| Richard Shindell – On a Sea of Fleur de Lis Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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From http://sixsongs.blogspot.com/2010/10/magic-on-sea-of-fleur-de-lis.html "One of the best-known songs in ex-pat Fast Folk-era singer-songwriter Richard Shindell's catalog, and one of the most cryptic, this song appears as the centerpiece to his 1992 debut album Sparrows Point, and - in its original form - it features the appalachian dulcimer, on which it was composed. Like so much of Shindell's songs, On A Sea Of Fleur De Lis tells its tale in first person; as near as I can tell, the narrator is a nun, though it could merely be an autobiographical echo of Shindell's own time in the seminary before he set out to become a songcrafter. But truly, there are layers upon layers here. Perhaps it is enough to say that the narrator, seemingly caught in a web of religious trappings, longs to be a witch again, naked and cradled in the arms of the sacred elm or willow, and the song is her prayer. But like a spell, an ex-witches prayer can take many forms. The vast difference in tone and mood between the hollow, ringing original and the rich, joyous celtic-tinged cover Solas brings forth in live performance is an exercise in transformation, turning pensiveness into celebration, completing the circle that four versions lay out for us, setting free the trapped soul of the tale." |
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| Richard Shindell – On a Sea of Fleur de Lis Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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Some more interesting commentary on this song can be found at http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=95101 |
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| Richard Shindell – On a Sea of Fleur de Lis Lyrics | 13 years ago |
| I've loved this song for many years, but one day I was listening to it with my bud (pun definitely intended) and what I heard was a song about processing a loss of faith by someone who isn't ready to move on yet. I've googled for more in depth interpretations, but that is what I hear in it. | |
| Richard Shindell – On a Sea of Fleur de Lis Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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From http://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/17/nyregion/valhalla-singer-in-joan-baez-tour.html "Mr. Shindell said he wrote his first song, ''On a Sea of Fleur-de-Lis'' -- ''a prayer for creativity,'' he called it -- while studying at the Union Theological Seminary in Manhattan in 1987. ''When I finished it,'' he said, ''I stepped back, and the place where I had ended up was far removed from what I understood about myself or songwriting.''" |
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