Sweet Lady Genevieve Lyrics
But they were the words of a drunken vagabond
Who knew very well he would break your heart before long
Oh forgive me Genevieve.
This time I'll give you some security
And I will make promises I can keep
So will you come back to me Sweet Lady Genevieve.
Take you in my arms.
Forgive me, please,
Smile away all your sadness, put your trust in me.
I'm not the impetuous fool you used to know
I know that I used you and I hurt you so,
But that was so long ago Sweet Lady Genevieve.
Take me in your arms.
Let me rock you, hold you,
Smile away all your sadness, put your trust in me.
Drank too much whiskey on that hot summer night.
I acted so slyly because you were acting so shy,
Oh forgive me Genevieve.
You're not the child who smiled so innocently
And I'm not the rogue that I used to be,
So will you come back to me Sweet Lady Genevieve.
Such a great overlooked Kinks song...
Can't believe no one has commented on this one yet.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine (from All Music) has declared this song to be "the real candidate for Davies' forgotten masterpiece".
It should have been a hit
In 1973, around the time Preservation (Act 1) was being composed and produced, Ray Davies was going through a breakup and eventual divorce of his first wife, Rasa Dipetris. He was struggling with the old "demon alcohol" at that point, and he admitted assaulting her while drunk. He tried to keep her, "telling her lies" but he knew he would "break her heart" and possibly more. After she left and took their daughters with her, he attempted suicide by a drug overdose on July 15 that year.
Between then and September 21, when Sweet Lady Genevieve was recorded, he tried to persuade her to come back, begged her forgiveness, and promised to reform and give up drinking. She never did return. We are left with a great work of art born of pain and sadness.