After a brief spell in the US Army, Vinton was signed to Epic Records in 1960 as a bandleader: "A Young Man With a Big Band." Two albums and several singles were not successful however, and with Epic ready to pull the plug, Vinton found his first hit single literally sitting in a reject pile. The song was titled "Roses Are Red (My Love)." It spent four weeks at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Arguably, his most famous song is 1963's "Blue Velvet" that also went to No.1. 23 years later, David Lynch named his movie Blue Velvet after the song. In 1964, Vinton had two #1 hits, "There! I've Said It Again" and "Mr. Lonely", the latter now being the basis for Akon's hit "Lonely."
In the 1970s, the "Polish Prince" continued to hit the Top 40, notably with "Ev'ry Day of My Life" and "Sealed With a Kiss" in 1972. That same year, Epic Records decided to end its relationship with Vinton and ended his recording contract. Undeterred, Vinton spent $50,000 of his own money on a self-written song sung partially in Polish: "My Melody of Love." After Vinton was turned down by 7 major labels, ABC Records bought Vinton's idea, and the result was a multi-million selling single that hit #1 on the AC charts in 1974. A gold album, Melodies of Love, followed as well as a successful half-hour variety show "The Bobby Vinton Show" (which aired from 1975 to 1978). He also starred in two John Wayne movies: Big Jake and The Train Robbers.
In the course of his career, Vinton has sold over 75 million records (singles, albums, compilation inclusions, etc) and is still performing on tour and at the Bobby Vinton Blue Velvet Theatre in Branson, Missouri.
Too Fat Polka
Bobby Vinton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
Oh I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat
She's too fat for me
I get dizzy, I get numbo
When I'm dancing
With my jum, jum jumbo
I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
Oh I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat
She's too fat
She's too fat for me
She's a twosome,
She's a foursome
If she'd lose some
I would like her more some
I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
Oh I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat
She's too fat
She's too fat for me
Can she prance up a hill?
No, no, no, no, no
Can she dance a quadrill?
No, no, no, no, no
Does she fit in my coupe?
By herself she's a brute
Could she possibly
Sit upon my knee?
No, no, no
Oh I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
She's too fat for me
Oh I don't want her
You can have her
She's too fat for me
She's too fat
Much too Fat
She's too fat for me
She's too fat
Much too fat
She's too fat for me
"Too Fat Polka" is a humorous song that describes the singer's aversion to a woman because of her weight. The song's lyrics include several graphic descriptions of the woman's size and girth. The chorus consists of the lines, "Oh, I don't want her. You can have her. She's too fat for me," which are repeated several times. The verses describe the singer's discomfort when dancing with the woman, his preference for thinner women, and his aversion to the woman's physical size.
The song is both humorous and offensive in tone, reflecting a cultural bias against larger people that was prevalent during the time of its release. However, the song remains popular today as a nostalgic reminder of a more innocent era in popular music. While some listeners may find the song offensive, it can also be seen as a reflection of the cultural norms and values of its time.
The song was originally written by Ross MacLean and Arthur Richardson in 1947, and was first performed by Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. Bobby Vinton recorded a version of the song in 1978 that became a hit, reaching #4 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. The song has since been covered by several other artists, including Frankie Yankovic, who won a Grammy Award for his version of the song in 1986.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh I don't want her
I have no interest in pursuing her romantically.
You can have her
She is available if anyone else wants her.
She's too fat for me
I am not attracted to her because of her size.
She's too fat
I have already made it clear that her size is the reason why I am not interested.
She's a twosome,
People may view her as twice the size of a normal person.
She's a foursome
People may view her as four times the size of a normal person.
If she'd lose some
If she loses weight, I would possibly like her more.
I would like her more some
She may become more attractive if she could lose some weight.
Can she prance up a hill?
She is too out of shape to even prance up a hill.
No, no, no, no, no
The answer is a definite no.
Can she dance a quadrill?
She is too large to perform a quadrill dance.
Does she fit in my coupe?
Her size would not allow her to fit in my car.
By herself she's a brute
She is big and intimidating by herself.
Could she possibly sit upon my knee?
She would be too heavy to sit on my knee.
Much too Fat
She is not just slightly overweight but much too big.
She's too fat for me
Her size is the ultimate dealbreaker for me when it comes to dating her.
Writer(s): Ross Maclean, Arthur Richardson
Contributed by Claire E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
reganBuffalo
Holy kielbasa, I haven't heard this in years. What a blast from the past. You could never get away with this today! I can't believe this has no "dislikes" now, and it's sure not getting one from me. Thanks. And my now 70-year-old Polish mother told me many years ago, "If you've never danced the Polka, you haven't really lived."
Amy Deering
My maiden name is Kiolbasa, the polkas make me happy
Farmer Jeff
Holy holubtsi i can't believe you dog gone said holy kielbasa
Virginia Pinnell
I've had this stuck in my head for days. I decided to look it up and Bobby didn't disappoint.
Jack Wolf
Bobby Vinton sure took this song to another level. This is a good remake of Arthur Godfrey's hit from the 1940's
Dale Johnson
I remember having this record (78 rpm) when I was a child. My father had it and or my grandfather did ( I do not remember which one ) and I loved playing it. The one that I had was from Aurthor Godfrey and I would always laugh and sing along with it.
Katy DelMonte
Brings back great memories of singing this with my grandma :)
Jeff Lipinski
THE POLISH PRINCE !!!
Bobby's greatness knows no bounds !!!
YA GOTTA LOVE EM !!
Mr. Larry
I grew up with Polka music .. love it
Ronda
Mr. Larry same!!