a mother had sold her own baby
For ten or twenty dollars maybe
The baby was sold for a very small amount of money, suggesting the desperate situation of the mother
And everybody thinks she's crazy
People are quick to judge the mother and label her as insane for doing something so unthinkable
They're too blind to see
People are ignorant to the circumstances leading up to the mother selling her baby and are not empathetic to her situation
She never failed to call attention
The woman who told the singer about the incident was trying to raise awareness of this shocking event
To the things we never mention
The woman was pointing out the things that we tend to ignore or sweep under the rug
Real horror, daily, courtesy of your TV
The daily horrors we witness are often seen through the media, highlighting the negative aspects of society that we often ignore
C'est La Vie
This is life
There's brother killing brother
The woman informed the artist about the ongoing violence in society, where family members turn against one another
People living on their knees
Many people in the world are living in oppressive conditions and are unable to escape
Biting sugar coated bullets
People are living in a state of denial, trying to ignore the painful realities of life
For the pain of this disease
This disease refers to the social and economic problems that plague society
She had a husband on an island
The woman told the singer about her own personal tragedy, where her husband was separated from her on an isolated island
Found his body on a wasteland
The woman discovered that her husband had died in desolate surroundings
Soldiers came and took him
The woman's husband was forcibly taken away by soldiers, leading to his death
Just to torture her you see
The woman believes that her husband was taken away to inflict pain and suffering on her
All alone she mourned her lover
The woman was left alone to grieve for her husband and mourn his loss
Crossed the sea to find a brother
The woman desperately looked for her family to seek comfort and support during this difficult time
Maybe he could help her get her baby back for free
The woman was still in search of her baby and hoped that her brother could help her retrieve her child without having to pay for it
C'est La Vie
This is life
There's brother killing brother
The ongoing violence in society is causing many families to turn against each other
People living on their knees
Many people are living in oppressive conditions, unable to stand up for themselves
Biting sugar coated bullets
People are trying to ignore the painful realities of life by pretending that everything is okay
For the pain of this disease
The social and economic problems that plague society cause immense pain and suffering among the population
Writer(s): Norman Hassan, Ali Campbell, Jim Brown, Brian Travers, Michael Virtue, Terrence Oswald Wilson, Robin Campbell, Earl Falconer
Contributed by Kennedy F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.