Fact and Fiction (Revisited) [feat. Galahad]
Twelfth Night»Fact and Fiction: The Definitive Edition
Progressive rockNeo progressiveNeo-progRockNeo-progressive rock
TWELFTH NIGHT emerged from the Andy REVELL Band formed at Reading Universit… Read Full Bio ↴TWELFTH NIGHT emerged from the Andy REVELL Band formed at Reading University, where in 1978 they won a talent competition. Geoff MANN was an artist friend of the band from the moment in 1977 that he knocked on Andy's door to find out what record Andy was listening to and discovered that it was just Andy playing guitar! The embryonic band consisted of Andy and Brian DEVOIL (drums), with Mr Rick BATTERSBY managing the dry ice. After Clive MITTEN joined in 1979, TWELFTH NIGHT as a band were born and got straight down to the work of recording. A live LP followed several tapes and experiments with other musicians, including one Electra McLEOD who performed vocals for one tape only. A vocalist was needed - but where to get one? Many were auditioned - including Geoff, who also performed a gig or two with the band and wrote some words for "Sequences". A successful series of gigs was followed by the band being booked for the Reading Festival - the first local Reading band to have achieved this in the history of the festival. After much deliberating, Geoff MANN, the backdrop painter became Geoff MANN the poet, lyricist and vocalist. It's important to consider the musical, social and political climate of the late 1970s - early 1980s to get a handle on what TWELFTH NIGHT were about; The roots of the music lie mainly in Andy Revell's HACKETT/HILLAGE guitar sound, but GENESIS, early PINK FLOYD and WISHBONE ASH are the most obvious influences. It has been said that there is a punk element to TN, and while there is a certain amount of aggression, that energy comes more directly from NWOBHM than punk. MANN's vocal style and lyrics may be laced with anarchism, but they run a whole lot deeper than that - Geoff was a deep thinker and poet, and later became ordained. His words attack the idle non-thinking majority in a cajoling way, they attack the governments at a grass-roots level and they attack the nonsense of war - but also support the positive aspects of life, like love. After MANN left (amicably) to join the church in 1983, a new era of TN started with Andy SEARS as vocalist, co-writer. With Andy SEARS on board, the band began a very successful period. An accomplished vocalist and musician, Andy brought a more melodic edge to TWELFTH NIGHT. Andy's lyrics also dealt with compassion, whilst attacking authority and ignorance in a vitriolic way, touching on themes that are still very much issues today. SEARS preferred a more succinct lyrical style to MANN's. Less than two months after joining the band, TWELFTH NIGHT were invited to record a live MARQUEE show for European transmission. By the time the acclaimed album Art & Illusion was released, the last for Music For Nations, the band were signed to no other than HIT & RUN MANAGEMENT, home to GENESIS and PETER GABRIEL. Art & Illusion itself entered the National Charts at no 83, the only Twelfth Night album to accomplish this. An extraordinary feat given that the album received no hype of promotion whatsoever. The band embarked on their most successful tour, included two sell out shows at London's Dominion Theatre. TWELFTH NIGHT signed a 10 album deal with VIRGIN RECORDS on the back of the new SEARS line-up, recording their eponymously titled album (affectionately known as XII or the Virgin Album). The album was a very brave move away from more traditional progressive rock, and an attempt to move progressive rock onwards. As such, it is TWELFTH NIGHT's most polemic album to date. Between HIT & RUN and VIRGIN RECORDS the band were badly handled, and in 1986, disillusioned by this, SEARS left, closely followed by MITTEN. In 2007, SEARS and MITTEN reformed the band for a series of acclaimed sell out shows. TWELFTH NIGHT are still making music in one form or another - but it tends to be fitted around the day jobs. Sadly, Geoff died of cancer in 1993, though his legacy lives on, predominantly through the Fact and Fiction album. The more narrow-minded critics tend to make puerile comparisons between MANN and SEARS, but in truth both the "MANN-era" and the "SEARS-era" were successful periods in Twelfth Night's musical journey, showing the versatility of a band that dared to make changes where many others were still following old formulas and outdated trends. MANN and SEARS were in fact good friends and would often appear together for encore numbers! www.twelfthnight.info
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01We Are Sane11:53
02Human Being8:09
03This City3:57
04World Without End1:33
05Fact and Fiction4:42
06The Poet Sniffs a Flower3:38
07Creepshow12:27
08Love Song8:41
09Being Human3:45
10Paradise Locked0:24
11East of Eden3:24
12Eleanor Rigby3:22
13We are sane (live)11:01
14Human Being (Live)7:54
15This City (Live)4:14
16World Without End (Live)1:25
17Fact and fiction (live)5:26
18The Poet Sniffs A Flower (Live)1:34
19Creepshow (Live)12:24
20Love Song (live)5:37
21Fact and Fiction (Alternate) [Live]4:42
23Fistful of Bubbles3:18
24Leader2:41
25Dancing in the Dream2:57
26Creepshow (after the bomb drops)3:53
27Electro Sane (feat. Dean Baker)1:25
28We Are Sane (Revisited) [feat. Mark Spencer]11:06
29Human Being (Revisited) [feat. Pendragon]6:50
30This City (Revisited) [feat. Tim Bowness]4:41
31This City (Alternate) [feat. Coburg]5:21
32World Without End (Revisited) [feat. Clive Nolan]2:17
33Fact and Fiction (Revisited) [feat. Galahad]5:01
PT5M1S
Twelfth Night
35Creepyshow (Live)11:58
37Don't Make Me Laugh (feat. Axe)3:52
38Fact and Fiction (Revisited) [Live] [feat. Eh! Geoff Mann Band]4:19
39Love Song (Revisited) [Live] [feat. Eh! Geoff Mann Band]6:50
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Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴Line by Line Meaning ↴
TV is switched on
The screen reveal a spokesperson
Adverts, politics, editing the real
Cheap words, money talks
Naming itself to be the key
To utopia, cornucopia
To a better world you go buy and buy
And if you listen carefully
You can hear the bacon fly
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
History shows that policy demands weapons
Selfish desires simply lead to pain
The chit-chat continues
A big pretence that divides
Into power blocks
Where the orthodox
Have a propaganda war to fight
And if you're looking closely
You can see that black is white
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
If the unthinkable should happen
And you hear the sirens call
Well you can always find some shelter
Behind a door against the wall
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
Don't make me laugh!
The song "Fact and Fiction" by the band Twelfth Night is a commentary on the way media, politics, and advertising work together to manipulate people by presenting a version of reality that is not entirely true. The lyrics describe how TV screens are filled with spokespeople, ads, and politicians who present themselves as the key to a better world, but in reality, their words are cheap and their motivations are driven by money and power. The song suggests that history has shown that these power struggles only lead to pain and division, as they are fueled by selfish desires.
The chorus of the song, "Don't make me laugh!" is repeated throughout and can be interpreted as the singer's refusal to buy into the false promises and propaganda. The song also suggests that those who listen carefully can see through the lies and recognize that black is white, meaning that things are not always as they seem.
Towards the end of the song, the lyrics take a darker turn and suggest that the unthinkable could happen and sirens could call, perhaps suggesting the threat of war or disaster. However, the singer suggests that one can find shelter behind a door against the wall, implying that there is hope in taking refuge in the physical and mental space that one creates for oneself.
Overall, "Fact and Fiction" is a warning that we should not take everything at face value and that we must be discerning in our consumption of information and media.
TV is switched on
The electronic device has been turned on
The screen reveal a spokesperson
The display presents an individual speaking on behalf of a cause
Adverts, politics, editing the real
Various types of media alter or manipulate what is actually happening
Cheap words, money talks
Hollow phrases, financial influence prevails
Naming itself to be the key
Stating that it represents the solution
To utopia, cornucopia
A paradise, an abundance of resources
To a better world you go buy and buy
In order to achieve an improved society, you must continuously purchase goods and services
And if you listen carefully
In the event that you pay close attention
You can hear the bacon fly
An absurd statement implying that something is impossible
Don't make me laugh!
An expression indicating that something is ridiculous
History shows that policy demands weapons
Past events illustrate that political decisions necessitate the use of arms
Selfish desires simply lead to pain
Pursuits rooted in egocentric satisfaction only result in suffering
The chit-chat continues
The idle conversation persists
A big pretence that divides
A facade that separates people from each other
Into power blocks
Dividing into groups with authority
Where the orthodox
Where the conservative adherents
Have a propaganda war to fight
Engaging in a battle to control societal beliefs
And if you're looking closely
If you are observing carefully
You can see that black is white
You can perceive the inversion of truth
If the unthinkable should happen
In the event that something unimaginable occurs
And you hear the sirens call
And you listen to the warning alarm sound
Well you can always find some shelter
You can locate a place of protection
Behind a door against the wall
Positioned at a door adjacent to a vertical surface
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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