Alma Cogan was Britain's most successful female recording artist of the 195… Read Full Bio ↴Alma Cogan was Britain's most successful female recording artist of the 1950's. Born in London in 1932, her early recordings were mainly ballads, in the style of Anne Shelton. But by 1954, this was to all change. Her first major hit was "Bell Bottom Blues", and she scored her only number one in Britain with "Dreamboat" in 1956. Novelty songs were extremely popular at the time, and Alma recorded a number of these, including "I Can't Tell A Waltz From A Tango", "Twenty Tiny Fingers" and "Never Do A Tango With An Eskimo". She was known for the giggle in her voice when she sang and was affectinaltely known as The Girl With A Laugh In Her Voice. Her extravagant dresses were also a trademark. Her final UK hit was "Cowboy Jimmy Joe" in 1961, but was fast becoming an International Artist, with hits in Sweden, Germany, Israel and Japan - she had a number one hit in Japan with "Just Couldn't Resist Her With Her Pocket Transistor" which was at the top spot for over six months. As the novelty numbers were fast becoming old-fashioned by the start of the 1960s, she recorded a number of jazz standards and pop records, including five songs written by the Beatles - these recordings can be found on a number of CDs. Famed for her showbiz parties, with guests like Cary Grant, Noel Coward and the Beatles, she was never out of the public eye until ovarian cancer tragically cut her career short. She died on the 26th October 1966, aged just 34.

Bell Bottom Blues
Alma Cogan Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I got the bell bottom blues cause my sweetie is a sailor
And he's sailing somewhere on the sea
I got the bell bottom blues cause I'm crazy 'bout a sailor
And I don't know when he's coming back to me
I shake my head and refuse when the fellers come a calling
And they want to take me on a date
I got the bell bottom blues while the other girls are falling
I just sit around the living room and wait

I wonder if he's looking at the same moon I'm looking at
Every night I'm looking at the moon
I know that if he's praying for the same thing I'm praying for
We'll be together soon

I got the bell bottom blues just awaiting for a letter
Heaven knows I'm lonely as can be

I got the bell bottom blues and I won't be feeling better
Till my sailor boy comes sailing home to me

Overall Meaning

In Alma Cogan's song "Bell Bottom Blues," the singer laments the loneliness and longing she feels for her sailor boyfriend who is at sea. She describes her feeling as the "bell bottom blues," which is a reference to the iconic bell bottom pants worn by sailors in the navy. The singer is infatuated with her sailor boyfriend and cannot wait for him to come back home to her. She refuses any advances from other men because she is solely focused on the return of her true love.

The singer wonders if her sailor boyfriend is looking at the same moon as she is every night and if he shares her prayers for their reunion. She eagerly awaits a letter from him, as she feels incredibly lonely in his absence. The song is a reflection of the difficulties and challenges that come with being in a relationship with someone in the navy and the emotional toll it can have on the partner left behind.

Line by Line Meaning

I got the bell bottom blues cause my sweetie is a sailor
I am feeling blue because the person I am in love with is part of the navy.

And he's sailing somewhere on the sea
He is currently on a naval mission on the open sea.

I got the bell bottom blues cause I'm crazy 'bout a sailor
I have fallen deeply in love with a man that serves in the navy.

And I don't know when he's coming back to me
I am unaware of the exact timeframe of his return to me.

I shake my head and refuse when the fellers come a calling
I decline any romantic advances made by other men.

And they want to take me on a date
These men are asking me out on a romantic outing.

I got the bell bottom blues while the other girls are falling
I am feeling low whilst other girls are happily in a relationship.

I just sit around the living room and wait
I remain home, tending to my homemaking duties, nervously counting down the days of his absence.

I wonder if he's looking at the same moon I'm looking at
I am curious whether he's gazing up at the moon, just like I am.

Every night I'm looking at the moon
Every night, I gaze up at the moon, missing him more and more with each passing day.

I know that if he's praying for the same thing I'm praying for
I am hopeful that he's praying for the same thing I am hoping for.

We'll be together soon
If he is, our reunion will be soon to come.

I got the bell bottom blues just awaiting for a letter
I am anxious for his next written correspondence.

Heaven knows I'm lonely as can be
I am incredibly lonely and missing him terribly.

I got the bell bottom blues and I won't be feeling better
I am unhappy and will not feel content again in his absence.

Till my sailor boy comes sailing home to me
I need his return in order to feel happy and un-lonely again.

Lyrics © MUSIC SALES CORPORATION, BMG Rights Management, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LEON L N CARR, HAL DAVID

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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Comments from YouTube:

@redsnapper1959

14y↑1

Alma's very first UK hit in 1954 ... she had a string of hits right through to 1961 ... and continued to make quality records right up to her untimely death in 1966.

@Sandrina747

14y

I remember singing this at my local cinema on the saturday morning Matinee,I was 8 years old at the time and Alma has been one of my favourites since then and she was one of the female vocalists in the 50's and early 60's that were instrumental in helping me with their songs to become an entertainer myself.Thanks Alma....

@faldo98

10y↑3

Thanks for posting. It must be over 50 years since I heard this. My older sister being about 10 years old when it was popular used to drive me mad singing it. I should think it made those Royal Navy boys ever more popular with the girls. It's a great shame we don't have proper music these days. Those people who did not live through the 50s and 60s have never lived.

@urmycelebrity

Please this is just 🔥✨
Makes me feel like I'm a teenage princess in the 1950s doing her hair,getting ready for her job interview 😙😙

@elizabethwest7211

4y↑1

Love this

@el.hombre2512

11y↑3

Ah, Alma, After all these years,I still love you. R.I.P. Sweetheart. xxxx

@CapriolFilms

11y↑3

Check out Catrine Kirkman's performance of 'Bell Bottom Blues' as Alma Cogan in the recent feature film 'In Love with Alma Cogan' starring Roger Lloyd Pack, Niamh Cusack and Keith Barron.

@BOBLLASHRAM

9y↑20

I wonder how many people will be doing the same as me , in looking up this song, due to the revelations about John Lennon and Alma!

@mjazzguitar

9y↑3

Me too I did.
Her videos will get a million hits now.

@daisyjane1070

9y↑6

Bob Marshall I also wanted to hear how this song compared to the Derek & the Dominoes song of the same title.

@ktkee7161

Nope.

@LifeOfJimbo

Ths was 1954, originally by Teresa Brewert. Alma reached #4 with this one, and Teresa was #17
Alma didn't know John at this point, but I understand your point of their affair and how the song could be relevant!

@frankyrubful

Bob Marshall ... Yes I’m doing it right now, 4 years later than you. Despite thinking I knew heaps of stuff about John, this I didn’t know until now.

@shewantskruemeltee

11y↑5

took me so long to find this song <3

@erikohenrymendez2539

Me too

@alanfox7312

Alma cogan rest in peace

@ghostemane3209

6y↑3

This song is so beautiful i'm 17 and i don't like nowadays pop songs

@jameselliott5390

9y↑2

good memories of this

@maxbacon4828

4y↑1

Georgeous ,and she did all her own dresses xxx!

@theanachronic

11y

Hey, Chuck. I believe it was in either '54, '55, or '56 that the four aces released a record entitled "Tell Me Why" which, indeed, made the pop charts. I have that recording on an LP. What I don't have is the flip side called "Rebel in Town." Do you have that?

@grubberrn

13y↑1

I was in the Royal Navy in the 1950's and had to wear Bellbottoms even when on leave as we were not allowed to wear civvys. Hated this song as I liked ballroom dancing and when the band saw you dancing in uniform they would strike up with "Bellbottom Blues" and everyone would stand and clap us. TOKES

@stebeet

15y

been looking 4 this four ages cheers

@mrmaslen8877

can remember this one

@cooperyoung5762

11y↑3

I wonder if this song's title had any influence on the Clapton song of the same name?

@hebneh

11y↑1

I don't know much about Alma Cogan, but listening to this song for the first time I'm intrigued by how American her singing voice sounds. This makes me want to find a video of her speaking to see how English she really sounded. Of course, during the British Invasion in the USA in the '60s, most of those performers didn't sound British when they sang either. Watching "A Hard Day's Night", the Beatles were incomprehensible for the first 10 minutes or so due to their accents.

@monjose1

i was thinking the same thing!

@PaulRusling

14y↑2

Secret girlfriend of John Lennon too for a while.

@blackandtanful

13y

50年代活躍のﾁｬｰﾐﾝｸﾞ･英国ｼﾝｶﾞｰ､ｱﾙﾏ･ｺｰｶﾞﾝ､よくぞあったねﾕｰﾁｭｰﾌﾞ!～ﾊﾙ･ﾃﾞｳﾞｯﾄﾞ詩作"ﾍﾞﾙﾎﾞﾄﾑ･ﾌﾞﾙｰｽ"ｸﾗﾌﾟﾄﾝじゃないﾖ!

@theanachronic

11y

I tried doing this and got totally edited with warnings, copyright infringement notices, etc. What's that all about? No One is going to buy this stuff. Why not let us enjoy it?