Lilac Wine

"Lilac Wine" is a song written by James Shelton (lyrics and music) in 1950. It was introduced by Hope Foye in the short-lived theater musical revue, Dance Me a Song. The song has since been covered by many famous artists including Eartha Kitt, Nina Simone, Elkie Brooks, John Legend, Jeff Buckley, Jeff Beck, Miley Cyrus and The Cinematic Orchestra.

Lyrics

The lyrics form a narrative in which the narrator recounts his/her heartache at losing a lover and taking solace from wine made from a lilac tree. In short, the song focuses on the blissful oblivion achieved by becoming intoxicated. The inspiration was taken from a line in the 1925 novel Sorrow in Sunlight (published in America as Prancing Nigger) by Ronald Firbank. In Chapter IV the main character, Miami Mouth, circulates through a party "offering a light, lilac wine, sweet and heady".

Cover versions

"Lilac Wine" has been covered by a number of artists including Eartha Kitt (1953), Judy Henske on her debut, self-titled album (1963), Nina Simone on her album Wild Is the Wind (1966), Elkie Brooks (1978) and Jeff Buckley on his album Grace (1994). The Jeff Buckley version was used as background music in the 2008 French film Tell No One. In 2010 it appeared on the Jeff Beck album Emotion & Commotion with vocals by Imelda May. It was released as a single in 2010 by American singer Jordyn Jackson.