Vonda Shepard was born in New York but her family relocated to California when she was fairly young. She played piano from an early age. Her father is Richmond Shepard, a mime and improv actor. Vonda has three sisters: Rosetta, Luana, and Brianna. Her mother left the family when Vonda was ten, and her father raised the four girls by himself.
After performing as a backing singer for many years she was eventually given her own recording contract. Shepard's first chart appearance was in 1987 when she recorded a duet with Dan Hill entitled 'Can't We Try'. She released her first self-titled album in 1989 with little fanfare. The album did yield one chart single, Don't Cry Ilene, a mid-tempo, piano-driven jazz-RnB flavored song dealing with the break-up of a relationship between a black woman and a white man, arising from adult peer pressure. The track is sung from the perspective of the woman's white female friend, who harbors a desire to have the man for herself, but keeps her distance out of respect for her friend. The song peaked at 17 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart and stayed on the charts for 12 weeks.
After her third album, Shepard was signed up to appear on Ally McBeal after being spotted by the show's creator David E Kelley. While on the show she recorded two full soundtrack albums and was featured on two other Ally McBeal compilations. The songs Shepard recorded for Ally McBeal soundtrack albums were mainly covers of old songs with lyrics that paralleled what was happening in the title character's life onscreen. Since appearing in the show, Shepard has released two more studio albums and a live album.
Shepard is married to music producer Mitchell Froom and they had their first child, Jack Froom, on 15 April 2006.
Dreamin'
Vonda Shepard Lyrics
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How my life would be
If you were here with me
What a beautiful fantasy
Early in the morning
I find myself with tears in my eyes
From a dream that you're featured in
And it hurts deep inside
And I wonder why
I'm going crazy
I keep thinking about your foolish smile
Here I go I just can't stop
Dreamin'
Dreamin'
All the time
I'm dreamin' of all the joy we could have baby
Dreamin'
Dreamin'
For your heart
I'm dreamin' of all the love that we could share
It's my decision
To leave you now
Just because it hurts too much
Knowing you'll never give enough
But how I long to
Experience the magic of your touch again
Now you're always on my mind
I just can't stop
Dreamin'
Dreamin'
All the time
I'm dreamin' of all the time we could have baby
Dreamin'
Dreamin'
For your heart
I'm dreamin' of all the love that we could share
I think of the time we had
You're making me want you so bad
I'm watching you walk away
But I wish I could make you stay
The only thing that I can do
Is baby, baby to dream of you
I wake up in the morning thinking 'bout you baby
All the time and the time that we could be together yeah
The song "Dreamin'" by Vonda Shepard is a heartfelt ballad about unrequited love. The lyrics reflect the melancholy feelings of the singer, who imagines what her life would be like if the person she loves was with her. The singer expresses her desire to be with the person she loves, but she knows it's impossible because he won't let her in his life. The singer expresses the pain that she feels knowing that she won't be able to experience the magic touch of the person she loves.
The chorus of the song emphasizes the dreaming phase of the singer's state. She is constantly dreaming about the joy and love that they could share if only the person would give her a chance. The chorus is repeated multiple times throughout the song to emphasize how deeply the singer's feelings are. She is dreaming about the love and happiness that could be, but reality is far from her dreams.
The lyrics are full of emotion and longing which make them relatable to anyone who has experienced unrequited love. The song speaks to the heartbreak that comes from wanting something you can't have. In the end, the singer knows that she must move on, but she can't help dreaming about what could have been.
Line by Line Meaning
I sit and wonder
The singer is contemplating
How my life would be
She is wondering about the potential impact on her life if the person she desires were present in her life
If you were here with me
She desires intimacy with the person in question
What a beautiful fantasy
She sees this relationship with the person as a wonderful idea
Early in the morning
Describing the timing of her thoughts and feelings
I find myself with tears in my eyes
She is emotional when thinking about this person
From a dream that you're featured in
The person she desires is present in her dreams
And it hurts deep inside
These feelings are painful
To know that you won't let me in to your life
The person she desires is not interested in a relationship with her
And I wonder why
She is questioning why the person does not reciprocate her feelings
I'm going crazy
She feels like she is losing her mind over this person
I keep thinking about your foolish smile
She is fixated on a specific characteristic of the person
Here I go I just can't stop
She is aware of her obsessive thoughts but cannot control them
Dreamin'
She is dreaming about the person
All the time
Her thoughts are consumed by this person
I'm dreamin' of all the joy we could have baby
She imagines the happiness they could share if they were together
For your heart
She wants to be with this person for their love and affection
I'm dreamin' of all the love that we could share
She envisions the love they could have together
It's my decision
She has made a conscious choice
To leave you now
She is choosing to move on from this person
Just because it hurts too much
The pain of not being with this person is too much for her to bear
Knowing you'll never give enough
She understands that this person cannot provide her with what she needs in a relationship
But how I long to
She still desires to be with this person
Experience the magic of your touch again
She wants to feel the physical intimacy they once had
Now you're always on my mind
She cannot shake this person from her thoughts
I just can't stop
She is consumed with thoughts of this person
I think of the time we had
She reflects on their past together
You're making me want you so bad
Thinking about the past is causing her to desire this person even more
I'm watching you walk away
They are no longer in a relationship
But I wish I could make you stay
She desires for this person to stay with her
The only thing that I can do
She is powerless in the situation
Is baby, baby to dream of you
All she can do is continue to dream about this person
I wake up in the morning thinking 'bout you baby
She still thinks about this person first thing in the morning
And the time that we could be together yeah
She is still hoping for a future with this person
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DEVIN FORBES ABRAMS, BEN PAUL JAMES, BENJAMIN HOHEPA KAHU, KAROLINE FUAROSA TAMATI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind