The easy path attracts a lot of people.
Melbourne based singer-songwriter Ali Barter is not one of them.
In these on-demand times of overhyped pop idols and dubiously talented Internet sensations, Ali possesses the natural chops to have garnered instant attention years ago. But the classically trained soprano, with a decade of choral experience, abruptly quit music in her late teens to become a self-proclaimed 'ragbag' and itinerant world traveller.
Having been exposed to a pantheon of 20th Century musical genius in her upbringing - Frank Sinatra, Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Patsy Cline - she credits the brilliant, notoriously tortured Cat Power with providing the spark that re-ignited her original passion.
Raised by a Buddhist mother and a Catholic father in a Jewish neighbourhood (all whilst attending a Methodist school), she found herself craving the 'sense of community' she observed in all the above religions. At long last, in the late 2000s, she 'found it in music' - the timeless last refuge of the vagabond since time immemorial. As a result; the stakes were always going to be too high for taking short cuts.
Ali embraced the hard graft of the generally glamour-free open-mic circuit. She threw herself into the solitary interior enterprise of writing her own songs and painstakingly practicing her own unique style of guitar playing, recording her debut EP 'Trip' in 2012 with local producer MATIK. The EP caught the attention of national radio broadcaster triple j and earned Ali a coveted spot at the 2013 Laneway Festival in Melbourne, and from there she built her following up and down the east coast of Australia, sharing the stage with acts such as The Rubens, Cloud Control, Alpine, High Highs and Holy Holy.
Ali's clear, pure tone has a habit of elevating every note she sings, evoking comparisons to a long list of acclaimed singer songwriters - the afore-mentioned Cat Power, but also Sharon Van Etten and Bat For Lashes.
Now, with her follow up single (a reintroduction, if you like). Entitled 'Community', with it's rolling groove and dusky vocals, this is a rousing, jangling confession; as Barter says, it is a 'surrender to everything that we use to feel a part of the world'.
‘Community’ is taken from Ali’s new EP of the same name which was co-written and produced by Oscar Dawson (one half of folk/rock duo Holy Holy). After meeting in early 2013, the pair performed around Melbourne and embarked on several east-coast sojourns. During this period, Dawson fell in love with the songs, and so the pair began a far-reaching creative collaboration. Says Barter, ‘…I would start playing one of my songs, and Oscar would start playing along… and it was like the other half of the song would just appear. It was like the missing piece of the puzzle.’
Please Stay
ali barter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm so impatient, I leave no stone unturned
And I try to work out why
These feelings run my mind
I know you always try to see my point of view
I never mean to take my bad day out on you
And I′m sorry about the way I acted yesterday
And although I pushed you away
Please stay, please stay please stay
I'm aware that lately I've been lazy
Waiting around for you to come and rescue me
Yeah this way that I can be
Well it makes me crazy
And although I pushed you away
Please stay, please stay
And I know I′ve broken the frame
Please stay, please stay please stay
I′m not a car
I'm not a plane
When you′re so far away
And you're on the road
And I′m on a loan and it's so hard to say
Forget about the things I said
When I was going out of my head
Forget about the things I said
When I was going out of my head
And although I pushed you away
Please stay, please stay
And I know I′ve broken the frame
Please stay, please stay
Didn't mean to fuck up your day
Please stay, please stay
And I know I pushed you away
Please stay, please stay please stay
Please stay, please stay
Please stay, please stay
Please stay, please stay
Please stay, please stay
The lyrics of Ali Barter's song Please Stay are about a girl who is impatient and struggles with her own emotions. She is aware that she can be difficult, and sometimes she pushes people away. However, she is also trying to work out why she feels this way and apologizes for her behavior. The chorus repeats the phrase "Please stay" as the girl knows she needs the support of the person she is speaking to.
The song has a slow, melancholy feel to it, as if the girl is pleading for understanding and support. She admits that she has been lazy and has been waiting for someone to rescue her. She also apologizes for breaking things and acknowledges that she can be difficult to deal with. However, she still asks the person to stay with her despite her flaws.
Overall, the song captures the feelings of someone who is struggling with their own emotions and is trying to hold on to the people they love. It is a soulful plea for someone to stay with them and understand them, no matter how difficult they may be.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm not the kind of girl who likes to wait her turn
I am not a patient person, I want things done quickly.
I'm so impatient, I leave no stone unturned
I am extremely impatient and won't stop until what I want is accomplished.
And I try to work out why
I attempt to understand myself and my feelings.
These feelings run my mind
My emotions control me completely.
I know you always try to see my point of view
I am aware that you make an effort to understand my perspective.
I never mean to take my bad day out on you
It isn't my intention to take out my frustrations on you.
And I'm sorry about the way I acted yesterday
I apologize for my actions and behavior from the previous day.
And although I pushed you away
Despite my actions of rejecting you,
Please stay, please stay please stay
I'm begging you to stay with me.
I'm aware that lately I've been lazy
I realize that I have been procrastinating and not making an effort.
Waiting around for you to come and rescue me
I have been relying on you to save me from my own problems.
Yeah this way that I can be
This is the way that I am, flawed and in need of help.
Well it makes me crazy
This behavior of mine drives me insane.
And I know I've broken the frame
I acknowledge that I've exceeded certain limits in this relationship.
Didn't mean to fuck up your day
I apologize for ruining your day and causing you unnecessary stress.
I'm not a car
I am not an object that can be easily controlled or manipulated.
I'm not a plane
I cannot escape from my problems by just flying away.
When you're so far away
When you are physically distant from me.
And I'm on a loan and it's so hard to say
I am on my own and I find it hard to express myself without you.
Forget about the things I said
Please disregard hurtful things that I've said previously.
When I was going out of my head
During moments when I lost control of my actions and words.
Please stay, please stay
I am pleading for you to remain by my side.
Writer(s): Alison Barter, Stephen Charles Mowat
Contributed by Bentley D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Pedro Cruz
Suas músicas realmente são
muito boas e de extrema
qualidade
Continue assim
❤❤ ^^
Ricky
Really overlooked her music but her songs sounded absolutely amazing live, definitely becoming a fan
Kevin James
Just saw this on rage! Great 👍 vocals and harmonies and a message! Amazing how a simple film clip and melody can resonate with people ! Makes all the bumping grinding choreographed songs look pathetic in comparison ! The new Aussie diva 👨🎤??
JFK666
Totally obsessed with this song. It demonstrates exactly how great pop can actually be in both in lyrical content and musical construction.
Kailey Korostovetz
This song was awesome live!
Kevin James
The best talent in Australia 🇦🇺 ATM!! Perfect pop ! Her vibrato on the word stay , and harmonies are amazing 😉 timeless , beautiful !!
Mark T
I heard this song on the radio, for the first time, love it
Creed
Such a good song! Nice video too. Good voice :)
Siouxsie Davidson
absolutely luv his song....brilliant lyrics...xx
Schmoburger
Deadset... first time I heard this it blew my fucking socks off. Fucking mint track. Reminds me of some of the awsome indy stuff I used to hear back in the 90's. It's great to see some substance back in the alternative music scene again. :) Keep it up!