Formed in 1996, they played consistently for two years in and around the north-eastern United States and Canada, opening for The New Bomb Turks, Nashville Pussy, Blonde Redhead, The Make-Up, The Dirtbombs, The Chrome Cranks and The Demolition Doll Rods. Originally they did not even want to release an album opting to have the band's live reputation spread via word of mouth.
Eventually, the trio relented and put out a self-titled six song e.p. on Sonic Unyon records in 1998. In 1999 they released the self-produced My Love Is Bold E.P. and achieved national exposure with the single "Bounce". They were nominated for a Juno Award in 2000 for Best Alternative Album.
In 2001 Bad Taste Records released a compilation of the band's early recordings, demos, and b-sides entitled, I'm Alive and On Fire. A 5 week European tour followed to promote the release including shows at the Roskilde festival in Denmark and Hultsfred festival in Sweden. By the end of the year they had returned 2 more times, most notably as main support for the Backyard Babies.
2002: Born A Lion
In 2002 they released their first full-length album, Born A Lion, produced by Bill Bell, on Bad Taste Records in Europe and on Universal in Canada. The band did several European tours and two Canadian tours to promote the record including an unprecedented repeat performance at Roskilde and the now legendary return to Hultsfred as well as notable stops to Pukkelpop in Belgium and The Lowlands festival in the Netherlands. They also managed to grab the opening slot with The Rolling Stones on their "40 Licks" World tour kick-off show at the Palais Royale in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on August 16, 2002.
2003: We Sweat Blood
2003 saw the release of We Sweat Blood, produced by Matt DeMatteo, and the group taking a heavier approach to their hard-rock sound. More touring followed that included Europe and Japan. They were also nominated for two Junos: Best Rock Album (Born a Lion) and Best video (Lovercall).
While success was happening abroad, home relations with Universal Canada had soured and the band was dropped mid-album run. Explanations from the label were vague, but speculations point to Jones' February 2004 appearance on CBC Sunday where Jones appeared as a pro-downloader opposite then CRIA president, Brian Robertson. Getting dropped from Universal Canada did little to stop the group as they continued to tour heavily for the rest of the year well into 2004 with bands like Turbonegro, Sepultura and The Bronx. While touring they managed to pick up another Juno nomination for Best Rock Album (We Sweat Blood) and tour Australia as well as more European dates including Rock Am Ring and Rock Im Park in Germany and Download, Leeds and Reading in England.
2005-2006: Sleep Is The Enemy
Early 2005 was taken up by recording the follow-up to We Sweat Blood, but not without a series of tours amidst recording that brought the band to the Netherlands, Germany and South Africa. In April, American label, Razor & Tie released We Sweat Blood and the band set out to America in support as well.[6] Working two releases simultaneously on both sides of the Atlantic proved quite hard and the worldwide release for the upcoming album, Sleep Is The Enemy, produced by Matt DeMatteo, was pushed back to 2006.
During the summer and fall of 2005 the band toured America heavily with two of We Sweat Blood's singles being second most added to active rock radio in America ("Lovercall" and "Forget My Name"). Stateside tours with Flogging Molly, Our Lady Peace, The Supersuckers, and The (International) Noise Conspiracy followed. Prior to the release of Sleep Is The Enemy drummer Damon Richardson left the band, citing fatigue as a reason for leaving. He was replaced by Dan Cornelius.
In January and February 2006, under new Canadian label, Aquarius Records, the band set out to do their first Canadian tour in almost 4 years opening up for Nickelback, With the release of Sleep Is The Enemy came more touring including America and a headlining European club tour with support from Brant Bjork & The Bros.
The summer saw them perform at Rock Am Ring, Rock Im Park, With Full Force and Wacken Open Air in Germany; Hellfest and Furiafest in France, Metaltown in Sweden, Pinkpop and Lowlands in The Netherlands, Tuska Festival, Ruisrock and Ankkarock in Finland, Gampel in Switzerland and Wireless in the UK among at least a dozen more. In October 2006, a 2 week tour of Norway saw the band play with ex-Kyuss front-man, John Garcia who appeared on the song "Invisible" off Sleep Is The Enemy.
2008: Never Too Loud
Their fourth album, Never Too Loud was released on February 27, 2008[9] and produced by Nick Raskulinecz. The album yielded three singles, "Code Of The Road" followed by "Take Me Home" and "King Of Magazines". A major city tour of Europe in April 2008 was followed by a Canadian tour in May and a three month stint in Europe playing almost 30 dates on the festival circuit that included Rock Am Ring, Rock Im Park and With Full Force in Germany; Bospop and Lowlands in The Netherlands; Sziget Festival in Hungary; Rabarock in Estonia; Provinssi Rock in Finland; and Eurockeennes and Hellfest in France, where Jones got to sing on stage with one of his favorite bands, Death Angel for the song, "Bored". In the fall/winter of 2008 Danko Jones toured England, Germany, France and Benelux opening for Motörhead.
2009: B-Sides
On February 3, 2009 B-Sides was released in Europe only - a collection of previously released b-sides from European singles and unreleased tracks that spanned 1996 to 2008. On February 24 they commenced a 7 week tour in support of the release that spanned The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, France and the UK with support coming from The Backyard Babies, Winnebego Deal and The Black Spiders. The CD yielded the singles "Sugar High" and "My Problems (Are Your Problems Now)". A greatest hits compilation titled This Is Danko Jones was released on April 7 the same year in Canada only.
In the summer the band managed a few festival appearances, most notably, the Sziget Festival in Hungary on the main stage with Faith No More and The Offspring, as well as Huntenpop in The Netherlands, Wintherthur and Gampel Open Air in Switzerland, Parken Festival in Norway and Jurassic Rock in Finland. In January and February 2010 the band toured across Canada with Guns N' Roses and Sebastian Bach. In March the same year they toured the United States with Clutch.
2010: Below the Belt
Their fifth album Below the Belt was released on May 11, 2010 and produced by Matt DeMatteo. The album's first single, "Full of Regret", features Elijah Wood, Lemmy Kilmister, Selma Blair and Mike Watt in the accompanying video. It debuted at #36 on Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks in November. It is also featured on EA's NHL 11 soundtrack. The second single, "Had Enough", has Ralph Macchio appearing in the accompanying video.
On June 8, 2011 Danko Jones announced on the band's website that drummer Dan Cornelius was no longer with the band. In the same statement Danko Jones said Atom Willard had joined as a replacement. In a March 2012 question-and-answer session with fans on Twitter Danko Jones said: "Dan's time with the band had run its course but it was completely mutual from both sides. An amicable split."
2012: New Album
In early 2012 Danko Jones revealed the band was working on a new album, posting footage of the writing process on the band's YouTube channel. Jones said the album was likely to be out in the European fall (autumn). He added a book and DVD about the band's history would also be released in 2012.
Albums
Born a Lion (2002) (Bad Taste Records / Universal Canada)
We Sweat Blood (2003) (Bad Taste Records / Razor & Tie)
Sleep Is the Enemy (2006) (Bad Taste Records | Aquarius Records)
Never Too Loud (2008) (Bad Taste Records / Aquarius Records)
Below the Belt (2010) (Bad Taste Records / Aquarius Records)
EPs and Others
Sugar Chocolate 7" (1998) (Sonic Unyon)
Danko Jones EP (1998) (Sonic Unyon)
My Love Is Bold (1999) (Sound King / Outside Music)
I'm Alive and on Fire (2001) (Bad Taste Records)
Ritual of the Savage 10" (split with Gluecifer & Peter Pan Speedrock) (2003) (Drunken Maria / Suburban)
B-Sides (2009) (Bad Taste Records)
This Is Danko Jones (2009) (Canadian-only greatest hits release) (Emd Int'l Records)
Having Fun on Stage with Danko Jones 7 (2009) (Yeah Right! Records)
Mouth to Mouth (2011) (digital-only release)
Bring On the Mountain (2012) (DVD)
Sex Change Shake
Danko Jones Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She wore her pants so tight, wasn't too bright
It doesn't matter much when you're a sight for sore eyes
And everybody's gonna have a good time
I look at girls all the time
I can't help it, its a habit I've acquired
I need a woman' touch just a little too much
What's every good looking girl doing tonight
'cause I'm free and I got my bedroom keys
Move it baby
Shake it honey
Twiddle that thing
Twiddle it girl
Oh baby I get so excited
God damn I need a sex change
In the middle of the night
She wakes me up and then we do it one more time
We do it over and over and over and over and over and over...
And everybody's gonna have a good time
I look at girls all the time
I can't help it, it's a habit I've acquired
I need a woman's touch a little too much
Too many good looking girls I wanna ask you all out
What's every good looking girl doing tonight?
Take me I'm all the man you'll need
That's a promise
Allrigt baby, you got a back stage pass
Bet you wanna get up on that stage don't ya
I believe that's some star quality action happening
But let me tell you something;
When you up on stage,
You gotta shake that thing
You gotta twirl that thing baby
When you up on stage
Light that thing on FIRE
WHOW!
The lyrics to Danko Jones's song "Sex Change Shake" describe a man who is drawn to good-looking women and is always looking for his next sexual encounter. He describes a woman (presumably a stripper) who gets out of a car with a cocaine nose and a nose job, wearing tight pants and not very smart, yet still a sight for sore eyes. The man confesses to looking at girls all the time and needing a woman's touch a little too much. He is free tonight with his bedroom keys, and wants to know what every good-looking girl is doing. He gets excited and wishes he could have a sex change as he repeatedly has sex with this girl. The man tells her that he needs her and promises that he is all the man she'll need.
The song has a very sexual feel, with explicit references to sex, and the man's desperation for women. The cocaine reference and the fact that the woman has had a nose job may suggest that she is a stripper or a prostitute, furthering the man's sense of desperation. The repeated refrain of "everybody's gonna have a good time" suggests that this behavior is normalized and that the man feels no shame in his actions. The song could be seen as a critique of hyper-masculinity and male sexual entitlement.
Line by Line Meaning
She got out of the car w/ a cocaine nose and a nosejob
She stepped out of the car with a nose that's deviated from its original form and wrecked from cocaine abuse
She wore her pants so tight, wasn't too bright
She chose to wear overly tight pants even though it didn't help her intelligence
It doesn't matter much when you're a sight for sore eyes
Being visually appealing is enough reason for people to overlook other flaws in you
And everybody's gonna have a good time
Everyone will enjoy the time they'll spend with the girl in question
I look at girls all the time
It's an unconscious habit for me to check out girls frequently
I can't help it, its a habit I've acquired
I can't control my tendency to look at women because it's a habit that's ingrained in me now
I need a woman' touch just a little too much
I crave for female intimacy a bit excessively
Too many good looking girls I wanna ask you all out
Seeing a lot of attractive women makes me want to ask them out
What's every good looking girl doing tonight
I'm curious about what all the gorgeous ladies are up to this evening
'cause I'm free and I got my bedroom keys
I want to use my availability and access to my bedroom as a way to convince the girls to spend the night with me
Move it baby
I want you to dance and sway sensually to the music
Shake it honey
I want you to move your hips provocatively and sexually
Twiddle that thing
I want you to move your suggestive body parts suggestively
Twiddle it girl
Move your body parts in a salacious way
Oh baby I get so excited
I'm extremely stimulated and aroused by you
God damn I need a sex change
I want to experience strong sexual gratification
In the middle of the night
At some point during the night
She wakes me up and then we do it one more time
She arouses me from my sleep and we engage in sexual activity again
We do it over and over and over and over and over and over...
We engage in sexual activity repeatedly and excessively
And everybody's gonna have a good time
Everyone will enjoy their time with me and the sexual activity we'll engage in
I need a woman's touch a little too much
My desire for female affection is slightly excessive
Take me I'm all the man you'll need
I believe that I possess enough masculinity and sexual ability to satisfy you
That's a promise
I'm assuring you that I won't disappoint you sexually
Allright baby, you got a back stage pass
You have access to backstage
Bet you wanna get up on that stage don't ya
I believe you want to go up on stage
I believe that's some star quality action happening
I believe there's a high standard of excellence in this event
But let me tell you something
However, I have some advice for you
When you up on stage
When you're on the stage
You gotta shake that thing
You have to move your body sensually
You gotta twirl that thing baby
You have to move your sexually suggestive body parts in an exciting way
When you up on stage
When you're performing on stage
Light that thing on FIRE
Make the crowd go wild with your sensual and sexually suggestive moves
WHOW!
An expression to signify surprise or admiration
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind