The Complete Lyrics of Nick Cave

April 29, 2001 - "Though the love song comes in many guises ­ songs of exaltation and praise, songs of rage and despair, erotic songs, songs of abandonment and loss ­ they all address God, for it is the haunted premise of longing that the true Love Song inhabits. It is a howl in the void for love and for comfort, and it lives on the lips of the child calling for its mother. It is the song of the lover in need of their loved one, the raving of the lunatic supplicant petitioning his god. It is the cry of one chained to the earth and craving flight. A flight into inspiration and imagination and divinity." Nick Cave, from the introduction to The Complete Lyrics.

The book contains all the lyrics from songs recorded with his two bands, The Birthday Party and The Bad Seeds, as well as some never recorded material, up to and including those from his new album, No More Shall We Part, to be released in April 2001. In a highly personal introduction to the collection, Nick Cave reveals his own approach to songwriting and asserts his strong belief in the redemptive power of the love song.

Published on 26th April 2001 by Penguin Books