"Silent All These Years" by Tori Amos
Strong Songs
Silent All These Years by Amos
Amos is purposely disorienting the listener in just about every way possible. She's starting with a chromatic pattern that kind of deliberate ly obfuscates the key we're in. It adds a lot to the atmosphere of this section. The counting here is just a little unusual, until a listener wrote in to explain how he counts it.
Tori Amos was one of the most distinctive songwriters of the 90s, and remains a powerful musical voice decades later. "Silent All These Years," one of many strong singles off of her 1992 solo debut, is a perfect encapsulation of so many of the things that make her music special.
On this episode, Kirk takes a close look at this delicate, tenuously balanced song, from its floating opening piano line, to its expansive, time-warping bridge, to its hopeful conclusion. It's our turn now to stand where she stands; here, take hold of her hand.
Written by: Tori Amos
Album: Little Earthquakes, 1992
Listen/Buy via Songwhip
Also featured:
- "Precious Things," also by Amos, from Little Earthquakes
- Amos performing "Silent All These Years" from Tori Amos Live at Montreaux 91/92
OUTRO SOLOIST: Galen Clark
This episode's outro soloist is the one and only Galen Clark. Galen plays keyboard and organ with the killer funk/soul group Outer Orbit, who you can find playing regularly around Portland, Oregon and occasionally on tour. Find more information at their website, https://www.outerorbitband.com
Update 6/20: This episode initially misidentified the song's producer, Davitt Sigerson. It has been updated to credit him and string arranger Nick DeCaro, as well as to add some extra detail to the rhythmic breakdown of the intro (thanks Trevor!) and to add a second possible lyrical interpretation for the the third verse. The file swap may cause temporary issues with your download, depending on your podcast app, but it'll eventually work. Apologies for any inconvenience.
----LINKS-----
💰 SUPPORT STRONG SONGS!
Patreon | Paypal
🏠 HOMEPAGE
strongsongspodcast.com
👚 MERCH
strongsongspodcast.com/store
📬 KIRK'S NEWSLETTER
newsletter.kirkhamilton.com
📷 SOCIAL MEDIA
Instagram: @Kirk_Hamilton
Bluesky: @kirkhamilton.com
💬 STRONG SONGS DISCORD SERVER
strongsongspodcast.com/discord
🎧 STRONG SONGS PLAYLISTS
Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube Music
🎸 KIRK'S GEAR & INSTRUMENTS
kirkhamilton.com/gear
🎶 KIRK'S MUSIC
kirkhamilton.com/music
🎨 SHOW ART
Tom Deja, Bossman Graphics
--------------------
JUNE 2022 WHOLE-NOTE PATRONS
Patrick
SEAN D WINNIE
Daniel Hannon-Barry
Prince M. Levy-Benitez
Elliot Rosen
Ashley Hoag
Mark and Michelle
Rob Bosworth
Donald Mackie
Melissa Osborne
Christopher Miller
Jamie White
Christopher McConnell
David Mascetti
Joshua Jarvis
Niko
Joe Laska
Laurie Acreman
Ken Hirsh
Jez
Melanie Andrich
Jenness Gardner
Simon Cammell
Guinevere Boostrom
Narelle Horn
Bill Rosinger
Erin
Aidan Coughlan
Jeanneret Manning Family Four
Doug Paton
Dave Sharpe
Sami Samhuri
AccessViolation
Ryan Torvik
Glenn
Jim Chokey
Andre Bremer
Mark Schechter
Dave Florey
JUNE 2022 HALF-NOTE PATRONS
Owain Hunt
Renee Downing
Drew
Rohan Latimer
KenIsWearingAHat
Tony
Jordan Block
Aaron Wade
Chad Hivner
Travis Pollard
Jeff Ulm
Jamie
Deebs
Portland Eye Care
Adam Ray
Anupama Raghavan
Demetri Detsaridis
Carrie Schneider
Alenka Grealish
Anne Gerry
Richard Sneddon
David Judson
Julian Roleff
Janice Berry
Doreen Carlson
mtwolf
David McDarby
Abigail Duffield
Raphadavid
Wendy Gilchrist
Lisa Turner
Paul Wayper
Dennis M Edwards
Jeffrey Ferris
Bruno Gaeta
Kenneth Jung
ben
Adam Stofsky
Zak Remer
Rishi Sahay
Jason Reitman
Greg Burgess
Ailie Fraser
Paul McGreal
Karen Arnold
NATALIE MISTILIS
Josh Singer
Phino DeLeon
Schloss Edward J. MD
Amy Lynn Thornsen
Adam W
Kelli Brockington
Stephen Rawlings
Ben Machta
Victoria Yu
Kevin Rivers
Brad Clark
Christopher
Michael J. Cunningham
Mark Boggs
mino capossela
Steve Paquin
Sarah
David Joske
Emma Sklar
Bernard Khoo
Robert Heuer
Matthew Golden
David Noah
Geraldine Butler
Richard Cambier
Madeleine Mader
Timothy Dougherty
Jason Pratt
Stewart Oak
Caroline Miller
Abbie Berg
Sam Norton
Doug Belew
Dermot Crowley
Achint Srivastava
Ryan Rairigh
Michael Berman
Olivia Bishop
John Gisselquist
Elaine Martin
Kouroth
Bonnie Prinsen
Sharon Tree
Belinda Mcgrath-steer
Liz Seger
Eoin de Burca
Kevin Potter
M Shane Borders
Pete Simm
Susan Plein
Dallas Hockley
Jana J
Jason Gerry
Nathan Gouwens
Will Dwyer Alethea Lee
Lauren Reay
Eric Prestemon
Cookies250
Spencer Shirley
Damian Brady
Angela Livingstone
JeffyThanadros
David Friedman
Sarah Sulan
Diane Hughes
Kenneth Tiong
Jo Sutherland
Michael Casner
Barb Courtney
Derek Bender
Jen Small
Lowell Meyer
Etele Illes
Stephen Tsoneff
Lorenz Schwarz
Wen
Jack Sjogren
Geoff Golden
Robyn Fraser
Pascal Rueger
Randy Souza
JC
Clare Holberton
Diane Turner
Tom Coleman
Tijs Soete
Mark Perry
Dhu Wik
Mel
Eric Helm
Jake Roberts
Bill Fuller
Steven Maron
Michael Flaherty
Jarrod Schindler
Caro Field
michael bochner
Duncan
Naomi Watson
David Cushman
Alexander
Chris K
Gavin Doig
Sam Fenn
Tanner Morton
AJ Schuster
Jennifer Bush
David Stroud
Amanda Furlotti
Andrew Baker
Matt Gaskell
Jules Bailey
Bill Thornton
Brian Amoebas
Brett Douville
Jeffrey Olson
Matt Betzel
Mueller
Nate from Kalamazoo
Melanie Stivers
Richard Toller
Alexander Polson
Earl Lozada
Jon O’Keefe
Justin McElroy
Arjun Sharma
James Johnson
Kevin Morrell
Kevin Pennyfeather
Emily Williams
The AI-powered Podcast Player
