Shannon followed up with "Hats Off to Larry", another big hit, and the less popular "So Long, Baby", another song of breakup bitterness. "Little Town Flirt", released in 1962 reached #12 in 1963 as did the album of the same name. After these hits, Shannon was unable to keep his momentum in the US, but became a sensation in England. In 1963, he became the first American artist to record a cover version of a Beatles song with "From Me to You".
Shannon returned to the charts in 1964 with "Handy Man", "Do You Wanna Dance", "Keep Searchin'", and "Stranger in Town" (1965), with the latter two songs themed about flight from pursuit in a dangerous world. A 1966 chart offering was Shannon's cover of the Rolling Stones' "Under My Thumb". In the late 1960s after a dry spell of hits, he turned to production. In 1969 he discovered a group called Smith and arranged their hit "Baby It's You". He then produced his friend Brian Hyland's million seller "Gypsy Woman" in 1970.
In the 1970s, Shannon's career slowed down greatly; the hates and fears he had turned into art in his earlier songs were turning into full-blown mental illness, and he was self-medicating with alcohol. He finally put the bottle down in 1978, and he was able to return to mainstream audiences with "Sea of Love" in the early 1980s from the album "Drop Down And Get Me" produced by Tom Petty.
In December, 1983, Shannon served as Grand Marshal of the Coopersville, Michigan Christmas parade and also performed a benefit concert at Coopersville High School.
Shannon enjoyed a resurgence in audience interest after re-recording a portion of his song "Runaway" (with new lyrics) as the theme for the television program Crime Story. Producer Michael Mann felt that this was one of the definitive songs of the era in which the program was set. Some fans of the show prefer the sharper lyrics ("Some live, and others die") as an alternate to the original words.
On 8 February 1990, while working on a comeback album with Jeff Lynne of Electric Light Orchestra, Shannon fatally shot himself in the head with a .22 calibre rifle. His wife thought his death might have been related to his recent use of the prescription drug Prozac. The album was released after his death and titled "Rock On!".
Shannon is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.
And The Music Plays On
Del Shannon Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Another busy signal as I call the one I love
My arms they keep on reaching out, for things that should be there
She told me when I left she told me that she'd always care
Two days I've been waiting, to talk with her again
It must be a broken line or she's talking to a friend
Cause I swear, I swear I heard her say
If you need me baby I'll be there
And the music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
Our love was strong, was strong, it was strong
When the music played on
Wonder if I'll ever, be with her again
Seems I'm in the middle and just can't find the end
Maybe I'll just light up another cigarette
Poor me all the wine you got, maybe I'll forget
All the plans we made and all the things we used to do
All the lies she told me, me pretending to be true
But I swear, I swear I heard her say
If you need me baby I'll be there
And the music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
Our love was strong, was strong, it was strong
When the music played on
And the music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
Our love was strong, was strong, it was strong
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The lyrics of Del Shannon's "And The Music Plays On" depict the feelings of loneliness and longing, as the singer sits waiting by the phone for his loved one to pick up. He describes himself as feeling as "lonely as the sky without the sun," emphasizing his deep sense of isolation and desperation. He repeatedly tries to call his loved one, but only hears busy signals, leaving him with nothing to do but wait and hope.
The singer's thoughts turn to memories of his past with his loved one, recalling the strength of their love when "the music played on." He is plagued with uncertainty about their future, wondering if they will ever be together again. As he struggles with his feelings of loss, he finds solace in cigarettes and wine, temporarily numbing his pain.
Overall, the song paints a picture of heartbreak, loneliness, and the enduring power of love. Despite the difficulties they face, the singer clings to hope and the memories of better times, finding comfort in the enduring nature of music.
Line by Line Meaning
Sitting here as lonely as the sky without the sun
I feel really lonely without my loved one around, it's like the sky without the sun.
Another busy signal as I call the one I love
Whenever I try to call my loved one, I always get a busy signal.
My arms they keep on reaching out, for things that should be there
I keep reaching out for my loved one, who is not there physically, but should be.
She told me when I left she told me that she'd always care
Before I left, my loved one promised that she would always care about me.
Two days I've been waiting, to talk with her again
It's been two days since I last talked to my loved one, and I'm waiting for her to call me back.
It must be a broken line or she's talking to a friend
I assume that she's not answering because there's something wrong with the phone line or she's busy with a friend.
Cause I swear, I swear I heard her say
If you need me baby I'll be there
Even though she's not answering my calls, I remember her telling me that she will always be there for me if I need her.
And the music plays on and on and on
The music keeps playing, even though I'm feeling sad and lonely.
Our love was strong, was strong, it was strong
When the music played on
Our love was strong and it felt like nothing could break it, especially when we were listening to music together.
Wonder if I'll ever, be with her again
I'm wondering if I'll ever be able to see my loved one again.
Seems I'm in the middle and just can't find the end
I feel like I'm in the middle of something and can't see how it will end.
Maybe I'll just light up another cigarette
I'm feeling stressed and maybe smoking another cigarette will help me feel better.
Poor me all the wine you got, maybe I'll forget
I'm feeling sorry for myself and want to drink a lot of wine to try and forget about my problems.
All the plans we made and all the things we used to do
I remember all the plans we made together and all the things we used to do before things got complicated.
All the lies she told me, me pretending to be true
I remember all the lies my loved one told me, and how I pretended to believe them.
And the music plays on and on and on
Even though I'm feeling sad and lonely, the music keeps playing.
The music plays on and on and on
Our love was strong, was strong, it was strong
When the music played on
The music reminds me of our strong love, which felt unbreakable when we were listening to music together.
And the music plays on and on and on
The music continues to play, providing a constant reminder of my sadness.
The music plays on and on and on
Our love was strong, was strong, it was strong
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The music plays on and on and on
The music keeps playing, and even though our love has been through difficult times, it was always strong. The repetition of these lines emphasizes the constancy of the music and our love.
Contributed by Logan P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
MARKETMAN6789
Never heard this before thanks for posting another song from this great performer
Linda Panknin
ANOTHER GEM FROM DEL💚💜
Virgene Link-New
So far nothing has come along to replace the great music of the 60's. Thanks Del.
Roger Scarlet
Love this guy, sums up sixties rock the way it was!
busterbill18
DEL AT HIS BEST THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN A HUGE HIT GREAT SONG GREAT PRODUCTION BY DAVE EDMUNDS
Smalltownboy1970
It sounds great, i love everything what Dave Edmunds produce. What's the Name of that Album,that song is from?
Spacebeagle
damn, what a great song! one of the best he wrote and sang, the story of many lives and so sad. one of those shouda' been or soulda' been a hit records. I think a country version was recorded but if so I never heard it. :(
Jim Bartlett
The bass player was future Brit-pop icon Nick Lowe. According to Ronnie Spector's autobiography, she recorded a cover of this song in the late 70's, although it remains unreleased.
Peter Harrison
Beautiful song
edward burns
Great song pete