Sat in the grass, up on a hill
The air so still, you came to me to say
"I'll take away your tears, and stay with you for years"
Sat in the grass, up on a hill
The air so still, you come to me to say
"I will wash away your fears, and stay with you for years"
I lay beneath the wings of an angel
I'm standing in the shadow of a saint
All roads are long and no one can deny them
Everything will come to those who wait
And in the time it takes a man to fall
I'll stand up and take it all, I'll take you all with me
Put you on your seat
I lay beneath the wings of an angel
I'm standing in the shadow of a saint
All roads are long and no one can deny them
Everything will come to those who wait
I'll stay beneath the wings of an angel
I'm standing in the shadow of a saint
I'll stay beneath the wings of an angel
I'm standing in the shadow of a saint
I'll stay beneath the wings of an angel
I'll stay beneath the wings of an angel
I'm standing in the shadow of a saint
I'll stay beneath the wings of an angel
I'll stay beneath the wings of an angel
Lyrics by:
Brown / McCracken / Wills
Available on:
Music Of The Spheres (4.42)
Details:
In the extract below, Ian Brown speculatively draws parallels between the standard and structure of Music Of The Spheres and the Roses' debut:
Similarly, in 2009, Ian often - rather tiresomely - namechecked Michael Jackson's seminal 1982 'Thriller' LP in association with his own release of that year, 'My Way.' Speaking to the NME on 21st July 2009, Ian states, "We mastered it on the day that Michael Jackson died too, so I'm taking that as a good omen", a comment which I find to be both disrespectful and a little self-important. Its assumed profundity has echoes of Doug Rocket's declaration in Nathan Barley that the recently deceased John Lennon had passed the torch to him through his floorboards. These delusions of grandeur appear all the more extreme when one considers that Ian's latest solo offering at the time of writing (2009's 'Just Like You') reached the dizzy heights of #137 in the UK singles charts. The passing of the world's premier entertainer in June 2009 saw no shortage of delusional candidates eager to step into his shoes. Kanye West's ego expanded beyond all proportion, telling Scrape TV in 2009, "You know everyone loves and respects Michael but times change. It's so sad to see Michael gone but it makes a path for a new King of Pop and I'm willing to take that on. There's nobody who can match me in sales and in respect so it only makes sense for me to take over Michael's crown and become the new King. First there was Elvis, then there was Michael, now in the 21st century it's Kanye's time to rule. I am the new King of Pop." See also Cheryl Cole's wholesale appropriation of Michael Jackson's This Is It stageshow at the launch of her own solo career. This self-congratulatory circus even extended to lamentation by Will.i.am in January 2011 that the late Michael Jackson missed the opportunity to duet with Cheryl Cole. "Michael was excited about everything I told him about Cheryl. It could have been one of the great collaborations of recent history." If Michael Jackson's pop throne ever did require an heir, the aforementioned charlatans would not get a look in - rather, I would advise giving Prince a call. In terms of magnitude, Ian Brown ranks quite some distance below the Eighties triumvirate of Michael Jackson, Madonna and Prince; if the singer is sitting by the telephone waiting for the call to perform at the Super Bowl, he is in for a very long wait indeed. In June 2009, Ian had his own equivalent of Ringo's 'fanmail rant' the year before. Speaking to Japanese radio station NHK, Ian stated that he won't be signing any more autographs for fans. "I don't see the point to be honest. I am just writing my own name on bits of paper for people. They don't need that. I won't be signing anything anymore. If people want to appreciate me, that's all well and good. But they can do so through the music. Not by looking at my name on a piece of paper. Posing for photos also does my head in. I'll be limiting that from now on." I personally find such diva-esque delusions of grandeur from Ringo and Ian to be cringeworthy. If they do not wish to engage with fans via these traditional methods, the wording and delivery of their respective requests could at least have been made with a little more tact. Ringo's strop via his YouTube channel ("I have too much to do. No more fanmail") has all the technical qualities of a terrorist threat recording, whilst Ian's man-of-the-people persona is damaged greatly by the revelation that standing with fans for a photo "does (my) head in." These churlish demands from Ian seem a little hypocritical when viewed in the light of his interview with Sport.co.uk, three months later, in September 2009. In this feature, he is heavily critical of Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel for his refusal to sign an autograph: "Met him on a plane once - bigheaded tw*t. A little kid asked him for his autograph and he refused. The little kid was in tears, he asked him three times. He said, 'No, go away.' He was being a tw*t. I got his autograph a few minutes before that from Mani, and then I seen this little kid ask him and he said, 'No, go away.' 'Please, Peter.' 'No, I told you, go away.' I know he's a great United hero but for me he's a bighead. I'll never forget that little kid - he had tears in his eyes. There was no need. He could have made that kid's day, but he didn't, he broke his heart. I'll never forgive him for that." In the same feature, Ian is asked to choose his favourite Manchester United players: "Giggs is my favourite player of all time. Represented United man and boy, never heard any bad stories about him.* Super pro, playing better than ever. I've met him three times. I met him with my kids when he could have told us to go away - he was looking for furniture - but he stood and posed for photographs with them. Top player." In Ian's indignant refusal to sign any more autographs ("I won't be signing anything anymore"), one can only hope that exception is made for the younger members of his fanbase, in order to avoid any repeat of the Peter Schmeichel ordeal detailed above.
The manner in which the strings dominate the chorus of Shadow Of A Saint is reminiscent of 'I Am the Walrus' by The Beatles.
* Ian might wish to reassess this comment in light of the spate of revelations of 2011.
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