100.
A Thousand Words
Album track from ‘Savage Garden’
Average: 6,827
Highest score: 2x9 (@jtm, @CorgiCorgiCorgi)
Lowest score: 1x3 (@funkyg)
Darren: "The first track Daniel and I wrote and finished together was A Thousand Words. And it was... funny, I remember sitting in his front room and we said, "Let's... we're gonna do this, let's write some songs" and he said "What do you want to do?" And I said, "I've been working on this song" and... I pulled out the chords to Right On Time by... uh... that band, whatever that was (Daniel: Nightclubs... ) (Darren demonstrating the tune: Dan-dan-dan-d-dan dan) really simple house song and y'know and sang this different melody over the top, thinking I could fudge it, and Daniel said, "Eh, well, you know, we could go that way, but a zillion bands have, y'know, what do you actually want to do?" and we started talking about music and I was really into Achtung Baby... by U2 at the time and, I don't know, Daniel... was a big fan of INXS and Seal, I guess. But he pulled out a chord progression, which is the chord progression in this song and I pulled out a like a Manchester kind of beat... to go over the top of it, and it became... it filled the room. I remember thinking, "Wow, this is the most full, you know, piece of music I've ever heard in my life." And when I look back now, Daniel probably thought it was really simple, but for me, it was the most musical thing I'd ever seen or heard and... lyrically, it was... about a real conflict that I've had with... uh, uh... a friend of mine and it's someone I don't even speak to anymore. Um... it's funny, I'd had an argument with the person and uh... the song basically is about me phoning the person up and just telling them all the things that I'd always wanted to say to them, and that's, that's why it's called A Thousand Words... um... cause it's about me realizing that... in the end, (sighs) um... however sad... it is to admit it, there's probably not... a single word you could say... to make me... want to go through... this hell... and, and get back on line again and, and have this a part of my life again and it's funny because I since... sort of reconciled with that person and now I'm really not in that person's life anymore, but... the song... sums up the whole... vibe of that relationship for me, and yeah."
Daniel: "A Thousand Words... (laughs) A Thousand Words is a song... that was... it was the virgin song. It was the first song that, that happened. I, I still think you can see Darren and I learning about each other... in listening to that song. It's... that was sitting there sort of like looking up at Darren and looking up at Daniel and the songs can say different things to each of us. But I think it's great that it's on our first record because it means a lot in that way."
The Savage Garden debut album gets no break as ‘A Thousand Words’ becomes the first song to leave in the top 100.
I would have hoped for this one to stick around much longer as I like both the instrumental part and the lyrics. I probably would have used this as a single over ‘Break Me Shake Me’ and ‘Santa Monica’ (and ‘Universe’ and ‘All Around Me’).
Besides the insight from above, here’s some more info on the song from an article called ‘Beyond the Singles’:
Wikipedia has a weird note about this song: ‘It was thought by many that an arrangement of "A Thousand Words" was later used as introductory music in Microsoft's Windows XP, however that track was actually written by linear media composer San LePard around the same time.’
I don’t hear that at all, but check for yourself here:
Finally, our commentators:
@londonrain: ‘Not groundbreaking but enjoyable all the same.’ (7)
@berserkboi: ‘Kinda passed me by’ (6.5)
@CorgiCorgiCorgi: ‘This is way more new jack swing than I remembered it being!’ (9)
@jtm: ‘This is one of my favorites from the debut album. I love everything about this.’ (9)
Listen here:
A Thousand Words
Album track from ‘Savage Garden’
Average: 6,827
Highest score: 2x9 (@jtm, @CorgiCorgiCorgi)
Lowest score: 1x3 (@funkyg)
Darren: "The first track Daniel and I wrote and finished together was A Thousand Words. And it was... funny, I remember sitting in his front room and we said, "Let's... we're gonna do this, let's write some songs" and he said "What do you want to do?" And I said, "I've been working on this song" and... I pulled out the chords to Right On Time by... uh... that band, whatever that was (Daniel: Nightclubs... ) (Darren demonstrating the tune: Dan-dan-dan-d-dan dan) really simple house song and y'know and sang this different melody over the top, thinking I could fudge it, and Daniel said, "Eh, well, you know, we could go that way, but a zillion bands have, y'know, what do you actually want to do?" and we started talking about music and I was really into Achtung Baby... by U2 at the time and, I don't know, Daniel... was a big fan of INXS and Seal, I guess. But he pulled out a chord progression, which is the chord progression in this song and I pulled out a like a Manchester kind of beat... to go over the top of it, and it became... it filled the room. I remember thinking, "Wow, this is the most full, you know, piece of music I've ever heard in my life." And when I look back now, Daniel probably thought it was really simple, but for me, it was the most musical thing I'd ever seen or heard and... lyrically, it was... about a real conflict that I've had with... uh, uh... a friend of mine and it's someone I don't even speak to anymore. Um... it's funny, I'd had an argument with the person and uh... the song basically is about me phoning the person up and just telling them all the things that I'd always wanted to say to them, and that's, that's why it's called A Thousand Words... um... cause it's about me realizing that... in the end, (sighs) um... however sad... it is to admit it, there's probably not... a single word you could say... to make me... want to go through... this hell... and, and get back on line again and, and have this a part of my life again and it's funny because I since... sort of reconciled with that person and now I'm really not in that person's life anymore, but... the song... sums up the whole... vibe of that relationship for me, and yeah."
Daniel: "A Thousand Words... (laughs) A Thousand Words is a song... that was... it was the virgin song. It was the first song that, that happened. I, I still think you can see Darren and I learning about each other... in listening to that song. It's... that was sitting there sort of like looking up at Darren and looking up at Daniel and the songs can say different things to each of us. But I think it's great that it's on our first record because it means a lot in that way."
The Savage Garden debut album gets no break as ‘A Thousand Words’ becomes the first song to leave in the top 100.
I would have hoped for this one to stick around much longer as I like both the instrumental part and the lyrics. I probably would have used this as a single over ‘Break Me Shake Me’ and ‘Santa Monica’ (and ‘Universe’ and ‘All Around Me’).
Besides the insight from above, here’s some more info on the song from an article called ‘Beyond the Singles’:
Wikipedia has a weird note about this song: ‘It was thought by many that an arrangement of "A Thousand Words" was later used as introductory music in Microsoft's Windows XP, however that track was actually written by linear media composer San LePard around the same time.’
I don’t hear that at all, but check for yourself here:
Finally, our commentators:
@londonrain: ‘Not groundbreaking but enjoyable all the same.’ (7)
@berserkboi: ‘Kinda passed me by’ (6.5)
@CorgiCorgiCorgi: ‘This is way more new jack swing than I remembered it being!’ (9)
@jtm: ‘This is one of my favorites from the debut album. I love everything about this.’ (9)
Listen here:
Last edited:
