The band's first single, Babyshambles, was released in April 2004 on High Society Records. Fewer than 1,000 copies of the CD and 7" were released and both can now be found changing hands for more than £50 on internet auction sites such as eBay.
During September and October 2004 Babyshambles embarked on a UK tour culminating in two sold-out shows at the London Scala. Despite claims that the band were only touring to raise money to support Doherty's drug habit the tour sold-out and received critical acclaim. The band's second single Killamangiro was released November 29 2004 on Rough Trade Records and reached number 8 in the UK charts. The band embarked on another tour in December amid increasing concern about Doherty's drug use. During a gig in Blackpool the band walked off stage as it became clear Doherty was too intoxicated to perform and a riot broke out at the London Astoria when Doherty failed to turn up for a gig.
In January 2005, Gemma Clarke quit the band, citing disagreements with the management who she considered irresponsible for failing to address Doherty's obvious drug problem. She was replaced with Adam Ficek, Patrick Walden's former bandmate in The White Sport. In February 2005 Doherty, along with fellow musician Alan Wass, was arrested on suspicion of assault and blackmail. It was alleged that Doherty assaulted Max Carlish, a documentary maker, in a London hotel, a charge he strenuously denied. Carlish had made a documentary about Doherty, from which clips were used for the channel 4 documentary 'Stalking Pete Doherty'. After allegedly assaulting Carlish, Doherty spent several nights in prison until £150,000 bail could be raised. After being released on bail Doherty spent several weeks in a recording studio in Wales working on Babyshambles' debut album. All charges against him were dropped in April 2005.
On October 1, 2005, the Babyshambles tour bus was raided by police. Doherty was charged on suspicion of possession of class A drugs and bailed until December, although Doherty claims that the substances were related to his Naltrexone implant.
Work on Babyshambles' debut album continued throughout April and May 2005 with Mick Jones, who worked with Doherty on the producing of The Libertines' albums. The album, Down in Albion was released on 14th November, having been leaked onto the internet on 19th October. It came 10th in the Radio 1 Album Charts. The single Albion was released on the 28th November and came 8th in the Radio 1 Single Charts. Another single Fuck Forever was released on August 15th, reaching #4 on the UK Singles Chart.
Peter Doherty appeared on Newsnight at the end of 2005, and played a few secret and personal gigs to fans at the end of the year. At the start of 2006 the band announced that they would play 3 small club shows in London, Sheffield and Stoke. To fans' surprise, Babyshambles performed at the first of the London dates without guitarist Patrick Walden. Instead of Walden, Doherty played guitar at the London date. The band have since made an announcement that Walden quit the band to pursue other projects. Walden was replaced by Mick Whitnall.
December 2006 saw the release of a new EP, featuring The Blinding EP, the July single 'Beg, Steal & Borrow' and new single 'I Love You (But You're Green)'.
On January 18th, 2007 it was announced that the band signed a "long term" album deal with Parlophone.
Babyshambles released their 2nd album, Shotter's Nation, on October 1, 2007. It was produced by Stephen Street (Morrissey, Blur) and features Bert Jansch on guitar on the last track Lost Art Of Murder.
Clementine
Babyshambles Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My darling Clementine, you know I do
I bless and curse the day I found you
I wonder why
I got lost in the wonderland around you
Sitting through the city in a yellow old van with you
She took my love, what kind of fool am I
I keep love handy, I keep it near
And I take note of all of your witty reposts
And I follow with the famous quotes and
If I say I care, I really mean it
She's got the money, and she
She's moving on
She's thinking on
She's thinking on all the good advice
Because there's always good advice
The man with the golden arm rarely deals a joker
But he kept two aside, just for you
He burnt your fingers in the fire
The first two lines of the song are a simple declaration of love for Clementine, telling her that she is loved by the singer. However, the next line introduces a tonal shift as the singer expresses their mixed feelings towards their relationship. They bless and curse the day they found Clementine, indicating that their relationship has been tumultuous. The next line, "I wonder why I got lost in the wonderland around you," reveals that the singer is both enchanted and bewildered by Clementine. The line "she took my love, what kind of fool am I" suggests that Clementine may have taken advantage of the singer's love, leaving them feeling foolish and hurt.
However, the singer still welcomes Clementine back into their life, indicating that their love for her is strong. They keep love close at hand and pay close attention to Clementine's words and actions. The line "she's got the money, and she's moving on" indicates that Clementine may be leaving the singer for someone more financially stable. The final lines of the song describe the man with the golden arm burning Clementine's fingers in the fire, which could be a metaphor for the singer warning Clementine about the dangers of her actions.
Line by Line Meaning
My darling Clementine, you know I love you
The singer expresses their love for Clementine
My darling Clementine, you know I do
The singer reiterates their love for Clementine
I bless and curse the day I found you
The singer experiences both positive and negative emotions about meeting Clementine
I wonder why
The artist expresses curiosity about their feelings for Clementine
I got lost in the wonderland around you
The artist became distracted and absorbed by their relationship with Clementine
Sitting through the city in a yellow old van with you
The singer and Clementine share an experience in a specific location
She took my love, what kind of fool am I
The singer feels foolish for giving their love to someone who didn't appreciate it
But you're always welcome here
The artist affirms that Clementine is always welcome in their life
I keep love handy, I keep it near
The artist is prepared to offer love when it is needed
And I take note of all of your witty reposts
The artist pays attention to Clementine's social media posts
And I follow with the famous quotes and
The singer shares famous quotes in response to Clementine's posts
If I say I care, I really mean it
The artist emphasizes the sincerity of their feelings towards Clementine
She's got the money, and she
The singer describes a characteristic of someone else
She's moving on
The other person is moving forward with their life
She's thinking on
The other person is contemplating their actions
She's thinking on all the good advice
The other person is considering advice received from others
Because there's always good advice
The artist believes that good advice is always available
The man with the golden arm rarely deals a joker
An allusion to gambling, suggesting that someone who is skilled rarely makes mistakes
But he kept two aside, just for you
An exception was made for Clementine
He burnt your fingers in the fire
Clementine suffered the consequences of taking a risk
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PETER DOHERTY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind