The Cinematic Orchestra Lyrics, Photos, Pictures, Paroles, Letras, Text for every songs

B i o g r a p h y
(by Official Press)

The aptly named Cinematic Orchestra (TCO) were formed by 30 year old J. Swinscoe back in 1999. At the time Jay was still an employee at Ninja Tune in South London, where he was responsible for export sales at the long-standing independent record label. Swinscoe arrived at London Bridge from Scotland via Yorkshire and Cardiff with a background playing bass and guitar in bands and DJing, as well as a head full of ideas and influences, such as his love of jazz bass players, rhythm sections and film soundtracks. So while he knocked out Mr. Scruff and Coldcut records to Spain and Scandinavia by day, he began putting together the TCO album in his downtime. Taking on the role of bandleader, Swinscoe rallied a group of adventurous jazz players and delivered a debut album that took everyone by surprise and was voted album of the year by listeners to Gilles Peterson’s Radio One show. And more than a few other programmes too! It is a record which underlines the cinematic in the Cinematic Orchestra, with Uncut likening it to "every hard-boiled, neon-lit Hollywood thriller you’ve seen, the sound of a thousand femmes fatales, doomed P.I.’s and bitter plot twists remixed and refashioned in one ingeniously sampled audio narrative".

‘Motion’ was followed in 2001 by an album of TCO remixes of other artists (‘Remixes 98-2000’!) which garnered more critical acclaim and also caught the imagination of the broadsheets, with The Guardian heaping praise upon both Jay’s sense of space and his attention to detail: "It’s frighteningly rare that a musician in a contemporary field brings so much generous knowledge and that transforming power to their work, inviting you inside their world and introducing you to a new way of listening". If ‘Motion’ reflected the cinematic aspect of TCO, their second album ‘Every Day’, brought out more of the orchestral side, too. Arguably a more refined record than its predecessor, it is uncompromising in its approach nonetheless. And in these production-line, rebirth-of-the-pop-idol times, ten minute tunes and seven tracks on an album are hardly the norm. But evidently the Cinematics do their own thing very well.

On ‘Every Day’, Swinscoe worked with bass player Phil France as his co-pilot and co-producer, France’s background in jazz the perfect counterpoint to Swinscoe’s technical knowhow and raw feel. The pair flew out to St. Louis to record the legendary Fontella Bass (of ‘Rescue Me’ and Art Ensemble of Chicago fame) for the single ‘All That You Give’ and ‘Evolution’, both of which appeared on the album. Closer to home, they enlisted the talents of Mercury and Brit nominated South London rapper Roots Manuva on the soul searching ‘All Things To All Men’. ‘Every Day’ also features the drumming of modern-day jazz legend Luke Flowers , who had played together with France for a number of years as youthful stars on the northern jazz circuit. Another name on the same scene was the much travelled fellow Mancunian, keyboard player John Ellis who played on the 'Everyday' album and toured live. He has now been replaced by another Mancunian Steve Brown for the start of the Man With A Movie Camera dates and beyond. Next up, and a fixture at left of centre jazz gigs all over the world, is 24 year old saxophonist Tom Chant, who is known as one of the UK’s top free jazz players. Turntablist PC, meanwhile, is one of the original Ninjas, for many years the studio backbone of the label and an integral part of the DJ Food project. The single ‘Horizon,’ which did not appear on ‘Every Day’, featured feisty 24 year old Niara Scarlett who has been touring with the band over the last year (and who is featured in both the documentary and the live performances on the DVD). Niara is also a successful songwriter in her own right with her credits including the Pop Stars: The Rivals ‘Sound Of The Underground’ single.

In the last three years the Cinematics’ have played far and wide at every conceivable type of venue and on all kinds of occasion. They have shocked out from the Jazz Café to the Jazz Bop via Ronnie Scott’s. And in somewhat hardcore fashion they toured the North American Jazz Festival circuit in the back of a transit van, with the dates culminating in a prestigious support slot for John McLaughlin in Central Park. They have toured in Germany, Japan, Italy and Portugal. They have also clocked up the music festival mileage appearing at, amongst others, Homelands and Essential (UK), Sonar (Spain), Celerico De Basto (Portugal), North Sea Jazz and Drum Rhythm (Holland), Cannes (France), Fuji Rock (Japan) and Montreux (Switzerland) and have headlined The Big Chill twice. Their appearance on the Radio One Live week in Birmingham in 2001 with Roots Manuva and Ricky Rankin, was also a memorable affair and they were invited back to play at last year’s event in Nottingham. Other live highlights include playing at the presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award for Stanley Kubrick by the Directors Guild. Also the ‘Every Day’ album launch when the Hanover Grand was dressed and draped with red velvet curtains and Chinese lanterns and new TCO singer Niara Scarlett battled it out with Fontella Bass. And most recently, they sold out the Shepherds Bush Empire wand had all three balconies jumping.

Strange and bitter crop...
Crop...

For the leaves
Drop...
Drop...
Drop...
Drop...
For the leaves

Listen...
Listen...
Listen...
And when he's born...
Listen...
Listen...
And when he's born...

All That You Give

( vocals by Fontella Bass )

All that you are
All that you are
All that you have
All that you give

You hear me raving
You hear me raving
Raving, raving

You see me crying
I'm grieving from my hat
Down to my shoes

All that you are
All that you are
All that you have
All that you give

All that you give

Evolution

( vocals by Fontella Bass)

The stars light up my life
The stars light up my life
So bright
Everlasting

The sun
Light up my life
Oh, oh yeah (x4)

What I need
The sun
And dawn
Your love
Or your life
So bright
Everlasting
Oh, oh yeah (x2)

Evolution...
Evolution...

The stars light up my life
So bright
Everlasting

The sun
Light up my life

All things to all men

( vocals by Roots Manuva )

And now it seems
As if we're used to the shegree
We made our beds
And now we hate where these beds be
Took nothing at all to part this red sea
I'm a shackled child
Singing the good song of freedom
They've got no pride
They interrupt our grieving
Tear drops dropping
For the pain of the world
My best friend dies
When she was just a young girl
Left me here, to fend for myself
Now the pain never leaves
We just learn to cope
So when the devil needs hanging
Will you tie up the rope and shout pull
Let's put an end to this bull
Zen thing
How many years
Before we practice what we preach
How many tears
Before we truly clinch the peak
Only to find that
There is no honey on the moon
Official gloom
With the unofficial croon

(2x)
I'm all things to all men
All of the women
All the children
Just say when
And I’ll take you to my Tardis
Who's the hardest
Who's the hardest

16 bar cycles
Heart felt recital
From the wacky blacky man
They should have called me Michael
Look at the monster you make
Look at the monster you pay
But you claim no responsibility
Cause it's each to his self
In these times that we live
Does god have a sense of humor
Then the joke's on us
Cause we're chasing our tails
For how long
The tussle makes us how strong
Vintage poor people fun
If we could ease up
On these booze and fags
Then, just maybe
Life wouldn't be so mad
Be a man my dad said
But what the hell he know
He lost his dreams
He lost his flow
And i don't wanna be alone
I'm born king
So where's my throne
I'm too intense
I'm too deep
I'm too nice for life
So what makes this place so nervous?

(4x)
I'm all things to all men
All of the women
All the children
Just say when
And I’ll take you to my Tardis
Who's the hardest
Who's the hardest

Look at the monster you make
Look at the monster you pay
But you claim no responsibility
But you claim not
We're searching for Jesus
But I’ll be damned
If I’ll be crucified by ten thousand spies
Compulsive lies
They hate me
They love me
They hate me

Cause I’m all things to all men, all of the women, all the children
Just say when and I’ll take you to my Tardis
Who's the hardest, who's the hardest

( vocals by Patrick Watson )

There is a house built out of stone
Wooden floors, walls and window sills
Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust
This is a place where I don't feel alone
This is a place where I feel at home

And I built a home
For you
For me
Until it disappeared
From me
From you
And now, it's time
To live
And time
To die

I'm in the garden where we planted the seeds
There is a tree as old as me
Branches were sewn by the colour of green
Ground had arose in past its knees

By the cracks of the skin I climbed to the top
I climbed the tree to see the world
When the gusts came around to blow me down
Held on as tightly as you held on me
Held on as tightly as you held on me

And I built a home
For you
For me
Until it disappeared
From me
From you
And now, it's time
To live
And time
To die

( vocals by Fontella Bass )

How near
How far
How near, boy
Tell me, how far

How near
Oh yes
How far
How near
How far

How near, how near, how near, how near
How far, how far, how far, how far
How near, how near, how near, how near
How far, how far, how far, how far

How far
And how far
Tell me how far

Music Box

Patrick Watson:
My darling, darling girl
Won't you shout it to the world
My darling, darling, darling girl
Shout it out, my golden girl
Wrap yourself with all the world

Lou Rhodes & (Patrick Watson):
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl
(Oh, my golden girl)
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl
(Wrap yourself in all the world)
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl
?(Shout, my golden girl)?
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl
(Wrap yourself around the world)
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl

Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl
(Wrap yourself around the world)
Little bit of gold, little bit of pearl

I'm sinking into you now
Watch me disapear
I'm sinking into you now
Watch me disapear

I'm sinking into you now
Sweet song
Watch me sinking into you now

So much better here
So much better here

Breathe

( vocals by Fontella Bass )

Oh, that song is singing
Singing in to me
Over everything
I used to be

Oh, that song is singing
Singing into me

Slow and sweet
It carries me
Carries me
Out to sea
And swallows me
Into the deep
And comforts me
And comforts me

Oh that weight is lifting
Lifting on me
It carries me
Out to the sea
And swallows me
And swallows me
And swallows me

Into the deep
And comforts me
And comforts me
In, into the deep
And comforts me
And comforts me
And comforts me

Breathe up to me
Breathe up into me
Breathe out through me
Breathe into me
Oh breathe out through
Through me
Why don't you breathe in
Breathe into me
And breathe out
Through me

Where the doves are moaning all day long
Where the stairs are leading dusk 'till dawn
Where the windows are breathing in the light
Where the rooms are a collection of our lives

This is a place where I don’t feel alone
This is a place that I call my home

Time & Space

(feat. Lou Rhodes)

Every soul comes to the sun
Carried on angel’s wings to human birth
Born of love or born of hate
Each one is heaven sent to human fate

Dream
Little girl, dream
Dream
Little boy, dream
Dream

In joy and pain each one will grow
For wisdom is so much more than what we know
And every child will find their way
Of living the whole life story day by day

Dream
Little girl, dream
Dream
Little boy, dream
Dream

( feat. Niara Scarlett / Horizon, maxi-single, 2002 )

So far I see
That I hold the key to an
Ever may be
In this life for me
I know I'm strong
And I will make it through
I'll make it through

All I can say is keep looking forward don't look back
Take time to understand in this life just where you're at
You got so much precious time to yourself
just be true, be true to you

You know your beauty shines within
You know your soul will always win
Waiting for motion to begin
Rising

In storm this day
There's a new horizon
Be you, be free
And set your life to motion
Don't be afraid of who you are
Just keep on rising

'Cause all you can do is keep moving forward don't stand back
Make the most of what you got and forget what's in your past
So difficult to see, just open up your eyes
And realize

You know your beauty shines within
You know your soul always wins
Waiting for motion to begin
Rising

You know your beauty shines within
You know your soul always wins
Waiting for the motion to begin
Rising