In France
I might have posted this here a while ago before the new website came into being, but I reworked it and am planning to release it on the album I am shortly to unleash on the listening public, who have done nothing to deserve such treatment.
Listen at my website. There's also a video there. https://mysteriousbeings.com/portfolio/in-france
Or you can listen on SoundCloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/scHS8dBgtqHXqgIc6x
IN FRANCE
(Words & Music by Gavin Sinclair)
Through a gap in the shutters the morning sun
On her dress thrown over a chair
She opens her eyes with a sleepy smile
I stroke her long brown hair
The curve of hips, a touch of lips
"Je t'aime," she softly says
"Je t'aime aussi," I whisper.
She lays her head on my chest
For as long as I can I hold her close to my breaking heart
Too soon I feel her slipping into the day
And I open my eyes to the woman lying beside me
Thousands of miles away
Half-drawn blinds, the dying day
Together, but so far apart
I want to speak, but what can I say
To reach out and touch her heart
I get up from the couch, open the door
She doesn't look up from her phone
I stand on the porch in the warm night air
Eyes closed, no longer alone
As, just for a moment, I hold her in my longing arms
Gently I take her by the hand
Through the sleepy streets to a cafe down by the river
In that dimly remembered far off land
BRIDGE
These days she's not the kind to want much in the way
Of my hugs or affectionate words
But this house we haunt, never touching
Is the loneliest place in the world
So, just for a moment, I hold her in my longing arms
Gently I take her by the hand
Through the sleepy streets to a cafe down by the river
In that dimly remembered far off land
Comments
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My first couple of read-throughs left me a tad confused, in terms of who was where with who and when.
After the third read, I started to pick it up, and got a bit more comfortable with it. Put it down to just getting up and a touch of senility combined.
I love the song, it's simple but that's where the best songs lie, it's the everyday experiences we relate to and can put ourselves into the narrative.
Beautifully written and sung with the right musical texture to carry it along, took me to those Parisian back streets that have a magic all of their own,
Look forward to your album Gavin, if the rest are as good as this.
Sid
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Thanks Sid. I don't believe in being obscure, but this one does reward a little thought, which I think can make a song more enjoyable. A bit of an aha moment 😊
Do you read a lyric before listening? I never do that as I always like to experience it as a whole, the way a normal listener would. After that, I might go back and read the lyric again one or more times.
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Hi Gavin,
My interest is primarily the lyrics, I have little interest in the music or vocals to be honest. I view that side, including my own, as a vehicle for the story, I always read the lyrics first, often many times, as in this case. I enjoy the teasing aspect of a well written piece, the layers that peel away to reveal the truth.
I think you got the blend of truth and mystery spot on, and yes, it's more enjoyable with the aha moment.
Thanks again,
Sid
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Yes, I remember the song, I also remember that I liked it, and I see that I've liked it again. Beautiful lyrics, romantic like Paris in spring. @OnlyGavin
Very nice love song
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@MoraAmaroLaLoba Thanks. Yes, it's basically the song with some tweaks in the production.
Interesting that you and Sid both mention Paris, which was certainly not the France that I had in mind, although it could be, I suppose. I don't remember much in the way of cafes down by the river in Paris, as there would be in a small town or village (as shown in the video). Since the setting is not really a place but a time, maybe it doesn't matter too much 🙂
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I thought the title sounded familiar! Glad to hear the new version
Too soon I feel her slipping into the day
That was the first of many lines that caught my ear.
I love the way it unfolds. The tenderness and sweetness slipping into sadness as night becomes day. But it's not bitter. Just a longing or regret for something that might have been. Not a hint that anything is going to change, just making the best of the days (and nights!) lost in reverie.
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Thanks for listening (again), Owen. You seem to have got the meaning of the song pretty much spot on, although there is more than one way to interpret it.
It was actually hard to put to music. I kept having ideas for harmonies, which actually sounded really good, but they distracted from the intimacy I was trying to project and I ended up getting rid of them.
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Hi Gavin... it's sad... the ache of holding onto something that once was.
The lyric is melancholier than the music. It's wort reading the lyric, afterwards.
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A song fitting for the most romantic city of them all - simple, heartfelt and compelling.
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@IronKnee Thanks for listening. It is sad, yes. I thought the music was quite melancholy too, when I wrote it. Wistful is another word I had in mind. I wanted it to be full of wist. 🙄
@RCJames I assume you are referring to Paris. Not the part of France I had in mind. More a small town or village, which is the side of France that I love. But really, it's wherever memories reside. As the saying goes, "the past is another country."
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