I Could Never Make You Stay
I Could Never Make You Stay was created for a Chicago exhibtion entitled 69 FOR 69, in which 69 artists were selected and each chose a track from the Magnetic Fields' iconic album 69 Love Songs. I selected a song called "All My Little Words", a favorite. In the song, the chorus goes as follows:
%Not for all the tea in China
Not if I could sing like a bird
Not for all North Carolina
Not for all my little words%
I had a custom mug made with the phrase "Not For All The Tea in China" tackily scrawled on it, filled it with tea again and again to create stain rings inside, and had someone drink from it, leaving red lipstick marks. I then hand-carved a chain that was bolted to the wall with a carved shackle, letting the mug dangle, but keeping it near.
I derived the title from a line later on in the song:
%Now that you've made me want to die
You tell me that you're unboyfriendable
And I could make you pay and pay (pay and pay)
But I could never make you stay%
I Could Never Make You Stay was created for a Chicago exhibtion entitled 69 FOR 69, in which 69 artists were selected and each chose a track from the Magnetic Fields' iconic album 69 Love Songs. I selected a song called "All My Little Words", a favorite. In the song, the chorus goes as follows:
%Not for all the tea in China
Not if I could sing like a bird
Not for all North Carolina
Not for all my little words%
I had a custom mug made with the phrase "Not For All The Tea in China" tackily scrawled on it, filled it with tea again and again to create stain rings inside, and had someone drink from it, leaving red lipstick marks. I then hand-carved a chain that was bolted to the wall with a carved shackle, letting the mug dangle, but keeping it near.
I derived the title from a line later on in the song:
%Now that you've made me want to die
You tell me that you're unboyfriendable
And I could make you pay and pay (pay and pay)
But I could never make you stay%