Mary MacGregor是美国70年代颇有名的女歌手,她的专辑并不多,好像一共才只有3张。据说她也算有音乐天赋,很小的时候便会弹钢琴,十来岁便开始组乐队演出。她的音乐天赋受到了Peter Yarrow的注意,于是不久之后她便加盟了Yarrow的乐队。
1976年,Mary MacGregor出了她第一张个人单曲<Torn Between Two Lovers>,这也是她最有名的单曲。这首歌的旋律十分柔和,真可谓愁肠百结,但内容却比较反叛,说的是一个女子徘徊在两个男子之间,两个男子都是她的深爱。也许她爱其中一个多一些,但却无法舍弃另一个。"Torn between two lovers, feelin' like a fool。Lovin' both of you is breakin' all the rules",这样朗朗上口的歌词,加上她深情的演绎,使这张单曲在当年的销量榜上独占螯头。
这里分享的是她的第二张专辑<In Your Eyes>。里面值得一提的是最后一首歌<I've Never Been To Me>,这同样是一首以女性为中心的歌,不过原唱并不是她,而是另一位美国歌手Charlene Oliver。说起来这首歌的走红也十分偶然,1977年 Oliver首唱此曲,却没有受到太大的关注,一直到1982年DJ Scott Shannon在电台重新播出了这首歌,才引起不少听众的兴趣,于是一夜间这首歌拿下全美排行榜第三和英国第一的好成绩。
I've Never Been to Me是一首充满女性意识极强的抒情歌曲,也是我比较喜欢的歌曲之一。歌曲的叙述方式十分特别:一名历经沧桑的女子,碰到一个不满自己目下的生活、准备去追寻“自由”的怨妇,这个女子联想到自己过去的生活,忍不住真挚地提出忠告“我自己也曾经有过放荡形骸的生活,甚至为追寻所谓的自由走遍了世界,凭借年轻和美貌,也曾得到过王宫贵族的宠幸,但是到头来却是一场空,等到如今年纪大了,发现自己曾经追求的只不过是镜花水月,甚至从未有过真正的自我 ”。
I'VE NEVER BEEN TO ME
(Written by Ken Kirsch and Ronald Miller)
Hey lady, you lady, cursing at your life
You're a discontented mother and a regimented wife
I've no doubt you dream about the things you'll never do
But I wish someone had talked to me like I wanna talk to you
Oh, I've been to Georgia and California and anywhere I could run
I took the hand of a preacher man and we made love in the sun
But I ran out of places and friendly faces because I had to be free
I've been to paradise but I've never been to me
Please lady, please lady, don't just walk away
'Cause I have this need to tell you why I'm all alone today
I can see so much of me still living in your eyes
Won't you share a part of a weary heart that has lived a million lies....
Oh, I've been to Niece and the Isle of Greece while I've sipped champagne on a yacht
I've moved like Harlow in Monte Carlo and showed 'em what I've got
I've been undressed by kings and I've seen some things that a woman ain't supposed to see
I've been to paradise, but I've never been to me
[Spoken]
Hey, you know what paradise is? It's a lie
A fantasy we create about people and places as we'd like them to be
But you know what truth is?
It's that little baby you're holding
It's that man you fought with this morning
The same one you're going to make love with tonight
That's truth, that's love
Sometimes I've been to crying for unborn children that might have made me complete
But I took the sweet life, I never knew I'd be bitter from the sweet
I've spent my life exploring the subtle whoring that costs too much to be free
Hey lady, I've been to paradise, but I've never been to me
1 Memories
2 Alone too long
3 If you believed
4 Satisfied
5 In your eyes
6 Hold tight
7 Just the way you are
8 Don't let me be lonely tonight
9 Seashells on the windows, candles and a magic stone
10 I've never been to me