It’s that opening. Those opening chords. I find something “otherworldly” about them.
I find the words wonderfully upbeat. It’s about escapism (to me it is anyway…my interpretation of it).
“She don’t need no rocket ship,
Just close her eyes and takes a trip.
Baby’s big on aviation,
Baby loves a levitation.
Yeah, she’s a spaceface floating round,
She’s never coming down.
My little spaceface floating round.
She’s never coming down,
Never coming down,
Never coming down.”
I get lost in the music of it. The words. I find them soothing, comforting. It’s my happy song!
I told Jim as much when I did an art piece for it one day when back in Oz. It was a horrendous day for me. A very, VERY low day. I was very stressed about an issue that was happening to myself and a friend and I won’t go into detail about it, but the stress it induced made looking after mum that day fractious. I was getting angry very quickly and it was just horrible how I felt and how I treated mum that day as a consequence.
I took some time out and did my piece on Spaceface. And I had put myself in the piece as the “Little Spaceface” girl. Well, I needed a woman’s face in it to represent the “she” in the song…and no one else was around (I suppose I could have used mum!), so I used a selfie.
I told Jim all of this. About my horrible day. How down I was feeling and how Spaceface is my happy song and always lifts my mood…and that I had put myself in the piece…and well…I don’t know if he read my message, I’m assuming he did because he posted about working with Gordy Goudie on the (then) upcoming Zermatt gig…and well…you can see the rest here.
|ACT OF LOVE – IS A NECESSITY?|
(I didn’t want to say I had contacted Jim at that time…but I had, hence the “vagueness” and “guesswork” alluded to. I mean…I still have no idea if he read my message…but it was damn coincidental him using my piece that day if not. And it still felt very profound nonetheless!)
And believe me, I will be forever grateful he shared my art that day. I hadn’t cried so much for a long while. It was the most beautiful gesture. It might just have been coincidence…but I like to think he read my message and was somehow comforting me. It was how it felt anyway. Just thinking about now…writing this out…just…
“Tell me what you see,
I’ll be there if you wait for me.
We’ll soon be home,
I’ll be there,
You’re not alone.”
Those lines really spoke to me that day. It has that attachment now. That very personal one. And for what was a hard day, for me. But the song is ETERNALLY uplifting! And I just get SSOO lost in it. I *feel* like the Spaceface girl. I do feel like I’m flying in space when I’m listening to it! Even more so the Tomcraft Remix. I bloody LOVE IT! I’ve been thinking the Utah Saints Mix of I Travel was probably my fave SM remix, OR the Interference Mix of The American, but no – it’s the Tomcraft Remix of Spaceface, STILL!
And no, there hasn’t been much talk of the musical structure of the song…which I try to do when I do my “Why I Love…” pieces…but Jim mentions Gordy’s guitar at the end of Spaceface in his post…and yes, that’s special!
And that is why I love Spaceface.
PS: If you search the blog, you’ll also find the Tomcraft Remix to listen to as well 🙂
Reblogged this on Priptona's Simple Minds Space and commented:
Oh, Simple Minds songs endlessly jostle for position at the top of my list of favourites. The firm ones are Wonderful In Young Life, Boys From brazil, Spirited Away and Seeing Out The Angel…but I do think Spaceface has to round off the Top 5. I’ll probably change my mind at some point…but for now, it is FIRMLY in that Top 5!