Tom's Diner
DNA, Suzanne Vega
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I am sitting In the morning At the diner On the corner I am waiting At the counter For the man To pour the coffee And he fills it Only halfway And before I even argue He is looking Out the window At somebody Coming in "It is always Nice to see you" Says the man Behind the counter To the woman Who has come in She is shaking Her umbrella And I look The other way As they are kissing Their hellos I'm pretending Not to see them And Instead I pour the milk I open Up the paper There's a story Of an actor Who had died While he was drinking He was no one I had heard of And I'm turning To the horoscope And looking For the funnies When I'm feeling Someone watching me And so I raise my head There's a woman On the outside Looking inside Does she see me? No she does not Really see me Cause she sees Her own reflection And I'm trying Not to notice That she's hitching Up her skirt And while she's Straightening her stockings Her hair Is getting wet Oh, this rain It will continue Through the morning As I'm listening To the bells Of the cathedral I am thinking Of your voice... And of the midnight picnic Once upon a time Before the rain began... I finish up my coffee It's time to catch the train
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Written by: Suzanne Vega
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
10 facts about this song
Song Original"Tom's Diner" is an a cappella song by American singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega.
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Release DateIt was originally released as a track on Vega's second studio album "Solitude Standing" in 1987.
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GenreThe song is often considered as a milestone in the folk-rock genre.
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InspirationThe song was inspired by the real "Tom's Restaurant" in New York City, where Suzanne Vega used to go for coffee. The same diner also appears in sitcom "Seinfeld" as a regular hangout of the main characters.
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Track Description"Tom's Diner" tells a seemingly mundane story of Vega's morning experience at the diner. Its narrative falls under the category of a "story song" - pieces that relay a cogent narrative through their lyrics.
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MP3 Development ContributionThe song is famous for its role in the refinement of the MP3. It was used by German scientist Karlheinz Brandenburg to fine-tune the compression algorithm he had developed, allowing digital media to be efficiently streamed or downloaded without losing correlative audio quality.
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Remix VersionIn 1990, British dance producers DNA released a remix of "Tom's Diner" without Vega's permission. However, she later permitted this version, which led to it becoming a top 5 hit in multiple countries.
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VariationsIt has since been covered by many artists in various styles and has also been subject to numerous different remixes and samples.
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Soundtrack PresenceThe song features in the soundtrack of popular 90s films including "Untamed Heart" and "The Truth About Cats and Dogs".
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Test DiscThe acapella version of "Tom's Diner" ended up on the test disc for Telarc International Corporation - a well-respected audiophile recording and distribution company.
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Citation
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"Tom's Diner Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Jun 2024. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/33094442/Suzanne+Vega/Tom%27s+Diner>.
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