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Post by ♥Mary♥ on Feb 19, 2005 16:26:29 GMT -5
Impression, reactions, ramblings, love! Put it all here. ;D  |
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Post by ♥Mary♥ on Feb 21, 2005 3:29:23 GMT -5
Does anyone else listen to this and think of
Georges Seurat's "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte"?
(edit: if you're not familiar with the painting, I'm sure you can google it and you'll see what I mean.)
"If I'm the Seated Woman with a Parasol..."
The lyrics also talk about embroidery in a frame. Seurat's painting style was 'pointillism', which, as I understand it, comes from a French word that means 'stitch' (redcloud, help me out here?).
I love the opening lines. They are hypnotic to me in a way.
I also like the way she inverts the lines like she does in the song. I think the inversion adds to the hypnotic factor. My favorite:
"I have no need for a sea view, for a sea view I have no need."
Hmmm.
by the Seine, so beautiful.....
I know the Seine is a river, but I'm stuck in Seurat's painting now. LOL
I absolutely LOVE this song.
And I think it makes a great opener to the album. (I was not so thrilled with Amber Waves as the opener when SW came out.) I like the meaning of the song, the idea of being safe in a frame, unable to be betrayed. And yet, every other song on the album seems to explore what's on this side of the frame, in the real world where betrayal and love and creativity and endless other themes get lived and blurred together.
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Post by Luckita on Feb 21, 2005 13:10:08 GMT -5
Yes, I thought about the painting too... And then I read this.  "I saw a painting by Seurat - Seated Woman With A Parasol - in a book on Impressionism. I was drawn to it and I started to think about Victorian women and then some women today, the type of women who don't want to intimidate their partner and so allow themselves to become reduced so the other person can feel confident." [Tori Amos: Piece by Piece]
 : Jamaica Inn
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Post by Mary on Feb 21, 2005 14:53:39 GMT -5
Yes, I thought about the painting too... And then I read this. "I saw a painting by Seurat - Seated Woman With A Parasol - in a book on Impressionism. I was drawn to it and I started to think about Victorian women and then some women today, the type of women who don't want to intimidate their partner and so allow themselves to become reduced so the other person can feel confident." [Tori Amos: Piece by Piece] LMAO. Well, now I feel both smart and stupid. I haven't read ANYTHING in Piece By Piece or anywhere else other than a few quick comments on the Dent. So I didn't know she had said that until now. Thanks.  I was thinking I liked how Tori was drawn to the quiet woman seated with a parasol rather than the big-bustled woman who usually gets all the attention in the painting. But then, I guess that's the point. ...If I'm the bustled woman with a monnnnkeeeyy...No, no that just wouldn't work as well. Anyway, it's another of his works. Same idea. She became the study for the famous painting.
: Jamaica Inn
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Post by Mary on Feb 21, 2005 15:16:07 GMT -5
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Post by Mary on Feb 22, 2005 21:14:41 GMT -5
When I come to terms,
to terms with theeeees.... I've always loved how she turns 'this' into 'theeees'.
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Post by ♣Miranda♣ on Feb 22, 2005 23:20:22 GMT -5
I am in love with this song. At the moment, it's my favorite.
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Post by Mary on Feb 22, 2005 23:54:32 GMT -5
I am in love with this song. At the moment, it's my favorite. Hoorayyyy! Sean loves it, too. It's in his top 3. He may not know what his top 3 is yet, but darnit, I'm keeping track of his comments! LOL I place it at about number 4 or 5. ;D |
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Post by ♣Miranda♣ on Feb 22, 2005 23:57:34 GMT -5
It's got such a BFP vibe to it, I think that's why I like it so much. And you're right, it's a fantastic opener.
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Post by Mary on Feb 22, 2005 23:59:08 GMT -5
It's got such a BFP vibe to it, I think that's why I like it so much. And you're right, it's a fantastic opener. Yeppers! This might be my MOST favorite Tori opener yet. |
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Post by orfeo on Mar 1, 2005 5:54:23 GMT -5
{Transplanted and slightly edited from elsewhere, I'm doing my 'review' a song at a time now}
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"Parasol" is such an unusual and distinctive song for Tori Amos, which has the rather odd effect of reminding me of songs by other artists.
The hammond organ opening manages to remind me of Sting's "The Hounds of Winter". I think the reminiscence is not only due to the instrument but also the modal harmony and the pacing. It's by no means a bad connection to have, nor a derivative one. There's just a similar mood.
Somehow "Parasol" also succeeds in reminding me of Wendy Matthews (Australian singer), although not any specific song. I think it's the sense of formality and gravity that's conveyed here.
It's that sense of formality that really strikes me. The lyrics are (quite deliberately I think) stiff and stilted. Lines like "I haven't moved since the call came, since the call came I haven't moved" are not the kind of wandering fairy dust that Tori is sometimes accused of. The melody sticks very much to the beat. It seems appropriate that a song inspired by a Seurat painting should have this effect of austere beauty.
And it certainly is beautiful, particularly in the chorus which allows the melody to be slightly less angular. There are some exceedingly high harmonies in there that really do credit to Tori's ear for colour.
To me this is a song that will inspire deep admiration rather than any kind of ecstatic emotional response (it seems to be consistently generating positive mentions in reviews of the album). That's not a criticism - a song about a repressed character probably shouldn't be spilling out all over the place. Nevertheless it is surprising that a relaxed and unbuttoned album should start with such seriousness.
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Post by orfeo on Mar 1, 2005 5:55:25 GMT -5
Yeppers! This might be my MOST favorite Tori opener yet.  How did Spark get knocked off its pedestal so quickly?! |
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Mad Alice
Little Diamond
~Petrol Emotion~
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Post by Mad Alice on Mar 6, 2005 14:15:42 GMT -5
i must admit i wasn't too thrilled with this album...
but Parasol is one song that did stand out to me.
find myself singing it when i'm not paying attention.
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Post by Julie on Sept 5, 2005 1:52:56 GMT -5
From the first moment my brother and I pushed Play to premiere this album and heard this song, we knew this was gonna be golden! "Parasol" is sooooo beautiful. The lines "When I come to terms, to terms with this..." and "I haven't moved since the call came" are just heart-grabbing. I love the melody and the sound of her voice in this beauty.
Here's my interpretation of it:
I think this song is about that depression you go through when you are realizing that you have been betrayed so deeply. Sometimes it takes a while for a person to open up their eyes and realize that someone you loved has just broken their heart and it all comes rushing in at you. You start to close up because you don't want to feel that pain ever again so you never let anyone get close to you again. You do not want to feel vulnerable anymore. So if you can make the point to people that you are incapable of hurting and be silent at the same time, you have achieved your sad conclusion - not necessarily the right one, but who's to judge after that kind of heart ache? She is protecting herself but in the lonliest way possible.
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Undo
Sweet Molasses
Desired Constellation
Posts: 59
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Post by Undo on May 15, 2006 5:55:19 GMT -5
Beautiful song and I'm happy that I can find it in the original bootlegs box-set!
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lady
Little Diamond
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Post by lady on Jun 25, 2006 3:01:34 GMT -5
'Parasol' is the song that speaks to me the most from the entire album. There's something really unique about the lyrics that allows me, in a way, to identify with the song and the feelings expressed. It's also the way the lyrics are merged with the music and with the rhythm. I love it too much!
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How did Spark get knocked off its pedestal so quickly?! 
