1) Zuba is an internat… Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist with this name:
1) Zuba is an international collective producing a heady upbeat crossover mix of West African folk, Latin rhythms, contrapuntal guitars and melodic vocals. Zuba wrote and rehearsed Allez! in the basement of a disused sandwich factory in the centre of Glasgow in the long, wet summer of 2004. The following recording sessions ran through to November. The main idea of recording these songs was to define, refine and capture Zuba’s existing live sound – a sound borne of a fusion of different cultures but not defined by them. Zuba’s Bassa Beat is global cosmopolitanism almost by accident of birth. The band members were friends, who just happened to be musicians from different parts of the world , before they were a band.
Take a lead singer of Liberian griot lineage with a throat full of reggae and gospel, a Hebridean guitarist with a background in folk fingerpicking and 60s psychedelia, a Parisian percussionist who had travelled and drummed extensively in the world’s Latin quarters, an Aberdonian bassist with a fixation on finding the groove that would link Peter Gabriel’s world fusion and The Who, a Paisley-born jazz-inflected drummer who studied in Berklee, Boston, a Ugandan singer with a soul voice and an obsession with melancholic 70s singer-songwriters, and a Ghanaian dancer with one foot in the R’nB bag and the other dragging it away to African Gospel harmony choir recitals… stick them together in the back of a transit van for six years or so, lock them in a sandwich factory for a while and then entomb them in a smoke-filled recording studio and you have this album.
2) A 90's jam band out of Boulder which has disbanded. Their song "Speed Queen" was featured on the soundtrack of the 1998 American comedy film "There's Something About Mary".
Where Were You
Zuba Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He lived his dreams and raised a family
But he could not see the way you see, all the people and the freaks
Were on the empty pages in his mind
2) Johnnys daddy died in the big war
They never found his body to this day
His daddy washed away to an early grave
Chorus -
Where were you then
I'm on that street again
Wishing I could fly away forever
3) Johnnys' daughter hates her life in this goddamn town
She runs away forever to be free
But the city eats her sanity, she winds up livin' on the streets
Wishing she could be home by the fire
Chorus
4) Johnny died late one night in his empty bed
A lonely man with no one by his side
It was there he slipped into his dreams, with all the people and the freaks
right there by his side no longer alone
Chorus 2x
The song "Where Were You" by Zuba tells the story of Johnny, a man from a good town south of Omaha who lived his dreams and raised a family. However, he had a difficult time understanding and relating to the people and the freaks he encountered. He was never able to fully connect with them, and this notion was present in the empty pages in his mind. The lyrics suggest that Johnny's father died in the big war, and his body was never found. Johnny never wanted to see his father's body wash away on the beach in Normandy. The chorus repeats the line, "Where were you then, I'm on that street again, wishing I could fly away forever," as Johnny looks back at his life and regrets not being able to connect with others.
Johnny's daughter hates her life in the town and runs away to the city to find freedom. However, she ends up on the streets and becomes consumed by the city's chaos. She longs to be back home by the fire. Later in the song, we learn that Johnny dies a lonely man in his empty bed, with nobody by his side. He slips into his dreams, where he can finally connect with the people and the freaks he always missed out on.
Overall, the song conveys themes of loneliness, regret, and the longing for connection. It suggests that there is a need for people to fully connect with one another to avoid a life of solitude and missed opportunities.
Line by Line Meaning
Johnny was a man from a good town south of Omaha
Johnny was a man who came from a respectable neighborhood located in the southern part of Omaha
He lived his dreams and raised a family
Johnny accomplished what he wanted in his life and was able to start a family
But he could not see the way you see, all the people and the freaks
Johnny's perspective differed from yours and he saw the world differently, including the people and unusual individuals amongst society
Were on the empty pages in his mind
In his mind, Johnny's imagination was the only place where he visualized people and freaks
Johnnys daddy died in the big war
Johnny's father passed away due to his involvement in a significant war
They never found his body to this day
Even up to today, they have not found his father's remains
It was on that beach in Normandy, Johnny hoped he'd never see
Johnny did not want to witness the horrific events that took place on the Normandy beach during the war
His daddy washed away to an early grave
His father's death occurred during the war and he was buried prematurely
Where were you then
Asking where you were during a significant event
I'm on that street again
Back in the same place where something significant happened in the past
Wishing I could fly away forever
Desiring to escape from reality and any negative emotions
Johnnys' daughter hates her life in this goddamn town
Johnny's daughter despises living in this unbearable city
She runs away forever to be free
His daughter leaves for good to find her freedom
But the city eats her sanity, she winds up livin' on the streets
Unfortunately, the city consumes her mind, and she ends up becoming homeless
Wishing she could be home by the fire
She wants to be with her family and in a safe environment
Johnny died late one night in his empty bed
Johnny passed away one night, alone in his bed
A lonely man with no one by his side
Johnny did not have anyone with him during his final moments
It was there he slipped into his dreams, with all the people and the freaks
His imagination took hold, and he was able to see his loved ones and the unusual individuals in his mind
Right there by his side no longer alone
Johnny was no longer lonely as he was encompassed in his dreams with the people and the freaks
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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