Released: March 1, 1990

Songwriter: Frank O’Connor Philip King

Producer: Sinéad O’Connor

I am stretched on your grave
And will lie there forever
If your hands were in mine
I'd be sure we'd not sever
My apple tree my brightness
It's time we were together
For I smell of the earth
And am worn by the weather
When my family thinks
That I'm safe in my bed
From night until morning
I am stretched at your head
Calling out to the air
With tears hot and wild
My grief for the girl
That I loved as a child
Do you remember
The night we were lost
In the shade of the blackthorn
And the chill of the frost
Thanks be to Jesus
We did what was right
And your maiden head still
Is your pillar of light
The priests and the friars
Approach me in dread
Because I still love you
My love and you're dead
I still would be your shelter
Through rain and through storm
And with you in your cold grave
I cannot sleep warm
So I'm stretched on your grave
And will lie there forever
If you hands were in mine
I'd be sure we'd not sever
My apple tree my brightness
It's time we were together
For I smell of the earth
And am worn by the weather

Sinéad O’Connor

Sinéad O'Connor (who goes by Shuhada' Sadaqat in her private life) is an Irish singer-songwriter who rose to fame in the late 80s with her album The Lion and the Cobra and achieved worldwide success with her cover of Prince’s “Nothing Compares to You” in 1990.

O'Connor was discovered in 1985 when Nigel Grainge of Ensign Records saw her band Ton Ton Macoute perform. Although he was not fond of the band’s music, he was impressed by O'Connor’s ‘amazing voice’. Grainge had O'Connor record four songs with Karl Wallinger (World Party) and signed her to his label. O'Connor’s first single was the song “Heroine” which she co-wrote with U2’s guitarist The Edge for the film Captive.

Her debut album The Lion and the Cobra was a sensation when it was released in 1987, reaching gold record status and earning a Best Female Rock Vocal Performance Grammy nomination. O'Connor’s debut single “Troy” charted in The Netherlands and Belgium, and “Mandinka”, released in late 1987, cracked the top 20 in the UK and top 30 in three other European countries, helping her album chart well in Europe. Spin Magazine described the album as a “remarkable, still-spine-tingling first record”.