Kiss From a Rose
Anna Coddington on lyrics and metaphor
As a teenager I had a love/hate relationship with Seal. I was 13 when this song came out and it was the kind of tune my friends’ mums liked. It was an emotional power ballad, yet it kinda slapped.
The lyrics don’t really make sense — it starts with “Ba-ya-ya, ba-da-da-da-da-da, ba-ya-ya” — but sensical lyrics have never been a prerequisite for massive hits. It’s about the vibe, and the vibe here is great — suspension in the verse, anticipation in the pre-chorus, and full pulling-your-fist-down power in the chorus. But the lyric is wavy enough to interpret as applicable to your own life, and that is the magic of a good song. No one cares about Seal’s feelings — we’re interested in how Seal makes us feel about our own lives.
“Did you know that when it snows my eyes become large and the light that you shine can be seen?” I’m sorry, what? That snow reference comes out of nowhere. Doesn’t matter! The melody is interesting and the words fall on it well. Whatever it means, it feels great.
Seal compares you to a kiss from a rose on the grey. There’s no literal interpretation for this. Let this be a metaphor for whatever you need.
The grey is your job, your upcoming exams, your hypo kids in the holidays (am I projecting? Maybe, but this is about you). A kiss from a rose is a glass of wine, a massage, everyone pre-ordering the children’s book you randomly decided to write in lockdown (projecting again), or an actual kiss from someone you’d love one from — your partner, Seal, whoever. It works because that’s what kisses are like. Touching lips as a literal idea is weird. Mouth germs. Disgusting. But in the right moment, with the right feeling behind it, a kiss is an indescribable feeling. Kiss from a rose is as good a way to describe it as any.