• Source: Still waters run deep

Still waters run deep is a proverb of Latin origin now commonly taken to mean that a placid exterior hides a passionate or subtle nature. Formerly it also carried the warning that silent people are dangerous, as in Suffolk's comment on a fellow lord in William Shakespeare's play Henry VI part 2:

Smooth runs the water where the brook is deep,
And in his simple show he harbours treason...
No, no, my sovereign, Gloucester is a man
Unsounded yet and full of deep deceit.
According to The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Proverbs, the first mention of the proverb appeared in Classical times in the form altissima quaeque flumina minimo sono labi (the deepest rivers flow with least sound) in a history of Alexander the Great by Quintus Rufus Curtius and is there claimed as being of Bactrian origin. The earliest use in English sources goes back to 1400.




The fable



In about 1490 the Italian writer Laurentius Abstemius expanded the proverb into a short fable in Latin titled De rustico amnem transituro in his Hecatomythium and this was subsequently included in European collections of Aesop's fables. In 1692 Roger L'Estrange included an outline of the Abstemius version in his edition of the fables under the title of A Country-man and a River, along with the interpretation that men of few words are dangerous:

A Country-man that was to pass a River, sounded it up and down to try where it was most fordable: and upon Trial he made this Observation on't: Where the Water ran Smooth, he found it Deepest; and on the contrary, Shallowest where it made most Noise. There's More Danger in a Reserv'd and Silent, than in a Noisy, Babbling Enemy.
Slightly earlier than L'Estrange's translation, there was an amplified version of the story in La Fontaine's Fables under the title "The torrent and the river" (Le torrent et la rivière, VIII.23). It tells of a man trying to escape a robber who easily fords a turbulent stream but drowns in a smooth-flowing river, ending on the caution that 'Silent folk are dangerous'. The French proverb that is the nearest equivalent to the English 'still waters run deep' also emphasizes this danger: 'no water is worse than quiet water' (Il n'est pire eau que l'eau qui dort). When the caricaturist J. J. Grandville illustrated La Fontaine's fable, he further underlined this meaning by transposing it into a seduction scene. In the background a capering donkey and a shrew are advancing along the road, watched by a woman whose hands are clasped by a sleek cat. Unnoticed at her feet, a snake is slithering through the grass.




References

• Source: Still Waters (Run Deep)

"Still Waters (Run Deep)" is a song by the Bee Gees, written by Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. It was the third and final single issued from their 21st studio album, Still Waters (1997), on 27 October 1997. The recording and production of the song were assisted by Hugh Padgham. The song became the album's third top-20 UK single, peaking at No. 18 on the UK Singles Chart. It also reached No. 57 on the US Billboard Hot 100, their most recent appearance on that chart.




Critical reception


British magazine Music Week rated "Still Waters (Run Deep)" three out of five, adding, "The title track from the Gibb brothers' latest album is their usual pleasant, sumptuously-performed fare, but it doesn't have the strength to become a huge hit."




Music video


A music video was produced to promote the single, directed by Jake Nava. In the video, the Bee Gees are standing under and walking around road bridges in the city at night while two lovers, a woman and a man, find their way to love each other. The video ends with sunrise.




Versions


The single version was remixed with a more R&B/hip hop beat compared with the album version. A demo version was included on one of the UK CD singles.




Live performances


On 14 November 1997, the Bee Gees performed the song in Las Vegas for their One Night Only concert to promote the single.




Track listings


UK CD single 1
"Still Waters (Run Deep)" – 4:08
"Still Waters (Run Deep)" (demo) – 3:55
"Obsessions" – 4:43
UK CD single 2
"Still Waters (Run Deep)" – 4:08
"Night Fever" – 3:29
"More Than a Woman" – 3:16
"You Should Be Dancing" – 4:16
US CD single
"Still Waters (Run Deep)" – 4:08
"Love Never Dies" – 4:05




Charts






Release history






References

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