Holding Up the Sky

Album: The Age Of Miracles (2010)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Whilst touring in Spring 2007, American singer-songwriter Mary Chapin Carpenter experienced severe chest and back pain. The diagnosis was a pulmonary embolism - blood clots in her lungs. She was forced to cancel her summer tour to recover, and this song describes the frightening experience. Carpenter explained to The Boot: "It's about the feeling at that moment when I was so ill and I didn't know what was going to happen to me. I've never been so terrified in my life. I felt this burden of all these things - my own life, my place in the world. I wanted to just float above all of it and to be free. I wanted to not hurt any more. So that lyric speaks to being completely helpless."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Sending Out An SOS - Distress Signals In Songs

Sending Out An SOS - Distress Signals In SongsSong Writing

Songs where something goes horribly wrong (literally or metaphorically), and help is needed right away.

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)Songwriter Interviews

Chad tells tales from his time as drummer for Nirvana, and talks about his group Before Cars.

Classic Metal

Classic MetalFact or Fiction

Ozzy, Guns N' Roses, Judas Priest and even Michael Bolton show up in this Classic Metal quiz.

Graduation Songs

Graduation SongsFact or Fiction

Have you got the smarts to know which of these graduation song stories are real?

Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde

Johnette Napolitano of Concrete BlondeSongwriter Interviews

The singer/bassist for Concrete Blonde talks about how her songs come from clairvoyance, and takes us through the making of their hit "Joey."

Fire On The Stage

Fire On The StageSong Writing

When you have a song called "Fire," it's tempting to set one - these guys did.