Friday, March 25, 2005
Tori Amos: Sleeps with Butterflies
But I believe I'm worth coming home to
Music Links to the iTunes Music Store
I've just been listening to "Sleeps with Butterflies" by Tori Amos, off The Beekeeper album. The song is achingly, beautiful.
I've been a fan of Tori's for awhile. She first captured my attention with her 1992 album, Little Earthquakes. Tons of great stuff on that album, but the song that most held my attention was and is still today, "Tear in Your Hand". Sure there's "Crucify", "Precious Things", "Winter", and "Silent All These Years". Each mesmerizing and their own way. But, "Tear in Your Hand" had this bold, brashness, bordering on irreverence, while its relevance was both understated and a kick in your face. Anyone who ever wanted to be known in a relationship could understand this song.
There have been other albums and other songs, by Ms. Amos that have captured my heart and imagination. Such as 2002's A Sorta Fairtale from Scarlet's Walk or Hey Jupiter from 1996's Boys of Pele. "Sleeps with Butterflies" is this newest imagination capture, by the woman who can be so fantastically lyrical, and lyrically obtuse at the same time. Tori's music makes you feel the emotion. She rarely provides the meaning of the song outright. Though, I must say, "Sleeps with Butterflies" is probably fairly easy to comprehend.
Airplanes
Take you away again
Are you flying
Above where we live
Then I look up a glare in my eyes
Are you having regrets about last night
Whether its about the coming and going of love, or the introduction of love in a relationship; it's easy to identify with a line like "Are you having regrets about last night". Tori creates a wonderful story of someone who's brave and sure, but still a bit fearful, watching the one they love leave, and giving them the time, space, and reason to return.
2005's The Beekeeper is well worth the purchase. "Sleeps with Butterflies" is the first single, and a wonderful, wonderful song; but not the only great song on the album. The album was inspired by Sylvia Plath's poem, "The Bee Keeper's Daughter".
Tori Amos is amazing, stark, brash, lyrical, and mystical with "Sleeps with Butterflies". It's a feel good to make my heart ache, type of song. The song also has a wonderful video, directed by Laurent Briet and inspired and influenced by the artwork and illustrations of Aya Kato. You can watch the video at AOL Music: Tori Amos. It's in Quicktime format so should be accessible to both Mac and PC users. But if you want to see it in Windows Media Format, go to Yahoo's Launch Music!. I recommend them without a link, because they suck for having over four years, and not making their videos compatible with Mac OS X.
Status: Highly Recommended
Lyrics
Airplanes
Take you away again
Are you flying
Above where we live
Then I look up a glare in my eyes
Are you having regrets about last night
I'm not but I like rivers that rush in
So then I dove in
Is there trouble ahead
For you the acrobat
I won't push you unless you have a net
You say the word
You know I will find you
Or if you need some time
I don't mind
I don't hold on
To the tail of your kite
I'm not like the girls that you've known
But I believe I'm worth coming home to
Kiss away night
This girl only sleeps with butterflies
With butterflies
So go on and fly then boy
Balloons
Look good from on the ground
I fear with pins and needles around
We may fall then stumble
Upon a carousel
It could take us anywhere
I'm not like the girls that you've known
But I believe I'm worth coming home to
Kiss away night
This girl only sleeps with butterflies
With butterflies
With butterflies
So go on and fly boy
Footnotes
The Dent: A Wonderful Tori Fan Site http://thedent.com/beekeeper.html
Aya Kato’s Cheval Noir http://www.geocities.jp/b_ba_a0530/cheval_noir_files/top00.html
Sylvia Plath’s the Bee Keeper’s Daughter http://www.angelfire.com/tn/plath/beekeeper.html
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Comments
- On 11/16/2010, says:
I went to college with Tori Amos’s biggest fan. He had a lifesize cardboard cutout of her in his apartment. It wasn’t even because he found her attractive, because he was only interested in males. Surprisingly, even though I crashed at his place a few times I have never heard her music. I wonder how I managed that.