Suzanne Vega — Solitude Standing
Album: Solitude StandingAvg rating:
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Total ratings: 1501
Length: 4:34
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Solitude stands by the window
She turns her head as I walk in the room
I can see by her eyes she's been waiting
Standing in the slant of the late afternoon
And she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
Solitude stands in the doorway
And I'm struck once again by her black silhouette
By her long cool stare and her silence
I suddenly remember each time we've met
And she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
And she says "I've come to set a twisted thing straight"
And she says "I've come to lighten this dark heart"
And she takes my wrist, I feel her imprint of fear
And I say "I've never thought of finding you here"
I turn to the crowd as they're watching
They're sitting all together in the dark in the warm
I wanted to be in there among them
I see how their eyes are gathered into one
And then she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
And she says "I've come to set a twisted thing straight"
And she says"l've come to lighten this dark heart"
And she takes my wrist, I feel her imprint of fear
And I say "I've never thought of finding you here"
Solitude stands in the doorway
And I'm struck once again by her black silhouette
By her long cool stare and her silence
I suddenly remember each time we've met
And she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
She turns her head as I walk in the room
I can see by her eyes she's been waiting
Standing in the slant of the late afternoon
And she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
Solitude stands in the doorway
And I'm struck once again by her black silhouette
By her long cool stare and her silence
I suddenly remember each time we've met
And she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
And she says "I've come to set a twisted thing straight"
And she says "I've come to lighten this dark heart"
And she takes my wrist, I feel her imprint of fear
And I say "I've never thought of finding you here"
I turn to the crowd as they're watching
They're sitting all together in the dark in the warm
I wanted to be in there among them
I see how their eyes are gathered into one
And then she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
And she says "I've come to set a twisted thing straight"
And she says"l've come to lighten this dark heart"
And she takes my wrist, I feel her imprint of fear
And I say "I've never thought of finding you here"
Solitude stands in the doorway
And I'm struck once again by her black silhouette
By her long cool stare and her silence
I suddenly remember each time we've met
And she turns to me with her hand extended
Her palm is split with a flower with a flame
Comments (37)add comment
powerful lyrics. I don't know if I've heard it before.. 1987 was a long time ago
Many thanks to RP for finally showing me the magic of Suzanne Vega after decades of only a passing familiarity. Great stuff.
changodelaplaya wrote:
Nothing makes me travel through time like music does. It's amazing.
For this song, I recall being in a dorm room in 1987 in Cambridge for a college summer school I was able to attend as a rising high school senior. It was one of the best summers of my life. And yes, I recall a lot of the details of the room, in which I first heard this as well :)
Wow. What a time machine this song is...
I can close my eyes and see the people in and the colour of the room, in which I first heard this song, in 1987.
Absolutely wonderful.
Thank you, Bill.
Nothing makes me travel through time like music does. It's amazing.
For this song, I recall being in a dorm room in 1987 in Cambridge for a college summer school I was able to attend as a rising high school senior. It was one of the best summers of my life. And yes, I recall a lot of the details of the room, in which I first heard this as well :)
robmerkeldesigns wrote:
Back when MTV was a music station I remember them doing a survey to find what viewers thought was the saddest song, and they chose REM's Everybody Hurts. I thought that was weird because while it is a very melancholy tune, it's actually about not giving up when your feeling down.
To me Luka is easily one of the saddest songs I know of because it's about an abused women asking her neighbour not to say anything.
Thanks for the information, and yes i do remember when mtv played music
Back when MTV was a music station I remember them doing a survey to find what viewers thought was the saddest song, and they chose REM's Everybody Hurts. I thought that was weird because while it is a very melancholy tune, it's actually about not giving up when your feeling down.
To me Luka is easily one of the saddest songs I know of because it's about an abused women asking her neighbour not to say anything.
jp33442 wrote:
Back when MTV was a music station I remember them doing a survey to find what viewers thought was the saddest song, and they chose REM's Everybody Hurts. I thought that was weird because while it is a very melancholy tune, it's actually about not giving up when your feeling down.
To me Luka is easily one of the saddest songs I know of because it's about an abused women asking her neighbour not to say anything.
Glad to hear something else besides luka on this album
Back when MTV was a music station I remember them doing a survey to find what viewers thought was the saddest song, and they chose REM's Everybody Hurts. I thought that was weird because while it is a very melancholy tune, it's actually about not giving up when your feeling down.
To me Luka is easily one of the saddest songs I know of because it's about an abused women asking her neighbour not to say anything.
Glad to hear something else besides luka on this album
69Grace_M wrote:
Lol! Everybody just gets compared to everybody but if you're referring to a particular incident maybe. . Literally, the previous song I was listening to people were comparing John Mayer to Eric Clapton which I thought was way off!
why do female artists get compared to other female singers constantly? Women stand as individuals and should be assessed in their own right ALONE. This doesn't happen to the same degree with male singers. This is sexism at it's worst. We are not in the 1984 anymore.
play your part folks....let's make this right..be aware of isms when you're thinking
Lol! Everybody just gets compared to everybody but if you're referring to a particular incident maybe. . Literally, the previous song I was listening to people were comparing John Mayer to Eric Clapton which I thought was way off!
why do female artists get compared to other female singers constantly? Women stand as individuals and should be assessed in their own right ALONE. This doesn't happen to the same degree with male singers. This is sexism at it's worst. We are not in the 1984 anymore.
play your part folks....let's make this right..be aware of isms when you're thinking
play your part folks....let's make this right..be aware of isms when you're thinking
Am I the only one getting Eleanor Rigby vibes from this?
Days of open Hand is probably just as good.
Kdagerman wrote:
Suzanne's voice isn't grating. What about Florence and the Machine? Straight PSD for me.
HEY RP! Love you guys but please, stop with the Suzanne Vega all the time. Her voice is grating and you play her a lot. Too much.
Suzanne's voice isn't grating. What about Florence and the Machine? Straight PSD for me.
sonicsurfer wrote:
Rap is cancer.
After decades of listening and loving RP I finally realized the key magnet is that no "rap" is played! It totally makes the monthly contribution worth it on that issue alone!
Rap is cancer.
easmann wrote:
Yep. I was just thinking while listening to this that her songs really are very good, but possibly not best served by that overly slick and polished production style, in my opinion, that was pretty common in the eighties for some reason.
I think that "too-slick" style might have spawned, by way of reaction, a lot of the grittier and more "rustic" production styles that followed and are now a staple.
I think it's a mark of the quality of her songwriting that her songs still shine despite that slick production. Could just be me...
I think that was caused by the digitalization and more widespread use of synthesizers in pop music back then.
Yep. I was just thinking while listening to this that her songs really are very good, but possibly not best served by that overly slick and polished production style, in my opinion, that was pretty common in the eighties for some reason.
I think that "too-slick" style might have spawned, by way of reaction, a lot of the grittier and more "rustic" production styles that followed and are now a staple.
I think it's a mark of the quality of her songwriting that her songs still shine despite that slick production. Could just be me...
I think that was caused by the digitalization and more widespread use of synthesizers in pop music back then.
easmann wrote:
Yep. I was just thinking while listening to this that her songs really are very good, but possibly not best served by that overly slick and polished production style, in my opinion, that was pretty common in the eighties for some reason.
I think that "too-slick" style might have spawned, by way of reaction, a lot of the grittier and more "rustic" production styles that followed and are now a staple.
I think it's a mark of the quality of her songwriting that her songs still shine despite that slick production. Could just be me...
You hit the nail on the head.
Yep. I was just thinking while listening to this that her songs really are very good, but possibly not best served by that overly slick and polished production style, in my opinion, that was pretty common in the eighties for some reason.
I think that "too-slick" style might have spawned, by way of reaction, a lot of the grittier and more "rustic" production styles that followed and are now a staple.
I think it's a mark of the quality of her songwriting that her songs still shine despite that slick production. Could just be me...
You hit the nail on the head.
On_The_Beach wrote:
Yep. I was just thinking while listening to this that her songs really are very good, but possibly not best served by that overly slick and polished production style, in my opinion, that was pretty common in the eighties for some reason.
I think that "too-slick" style might have spawned, by way of reaction, a lot of the grittier and more "rustic" production styles that followed and are now a staple.
I think it's a mark of the quality of her songwriting that her songs still shine despite that slick production. Could just be me...
Another great song from her best album, IMO.
Yep. I was just thinking while listening to this that her songs really are very good, but possibly not best served by that overly slick and polished production style, in my opinion, that was pretty common in the eighties for some reason.
I think that "too-slick" style might have spawned, by way of reaction, a lot of the grittier and more "rustic" production styles that followed and are now a staple.
I think it's a mark of the quality of her songwriting that her songs still shine despite that slick production. Could just be me...
This is a real ripper, I had no idea Suzanne Vega could rock like this. As always, thank you, RP, that's why I'm here.
mrtuba9 wrote:
I dunno about NWA, but I think some De La Soul or ATCQ would be just fine in the mix here. BillG already plays trip hop a fair bit, so why not a little proper hip hop?
sonicsurfer wrote:
The other day while listening to RP, I hit some button the phone, and the explicit version of "Straight Outta Compton" came on and I'm hells yeah BillG!!!
Turns out, I just switched music sources. But I do thing there is something to be said for the genre from the 90's.
After decades of listening and loving RP I finally realized the key magnet is that no "rap" is played! It totally makes the monthly contribution worth it on that issue alone!
The other day while listening to RP, I hit some button the phone, and the explicit version of "Straight Outta Compton" came on and I'm hells yeah BillG!!!
Turns out, I just switched music sources. But I do thing there is something to be said for the genre from the 90's.
I dunno about NWA, but I think some De La Soul or ATCQ would be just fine in the mix here. BillG already plays trip hop a fair bit, so why not a little proper hip hop?
The nostalgia is strong with me today. 8 > 9
sonicsurfer wrote:
The other day while listening to RP, I hit some button the phone, and the explicit version of "Straight Outta Compton" came on and I'm hells yeah BillG!!!
Turns out, I just switched music sources. But I do thing there is something to be said for the genre from the 90's.
After decades of listening and loving RP I finally realized the key magnet is that no "rap" is played! It totally makes the monthly contribution worth it on that issue alone!
The other day while listening to RP, I hit some button the phone, and the explicit version of "Straight Outta Compton" came on and I'm hells yeah BillG!!!
Turns out, I just switched music sources. But I do thing there is something to be said for the genre from the 90's.
After decades of listening and loving RP I finally realized the key magnet is that no "rap" is played! It totally makes the monthly contribution worth it on that issue alone!
Another great song from her best album, IMO.
Tom_Price wrote:
Step-daughter - no DNA there. She is great though.
She's great. Good production. The daughter of a famous writer. Good DNA.
Step-daughter - no DNA there. She is great though.
Soooo great !!!!!
Wow. What a time machine this song is...
I can close my eyes and see the people in and the colour of the room, in which I first heard this song, in 1987.
Absolutely wonderful.
Thank you, Bill.
She's great. Good production. The daughter of a famous writer. Good DNA.
This reminds me of why I've always loved her. Still works!
Wow, haven't heard this in a long time. It's sounding pretty good after 30 years.
30 years!?
30 years!?
HEY RP! Love you guys but please, stop with the Suzanne Vega all the time. Her voice is grating and you play her a lot. Too much.
Much better song than Luka, for me
DavidFromHouston wrote:
...And - uh - she's wonderful!
I remember buying all of her albums in the late 90's. I love her narrative style.
...And - uh - she's wonderful!
wtango wrote:
Tapped accidentally? Shit happens...
My first PSD. Sorry.
Tapped accidentally? Shit happens...
I remember liking this back in my college days when it was playing on FM radio. Sounds better on Radio Paradise!
I remember buying all of her albums in the late 90's. I love her narrative style.
There is a nice, dark chord progression sprinkled throughout this song, that I think really elevates it.
A Vega tune I kind of like....!
My first PSD. Sorry.
powerful lyrics. I don't know if I've heard it before.. 1987 was a long time ago
Absolutely..
I suggest you take in more of her music.