Ian Dury & The Blockheads

Here’s a blast from the past (last 70’s). This song popped into my head the other night, and I discovered that my wife had not heard it before. Or perhaps I was doing an exceptionally bad job of singing “Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick” by Ian Dury and the Blockheads. Whatever. It motivated me to search for videos of Mr. Dury. Warning: Double sax solo at 1:48!



This is great party music with smart lyrics. I once owned the band's second album “Do it Yourself,” the sleeve of which was based on samples from a wallpaper catalog, with over a dozen variations of the cover issued. (Designed by an artist named Barney Bubbles).


Here’s another big Ian Dury hit with a classic theme: “Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll.” (Fun chorus starting at 2:30).



And here's "What a Waste" from 1978. Warning: Synthesizer solo at 1:30.



In case you couldn't catch the lyrics:

I could be the driver of an articulated lorry
I could be a poet, I wouldn't need to worry
I could be a teacher in a classroom full of scholars
I could be the sergeant in a squadron full of wallahs
What a waste
What a waste
What a waste
What a waste

CHORUS:
Because I chose to play the fool in a six-piece band,
First-night nerves every one-night stand.
I should be glad to be so inclined.
What a waste! What a waste!
But I don't mind.

I could be a lawyer with strategems and ruses
I could be a doctor with poultices and bruises
I could be a writer with a growing reputation
I could be the ticket man at Fulham Broadway Station
What a waste

CHORUS

I could be the catalyst that sparks the revolution
I could be an inmate in a long-term institution
I could dream to wide extremes, I could do or die
I could yawn and be withdrawn and watch the world go by
What a waste


Ian Dury died of liver cancer in March 2000. What a waste.