Artist Name: Roch Voisine
Album: Kissing Rain
Song: Kissing Rain
Release Date: 1996
Introduction
I am sure that you looked at the album cover and you wondered, why the hell is Corporate Gamer reviewing a song from Roch Voisine? Roch Voisine was very popular in the late 80's and early 1990's in French Canada and France. His first real taste of success was with the bilingual song, Hélène.
I could have picked any number of his songs, but this time I wanted to review Kissing Rain from the album of the same name. This song has stuck with me for some reason and I thought that it would be a good time to look in detail as to why I think that it is a well written rock song.
Since this is the first time that I am reviewing something from Roch Voisine, I wanted to give you a bit of a background on this artist before getting to the details of the review in question.
Background
Joseph Armand Roch Voisine was born on March 26th, 1963 in Edmundston, New Brunswick, Canada. He is a Canadian Acadian.
His first real splash came in 1989 with the album Hélène. This was also the title track and it was immensely popular on radio and on music video television stations such as Musiqueplus (French branch of MuchMusic).
In 1994, he won the Juno Award for the Male Vocalist of the Year. This came on the coat tails of his most successful album, I'll Always Be There. Roch worked on this album and title single with the legendary David Foster.
He had a string of very popular albums, spanning from 1989 to 1999. At one point, he wanted to branch out and he tried his luck in America. He was billed as being the next Michael Bolton. Unfortunately, for Roch, this did not go as planned. He never reached the same heights as in Quebec, Canada and France.
Other than his albums, he did take a stab at acting. He played in the series Lance et Compte (He Shoots, He Scores), which is about a fictional hockey team based out of Quebec City. In 1992, he played a detective in the TV movie, Armen and Bullik. He also appeared in the PBS kids animated series, Cyberchase.
Although Roch Voisine is not on top of the charts as he once was, he is still getting some airtime on mainstream radio. Here in the province of Quebec, his songs often play on the radio. His fans still love him here and in France. His shows still sell out.
Even in the age of social media, Roch keeps his private life very close to his heart. There have been various rumors for years but none of them have ever been proven correct. However, it seems that he was married at least once to Myriam Saint-Jean on 21 December 2002. He stayed married for a few years until 2007. After that reports are not always accurate.
Kissing Rain Lyrics
Another night of falling rain Your memory flickers like a flame It echoes like a distant tune Dances on the four walls of my room
With hair as black as a book of prayer Your laughter filled the morning air Now it doesn't seem so long ago But how we ever parted, I don't know
Where are you now? So far away If only some how the night would disappear And I could have you here
There's a breeze on the water Blowing time back to me I can still see your face Kissing Rain
We wandered through a hundred days And watched the stars on Half-Moon Bay Then like a season you were gone You left me on a frozen April dawn You were the storm-in my sky If only once more I could be so free
Feel you washing over me There's a breeze on the water Blowing time back to me
I can still see your face Kissing Rain
There's a long cool river Running wild to the sea And I am calling your name Kissing Rain
I'm a prisoner of time And I'm chained to memories How can you be so free There's a breeze
There is a long cool river Running wild to the sea And I am calling your name Kissing Rain
There's a breeze on the water (Daughter of the thunder) Blowing time back to me (Your face turned towards the sky) I can still see your face (Standing high on a hillside babe) Kissing Rain
There's a long cool river (I'm a prisoner of time) Running wild to the sea And I am calling your name (Calling your name calling your name)
Bottomline
Let us see why this track has stuck with me for many years.
The melody itself is nothing to run home about. To be honest, it sounds like many other adult contemporary song from the mid to late 1990's. However, it does have a catchy riff that is pleasing even if you do not like the genre.
Like many of Roch Voisine's songs, his song writing is what makes the tracks special. He has a way of putting phrases and verses together that feel relatable and passionate.
Kissing Rain which is a metaphor that means love and safety. It also can mean that it shows the vulnerable side of a person. This song plays on that a little bit. It is essentially about a couple that have gone their separate ways. However, it would seem that one person seems to miss the other more.
There is one particular line in the song that always stuck with me.
I'm a prisoner of time And I'm chained to memories How can you be so free
I can relate to this in more ways than one. The song itself talks about a break up. However, this can also be applied when losing someone close to you. Sometimes, we get caught in the memories and forget to move forward. Some people realize that right away. Some others, will never get over this hurdle. Sometimes, you see exactly when the person stopped evolving. They seem to be stuck in a certain period of time. Usually, it is at a time they felt at their best, before something happened.
At the same time, you always wonder how people can get over something so quickly or just be able to move on to the next thing. In my experience, either the person in question is putting on a mask and is pretending that everything is ok. In this scenario, it will eventually catch up to you.
However, some people are able to move on, sooner rather than later. They are rare but they exist. Just they have found the mechanism to cope and get through it. In this case, usually the person has a strong support system. This does not mean necessarily family but it can also be close friends or in some cases their therapist. We each learn how to cope with things. It is a matter of finding what out that works for you.
I think that this song is worth a listen. Yeah it has that cheesy Adult Contemporary from the 90's, but it is still a good track from Roch Voisine's impressive repertoire.
Here is the official clip from the song! Enjoy and let us know what you think!
Kissing Rain
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