Sharon said that "'Epic' was written in the aftermath of a really bad relationship. This guy didn't even let me have a guitar. I don't have any bitterness toward him because he kicked my ass into leaving Tennessee. But the record isn't about him; it's about me getting over that situation."
I've met Sharon and she and I have a couple of mutual friends, and I've heard (apocryphally, of course) that this shitty dude that she was in a relationship with was emotionally abusive, and ended up hitting her, which is exactly when she left for Brooklyn, where her songwriting really took off.
It does seem like an unusual way to deal with emotional abuse, because it's lacking in bitterness. It's much less "what the fuck was I thinking being with you?!" and much more "I know that I loved you in at least one way" (and hey, everybody, didn't you love the shitty ones in at least one, small way?) "and I'm going to make the time I spent with you not be wasted entirely. I can learn something about love from this, and love more, love better in the future."
Sharon said that "'Epic' was written in the aftermath of a really bad relationship. This guy didn't even let me have a guitar. I don't have any bitterness toward him because he kicked my ass into leaving Tennessee. But the record isn't about him; it's about me getting over that situation."
I've met Sharon and she and I have a couple of mutual friends, and I've heard (apocryphally, of course) that this shitty dude that she was in a relationship with was emotionally abusive, and ended up hitting her, which is exactly when she left for Brooklyn, where her songwriting really took off.
It does seem like an unusual way to deal with emotional abuse, because it's lacking in bitterness. It's much less "what the fuck was I thinking being with you?!" and much more "I know that I loved you in at least one way" (and hey, everybody, didn't you love the shitty ones in at least one, small way?) "and I'm going to make the time I spent with you not be wasted entirely. I can learn something about love from this, and love more, love better in the future."