Bassist Alan Longmuir, his younger brother Derek Longmuir, a drummer, along with school mate, lead singer Gordon "Nobby" Clark founded the group in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1967, as The Saxons. Shortly afterwards, seeking a less English-sounding moniker, they chose a new name allegedly by throwing a dart at a map of the United States. The dart landed on the map in the state of Arkansas, but since "Arkansas Rollers" did not sound quite right, and might also lead to problems with pronunciation, they tried again and this time the dart landed near the community of Bay City, Michigan.
The Bay City Rollers were managed from early on by the imposing and controversial Tam Paton, himself a former big band leader. Paton was notorious for his rigid control over all aspects of the band's career, including the shuffling in and out of group members at a very high rate. Short term members from this period include David Paton (member 1969-1970) and Billy Lyall (member 1969-1971), who went on to be founding members of another successful Edinburgh band, Pilot.
The Bay City Rollers received their first break when prominent record executive Dick Leahy caught their act by chance in an Edinburgh club. After signing with Leahy's Bell Records, the band's first hit was "Keep on Dancing" (UK #9, 1971), a cover of a 1965 Gentrys hit, recorded at the suggestion of pop impresario and producer Jonathan King. (Singer Nobby Clark was backed on vocals on "Keep on Dancing" by King himself.) Upon this release's success, they made guest appearances on BBC-TV's Top of the Pops. The group then won a Radio Luxembourg-sponsored song contest with the tune "Mañana", which was later popular in parts of Europe and in Israel.
Several non-charting singles were released over the following two years. This period did see the addition of long term members Eric Faulkner and Stuart "Woody" Wood.
In late 1973 they narrowly missed the UK chart with "Saturday Night", one of many singles written and produced for the band by the highly successful songwriting duo of Scotsman Bill Martin and Irishman Phil Coulter.
By the end of 1973, Nobby Clark had become disillusioned by the band's lack of success and decided to move on. He was replaced as lead singer by Leslie McKeown.
The five members at the very end of 1973 - the Longmuir brothers, Faulkner, Wood and McKeown - are generally referred to as the "classic line-up". In early 1974 McKeown hastily re-recorded lead vocals of the group's forthcoming single, "Remember (Sha La La La)", which became a sizable hit and a lead in to a series of UK chart hits.
Beginning with "Remember" (UK #6), the Rollers' popularity exploded, and they released a string of very successful hits on the British charts. Following in succession were "Shang-a-Lang" (UK #2), "Summerlove Sensation" (UK #3), and "All of Me Loves All of You" (UK #4).
By early 1975, they were one of the highest-selling acts in Britain. That year saw a successful UK tour (which prompted newspaper headlines about "Rollermania"), and a 20-week UK television series, Shang-a-Lang.
A cover of the Four Seasons' "Bye, Bye, Baby", stayed at #1 in the UK for six weeks in the spring of 1975, selling nearly a million copies to become the biggest seller of the year, and the subsequent single "Give a Little Love" topped the charts that summer, their second #1 hit. At the peak of their popularity in the UK, comparisons were even made to The Beatles.
By this time, BCR fans had a completely distinctive style of dress, the main elements of which were ankle length tartan trousers and tartan scarves which they had copied from another Tam Paton Band "Bilbo Baggins".
As the group's popularity swelled to superstardom in the UK, a concerted effort was made by Arista Records (the record company that evolved from Bell) to launch the Rollers in America. New Arista head Clive Davis was instrumental in grooming and overseeing the project. His work paid off as in early '76, the Rollers reached #1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with "Saturday Night", the song which had missed the UK chart completely two years earlier. A second US hit came with "Money Honey" which hit #9, and finally reaching a lackluster 62 with a cover version of Dusty's love power. Prior to that, they made their American TV debut on Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell singing Saturday Night.
The dark side of the band's unending schedule of tours and appearances was the great amount of stress the band members felt. By early '76, the strain of success (and the discomfort of a mature man in a teen band) had taken its toll on bassist Alan Longmuir, who decided to leave the group. He was replaced for 7 months by 17 year old Ian Mitchell - the first band member born outside of Edinburgh, Scotland (he was from Northern Ireland). With Mitchell, the group released an album titled Dedication, and hit the charts with a cover version of the Dusty Springfield song "I Only Want To Be With You", which reached US #12, as well as "Yesterday's Hero" and "Dedication".
As the Rollers' popularity waned, the shuffling of personnel continued: Mitchell quit the band, replaced by Pat McGlynn. The group's commercial success began to decline towards the end of the 1970s. In 1977, they covered an unsuccessful 1973 single by String Driven Thing, "It's a Game" to give them their final UK Top 20 hit (#16 in the spring), but "You Made Me Believe in Magic" could only make #34 in the summer. It managed to just crack the top ten in the United States, but this would be their final major success there too. Summer of 1977 saw the group release the It's a Game album and world tour as a four-piece group - McKeown, Wood, Faulkner and Derek Longmuir.
In 1978, Alan Longmuir reunited with the band for the recording of Strangers in the Wind. The release of this LP was timed to coincide with the debut of the Rollers' US television show "The Krofft Superstar Hour" later renamed "The Bay City Rollers Show" on the NBC network. The show was a poor match for the band. Their time in the teen-idol spotlight was slipping away and their music had matured and become more sophisticated compared to the bubblegum hits they had released in '75-'76. The show and album were each dismal failures.
Les McKeown left to pursue a solo career after an on-stage fight with Faulkner in Japan.The Rollers fired Tam Paton in 1979. South African-born Duncan Faure was hired to replace McKeown as lead vocalist and the band shortened its name to The Rollers. Three albums were issued under this name, including Voxx (1980) and 1981's Ricochet, before the group disbanded.
During the 1980s and 1990s, there were various short-lived revivals featuring some of the original members, including a New Year's Eve 1999 concert. Interest was rekindled in Britain by television documentaries about the group and a television-advertised compilation of greatest hits, which entered the UK charts on release in 2004 at its #11 peak.
Currently, there is one touring version using the group's name: Les McKeown's Legendary Bay City Rollers.
Alan Longmuir died on 2 July 2018 in an Edinburgh hospital after contracting an illness while on holiday in Mexico. He was 70.
I Only Wanna Be With You
Bay City Rollers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I only know I never want to let you go
Cause you started something
Can't you see
That ever since we met you've had a hold on me
It happens to be true
I only want to be with you
I want to spend each moment of the day with you
Look what has happened with just one kiss
I never knew that I could be in love like this
It's crazy but it's true
I only want to be with you
You stopped, you smiled at me
And asked me if I cared to dance
I fell into your open arms
I didn't stand a chance
Now listen honey
I just want to be beside you everywhere
As long as we're together honey I don't care
Cause you started something
Can't you see
That ever since we met you've had a hold on me
No matter what you do
I only want to be with you
You stopped, you smiled at me
And asked me if I cared to dance
I fell into your open arms
I didn't stand a chance
Now listen honey
I just want to be beside you everywhere
As long as we're together honey I don't care
Cause you started something
Can't you see
That ever since we met you've had a hold on me
No matter what you do
I only want to be with you
No matter, no matter what you do
I only want to be with you
No matter, no matter what you do
I only want to be with you
Ah.......
Ah.......
Ah.......
Ah.......
Ah.......
The Bay City Rollers' song "I Only Wanna Be With You" is a love song about the deep infatuation the singer has for someone else. The lyrics express that the singer doesn't know why they love this person so much, but they know they never want to let them go. The person in question has had a hold on the singer since they first met, and the singer feels that they have fallen deeply in love with them, crazily but truly. They want to spend every moment of the day with them and don't care where they go as long as they are together. The chorus repeats the sentiment that no matter what the person does, the singer only wants to be with them.
The song tells the story of being swept up by love and infatuation, a feeling that can be wild, unpredictable, and intense. The lyrics convey the sense that the singer is powerless to resist the hold this person has on them, even though they may not know exactly why they feel this way. In the end, it doesn't matter what the person does, because the singer only wants to be with them. It's a romantic and somewhat naive portrayal of love and infatuation, but one that is sure to resonate with anyone who has ever felt that powerful pull towards someone special.
Line by Line Meaning
I don't know what it is that makes me love you so
There is no rational explanation for my intense love for you.
I only know I never want to let you go
No matter what the future holds, I will always want to be with you.
Cause you started something
You initiated this profound and magical connection between us.
Can't you see
Can't you realize the impact you have had on my heart and soul?
That ever since we met you've had a hold on me
Since the moment we met, my love and affection for you has been unwavering and unbreakable.
It happens to be true
It is an undeniable fact.
I only want to be with you
All I desire is to share my life with you.
It doesn't matter where you go or what you do
Your physical location or actions are irrelevant because my love for you transcends these external factors.
I want to spend each moment of the day with you
Every second of every day, I yearn to be in your presence.
Look what has happened with just one kiss
Our relationship has been fundamentally changed and elevated by a single act of intimacy.
I never knew that I could be in love like this
I never imagined that such profound and all-encompassing love was possible until I met you.
It's crazy but it's true
Although it seems impossible, my love for you is genuine and real.
You stopped, you smiled at me
In a single moment, you captured my heart with your smile.
And asked me if I cared to dance
You initiated our first interaction and invitation to share a moment together.
I fell into your open arms
I surrendered myself to the love and warmth that you offered me.
I didn't stand a chance
Resistance was futile in the face of my strong and immediate feelings for you.
Now listen honey
Pay close attention to what I am about to say.
I just want to be beside you everywhere
I wish to accompany you every step of the way on our journey through life.
As long as we're together honey I don't care
All that matters is that we are able to share our lives with each other.
No matter what you do
Regardless of any circumstances or challenges that may arise.
No matter, no matter what you do
This sentiment is so important that it warrants repetition.
Ah.......
An expression of the intense emotions that this song conveys.
Lyrics © Roba Music Verlag GMBH, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Sentric Music, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Ivor Raymonde, Michael Hawker
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind