In My Secret Life by Katie Melua

Album: Pictures (2007)

License This Song

lyrics

artistfacts

Songfacts®:

This is a cover of a Leonard Cohen song, which originally appeared on the Canadian singer-songwriter's 2001 10 New Songs album.
Katie Melua told I Like Music that this was the track she most enjoyed laying down when recording the Pictures album: "I really enjoyed singing 'In My Secret Life' because weirdly enough I thought Leonard Cohen managed to put into words what I'd never been able to with that song."
Melua also told Metro France October 2, 2007 why she decided to cover this song: "I have to stay my strongest point as a writer is my music, so I tend to rely on others for lyrics. I mean, I will guide people lyrically, but it's not my strong point. And in that song Leonard Cohen put into words what I haven't been able to and I just absolutely love them. You know how you spend most of your teens being idealist and quite naive and wanting to change the world and be different and not conform and not live in a money-based society. But everyone does, everyone sells out and lives in a very money-based society. And that's what the song is about to me: you buy what you're told - It's frustrating but it's nice to be able to admit to it."

Comments: 1

Madison from Norway, MeIt took me a while to warm up to this song of Leonard's when I first heard it. Never heard the cover version.

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Uptown FunkMark Ronson

The actress Michelle Pfeiffer gets namechecked in the 2014 megahit "Uptown Funk" ("Michelle Pfeiffer, that white gold"). When it was released, "Riptide" by Vance Joy was on the charts; that song also mentions her ("Closest thing to Michelle Pfeiffer that you've ever seen").

Talkin' Hawkin'Pink Floyd

Pink Floyd's "Talkin' Hawkin'" uses a sample of Stephen Hawking's synthesized voice taken from a speech he made for a 1994 British Telecom commercial.

Auld Lang SyneTraditional

The New Year's Eve favorite "Auld Lang Syne" is a Scottish song that roughly translates to "Days Of Long Ago."

Fallin'Alicia Keys

Alicia Keys got a huge break when Oprah had her perform her debut single "Fallin'" on her show.

At This MomentBilly Vera & the Beaters

"At This Moment" was first released by Billy Vera & the Beaters in 1981, and hit #79. After it was used in two episodes of Family Ties in 1985-1986, it went to #1.

Rock The CasbahThe Clash

Barry Sonnenfeld, who would later direct the movies Get Shorty and Men in Black, was the director of photography on the "Rock the Casbah" video for The Clash.

Editor's Picks

Edie BrickellSongwriter Interviews

Edie Brickell on her collaborations with Paul Simon, Steve Martin and Willie Nelson, and her 2021 album with the New Bohemians.

Rick SpringfieldSongwriter Interviews

Rick has a surprising dark side, a strong feminine side and, in a certain TV show, a naked backside. But he still hasn't found Jessie's Girl.

Pam TillisSongwriter Interviews

The country sweetheart opines about the demands of touring and talks about writing songs with her famous father.

90s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

First question: Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson appeared in videos for what artist?

Colin HaySongwriter Interviews

Established as a redoubtable singer-songwriter, the Men At Work frontman explains how religion, sobriety and Jack Nicholson play into his songwriting.

They Might Be GiantsSongwriter Interviews

Who writes a song about a name they found in a phone book? That's just one of the everyday things these guys find to sing about. Anything in their field of vision or general scope of knowledge is fair game. If you cross paths with them, so are you.