Jankel was responsible for much of the funk influence in the Blockheads' music; his fondness for it is also evident in his solo career.
First hooking up with Dury as part of the pub group Kilburn and the High-Roads in the early part of the 1970s, Jankel was asked by Dury to join his new outfit, and appeared on such Blockheads releases as 1977's New Boots and Panties!! and 1979's Do It Yourself, before leaving the group. But in 1981, Jankel teamed up once more with Dury (sans the Blockheads), for the release Lord Upminster, which spawned the U.S. Top 40 dance hit "Spasticus Autisticus." But by this time, Jankel had become more interested in pursuing a solo career and he issued several releases for A&M such as 1980's self-titled debut, 1981's Chasanova and Questionnaire (the latter of which contained the U.S. dance hit "Glad to Know You," a collaboration with Dury, plus the MTV video hit of the title track).
Quincy Jones had a UK chart hit with his version of Ai No Corrida which reached #14 in April 1981.
Jankel hit #1 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart in 1982 with the triple A-side "Glad To Know You"/"3,000,000 Synths"/"Ai No Corrida". In 1984, "Number One" went to #1 in the clubs in France. 1983's Chazablanca and 1985's Looking at You are other releases for A&M. Jankel returned to the Blockheads after his solo career in America, and worked with Dury on his final two albums (Mr. Love Pants, Ten More Turnips From The Tip). Jankel continues to perform and write with the Blockheads today, after Dury's death in 2000.
Jankel has several composer credits for films, including D.O.A.(1988) and K2. He is best known to many people as the performer of the 1984's song "Number One" from the soundtrack of the film Real Genius. He also composed much of the music for the film Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll, the biopic about Ian Dury. He received a Bafta nomination for the film's music.
Discography
* Chaz Jankel - A&M - 1980
* Chasanova - A&M - 1981
* Questionnaire - A&M - 1981
* Chazablanca - A&M - 1983
* Looking At You - A&M - 1985
* Out of the Blue - 2001
* Zoom - 2003
* Experience - 2005
* My Occupation - The Music Of Chaz Jankel - 2007
* A Bit On the Side - 2008
* The Submarine Has Surfaced - 2010
Ai No Corrida
Chaz Jankel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I touch you
In a maze can't find my way
I think you
I drink you
You see
girl
that's what I go through every day
Is this the way it should feel?
Pinch me
I'm dreaming
But if it is don't let me know.
I'm drowning
don't save me
It's just the way I'd like to go.
You see
girl
you thrill me
Half kill me
that's what you do.
Ai no corrida
that's were I am
You send me there -
Your dream is my command.
Ai no corrida
I find myself
no other thought
Jusa you and nothing else
you and nothing else.
Before my heart saw you
Each day was just another day
Night the lonely interlude just came
then blow away.
You know
girl
Everything was come what may
until you fell in my life.
This spell that I'm under has caught me
I'm in a daze
Your lightning and thunder sets my poor heart ablaze.
You see
girl
you thrill me
Half kill me
that's what you do.
Ai no corrida
that's were I am
. . .
Ai no corrida
that's were I am
. . .
Ai no corrida
that's were I am
. . .
I hold you
I touch you
. . .
Pinch me
I'm dreaming
. . .
Ai no corrida
that's were I am
. . .
Ai no corrida
that's were I am
Chaz Jankel's song "Ai No Corrida" is a love song that describes the intense feelings of a person in love. The lyrics speak of being lost in a maze and unable to find one's way. The person is consumed by their love for the other person, unable to think of anything else. The singer describes being completely under the spell of the other person, drinking them in and being served them "on a tray." They question whether this is the way it should feel and wonder if they are dreaming. The idea of drowning and being saved is presented, but the singer reveals that they do not want to be saved because they prefer the feeling of being consumed by their love. The chorus repeats the phrase "Ai no corrida," which translates to "Love's Bullfight," suggesting that the singer is engaged in a fierce battle with their emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
I hold you
I am physically holding onto you
I touch you
I am physically touching you
In a maze can't find my way
I am feeling lost and confused, unable to navigate my way through a difficult situation or problem
I think you
I am constantly thinking about you
I drink you
I am consuming you, whether it be through my thoughts or physical actions
I'm being served you on a tray.
You are being presented to me in a way that is easy and convenient, like someone serving me on a tray
You see girl that's what I go through every day
This is a daily occurrence for me, and it is a difficult and confusing experience
Is this the way it should feel?
I am questioning whether this experience and my feelings are normal or appropriate
Pinch me I'm dreaming
I can't believe how surreal and unbelievable this all seems
But if it is don't let me know.
I don't want to wake up from this dream, even if it is not real
I'm drowning don't save me
I am so enamored with this experience and you that I don't want it to end, even if it might be destructive or harmful
It's just the way I'd like to go.
I would rather experience this and potentially be hurt than not experience it at all
You see girl you thrill me
You excite me, and even though it is overwhelming, I can't help but be drawn to you
Half kill me that's what you do.
Your intensity is so overwhelming that it is like you are harming me, but I am still drawn to you
Ai no corrida that's where I am
I am in a state of love and passion for you that is so intense and powerful, it is like I have been transported to another world
You send me there - Your dream is my command.
You have such an effect on me that you can control my thoughts and feelings, and you lead me to this intense state of love and passion
I find myself no other thought Jusa you and nothing else you and nothing else.
I am completely consumed by thoughts of you, and nothing else matters or exists in my mind
Before my heart saw you Each day was just another day Night the lonely interlude just came then blow away.
My life was mundane and unremarkable before I met you, and the only respite from that mundanity was the brief escape of sleep, which would quickly fade away
You know girl Everything was come what may until you fell in my life.
I was living life one day at a time, with no real direction or purpose, until I met you
This spell that I'm under has caught me I'm in a daze
Your presence and effect on me is like a spell that has entranced me and left me in a state of confusion
Your lightning and thunder sets my poor heart ablaze.
Your passion and intensity ignite a fire within me, and I can't help but be drawn to it, even if it may damage me
Ai no corrida that's where I am . . .
I am still in this intense state of love and passion for you, and it is all-consuming
I hold you
I am still physically holding onto you
I touch you
I am still physically touching you
Pinch me I'm dreaming
I still can't believe this is happening, and I don't want it to end
Ai no corrida that's where I am . . .
I am still in this intense state of love and passion for you, and it is all-consuming
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: CHAZ JANKEL, KENNY YOUNG
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Luis Brun
Tremenda versión original de esta magnífica y entretenida canción desde el punto de vista de su gran música. Es todo un logro, una obra maestra de la música disco-dance, una verdadera suit con diferentes fantasías de arreglos en el transcurso de la canción, pero que mantiene un ritmo constante. Destacable también la gran versión estilizada que logró el multifacético Quincy Jones el año 81, con sofisticados arreglos este gran productor musical y cantante logró una atmósfera impecable, depurada y envolvente y por ello logró primeros lugares en Estados Unidos y una gran cantidad de países. La versión de Jones fue verdaderamente un hit mundial. Pero esta versión es también tremenda con el plus que es el autor de la canción.
Gracias, bendito Creador por el talento entregado a los seres humanos, eres el autor de autores.
Gracias amigos.
Luis Brun
Director y Programador Musical
Radio Buena Música FM
solamente música
buenamusicafm.com
Christopher Miller
@Paul Shalom That would be from the late 70's to early 80's. Those were the hits. You speaking on Sinatra (what did he write) to Ray Charles (what did he write?) and we are talking HITS from a period.
I understand that you're a bit slow or obtuse but that was the MJ, Ingram, Benson... days. He was just a guy who signed his name while Temperton and others actually crafted everything.
Again, be mad, say I'm upset but honestly, why does this matter to you so much?
Quincy is an amazing talent who at a certain point became and brand and didn't want to work as much. What's wrong with that. I'm just calling it out.
Are you related?
Bill Woo
That one of the greatest musical geniuses of all time, Quincy Jones, made essentially NO CHANGES to this is the most amazing compliment a songwriter could EVER receive. Quincy Jones took nicely written hooks and turned them into masterpieces - and did so better than anyone, bar none. Yet in this case, evidently he felt no compulsion to tamper with perfection.
Sir Joe the Flee Tow
Quincy Jones' version is for radio listeners. It lost all the funky groove that Jankel put in the song.
California1998
I am going to give credit where credit is due. This version has more horns and concert driven productions and I love it! And Quincy Jones' version is also great! This is my first time hearing this version and I say it is a tie! I am a serious funk driven brutha! Lol.
Tyron Davis
Check Mate☕👍❤️🤍💙💎🇺🇸
Juston Johnson
RESPECT + to that comment. Keeping it real.
joz411no
WOW! I found my way here by way of a Quincy Jones search - a brilliant producer and composer. His rendition of this song reminds me very much of what he did for Strawberry Letter 23. With all regards for the original composition and arrangements, he found a way to add mass, presence and depth to the presentation. This was a cool song originally and he essentially gave it a new life.
Sir Joe the Flee Tow
In my opinion Quincy Jones only made it listenable for people uneducated to music. Chaz Jankel's version has a funky groove lost in Jones's version
Brendan Harding
This is just awesome, I always - stupidly - presumed it was QJ who crafted this thing. Well I'll be... Amazing!
Tony
I didn’t know either all those years from 80’s
Invanesse Charles
Its Chaz Jankel