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.
Silhouettes
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Non stop, we have the beaten path before us
It was all there, in plain sight
Come on, people, we have all seen the sign
So we will never get back to
To the old school
To the old rounds, it's all about the new found
We are the newborn, the world knew all about us
We've come a long way since that day
And we will never look back, at the faded silhouette
We've come a long way since that day
And when you never look back at the faded silhouette
Look back at the faded silhouette
Straight ahead on the path we have before us
Day by day, soon the change will come
Don't you know we took a big step forward
Just lead the way
And we pull the trigger
We will never get back to
To the old school
To the old rounds, it's all about the new found
We are the newborn, the world knew all about us
(We are the future, and we are here to stay)
We've come a long way since that day
And we will never look back, at the faded silhouette
We've come a long way since that day
We've come a long way since that day
And we will never look back, at the faded silhouette
We've come a long way since that day
And we will never look back
Look back at the faded silhouette
The lyrics of Silhouettes by Various Artists speak about moving forward and leaving the past behind. The opening lines suggest that the singers have already experienced all there is to experience and that their sights are now set on a new horizon. They urge listeners to join them in keeping their eyes fixed ahead and to not be held back by the past. The chorus repeats the line "we've come a long way since that day, and we will never look back, at the faded silhouette" emphasizing that they have left the past behind and are focusing on the future.
The lyrics seem to be addressed to a larger audience than just the artist themselves. While they do proclaim "we are the newborn, the world knew all about us" they make it clear that others are welcome to join them in their forward momentum. They remind people that change is inevitable and they should embrace it. Though the artists are not explicit about what specifically they are moving forward to, they make it clear that the newer, fresher thing is what they are striving for.
Overall, the message of the song is one of excitement for the future and a rejection of looking back at past mistakes. The chorus's repetition of the line emphasizes the idea that the artists are moving on and not dwelling on the past.
Line by Line Meaning
Press play, fast forward
Let's start moving quickly into the future
Non stop, we have the beaten path before us
We have a clear path to follow without any interruptions
It was all there, in plain sight
We knew exactly what we wanted and how to get it
Come on, people, we have all seen the sign
Everyone knows what we are trying to accomplish
So we will never get back to
There is no going back
To the old school
To how things used to be done
To the old rounds, it's all about the new found
We are focused on the new approach, not the old traditions
We are the newborn, the world knew all about us
We are fresh and new, and the world is paying attention to us
(We are the future, and we are here to stay)
We are the ones who will shape the future, and we're not going anywhere
We've come a long way since that day
We have progressed significantly since we started this journey
And when you never look back at the faded silhouette
We won't dwell on the old ways or outdated ideas
Straight ahead on the path we have before us
We are focused and determined on the road ahead
Day by day, soon the change will come
We know it won't happen overnight, but progress is coming
Don't you know we took a big step forward
We have made significant progress and it's time to acknowledge that
Just lead the way
We have the vision and the plan, so let's move forward with confidence
And we pull the trigger
We are ready to take action and make things happen
And we will never look back
We won't let our past hold us back from achieving our goals
Look back at the faded silhouette
There's no point in dwelling on the past when we should be striving for the future
Writer(s): Adam R. Young
Contributed by Joseph J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.