Dirty Boy
Cardiacs Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

We cut all his eyes we did
Squeezed the lids and down the grog into hole
He skip with cow eyed smile to the blissful
Into craggy dress and we will we praise him
We will praise him off his pins
Clear him of all sins
Oh my! we sang with strength to carry on
Encouraged him to sing along
We sang of all the world and praised him hooray!

Stay alive to live or without
And he is down all over and out

Watch us hang on shoulders as tall as gold as
Feely hand and finger around all we
And look to see if we care if he is heaven sent or
Hell bent but we will praise him
We will praise him all away
Praise him all away
My arms chancing and you will no way
Live long enough to repay me
I praise you anyway always

Wipes last with brown and pale
Dirty boy he gone all stale
And down the stair and hallway crawling
And pig and toast and kitchen brawling
Night-time days are all weekless
Alarm charm, he's all up and dressed
He dirty boy, he bathroom dances
And check his jam and breathe on glasses

Spiny grip brings all off 'Mr. Regal Jelly' in hand
Warm feel and suck regal man suck bland
Suck bland away and he a sleepy cow-eyed dog
He treading soft sand
Kiss and stroke and praise him
Stroke and praise him
All is worth a kiss
Not how to cleanse
And fowl preserver of sick somehow don't worry now




Hold his mouth and stop him breathing
Over and out

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Cardiacs' song "Dirty Boy" are notoriously difficult to interpret, as the band's eccentric and surreal style makes it hard to discern a coherent narrative. However, some common themes can be identified, such as manipulation, control, and abuse of power.


The song seems to depict a group of people who have taken control of a vulnerable individual, possibly through some kind of mind control or brainwashing technique ("We cut all his eyes we did / Squeezed the lids and down the grog into hole"). They manipulate him into believing that they are his saviors and that he should trust them completely ("Clear him of all sins / Oh my! we sang with strength to carry on / Encouraged him to sing along"). The use of animal and food imagery ("cow eyed smile," "pig and toast," "fowl preserver of sick") suggests that the person is being treated like an object rather than a human being.


As the song progresses, the singer becomes increasingly deranged and violent, suggesting that their intentions were never benevolent ("Hold his mouth and stop him breathing / Over and out"). The use of repetition and distorted language ("And he is down all over and out," "Stroke and praise him / All is worth a kiss / Not how to cleanse") further emphasizes the song's surreal and disturbing atmosphere.


Overall, "Dirty Boy" is a challenging and unsettling piece of music that invites multiple readings and interpretations. Its ambiguous and fragmented lyrics, combined with Cardiacs' eclectic musical style, make it a prime example of the band's avant-garde approach to songwriting.


Line by Line Meaning

We cut all his eyes we did
We blinded him completely


Squeezed the lids and down the grog into hole
We held him down while pouring alcohol into his empty eye sockets


He skip with cow eyed smile to the blissful
He, with his vacant expression, willingly went along with us to the place of pleasure


Into craggy dress and we will we praise him
We will dress him up in our unconventional style and sing his praises


We will praise him off his pins
We will admire him until he's dizzy with delight


Clear him of all sins
We will absolve him of any wrongdoing


Oh my! we sang with strength to carry on
We belted out our song with vigor and enthusiasm


Encouraged him to sing along
We urged him to join in our revelry


We sang of all the world and praised him hooray!
We sang of the wonders of the world and celebrated him with cheers of hooray!


Stay alive to live or without
Stay alive either way


And he is down all over and out
And he has fallen and is completely defeated


Watch us hang on shoulders as tall as gold as
Watch us hang around like a valuable accessory


Feely hand and finger around all we
Touching and feeling each other


And look to see if we care if he is heaven sent or
And we scrutinize if we care if he is divine or not


Hell bent but we will praise him
Even if he's not divine, we will still worship him


We will praise him all away
We will continue to worship him


Praise him all away
Worship him until the end


My arms chancing and you will no way
I am risking everything and you can't stop me


Live long enough to repay me
You can't repay me even if you live a long time


I praise you anyway always
But I will always worship you


Wipes last with brown and pale
He wipes himself with dirty brown rags


Dirty boy he gone all stale
The dirty boy has become disgustingly smelly


And down the stair and hallway crawling
He crawls down the stairs and through the hallway


And pig and toast and kitchen brawling
He goes into the kitchen and makes a mess while cooking bacon and toast


Night-time days are all weekless
The days and nights blend together endlessly


Alarm charm, he's all up and dressed
He wakes up and immediately dresses without any need for an alarm


He dirty boy, he bathroom dances
The dirty boy dances around the bathroom


And check his jam and breathe on glasses
He checks his jar of jam and breathes on the glasses


Spiny grip brings all off 'Mr. Regal Jelly' in hand
His rough hands grip everything including his jar of jelly


Warm feel and suck regal man suck bland
He feels warmth and sucks on the jelly


Suck bland away and he a sleepy cow-eyed dog
As he sucks, his blandness fades and he becomes a sleepy and passive dog


He treading soft sand
He walks with soft and delicate steps


Kiss and stroke and praise him
We kiss, stroke, and praise him


Stroke and praise him
We continue to shower him with affection


All is worth a kiss
He is so deserving of love and affection, even a kiss


Not how to cleanse
We don't understand how to purify or clean him


And fowl preserver of sick somehow don't worry now
We, who preserve sickness, don't worry now


Hold his mouth and stop him breathing
We hold him down, covering his mouth and nose, preventing him from breathing


Over and out
It's over, the end.




Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

Vivalaleta Godfrey

[Verse 1]
We cut all his eyes we did
Squeezed the lids and down the grog into hole
He skip with cow eyed smile to the blissful
Into craggy dress and we will praise him him
We will praise him off his pins
Clear him of all sins
Oh my! We sang with strength to carry on
Encouraged him to sing along
We sang of all the world and praised him HOORAY!

[Chorus 1]
Stay alive to live or without
And he is down all over and out

[Verse 2]
Watch us hang on shoulders as tall as gold as
Feely hand and finger around all we
And look to see if we care if he is heaven sent or
Hell bent but we will praise him him
We will praise him all away
Praise him all away
My arms chancing and you will no way
Live long enough to repay me
I praise you anyway always



All comments from YouTube:

kohlemainen

The good news : still, to this very day, people are discovering Cardiacs for the first time in their lives. Hooray.

kohlemainen

@FAST N BULBOUS Fast 'n bulbous!

FAST N BULBOUS

Your comment has 666 likes today.

Poppyscaps

I discovered them 2 months ago and my life is forever changed

James Mulvale

That's me today!

Harry Balzac

Happened to me yesterday. Mind is quite blown.

80 More Replies...

Pluckin' A

Rest in peace Tim Smith. An all-time musical hero.

We will praise him.

thriddoctor

A lost genius.

Rufus

rip Tim

Adam Stoneley

Well, I'm not often moved enough to comment on anything on the internet, but I have to say this simply blows me away - as a seasoned player, I have to say this is one of the most awesome and imaginative pieces of music I've ever heard, in any era and within any genre. Budding musicians take note - this is special.

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