Colvin's formative years were spent in the town of Carbondale, Illinois, where she attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She learned to play guitar at the age of 10. Her first public concert was at age 15 at the University of Illinois campus. Colvin cites Joni Mitchell as a primary influence on her music, and her initial performances closely mirrored Mitchell's inflections and guitar tunings.
Colvin began working in the music scene in earnest in the late 1970s, first in Austin, Texas and then nationally. She met music partner John Leventhal during this time; Leventhal would go on to be Colvin's producer on several albums. Colvin often lends her talent to contemporaries in the music business - she can be heard singing the backing vocals on the Suzanne Vega hit, "Luka" from 1987. Vega returned the favor, singing backup on Colvin's, "Diamond In The Rough", from her debut album, "Steady On". Colvin, again can be heard singing backing vocals on Mary Chapin Carpenter's, "The Hard Way" and "Come On Come On" and Mary Chapin returns the favor on Colvin's, "Climb On (A Back That's Strong)", from Colvin's "Fat City" album.
Colvin's first several albums were met with critical acclaim, but did not sell in substantial numbers. After several albums of original work, Colvin released "Cover Girl", a collection of cover songs, but the work was a departure for her and was not well received.
Colvin experienced breakthrough success with "A Few Small Repairs" in October of 1996. The single "Sunny Came Home" reached the US Top Ten, and won Grammy Awards for Song and Record of the Year. She has released several subsequent albums that were nominated for Grammys, and has also released a greatest-hits album and a collection of Christmas music.
A new album from Colvin, entitled "These Four Walls", was released on September 12, 2006.
She was the guest vocal artist on the Lisa Loeb single "Falling in Love" as well as appearing at various Lilith Fair music festivals. She also has been featured on the popular live music show Austin City Limits and played at the 2003 Austin City Limits Music Festival. She also appeared in a tribute to her idol Joni Mitchell in 2001 that was broadcast on the cable network TNT.
She has made two guest appearances on The Simpsons as Rachel Jordan, lead singer for a Christian rock band. She first appears in "Alone Again, Natura-diddly," where Rachel wins Ned Flanders' heart after the untimely death of his wife, Maude. Later, in the episode "I'm Going to Praiseland," Ned dates Rachel, only to scare her off when he tries to turn her into a version of Maude.
Colvin lives with her daughter, Caledonia, and husband, Mario Erwin in Austin, Texas, and still participates in the Austin music scene.
The Heart Of Saturday Night
shawn colvin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Behind the wheel
With your arm around your sweet one
In your Oldsmobile
Barrelin' down the boulevard
You're looking for the heart of saturday night
And you got paid on Friday
And you see the lights
You get all a tinglin' cause
you're cruisin' with a 6
And you're looking for the heart of Saturday night
Then you comb your hair
Shave your face
Tryin' to wipe out ev'ry trace
All the other days
In the week you know that this'll be the Saturday
You're reachin' your peak
Stoppin' on the red
You're goin' to the green
'Cause tonight'll be like nothin'
You've ever seen
And you're barrelin' down the boulevard
Lookin' for the heart of saturday night
Tell me is the crack of the poolballs, neon buzzin?
Telephone's ringin'; it's your second cousin
Is it the barmaid that's smilin' from the corner of her eye?
Magic of the melacholy tear in your eye.
Makes it kind of quiver down in the core
'Cause you're dreamin' of them
Saturdays that came before
And now you're stumblin'
You're stumblin' onto the heart of Saturday night
Well you gassed her up
Behind the wheel
With your arm around your sweet one
In your Oldsmobile
Barrelin' down the boulevard
You're looking for the heart of saturday night
Is the crack of the poolballs, neon buzzin?
Telephone's ringin'; it's your second cousin
Is it the barmaid that's smilin' from the corner of her eye?
Magic of the melacholy tear in your eye.
Makes it kind of special down in the core-acapo
Shawn Colvin's song "(Looking for) The Heart of Saturday Night" tells the story of a man who is longing for the excitement and joy of a typical Saturday night. The song describes the moments leading up to that night as the singer gasses up his car and cruises down the boulevard with his partner by his side. He has been paid and his pockets are jingling as he looks for the heart of this special night.
The excitement builds as he combs his hair and shaves his face trying to wipe out any trace of the other days in the week. He knows that tonight will be special and he is trying to reach his peak. As he stops on the red and goes on the green, the singer feels a sense of magic in the air, and he is looking for the heart of Saturday night.
The song speaks to the longing for a simpler time when weekends were full of possibility and excitement. The detailed descriptions of the pool hall, the ringing telephone, the barmaid, and the magic of the tear in the singer's eye all give the listener a sense of nostalgia for those special moments that can only be found on a Saturday night.
Line by Line Meaning
Well you gassed her up
You filled up your car with gas
Behind the wheel
You started driving the car
With your arm around your sweet one
You had your romantic partner sitting beside you in the car
In your Oldsmobile
You were driving an Oldsmobile car
Barrelin' down the boulevard
You were driving fast down a street
You're looking for the heart of saturday night
You are searching for the excitement of a Saturday night
And you got paid on Friday
You received your salary on Friday
And your pockets are jinglin'
You have money in your pockets
And you see the lights
You notice the lights and activity of the city
You get all a tinglin' cause
You feel excited because
you're cruisin' with a 6
You are riding in a cool car
Then you comb your hair
You tidy up your hair
Shave your face
You shave your beard or mustache
Tryin' to wipe out ev'ry trace
You try to erase all the signs of your workweek
All the other days
You are escaping from the rest of the days in the week
In the week you know that this'll be the Saturday
You know that tonight is the special night of the week
You're reachin' your peak
You are getting more and more excited
Stoppin' on the red
You stop at a red traffic light
You're goin' to the green
You are looking forward to the green traffic light
'Cause tonight'll be like nothin'
This night is going to be unique
You've ever seen
You have never seen anything like this before
And you're barrelin' down the boulevard
You are rapidly driving on the street
Lookin' for the heart of saturday night
You are trying to find the center of activity on a Saturday night
Tell me is the crack of the poolballs, neon buzzin?
Is the sound of billiard balls cracking and the neon lights glowing?
Telephone's ringin'; it's your second cousin
Your cousin is calling you on the phone
Is it the barmaid that's smilin' from the corner of her eye?
Is the bartender smiling at you from the corner of her eye?
Magic of the melacholy tear in your eye.
You feel some sort of sentimental or emotional connection
Makes it kind of quiver down in the core
You feel it deeply within your being
'Cause you're dreamin' of them
You are reminiscing and dreaming about
Saturdays that came before
Previous Saturday nights
And now you're stumblin'
You are faltering, almost overwhelmed by emotions and sensations
You're stumblin' onto the heart of Saturday night
You are approaching the center of the excitement of a Saturday night
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Thomas Alan Waits
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Thang Leminh
on I Don't Know Why
....but I do !