excuse me but can I be you for awhile my DOG won’t bite if you sit real still I got the anti-Christ in the kitchen yellin’ at me again yeah I can hear that been saved again by the garbage truck I got something to say you know but NOTHING comes yes I know what you think of me you never shut-up yeah I can hear that but what if I’m a mermaid in these jeans of his with her name still on it hey but I don’t care cause sometimes I said sometimes i hear my voice and it’s been HERE silent all these years so you found a girl who thinks really deep thoughts what’s so amazing about really deep thoughts boy you best pray that I bleed real soon how’s that thought for you my scream got lost in a paper cup you think there’s a heaven where some screams have gone I got 25 bucks and a cracker do you think it’s enough to get us there years go by will I still be waiting for somebody else to understand years go by if I’m stripped of my beauty and the orange clouds raining in my head years go by will I choke on my tears till finally there is nothing left one more casualty you know we’re too EASY easy easy well I love the way we communicate your eyes focus on my funny lip shape let’s hear what you think of me now but baby don’t look up the sky is falling your MOTHER shows up in a nasty dress it’s your turn now to stand where I stand everybody lookin’ at you here take hold of my hand yeah I can hear them...
"With this record, a song like Silent All These Years has a certain story line going on musically that's really the antithesis of what's going on verbally. It's counterpoint, pure and simple. But instead of French horns and cellos or something, it's words and music. And I find it very exciting when an acoustic instrument has its knife out. It can take on these different roles. The idea of being a woman ... you come over to my house and I'm serving a fruit plate. That's not always going to happen. Especially if somebody isn't being polite, or if somebody's being a dick. Then I'm going to put the peelings on the floor and watch you trip, and giggle. And that's the same with the acoustic instrument. It's not always just about, 'I'm vulnerable, I'm sad.' There are many different sides, and the beauty comes in exploring them."
Tori Amos, interview by Greg Rule
Alot of people ask me about this song. And um, what I try and explain to them is uh, I was writing it for somebody else actually. Because I was trying to get some of my songs placed with people, I wrote something for Cher. And uh, it got turned down, of course, and then I wrote something for Tina Turner....So finally I needed to like get work. I decided, wow, I met this new person who was really nice to me because um he looked at me and said "You've never had good wine." And I went, "Oh my god! How do you know!" And he was just like, "I can just tell. It like oozes from you, you just don't know it." And I went, "Oh." You know what I mean, you just go..it gets a little nerve-racking. You don't know what you're doing wrong. And so, Al Stewart, um you know, took me to a restaurant and showed me wine like I'd never seen wine before. And so I wanted to write a song for him. And I started to do this thing. And I went to Eric, who I was with and who partly produced Little Earthquakes, and he didn't produce this bit so he was totally objective. And he looked at me and said, "You're out of your mind. That's your life story." And I went, "Oh." So needless to say, Al Stewart didn't get that song."
Tori Amos, VH1 Storytellers
"So um, i never liked my grandmother. she was pretty me--she was actually very mean person. not all grandmothers are nice, you know pllbtt.. so um, the town where she comes from - it's really makes kinda sense that she wouldn't play, she wouldn't be into this anyway, but they wouldn't play this song. they said it, they quoted, they said...it's shit. so it gives me great pleasure to always play this song as much as I possibly can. thank you."
Tori Amos, Festival du Jazz de Montreux (1992)
"Some things haven't changed, which is my relationship with my grandmother. she's on the 'other side'...hi grandma!. we didn't get on very well - i hated her. the interesting thing about my grandmother is uh...she loved virgins. now you know the thing is that if that's your choice, i totally respect that. and that was my choice...for a while. and uh..but i knew that there was something else in store -- i was six. so she and i just didn't work this one out very well. you know, she'd see a picture of Jim Morrison and it just...she didn't get it. so um...naturally i was sent to pray in the corner. i said all the psalms and all...the whole thing. and i'd spit in her jello when she wasn't looking. and so this went on and on and on. and she died. long time ago. now i got a letter this year. one letter from a town. they all got together - true! - in America! - "Land of the free". and they wrote me a letter. now they don't know that my grandmother's from there. made no mention of it. and they can't possibly know that she was born there. anyway, it just went "nininini" (to the tune of Twilight Zone) - It makes total sense. 'Dear Miss Amos we're very sorry we can't play this song in our town. But in our opinion, it is shit.' --- Actually "perfect"!, you know...so there you go."
Tori Amos, Toronto, Canada (1993)
"The bumble bee piano tinkle came first. This one evolved slowly but it stayed an obsession until it was finished. I entered boxer occupation - part of me not wanting to hear what 'I' was saying, the other part fighting off 'The Brain Drain.' I finally distracted The brain Drain with the task of filing chocolate cake recipes."
Tori Amos, Little Earthquakes Songbook
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