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.
The Holly and the Ivy
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Were working out their words.
When something Happened poor Jesus christ,
got caught up in the woods:
O, the rising of the sun,
And the running of the deer
The playing of the merry organ,
Sweet singing in the choir.
The holly bears a blossom,
As white as lily flow'r,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To be our dear Saviour: Refrain
The holly bears a berry,
As red as any blood,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
To do poor sinners good: Refrain
The holly bears a prickle,
As sharp as any thorn,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
On Christmas Day in the morn: Refrain
The holly bears a bark,
As bitter as the gall,
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
For to redeem us all: Refrain
The holly and the ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown: Refrain
"The Holly and the Ivy" is a traditional Christmas carol that borrows from the pagan traditions of the holly and ivy, both of which were used as symbols of the winter solstice. The song is about the holly and the ivy competing for attention while Jesus Christ, who was supposed to be at the center of the celebration, got lost in the forest. The lyrics explore the symbolism of the holly and the ivy, both of which are associated with Christ's birth, death, and resurrection.
The opening lines mention the holly and ivy "working out their words," which is a figurative way of saying they were competing for attention. The second line mentions "something happening poor Jesus Christ got caught up in the woods," which is a metaphor for Christ's message getting lost amongst the pagan traditions. The chorus describes the beauty of the natural world, with the rising sun, running deer, and the joyful sound of the organ and choir.
The following verses explore the symbolism of the holly and ivy. The holly bears a flower and berry, both of which are said to represent Christ's purity and sacrifice, respectively. The prickle of the holly represents the crown of thorns that was placed on Christ's head during his crucifixion, and the bark represents the bitterness of his suffering. The final verse reinforces the idea that the holly is the most important of the two plants, as it is crowned "king of the woods."
Line by Line Meaning
The holly and the ivy,
The holly and the ivy plants are the subject of this song.
Were working out their words.
The plants are having a conversation or communicating with each other.
When something Happened poor Jesus christ,
While this conversation was going on, Jesus Christ had an unfortunate occurrence happen to him.
got caught up in the woods:
Jesus got lost or trapped in the nearby forest.
O, the rising of the sun,
This line is a joyful exclamation of the beauty of the sunrise.
And the running of the deer
The running of the deer is another thing that adds to the beauty of the moment being described.
The playing of the merry organ,
The music of an organ playing joyfully adds to the overall happiness of the situation being described.
Sweet singing in the choir.
The choir is adding to the overall beauty of the situation by singing sweetly.
The holly bears a blossom,
The holly plant produces a flower or a blooming bud.
As white as lily flow'r,
The holly's blossom is as white as a lily's flower.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ, who is noted for his goodness and kindness.
To be our dear Saviour:
Jesus is our beloved savior who we look to for guidance, salvation, and redemption.
The holly bears a berry,
The holly plant produces a fruit or berry.
As red as any blood,
The color of the holly's berry is as red as blood.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
This line is repeated to emphasize Mary's role as the mother of Jesus.
To do poor sinners good:
Jesus is here to help those who are lost or struggling with sin and wrongdoing.
The holly bears a prickle,
The holly plant has thorny spikes all over it.
As sharp as any thorn,
The spikes on the holly plant are as sharp as any thorn on another plant.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
This line is repeated again to emphasize Mary's role in bringing Jesus into the world.
On Christmas Day in the morn:
Jesus was born on a morning near Christmas Day.
The holly bears a bark,
The bark of the holly plant is noted in this line.
As bitter as the gall,
The taste of the holly's bark is as bitter as gall, a substance used in medicine known for its unpleasant taste.
And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ,
Mary's role is emphasized once more.
For to redeem us all:
Jesus was born to redeem all of us, to save us from our sins and shortcomings.
The holly and the ivy,
The holly and ivy plants are important in this song and are being compared to each other.
When they are both full grown,
This line refers to the plants being mature and fully grown.
Of all trees that are in the wood,
The holly plant is noted to be the best or the most important of all the trees or plants in the woods.
The holly bears the crown:
The holly is given the honor of wearing the crown due to its importance and significance in this song.
Contributed by Hudson K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.