They recruited rapper Kermit and drummer Ged Lynch of the Manchester-based group The Ruthless Rap Assassins, plus guitarist Wags from The Paris Angels. Recording of new material started that year, although the group were not under contract. The key addition to the band was bassist and guitarist Danny Saber, who became Ryder's key musical foil.
In 1995 they signed to Radioactive Records (an imprint of major label BMG) and released their debut album, produced by Saber and Stephen Lironi. It's Great When You're Straight...Yeah immediately charted at number 1 in the UK, and spawned three Top 20 singles. According to Songfacts, Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich listed it as his favorite CD of 1996.
Black Grape's music was funky and eclectic, using varied instrumentation and samples. Ryder's lyrics seem to derive mainly from nonsense rhymes and humorous catch-phrases. The debut album received critical acclaim in Britain, riding high during the then fashionable Britpop wave but the group made little impact in the U.S..
The subsequent album, 1997's Stupid Stupid Stupid was less favoured and charted at number 11 in the UK. The group split in 1998 after Ryder fired the rest of band while touring.
The band reformed for a one-off live show, their first in over 10 years, for Get Loaded in the Dark at the Coronet, London, on April 1, 2010. Five years later, the band announced plans for a tour to commemorate the 20th anniversary of their debut album. A reunion album, Pop Voodoo, was released in August 2017, although only Ryder and Kermit remained from the original lineup, with Youth handling bass, songwriting, and production duties.
Submarine
Black Grape Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
As some sly jeweller
Where you wouldn't get two bob
For everything in the window
Did some bad business
With a spook called Sherlock
Who smoked steroids
And he got me in a headlock
And the boy was so proud
Of the crocodile on his sock
Someone had to tell him
It comes from planet Reebok
Oooo, honey you're a fool to cry, fool to cry
Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie
You paid the debt today, oh boy
One thousand parcels in the coal bunker destroyed
You've got a noise today Sherlock
He did handstands and he backflipped a lot
He was so proud
Of the crocodile on his sock
Someone had to tell him
It comes from planet Reebok
Oooo, you're a fool to cry, fool to cry
Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie
He was so proud
Of the crocodile on his sock
Someone had to tell him
It comes from planet Reebok
Oooo, honey you're a fool to cry, fool to cry
Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie
(Oooo, you're a fool to cry, fool to cry)
(Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie)...
The lyrics to Black Grape's song Submarine seem to follow a narrative of a person who has gotten mixed up with the wrong crowd, specifically, a shady jeweler and a person who goes by the name Sherlock who has some questionable habits. The singer describes going into business with Sherlock, who seems to be involved in steroids, and getting caught up in a bad situation resulting in a headlock. The lyrics then mention a boy who takes pride in the crocodile on his sock, but someone tells him it comes from "planet Reebok" - perhaps suggesting that his materialistic pride is misplaced and that he's been taken in by the same type of shady, consumerist culture that the singer has found himself involved in.
The refrain of "Oooo, honey you're a fool to cry, fool to cry / Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie" seems to suggest a cynical outlook on the situation, perhaps implying that the singer feels that it's better to deceive and be deceived than to be honest and vulnerable.
Line by Line Meaning
You took the same road
You followed the same path
As some sly jeweller
As a cunning jewelry vendor
Where you wouldn't get two bob
Where nothing is cheap
For everything in the window
For all the products on display
Did some bad business
Involved in some illegal deals
With a spook called Sherlock
With a mysterious person named Sherlock
Who smoked steroids
Who used drugs
And he got me in a headlock
And he forcefully restrained me
And the boy was so proud
And that guy was excessively pleased with
Of the crocodile on his sock
Of the crocodile image on his socks
Someone had to tell him
Someone had to inform him
It comes from planet Reebok
It is a product of the shoe company Reebok
Oooo, honey you're a fool to cry, fool to cry
You are unwise to express sadness, it's unwise
Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie
It's trendy to hide the truth, to lie
You paid the debt today, oh boy
You finally paid off your debt today
One thousand parcels in the coal bunker destroyed
One thousand packages were destroyed in the coal storage area
You've got a noise today Sherlock
You have a problem today, Sherlock
He did handstands and he backflipped a lot
He performed gymnastics and acrobatics frequently
He was so proud
He was excessively pleased
Oooo, you're a fool to cry, fool to cry
You're unwise to express sadness, it's unwise
Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie
It's trendy to hide the truth, to lie
(Oooo, you're a fool to cry, fool to cry)
(You're unwise to express sadness, it's unwise)
(Oooo, it's cool to lie, cool to lie)
(It's trendy to hide the truth, to lie)
Contributed by Declan E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@lordlondon5798
It does not get better than this.
Class.
@johnwiseman918
One of the best bands and albums to come out of the 90s shaun ryder and bez are legends
@Vengerthefellhound
Great album great tune
@johndimare3204
Makes me think of great times in the 90's
@rastafarievers
no 1 on album. last proper working class culture album
@grimsbymatt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7miErQzz4Y8
@showjumper05
Quality carrys on from the Mondays brilliantly
@colsinclair7793
Iv seen them live. Well I think I did can't remember much about that mad night. W.F.L will always be the game changer for me.
@two-tricky1630
trying to put the whole album on f.b. and twitter,harder than I thought it would be....lol
@LinkChiTu
+Cormac Chapman Lame