It's Only Pain
Encyclopedia
"It's Only Pain" is the seventh single by Georgian
born songstress Katie Melua
and the fourth from her second album, Piece by Piece. The song is said to be about her pain at breaking-up with her boyfriend, Luke Pritchard.http://musicnews.virgin.net/Virgin/Lifestyle/Music/virginMusicNewsDetail/0,13556,1390771_music,00.html
, Melua is first seen walking forward slowly as she sings. She sits on a wooden chair in front of a stage. Melua dances onto the stage playing a character, and she bows. Her hair is straggled and sticking out at odd angles as is her make-up, complete with a teardrop, and her clothes are like a shabby red dance costume. The Sun
newspaper compared Melua's appearance to that of The Cure
's Robert Smith
.http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,4-2006390273,00.html As she sings to the Melua in front of her, a ghostly dancer
appears and starts to dance around behind her. The ghost is a tall, slender young woman, played by Elena Glurdjidze, who is wearing a leotard
, and who dances in a sprightly fashion around the stage.
Occasionally we get a glimpse of a person lying motionless, stage left. The ghost dancer goes over to the person, and it is revealed to be a man. The ghost reaches her hands down to him, and her body returns, and the pair look very happy. They start to dance gracefully, while the sad shabby dancer can only skip as if she has a limp.
The Melua in the audience has been watching this with empathy
. Near the end of the video, the stage Melua comes down off the stage, and steps forward to embrace the audience Melua. But the audience Melua disappears between the stage Melua's arms, so she ends up almost hugging herself. The camera then slips down to her fidgeting black-nailed fingers, mimicking the hand gesture on the Call off the Search
album cover, and the video ends.
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
born songstress Katie Melua
Katie Melua
Ketevan "Katie" Melua is a British-Georgian singer, songwriter and musician. She moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then to England at fourteen. Melua is signed to the small Dramatico record label, under the management of composer Mike Batt, and made her musical debut in 2003...
and the fourth from her second album, Piece by Piece. The song is said to be about her pain at breaking-up with her boyfriend, Luke Pritchard.http://musicnews.virgin.net/Virgin/Lifestyle/Music/virginMusicNewsDetail/0,13556,1390771_music,00.html
Music video
In the music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
, Melua is first seen walking forward slowly as she sings. She sits on a wooden chair in front of a stage. Melua dances onto the stage playing a character, and she bows. Her hair is straggled and sticking out at odd angles as is her make-up, complete with a teardrop, and her clothes are like a shabby red dance costume. The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
newspaper compared Melua's appearance to that of The Cure
The Cure
The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley, West Sussex in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with frontman, vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member...
's Robert Smith
Robert Smith (musician)
Robert James Smith is an English musician. He is the lead singer, guitar player and principal songwriter of the rock band The Cure, and its only constant member since its founding in 1976...
.http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,4-2006390273,00.html As she sings to the Melua in front of her, a ghostly dancer
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
appears and starts to dance around behind her. The ghost is a tall, slender young woman, played by Elena Glurdjidze, who is wearing a leotard
Leotard
A leotard is a skin-tight one-piece garment that covers the torso but leaves the legs free. It was made famous by the French acrobatic performer Jules Léotard ....
, and who dances in a sprightly fashion around the stage.
Occasionally we get a glimpse of a person lying motionless, stage left. The ghost dancer goes over to the person, and it is revealed to be a man. The ghost reaches her hands down to him, and her body returns, and the pair look very happy. They start to dance gracefully, while the sad shabby dancer can only skip as if she has a limp.
The Melua in the audience has been watching this with empathy
Empathy
Empathy is the capacity to recognize and, to some extent, share feelings that are being experienced by another sapient or semi-sapient being. Someone may need to have a certain amount of empathy before they are able to feel compassion. The English word was coined in 1909 by E.B...
. Near the end of the video, the stage Melua comes down off the stage, and steps forward to embrace the audience Melua. But the audience Melua disappears between the stage Melua's arms, so she ends up almost hugging herself. The camera then slips down to her fidgeting black-nailed fingers, mimicking the hand gesture on the Call off the Search
Call off the Search
The Japanese release has the extra track "Deep Purple".-Personnel:*Katie Melua - guitar, vocals*Mike Batt - organ, piano, conductor*Jim Cregan - guitar*Tim Harries - bass*The Irish Film Orchestra - orchestra*Michael Kruk - drums*Alan Smale - leader...
album cover, and the video ends.
Track listings
- "It's Only Pain" (Mike BattMike BattMichael Philip "Mike" Batt is a British songwriter, musician, producer and Deputy Chairman of the British Phonographic Industry...
) - "Lucy in the Sky with DiamondsLucy in the Sky with Diamonds"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" is a song written primarily by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney, for The Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band...
" (John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, Paul McCartneyPaul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
) - "It's Only Pain" (acoustic version)
Recorded
- It's Only Pain was recorded when Melua was in New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. - Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds was recorded at Abbey Road Studio 2Abbey Road StudiosAbbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
during a BBC Radio 2BBC Radio 2BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
tribute to John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
.
Charts
| Chart (2006) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
External links
- Katie Melua web site
- Talk the talk, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
11 August 2006 - Video download (at the bottom of the page)