While Taupin was still a boy, his father decided to try his hand at independent farming, and the family relocated again, this time to a run-down property called Maltkiln Farm in the north-Lincolnshire village of Owmby-by-Spital. Here a third brother, Kit, was born 11 years junior to Bernie. The family attended Holy Rood Catholic Church in the town of Market Rasen, where Bernie and Tony served as altar boys. Bernie attended school at Market Rasen Secondary Modern. Unlike his older brother, he was not a diligent student, although he showed an early flair for writing. At 15 he dropped out of school. He spent his teenage years hanging out with his friends, hitchhiking the country roads to attend youth club dances in the surrounding villages, playing snooker in the Aston Arms Pub in Market Rasen, and drinking ale well before his eighteenth birthday. He had worked at several part-time, dead-end jobs when, at the age of 17, he answered an advertisement that led to his collaboration with Elton John.
In 1967, he answered an advertisement for a lyric writer placed in the New Musical Express by Liberty records A&R man Ray Williams. Thus began the famous and well-loved songwriting team of Elton John and Bernie Taupin. The pair have collaborated on more than 30 albums to date, though John worked with other lyricists between 1977 and 1983. Taupin's lyrics include such memorable tunes as "Rocket Man", "Tiny Dancer", "Candle in the Wind", "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me", and 1970's "Your Song", their first hit.
In 1971, Taupin recorded a spoken-word album entitled Taupin, in which he recites some of his early poems against a background of impromptu, sitar-heavy music created by some members of Elton's band, including Davey Johnstone and Caleb Quaye. Side One is entitled "Child" and contains poems about his early childhood in southern Lincolnshire. The first poem, "The Greatest Discovery," which looks at his own birth through the eyes of his older brother, was also set to music by Elton John and included on the Elton John (album). There are poems about Taupin's first two childhood homes, Flatters and Rowston Manor, and others about his relationship with his brother and grandfather. Side Two includes a variety of poems of varying obscurity, from a marionette telling her own story to a rat catcher who falls victim to his prey. While the lyrics to Side One provide interesting insights into Taupin's childhood, the album makes for a tedious listening experience, and Taupin stated in interviews that he wasn't pleased with the results.
In 1980, Taupin recorded his first album as a singer, He Who Rides the Tiger. Although he demonstrated a more-than-adequate vocal ability, the album failed to make a dent in the charts. Taupin later suggested in interviews that he didn't have the creative control he would have liked over the album.
In 1987, he recorded another album entitled Tribe. The songs were co-written with Martin Page. "Citizen Jane" and "Friend of the Flag" were released as singles. Videos of both singles featured Taupin and then-wife Toni Russo, and the "Citizen Jane" video also included Toni's sister, actress Rene Russo. Once again, neither the album nor the singles made much of a dent in the charts.
In 1996, Taupin pulled together a band called Farm Dogs, whose two albums were conscious (and successful) throwbacks to the grittier, earthier sound of Tumbleweed Connection. While Taupin wrote the lyrics, the music was a collaborative effort among the band members. Their first album, 1996's Last Stand in Open Country, received critical praise but little airplay. As mentioned above, the title track was later recorded by Willie Nelson and Kid Rock for Nelson's 2002 album The Great Divide.
In 1998, Farm Dogs released its second and final album, Immigrant Sons. Again a respectable effort, the album went nowhere despite a tour of small clubs across America.
Crocodile Rock
Bernie Taupin Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Me and Suzie had so much fun
Holdin' hands and skippin' stones
Had an old gold Chevy and a place of my own
But the biggest kick I ever got
Was doin' a thing called the Crocodile Rock
While the other kids were rockin' 'round the clock
Crocodile rockin' is somethin' shockin', when your feet just can't keep still
I never knew me a better time, and I guess I never will
Oh Lawdy Mama those Friday nights, when Suzie wore her dresses tight and uh
Crocodile rockin' was-a out of-a sight
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
But the years went by and the rock just died
Suzie went and left us for some foreign guy
Long nights cryin' by the record machine
Dreamin' of my Chevy and my old blue jeans
But they'll never kill the thrills we got
Burnin' up to the crocodile rock
Learnin' fast as the weeks went past
We really thought the crocodile rock would last, well
Crocodile rockin' is somethin' shockin', when your feet just can't keep still
I never knew me a better time, and I guess I never will
Oh Lawdy Mama those Friday nights, when Suzie wore her dresses tight and uh
Crocodile rockin' was-a out of-a sight
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
I remember when rock was young
Me and Suzie had so much fun
Holdin' hands and skimmin' stones
Had an old gold Chevy and a place of my own
But the biggest kick I ever got
Was doin' a thing called the crocodile rock
While the other kids were rockin' 'round the clock
We were hoppin' and boppin' to the crocodile rock, well
Crocodile rockin' is somethin' shockin', when your feet just can't keep still
I never knew me a better time, and I guess I never will
Oh Lawdy Mama those Friday nights, when Suzie wore her dresses tight and uh
Crocodile rockin' was-a out of-a sight
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
"Crocodile Rock" is a pop-rock song that takes listeners back to the singer's early days, reminiscing about the good times he and his girlfriend Suzie had when "rock was young." They had simple pleasures like holding hands and skimming stones with an old gold Chevy and a place to call home. However, the most enjoyable thing they did was dance to the "Crocodile Rock," which was a dance craze that they and their friends introduced to everyone around. They felt free and alive while doing it, and it quickly caught on with the rest of their peers. The song’s upbeat melody and catchy lyrics describe the joy of feeling young and enjoying the simplicity of life.
But as the years go by and rock dies out, the singer and his beloved Suzie drift apart. They begin to long for the "Crocodile Rock" and the memories it brings back. They knew that they had experienced one of the best parties of their life, and nobody could take that away from them. The song ends with the same verse as the opening, and the story comes full circle. Even though they may not be as young as they used to be, they will never forget the simple pleasures they had in their youth, such as dancing to the "Crocodile Rock."
Line by Line Meaning
I remember when rock was young
I recall a time when rock music was new and fresh
Me and Suzie had so much fun
Suzie and I had a lot of fun together
Holdin' hands and skippin' stones
We enjoyed simple pleasures like holding hands and skipping stones together
Had an old gold Chevy and a place of my own
I owned an old gold Chevrolet and had a place to call my own
But the biggest kick I ever got
The most exciting thing I ever experienced
Was doin' a thing called the Crocodile Rock
Doing a dance called the Crocodile Rock gave me the most joy
While the other kids were rockin' 'round the clock
While other kids were dancing all night long
We were hoppin' and boppin' to the Crocodile Rock, well
We were hopping and bopping to the Crocodile Rock dance
Crocodile rockin' is somethin' shockin', when your feet just can't keep still
Dancing the Crocodile Rock is an electrifying experience that makes it impossible for your feet to stop moving
I never knew me a better time, and I guess I never will
I have never experienced a better time than dancing the Crocodile Rock
Oh Lawdy Mama those Friday nights, when Suzie wore her dresses tight and uh
Those Friday nights when Suzie wore her tight dresses were the best
Crocodile rockin' was-a out of-a sight
Dancing the Crocodile Rock was an amazing experience
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
But the years went by and the rock just died
As the years passed, rock music became less popular
Suzie went and left us for some foreign guy
Suzie left and went off with a foreign man
Long nights cryin' by the record machine
I spent many long nights crying while listening to music on my record player
Dreamin' of my Chevy and my old blue jeans
I dreamed about my Chevrolet and my old blue jeans that I used to wear
But they'll never kill the thrills we got
Although rock music is less popular now, it can never take away the excitement we experienced
Burnin' up to the crocodile rock
We were passionate about dancing to the Crocodile Rock
Learnin' fast as the weeks went past
We learned the dance moves quickly as the weeks passed
We really thought the crocodile rock would last, well
We believed that the Crocodile Rock would continue to be popular forever
I remember when rock was young
I recall a time when rock music was new and fresh
Me and Suzie had so much fun
Suzie and I had a lot of fun together
Holdin' hands and skimmin' stones
We enjoyed simple pleasures like holding hands and skipping stones together
Had an old gold Chevy and a place of my own
I owned an old gold Chevrolet and had a place to call my own
But the biggest kick I ever got
The most exciting thing I ever experienced
Was doin' a thing called the crocodile rock
Doing a dance called the Crocodile Rock gave me the most joy
While the other kids were rockin' 'round the clock
While other kids were dancing all night long
We were hoppin' and boppin' to the crocodile rock, well
We were hopping and bopping to the Crocodile Rock dance
Crocodile rockin' is somethin' shockin', when your feet just can't keep still
Dancing the Crocodile Rock is an electrifying experience that makes it impossible for your feet to stop moving
I never knew me a better time, and I guess I never will
I have never experienced a better time than dancing the Crocodile Rock
Oh Lawdy Mama those Friday nights, when Suzie wore her dresses tight and uh
Those Friday nights when Suzie wore her tight dresses were the best
Crocodile rockin' was-a out of-a sight
Dancing the Crocodile Rock was an amazing experience
(La, la la la la la)
(La la la la la)
(La la la la la)
Contributed by Brody M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Dakota Owen
They sound amazing but put Elton john with them in this would be one Hell of a soundtrack
na vi
😍😍😍😍😍🎶