This Delicate Rate We've Made: The Darren Hayes / Savage Garden Rate - WINNER announced
- Thread starter jtm
- Start date
Did you see I liked, then unlike this?
'Neverland' is another weird one but a necessary song. The build to the swooning piano.
Also I have to finally mention that I said this right before my Excel crashed and i lost everything for this rate. I redid the scores from memory and soon the only song I will send my commentary for is my (and maybe @londonrain's) eleven.
londonrain
Staff member
Imagine calling Neverland, of all songs, dreck. It's clearly autobiographical, based on his father who physically abused his mother (a theme that he started exploring on Two Beds and a Coffee Machine).
I mean:
The face that's staring through the tiny crack in the door
Eyes so wide
He's never seen a woman fall on the floor
I swear daddy's killed her this time
Should I make a rocket
Should I try to fly away
Should I make a hammer
Should I try to smash his face
Should I make a bullet
Should I try to shoot the gun
I'm sure the judge will let me off real soon
Eyes so wide
He's telling mommy all the things he can do
He'll sketch a contraption to save them for sure
He can draw an alien
He can come and take them home
He can draw a cartoon
He can draw a safety hatch
He can draw a hot bath
He can plug a toaster in
And wait till daddy's nice and warm
Toss it in
And then when he's gone
There's a neverland of fun
It doesn't get much darker than that, and you get the impression it's very much what little Darren was actually thinking at the time. The end of the song indicates that his thinking hasn't changed much as an adult and he still bears the scars of that trauma.He's telling mommy all the things he can do
He'll sketch a contraption to save them for sure
He can draw an alien
He can come and take them home
He can draw a cartoon
He can draw a safety hatch
He can draw a hot bath
He can plug a toaster in
And wait till daddy's nice and warm
Toss it in
And then when he's gone
There's a neverland of fun
I never saw those layers to be honest.
londonrain
Staff member
That's also why the video has both Darren and a small boy (presumably meant to represent Darren as a child) hiding in a darkened room - and the verbal abuse of the child and physical abuse of the mother is quite literally represented in the shadows. It's why Darren had to be in this video as opposed to the majority of videos made for This Delicate Film We've Made - it works better with this literal representation of the lyrics in the video.
I have to say that the ultimate rediscovery of this rate for me is definitely This Side Of Me. I think I gave it an 8, but not giving it a 10 was a terrible mistake. I’ve listened to it a fair few times since its elimination and it’s actually of the very best tracks in the whole rate.
All eliminations are going to be so painful now!
All eliminations are going to be so painful now!
I always think of that as his first gay song. I‘m not sure if it was meant to be that (probably not) but the lyrics certainly could be read that way.
60.
I Miss You
Third single from ‘Spin’
Average: 7,36
Highest score: 1x10 (@phoenix123)
Lowest score: 1x5,4 (@jtm), 1x5,5 (@Eric)
Might as well throw out both of these songs. This was obviously next to ‘I Need You’ on my Excel sheet, so that’s the real reason I got all confused the other day ddd.
Released as the third single from Spin, this (barely) made the top 20 in the UK and hit number 25 in Australia. The music video and single use a slight remix of the track which is notably shorter than the album version.
I don’t have anything against this song, but it’s sad that the third (and fourth) single from Spin still managed top 20 while later, much much better songs went completely unnoticed due to Darren not being on a big label anymore.
Your comments:
@londonrain: ‘The simplicity of this is a big part of its charm.’ (7)
@berserkboi: ‘Does this lingering feeling beautifully!’ (9)
@rawkey: ‘Serviceable but unremarkable.’ (6.4)
@Eric: ‘A bit repetitive and plodding.’ (5.5)
@jtm: ‘It's not that I don't like the lyrics, they are as always pretty spot on and relatable. But this soft RnB sound is just a bit too beige for me. I wouldn't have chosen this as a single.’ (5.4)
Music video:
Album version:
I Miss You
Third single from ‘Spin’
Average: 7,36
Highest score: 1x10 (@phoenix123)
Lowest score: 1x5,4 (@jtm), 1x5,5 (@Eric)
Might as well throw out both of these songs. This was obviously next to ‘I Need You’ on my Excel sheet, so that’s the real reason I got all confused the other day ddd.
Released as the third single from Spin, this (barely) made the top 20 in the UK and hit number 25 in Australia. The music video and single use a slight remix of the track which is notably shorter than the album version.
I don’t have anything against this song, but it’s sad that the third (and fourth) single from Spin still managed top 20 while later, much much better songs went completely unnoticed due to Darren not being on a big label anymore.
Your comments:
@londonrain: ‘The simplicity of this is a big part of its charm.’ (7)
@berserkboi: ‘Does this lingering feeling beautifully!’ (9)
@rawkey: ‘Serviceable but unremarkable.’ (6.4)
@Eric: ‘A bit repetitive and plodding.’ (5.5)
@jtm: ‘It's not that I don't like the lyrics, they are as always pretty spot on and relatable. But this soft RnB sound is just a bit too beige for me. I wouldn't have chosen this as a single.’ (5.4)
Music video:
Album version:
59.
...1x11...
So Beautiful
Single from ‘Truly Madly Completely’
Average: 7,37
Highest score: 1x11 (@jtm), 2x10 (@berserkboi, @marie_05)
Lowest score: 4x6 (@Remorque, @Robert, @londonrain, @CorgiCorgiCorgi), 1x6,1 (@phoenix123)
You monsters!! You killed off my 11! And with that barrage of 6-ish scores it’s clear this never had a chance at getting a high placement. But I honestly thought people quite liked this?! I take comfort in the fact that @berserkboi and @marie_05 have enough taste for the lot of you. Now some facts for the song before I go cry myself to sleep..
For Truly Madly Completely, the first Savage Garden best of, the band was supposed to record new tracks. A studio was booked, but at the very last minute Daniel dropped out. Darren then recorded two songs on his own, one of which, ‘So Beautiful’, was released as the single from the set. It charted in the top 10 in Australia but surprisingly didn’t chart in the UK (I thought it went top 20, but Wikipedia somehow does not mention a chart entry).
There’s a bunch of versions of this song: The album version which is quite a bit longer, the radio edit which is a bit faster and has some different programming, and the video edit which is a shorter edit of the album version. And I just noticed that the UK had two different versions of the single and I only have one of them. Which is why I never had the video edit.
Anyway, I noticed I only wrote a short commentary for my 11 and I’m always interested in why people choose a specific song as their favorite (this is a hint to the people who have not sent commentary to maybe send one for their 11). For me it’s once more all about the lyrics. ‘I Miss You’ which we just lost uses such simple words to explain so much, and ‘So Beautiful’ does exactly the same, but even more positive. I think I was drawn to this when I first heard it because I could relate to the lyrics so much at the time (and also later from time to time it was my go-to song when I had another misgiuded crush) and I always thought of it as the perfect love song.
Whether I'm right or wrong,
there's no phrase that hits;
like an ocean needs the sand,
or a dirty old shoe that fits;
and if all the world was perfect,
I would only ever want to see your scars;
you know they can have their universe,
we'll be in the dirt designing stars
and
Whether I'm up or down,
there's no crowd to please;
I'm like a faith without a clause
to believe in it;
and if all the world was smiling,
I would only ever want to see your frown;
you know they can sail away in sunsets,
we'll be right here stranded on the ground,
just happy to be found
and of course the fantastic middle eight are all so.. beautiful, I don’t know how else to say it. In terms of music it sounds like what Savage Garden would have sounded like had they continued and maybe gotten some more, very slight electronic influences. And it does sound like a big big radio hit, which makes it even sadder that it wasn’t one. Finally, this is obviously a top 3 Darren / Savage Garden video in terms of Darren’s looks. And that’s final.
Comments:
@londonrain: ‘I love the sentiment of this more than I like the actual song.’ (6)
@berserkboi: ‘I forget thIS GREAT SONG existed!!!!’ (10)
@rawkey: ‘Something suitably syrupy to accompany the compilation.’ (6.3)
@Eric: ‘I'm glad it saw the light of day but doesn't really showcase their songwriting or vocal talents. (I now feel like a bitch since reading it was released before Darren’s wedding to Richard).’ (6.5)
@jtm: ‘One of my favorite pop songs of all time’ (11)
Music video:
...1x11...
So Beautiful
Single from ‘Truly Madly Completely’
Average: 7,37
Highest score: 1x11 (@jtm), 2x10 (@berserkboi, @marie_05)
Lowest score: 4x6 (@Remorque, @Robert, @londonrain, @CorgiCorgiCorgi), 1x6,1 (@phoenix123)
You monsters!! You killed off my 11! And with that barrage of 6-ish scores it’s clear this never had a chance at getting a high placement. But I honestly thought people quite liked this?! I take comfort in the fact that @berserkboi and @marie_05 have enough taste for the lot of you. Now some facts for the song before I go cry myself to sleep..
For Truly Madly Completely, the first Savage Garden best of, the band was supposed to record new tracks. A studio was booked, but at the very last minute Daniel dropped out. Darren then recorded two songs on his own, one of which, ‘So Beautiful’, was released as the single from the set. It charted in the top 10 in Australia but surprisingly didn’t chart in the UK (I thought it went top 20, but Wikipedia somehow does not mention a chart entry).
There’s a bunch of versions of this song: The album version which is quite a bit longer, the radio edit which is a bit faster and has some different programming, and the video edit which is a shorter edit of the album version. And I just noticed that the UK had two different versions of the single and I only have one of them. Which is why I never had the video edit.
Anyway, I noticed I only wrote a short commentary for my 11 and I’m always interested in why people choose a specific song as their favorite (this is a hint to the people who have not sent commentary to maybe send one for their 11). For me it’s once more all about the lyrics. ‘I Miss You’ which we just lost uses such simple words to explain so much, and ‘So Beautiful’ does exactly the same, but even more positive. I think I was drawn to this when I first heard it because I could relate to the lyrics so much at the time (and also later from time to time it was my go-to song when I had another misgiuded crush) and I always thought of it as the perfect love song.
Whether I'm right or wrong,
there's no phrase that hits;
like an ocean needs the sand,
or a dirty old shoe that fits;
and if all the world was perfect,
I would only ever want to see your scars;
you know they can have their universe,
we'll be in the dirt designing stars
and
Whether I'm up or down,
there's no crowd to please;
I'm like a faith without a clause
to believe in it;
and if all the world was smiling,
I would only ever want to see your frown;
you know they can sail away in sunsets,
we'll be right here stranded on the ground,
just happy to be found
and of course the fantastic middle eight are all so.. beautiful, I don’t know how else to say it. In terms of music it sounds like what Savage Garden would have sounded like had they continued and maybe gotten some more, very slight electronic influences. And it does sound like a big big radio hit, which makes it even sadder that it wasn’t one. Finally, this is obviously a top 3 Darren / Savage Garden video in terms of Darren’s looks. And that’s final.
Comments:
@londonrain: ‘I love the sentiment of this more than I like the actual song.’ (6)
@berserkboi: ‘I forget thIS GREAT SONG existed!!!!’ (10)
@rawkey: ‘Something suitably syrupy to accompany the compilation.’ (6.3)
@Eric: ‘I'm glad it saw the light of day but doesn't really showcase their songwriting or vocal talents. (I now feel like a bitch since reading it was released before Darren’s wedding to Richard).’ (6.5)
@jtm: ‘One of my favorite pop songs of all time’ (11)
Music video:
He/Him
Ridiculous So Beautiful is already out! Deserved Top 10!
It made #15 in the UK:
15-36-57-out
15-36-57-out
I was quite obsessed with I Miss You at time of release. It appeals to the hopeless romantic in me.
I know it doesn’t sound too cool
But maybe I’m in love with you.
It’s such a hard life and most of the time I’m just surviving
That’s why I want you to know
In a world where sincerity has lost its meaning
You fill my world with so much hope.
I know it doesn’t sound too cool
But maybe I’m in love with you.
It’s such a hard life and most of the time I’m just surviving
That’s why I want you to know
In a world where sincerity has lost its meaning
You fill my world with so much hope.
Worst elimination so far. Oh dear. This deserved top 10 for sure.
The thing is, I’m a very big hater of happy, syrupy love songs. My own experiences in that department haven’t exactly been the best, so I just can’t relate. My favourite music usually comes with tinges of melancholy and darkness. However, I can only tolerate this type of love song from a handful of artists and Darren/Savage Garden just happen to be among them. So Beautiful has beautiful lyrics about how love doesn’t have to be picture perfect to be meaningful and it’s a travesty that another song (that song) with “beautiful” in the title ended up as the biggest, most ubiquitous song of the year.
So Beautiful is the song Truly Madly Deeply could only ever dream of being (except sales-wise) and I really hoped it would outlast that one, but alas. I can’t believe this even missed the top 50!
The thing is, I’m a very big hater of happy, syrupy love songs. My own experiences in that department haven’t exactly been the best, so I just can’t relate. My favourite music usually comes with tinges of melancholy and darkness. However, I can only tolerate this type of love song from a handful of artists and Darren/Savage Garden just happen to be among them. So Beautiful has beautiful lyrics about how love doesn’t have to be picture perfect to be meaningful and it’s a travesty that another song (that song) with “beautiful” in the title ended up as the biggest, most ubiquitous song of the year.
So Beautiful is the song Truly Madly Deeply could only ever dream of being (except sales-wise) and I really hoped it would outlast that one, but alas. I can’t believe this even missed the top 50!
My second choice leaves tomorrow or the day after so there‘s no way I would have ‚won‘ this anyway. But very happy for everyone else because you all made fantastic choices as well. There‘s one particular song I’m excited that people rallied around which also was in my final selection.
58.
Cruel Cruel World
Album track from ‘Secret Codes and Battleships’
Average: 7,44
Highest score: 1x9,5 (@Eric, @jtm), 1x9,25 (@Remorque)
Lowest score: 1x4,5 (@funkyg)
After yesterday I have a hard time getting upset over the songs leaving today, even though I very much like both of them. First off is ‘Cruel Cruel World’, another album track from Secret Codes and Battleships which I would not have expected to leave before other songs on the album. Like much of Secret Codes, this is more reminiscent of the Savage Garden sound mixed with parts of Darren’s solo output.
It also got good scores from the commentators:
@londonrain: ‘A very effective use of guitar.’ (8)
@berserkboi: ‘Very nice but repetitive!’ (8)
@Sprockrooster: ‘This constant 'The Only One' has me thinking it's referring that song from This Delicate Thing We've Made. Too bad for this track it doesn't reach those highs at all.’ (6)
@Eric: ‘The opening in beginning is particularly powerful…’ (9.5)
@jtm: ‘Love this. The instrumental / vocalizing part and the final chorus make this song for me.’ (9.5)
Listen here:
Cruel Cruel World
Album track from ‘Secret Codes and Battleships’
Average: 7,44
Highest score: 1x9,5 (@Eric, @jtm), 1x9,25 (@Remorque)
Lowest score: 1x4,5 (@funkyg)
After yesterday I have a hard time getting upset over the songs leaving today, even though I very much like both of them. First off is ‘Cruel Cruel World’, another album track from Secret Codes and Battleships which I would not have expected to leave before other songs on the album. Like much of Secret Codes, this is more reminiscent of the Savage Garden sound mixed with parts of Darren’s solo output.
It also got good scores from the commentators:
@londonrain: ‘A very effective use of guitar.’ (8)
@berserkboi: ‘Very nice but repetitive!’ (8)
@Sprockrooster: ‘This constant 'The Only One' has me thinking it's referring that song from This Delicate Thing We've Made. Too bad for this track it doesn't reach those highs at all.’ (6)
@Eric: ‘The opening in beginning is particularly powerful…’ (9.5)
@jtm: ‘Love this. The instrumental / vocalizing part and the final chorus make this song for me.’ (9.5)
Listen here:
57.
Maybe
Album track from ‘This Delicate Thing We’ve Made’
Average: 7,45
Highest score: 2x10 (@phoenix123, @Sprockrooster)
Lowest score: 2x5 (@Robert, @funkyg)
Not even the lowest scorer, but surely @londonrain will rejoice! What a brutal culling for the second part of Delicate which is now down to Future Holds A Lion’s Heart, the single, Words, and that tuneless violin song.
I always thought ‘Maybe’ was an incredibly sad song but the lyrics also leave much open to interpretation I think. It’s another one of the songs that received a video on This Delicate Film We’ve Made (linked below), and the video is pretty fitting for the theme.
Your comments:
@londonrain: ‘I keep forgetting about this one. Sonically it feels like a poor cousin of Sing To Me.’ (5.5)
@berserkboi: ‘Lovely!’ (8.4)
@Sprockrooster: ‘Hope is actually the most powerful feeling. Even when you are down and see no way out. Hope will always have an aura of positivity.’ (10)
@jtm: ‘Even though it's getting a bit samey after Neverland and Walk Away I always like this song the most out of these three.’ (8.6)
Video from This Delicate Film We’ve Made:
Maybe
Album track from ‘This Delicate Thing We’ve Made’
Average: 7,45
Highest score: 2x10 (@phoenix123, @Sprockrooster)
Lowest score: 2x5 (@Robert, @funkyg)
Not even the lowest scorer, but surely @londonrain will rejoice! What a brutal culling for the second part of Delicate which is now down to Future Holds A Lion’s Heart, the single, Words, and that tuneless violin song.
I always thought ‘Maybe’ was an incredibly sad song but the lyrics also leave much open to interpretation I think. It’s another one of the songs that received a video on This Delicate Film We’ve Made (linked below), and the video is pretty fitting for the theme.
Your comments:
@londonrain: ‘I keep forgetting about this one. Sonically it feels like a poor cousin of Sing To Me.’ (5.5)
@berserkboi: ‘Lovely!’ (8.4)
@Sprockrooster: ‘Hope is actually the most powerful feeling. Even when you are down and see no way out. Hope will always have an aura of positivity.’ (10)
@jtm: ‘Even though it's getting a bit samey after Neverland and Walk Away I always like this song the most out of these three.’ (8.6)
Video from This Delicate Film We’ve Made:
Sigh.