Damage:
(lyrics)
I found the way
By the sound of your voice
So many things to say
But these are only words
Now I’ve only words
Once there was a choice
Did I give you much?
Well, you gave me things
You gave me stars to hold
Songs to sing
I only want to be loved
And I hurt and I hurt
And the damage is done
You gave me songs to sing
Shadow and sun
Earthbound, starblind
Tied to someone
Why didn’t I stay?
Why couldn’t I?
So many lives to cross
Well I just had to leave
There goes everything,
Everything
Can I meet you there?
God knows the place
And I’ll touch your hand
Kiss your face
We only
...want to be loved
We only want to be loved
I only want to be loved
And I hurt and I hurt
And the damage is done
You gave me songs to sing
Shadow and sun
Earthbound, starblind
Tied to someone
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Audio: Recorded live on the “Road to Graceland“ tour
from a performance at Royal Albert Hall, London in December 1993.
Vocals: David Sylvian
Music production: Robert Fripp
Video: Homemade on iPhone, all photos by me.
The last of the white roses before they were ‘damaged’ by disease.
Robert Fripp commented online about the song ‘Damage’: ‘Until the present incarnation of King Crimson, working with David was the happiest undertaking of my professional life; and this song, one of my all-time favouritists. What gorgeous singing, heart-wrenching! A privilege to accompany.’ Pat Mastelotto responded, ‘To sit silently crying, trembling motionless, on stage in a pool of light, night after night, during this song, was one of the hardest privileges of my life.’ (2018)
I shared a draft of this article with Pat before publishing it. Why such a deep response to this particular piece of music? ‘That’s a heavy tune…It just weighs on you emotionally… as your head thinks of all the people you have damaged… And how fragile humanity is.’
The live album recordings of this tour – also released under the song’s name as Damage – were captured at the London shows, and we have both Robert Fripp’s mix from the original 1994 release and David Sylvian’s alternative working from the 2001 re-issue. For the latter Sylvian worked with tour sound engineer, Dave Kent. Both versions push Trey Gunn’s bass-line higher up than Seigen Ono’s mix for the video of the Tokyo show, with the 2001 reworking bringing the vocal right to the fore, matching Sylvian’s approach on the recently released Dead Bees on a Cake.
See full article:
David Sylvian collaborations (Spotify Playlist):Show more