Divine Comedy, The - Catherine The Great Lyrics

Nobody writes songs like this guy.

Elina Löwensohn, who played Catherine in this video played the Jewish architect who was shot in Schindler's List.

I need to get all their cd's

É só eu que é brasileiro???

Cole Porter did it first and did it better.
https://youtu.be/P0TwQ27MTX4
Mind you, he would have liked "brainier/Lithuania".

So the man is frederich the great

'She looked so bloody good on a horse...'

Oh my God what a stunningly striking Woman , I cant look anywhere else when she is in camera shot , perfect casting for the part ; )

"There were few branier, just ask the King of Lithuania"

A reference to Stanisław August Poniatowski, the last King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. He and Catherine met in their twenties and became lovers, she later supported his claim for the Polish throne, financially and militarily. As the song says, she was all powerful!

Stanisław August Poniatowski was traitor to russia and Poland
He didnt deserved to be on the Polish throne.

J'adore c'est tellement bon et rafraîchissant. J'aime les artistes qui prennent leur temps pour de renouveler. A écouter et voir aussi Jarvis Cocker et Chilly Gonzalez..

This guy is pure musical genius

He hasn't lost his edge. Still producing beautiful music

Ich liebe diese Laienspieltruppe. Das Lied ist grandios.

Love the melody and fab arrangement but the lyrics are bordering on silly, Neil made a departure from comic like pop songs with his regeneration Album and I hailed him for it. It was brave, but also if an artist is to evolve then he sometimes has to take chances and he gave us a great album, Not sure why maybe for commercial reasons he went back to safe catchy tongue in cheek tunes. I like the new album but so wish Neil would write more serious music . He is a great song writer much better than this
I am sure I am going to be shot down in flames over this but I think he is selling himself short...

Это очень мило :3

Wow ;-)

I love neil

l like! Mi piace!👏👏👏

So cute and adorable !

So cute and fun. LOVE this. Sounds like I'm young

This song is so good. Appreciate it.

September 2016? I thought I already knew this song years ago. Weird.

How on Earth has this only 200k Views?

I want to be... the assistante of Neil Hannon ;-p Love this artist!

cannot stop listening

at 0:48 is that meant to be Sir Digby Chicken Caesar?

i don't understand any of this....and yet I do.... and yet I don't...

The song is awesome. After all Neil found the right source of inspiration. Our russion empress.
But video is completely sux. Acresss is not like Ekaterina II at all. Very upset.

First when I heard this song in the radio I thought to myself that it must have been kind of lost old David's Bowie crazy song... Then I heard DJ who said that this is new Neil Hannon and The Divine Comedy :D

I can't even express how weird it is to watch when you're Russian

Lyubov Ivanova 😊 I'm learning Russian 😊😊😊 it's a beautiful language!

great song

génération sex

"There were few brainier, just ask the king of Lithuania" brilliant, it should bring us all great comfort knowing Neil Hannon is still writing songs

Apparently this song was partly inspired by Hannon's fondness for Lucy Worsley. Which figures since song and video are every bit as winsomely twee as that vapid little tart and her historical costume drama bollox. I think Hannon got a grant from the National Trust to pay for the making of this video. Money well spent.

Dan Thompson I hope you don’t compliment your wife like that.

Fell in love with the song the moment i heard it on Radio 6... Fell out of it heels over head the moment I saw this clip. As a (true) Russian I firmly believe that it sould be banned)

1Evermore1 Lol!

best album since absent friends

definitly!

Oh come on Victory for the comic muse was pretty bloody good :)
in fact, everything Neil writes is a gem. :)) Greatest Irish songwriter there has ever been

yeh true just like te passion behind absent and some of the new tracks

Neil Hannon, el compositor que publica bajo el nombre de The Divine Comedy, sigue explotando ese rock elegante y su figura de gentleman británico. Lleva así más de veinte años de carrera, sin que la fórmula se agote o resulte cansada, gracias a arreglos sorprendentes, cierta socarronería y un gusto exquisito. En "Foreverland" hay canciones memorables como "Catherine the great", "How can you leave me on my own" o "Napoleon complex", con un toque a lo David Bowie. The Divine Comedy sigue teniendo la capacidad de sorprender y este disco tiene la peculiaridad de dejarte con una boba sonrisa en la boca.
Música independiente novedades.

Always so great... I forgot about this genius for too much years :(
Hail to Neil Hannon!

this has got to be one of the shittest songs on the face of the planet

number 7 straight in album charts

Nice song, but it's basically a more erudite version of Belle & Sebastian covering the Left Banke.

This is epic.

Neil's song's have an often overlooked capacity to make me HAPPY!!

So it's his girlfriend's name. That's kind of it, that's the joke, right?

Catherine is played by Elina Lowensohn, better known as Diana Reiter in Schindler's List.

I think he Neiled it

counting the days foreverland!!!!

Great song and great author !!!

I thought the beardy guy was Alexei Sayle, lol. Sweet song. Odd.

Does anyone see a parallel with Dylan's "John Wesley Harding"?

THERESA MAY ? nah.....

Fuck! The majestic orchestal bits compensate for the cheap banal corteous-like pop pervading the rest of the tune. Mr Neil excels at confronting and mixing both streams here. Great job!!

what a tsilf

I'm going to upset people I know but honestly this is a pretty ordinary song and I'm unhappy to say that as I love Neil whether he is The Divine Comedy by himself or with his old chums including the excellent Joby Talbot.... There were much better songs on Victory For The Comic Muse...  A Lady Of A Certain Age is remarkable and leaves this quaint ditty in the shade...His last outing was fairly disappointing too (Bang Goes The Knighthood )...  This is on a par with Neil's output when he's trotting out his Duckworth - Lewis Method material..  Those songs are cleverly quaint but they certainly aren't FIN DE SEICLE material...  Sorry if I've pissed anybody off by not being a sheep.

Sorry I can't see how you think that but ne'er mind eh.

I really enjoyed both but Victory definitely ends on a more poignant note, whereas Bang ends in an incredibly light way. Apples and oranges.

always have and probably always will love anything he makes, even the stuff he doesn't like like fanfare. guess I will just have to be a sheep then. baaaaa

all we know that 90`s wont come back again

Get Away !!!!!.

not sure why, but i heard this on radio fip and loved it right away. the video to it made it so much better.

How come the singles are never the strongest songs for TDC?

Lovely song, rubbish subject.

Becoming more like XTC? (Which is a GOOD THING!!!) I love it! Thanks, Master Hannon. xx SF

You're right! This wouldn't have been too out of place on Mummer or Apple Venus - very "pastel" sounds and instruments! God I love them both so so much!

I'm going to see The Divine Comedy in Cambridge... Catherine is such a cool name, this is a great video x

Heard this on a coach trip and literally thought "Divine Comedy!"

National Express?

brilliant song can't wait for new album. Been far too long. Neil Hannon is the best lyric writer of all time

Following your music since you started, Neil. Just a BIG THANK YOU for the great moments of joy you have added in my life!

Great to hear the Divine Comedy are back, one of the best live acts around.

the actress who is playing Catherine the great has breasts that are busting loose and spectacular. the other brunette with the sneakers is pretty hot also but she isnt showing her ta ta's like catherine

Hannon should avoid writing these pointless clip-clopping 'whimsical' songs and stick to writing the achingly powerful ballads, unique melodic meanderings and soaring pop songs like "Our Mutual Friend", "Count Grassi" and "Something For The Weekend".
Come on Neil, you know what you should be doing!!!

Ahaha, well... can't say you'll find too much to approve of then seeing as, for once, the reviews are right. Still though, if there was a year for happier froth, then this is it. Little complaints from me.

His latest number, although very good, is very much a continuation of Push the Sky Away.
Cave rules.

I recommend listening to the bonus disc on the deluxe version. It came as quite a shock to me, especially after the light-heartedness of the main album.

+Jim Threat and the Vultures He certainly does rule. And though I suggested you need to be a misery to enjoy him, you don't really of course. His lyrics are unsurpassable. His music is sublime on the haunting ballads and as rocky as you want on the louder numbers, all suffused with unparalleled meaning and poignancy. But this thread is about Neil Hannon, and he is great in a different way. He's just started to messer aimlessly into easy listening. Sad.

+Count Grassi +Count Grassi -'meander' not fucking predictive text 'messer.' Oh and N C music is utterly cathartic.

Hey this was pretty beautiful

Haaaa ! Ca fait du bien de le revoir

an immediate classic for me, see you in brussel next january guys !!

Could have come straight off of one of my favourite albums 'Absent Friends'. Great lush arrangement - and, even though I'm not usually a 'lyric person' I always find myself drawn into Neil's wacky lyrical landscape (if that doesn't sound too pretentious). Brilliant.

I would tell him a joke and make him a cake, I adore this guy

Esta lin do

I think than neil do not have nothing to prove to anyone. He know it and he does what he want to do. More or less his records still have high levels. I believe than Neil is not searching anymore, but something tell me than, maybe, his best work is coming on the future.

Sorry for my english.

Fantastic! Can't wait for the new album!

not lost the charm and the wholesome music ... missed your music so much !

neil hannon, best songwriter since lennon/mccartney!!

Andy Partridge isn't bad.

this video has the whimsy of a belle and sebastian thing

much better now ive herd the studio version with all its production. album oct 2nd yeeeesss

Excellent! We can say with no shadow of a doubt this is Divine Comedy. The special touch is there.Neil The Great

I want to be Neil Hannon.
On weekends.

Dan Bull!

Haha, me too

I want to have Neil Hannon every times ! ❤️

Excellent

I fucking love you, Neil.

The 106 at Rouen,Normandy,France, in November 2016 .Booked.
Will get my best tie and suite for the concert.

the usual masterpiece by neil

it becomes better with each listen... i wasent super amazed when i first heard it.. but its a nice song and video :) neil is the man

Always great songs from The Divine Comedy !!!!!!!

It's good. It's light. It's frothy. It's catchy. It's the great Neil Hannon. I shall buy the album and see them on tour. But.......... he's far too talented to be making this kind of 'radio 2 style' music.
Overall, I'm pretty disappointed. He seems to have lost his edge.

+Jens Walker By highest level, I mean continue to produce new music equal in quality to what has gone before. NH isn't managing this-in my opinion. No point telling you who I think is still doing it, as it's inevitably down to indiv taste too.
Do you think Neil is maintaining his level ?

As much as I enjoy the fluent orchestral arrangements behind songs like Everybody Knows, Perfect Lovesong and Our Mutual friend to name a few. I would be missing out on another excellent aesthetic in songs like My Imaginary Friend, Our Love Goes Deeper Than This, (or more recently) The Lost Art Of Conversation, Third Man. Though it's been a while, I also loved "Lady Of a Certain Age". I enjoy this song similarly. The brass is spot on, as well the bells in the rhythm..the melody and counter melody are also composed with conciseness and intention: some stuff to savour. Neil Hannon has always had trouble pulling off a delivery without smirks or winks--ex. "Lucy"--. Well crafted pop with flaws is what I expect from most artists, and I'm still grateful for it. In terms of my ideals, I can mostly just put those on my own shoulders as a source of inspiration. To name a few consistent recent artists: Jens Lekman, Rufus Wainwright, Scott Walker

Of course Nick Cave is another type of beast

Radio2 won't play - ''FUCK THE SYSTEM UP THE ARSE,'' type fingies. SO - be subtle ? Spread the mesh subliminally ? I don't agree BUT - wot yer gonna do ? Go to the web to fight THAT ''mighty'' army of mindless/dead/NO thought inches,metres,miles.... NUMB£R$ ?

I agree. LOVE Neil. This song is nice but the content? I don't think it works.

I expected a full costume drama video clip, but I saw a wonderful modern bittersweet story full of funny and tender scenes.
Great first single, look forward to the new album.

This is brillant on so many levels, Neil ... Thanks for such perfection through the years.

oh precious Neil, you're a generous gift for this world, muah!

fantastyczne, brawo; czekałem na to długo i doczekałem się. No pięknie

Fantastic tones by the one and only Neil Hannon. I realy can't wait to get to see the live tour in October. It's going to be a proper blast!

nice song:)

Welcome back, Neil. We've missed you. xx

Absolutely! 6 years without a new Divine Comedy album is far too long :D

Action is My middle nami