Keane - Somewhere Only We Know (T. Rice-Oxley, T. Chaplin, R. Hughes) ~ Erwin Lazaro 016

I used to listen to music
every day.  I used to sing every
day.  Eventually, singing was
pushed into the back seat of daily life. 
I forgot about music.  In
2003, I was getting about 3 hours of sleep for every 24 hours. 
I remember that time very well.  I was getting new clients every week and that IS CRAZY for a one-person show (if you're familiar with the process for architectural design and securing building permits).  Work was NUTZ!  Our family was growing because our second son (2 boys in 13 months!), Emersen, was born on February 25.  On May 27, 2003, on our 3rd Wedding Annivesary, we received the keys to our new home.  I stopped listening to music.  I actually stopped singing.  I was building upon the worst health in my life thus far.  Something needed to change, for "me".  Thankfully, I was able to recognize that I was walking on a dangerous path, but I wouldn't fully realize how dangerous, until the following year.  Nevertheless, in 2004, I started taking baby steps.  And, speaking of baby steps, we were expecting our third child in November.  Work continued to be CRAZY.  But, I started to rediscover some of the "me" that I had lost, when life needed me to continually focus outward.  Music was among the first parts of rediscovering "me".  I fell in love with Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know".  I credit this song as THE contemporary song of that time, which made the difference for me.  "Somewhere Only We Know" made me want to sing again.  And, so, I found my place with music once again.  Whew.  Thank Goodness!  Though I still don't sing EVERY day, as you all can see, I AM making time to sing ... just a little bit!

From Wikipedia:
"Somewhere Only We Know" is a song performed and composed by English alternative rock band Keane, officially released as their third commercial single, and appearing as the opening track of their debut album, Hopes and Fears as the first single.  It is considered also Keane's first major commercial release, becoming one of the greatest hits of 2004 worldwide and peaking on the UK charts at number three during its first week of sale.  Also, it was Keane's best selling single until "Is It Any Wonder?" in 2006.

The song was mixed by Mark "Spike" Stent.  Pocket 3" CDs were released as a 1000-pieces limited edition, containing the b-side "Snowed Under" as well as links to get polyphonic ringtones via SMS.  These copies are now valued at £20 due to their rarity.  This song was the first Keane item released on vinyl format.  The records were numbered and limited to 5000 copies, only sold in the United Kingdom. The b-side "Walnut Tree" was recorded during the James Sanger sessions at Normandy, France.

The real meaning of the song's video and lyrics remain unknown; however, several an accepted meaning refers to "Manser's Shaw", a place in Battle where Keane members used to visit in their childhood days and the site of the Battle of Hastings, fought in October 14, 1066.

Richard Hughes, Keane's drummer, offered the following explanation of the song on Chris Flynn's fansite:

We've been asked whether "Somewhere Only We Know" is about a specific place, and Tim has been saying that, for him, or us as individuals, it might be about a geographical space, or a feeling; it can mean something individual to each person, and they can interpret it to a memory of theirs... It's perhaps more of a theme rather than a specific message... Feelings that may be universal, without necessarily being totally specific to us, or a place, or a time..."

The song has been suggested to be closely related to deforestation because of different reasons:

1. The three different music videos feature Keane in a partially destroyed forest

2. Live visuals for this song show quick slides of a forest

3. The cover of this single, with maple leaves falling

4. Early promotional single showed a tree in flames

5. "Snowed Under" b-side refers to "Manser's Shaw", a forest area in Battle, East Sussex