In the 1980s, Setzer fronted the popular rockabilly band, Stray Cats. Stray Cats caught America's attention with the 1982 album Built for Speed, which included the two Top Ten hits, Rock This Town (#9) and Stray Cat Strut (#3), as well as with the follow-up 1983 album Rant N Rave, which included the two successful singles (She's) Sexy + 17 (#5), and I Won't Stand In Your Way (#35).
In the 1990s, Setzer led a comeback of sorts for swing music and big band music, when he formed Brian Setzer Orchestra. The band has released 5 albums to date and one live DVD. This group had one hit, Jump, Jive, and Wail around the same time songs like the Cherry Poppin' Daddies Zoot Suit Riot had been received favorably in mainstream America.
Brian Setzer also recorded some solo albums during Stray Cats' break in the 1980s along with some in the 1990s. In 2001 he released an album titled Ignition with his band '68 Comeback Special. A new solo album titled Rockabilly Riot Vol. 1: A Tribute To Sun Records was released on July 26, 2005, in the United States.
Massapequa
Twenty Flight Rock
Brian Setzer Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Uh well I got a girl with a record machine
When it comes to rocking, she's a queen
I took her to a dance on a saturday night
All alone where I can hold her tight
She lives on the twentieth floor uptown
The elevator's broken down.
So I walk one, two flight, three flight four
Five six seven flight, eight flight more
Up on the twelfth I'm starting to sag
Fifteenth floor I'm ready to drag
I get to the top and I'm too tired to rock.
Well she called me up on the telephone
Said : 'Come on ever baby 'cause I'm all alone'
I said : 'Baby you're mighty sweet'
'But I'm in bed with aching feet'
This went on for a couple of days
But I couldn't stay away.
Oh I walk one, two flight, three flight four
Five six seven flight, eight flight more
Up on the twelfth I'm starting to sag
Fifteenth floor I'm ready to drag
I get to the top and I'm too tired to rock
You know I'm too tired babe.
Well I sent to Chicago for repairs
Till it's fixed I'm using the stairs
I hope they hurry before it's too late
You know I love my baby too much to wait
All this climbing is getting me down
They'll find me come straight over the rail.
And I walk one, two flight, three flight four
Five six seven flight, eight flight more
Up on the twelfth I'm starting to sag
Fifteenth floor I'm ready to drag
I get to the top and I'm too tired to rock, oohh.
Well I got a gal with a record machine
When it comes to rocking, you know she's a queen
I took her to a dance on a saturday night
All alone where I can hold her tight
She lives on the twentieth floor uptown
The elevator's broken down.
Well I walk one, two flight, three flight four
Five six seven flight, eight flight more
Up on the twelfth I'm starting to sag
Fifteenth floor I'm ready to drag
I get to the top and I'm too tired to rock.
The song "Twenty Flight Rock" by Brian Setzer is about a man who wants to see his girlfriend who lives on the twentieth floor uptown, but the elevator is broken. He decides to climb up the stairs but finds it exhausting, and by the time he reaches the top, he's too tired to rock. The lyrics beautifully capture the frustration and difficulty of climbing so many stairs, and at the same time, they show the enduring love that the singer has for his girlfriend.
The song has a catchy rockabilly tune to match the lyrics. The guitar riffs combined with Setzer's drawling vocals make it an excellent song that showcases Setzer’s talent for blues guitar playing. Setzer's incredibly fast-paced guitar playing perfectly complements the song's rhythm, adding to its overall energetic and enthusiastic quality.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I got a girl with a record machine
I have a girlfriend who has a good music system
When it comes to rocking, she's a queen
She is the best at playing rock music
I took her to a dance on a saturday night
I took her to a party on a Saturday night
All alone where I can hold her tight
We went alone to be able to dance close together
She lives on the twentieth floor uptown
My girlfriend lives on the 20th floor of an uptown building
The elevator's broken down.
Unfortunately, the elevator is out of order
So I walk one, two flight, three flight four
So I walk up one flight, then two more and keep going until the fourth flight
Five six seven flight, eight flight more
I keep climbing flights of stairs, counting each one as I go up
Up on the twelfth I'm starting to sag
When I reach the twelfth floor, I'm starting to feel a bit tired
Fifteenth floor I'm ready to drag
By the time I reach the fifteenth floor, I'm really struggling
I get to the top and I'm too tired to rock.
When I finally get to the top, I have no energy left to dance or have fun
Well she called me up on the telephone
My girlfriend called me on the phone
Said: 'Come on ever baby 'cause I'm all alone'
She invited me over because she was alone at home
I said: 'Baby you're mighty sweet'
I told her that she sounded sweet
'But I'm in bed with aching feet'
But I couldn't go because my feet were hurting from all the climbing
This went on for a couple of days
We had similar conversations for a few days
But I couldn't stay away.
But I couldn't resist her and had to see her again
Well I sent to Chicago for repairs
I ordered parts from Chicago to fix the elevator
Till it's fixed I'm using the stairs
Until the elevator is fixed, I have to keep using the stairs
I hope they hurry before it's too late
I hope they fix it soon before I get too tired of using the stairs
You know I love my baby too much to wait
I don't want to wait too long because I love her so much
All this climbing is getting me down
All this climbing is making me feel sad and tired
They'll find me come straight over the rail.
I'm so tired of climbing stairs that I may decide to jump over the balcony to get home faster
I get to the top and I'm too tired to rock, oohh.
By the time I finally reach the top of the stairs, I'm too exhausted to enjoy myself
Contributed by Mateo S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
D. Nakamura
Brian Setzer is SO impressive here. Not intimidated by Beck at all. More than holding his own AND singing. Crazy good.
Joaquin
yeah but ir's twenty flight rock, setzer probably knows the song like palm of his hand
Spork & Findus
@Bob Karcher Exactly! Jeff Beck was a lovely, down to earth guy and respected Brian Setzer big time
Bob Karcher
Deux amis!
Alain FAUVEL
Brian setzer joue vraiment très bien
Il mérite sa place de leader de son big band cuivre
Tony G
The entire show is really great. They cover several great rockabilly classics, and Jeff kills it on guitar. You can see what an influence the music had on him.
Justin Basham
RIP, legend.
LesGomez
What an odd and magical pairing. So good together.
Brian Appleby
Just fantastic!
Dw Ocelot
Setzer is one of the world's great guitarists. Underrated, if that's possible