Former members include Brooke Challinor (2006-10).
The best pop music happens during the worst of times. The upside to a depressing recession, global conflict and five year-olds mugging you for your mobile, is the return of music thatβs bright (in both senses of the word), brash, slightly deranged but irresistibly catchy. We believe the big papers are calling it βwonky popβ. The Dolly Rockers themselves would probably call what they do βdrunk discoβ, but weβre not sure thatβll catch on.
Three girls who are as likely to snog you as happy-slap you, Dolly Rockers belong to the generation who want pop back on their own terms. A generation who make no distinction between Spice Girls βWannabeβ and Blurβs βGirls & Boysβ; both classic and defining pop records that, in their own way, said everything to you about your life, but with a tune you could sing when you got pissed with your mates.
Sophie (20 years old, northern, tiny): βWe donβt feel we have much in common with manufactured girl bands. Pop music to us is Arctic Monkeys, Lily Allen, Mark Ronsonβ¦β
Lucie (20 years old, southern, insomniac): βI loved Blur and Pulp when I was younger. At the time it was called βindieβ, but it really was just pop music.β
Brooke (20 years old, northern, lairy): βThe Spice Girls were great too. I hate bands that are just clones or puppets, who do what theyβre told. I like bands that are outspoken.β
Musically, Dolly Rockers pilfer from the past with glorious, post-mashup, pre-clubbing anthems with enormous, instantly hooking choruses (and a healthy amount of amazing, whizzing electro noises.) Lyrically, Dolly Rockers take on βorange girlsβ, the z-listers and the WAGs, on songs littered with chips, energy drinks and the frustrations of living at home. All topped off with a very knowing take on pop music from the last 30 years β Human League to Funboy Three, Depeche Mode to Propaganda, Spice Girls to Shampoo; Dolly Rockers are the perfect distillation of intelligence and fun for this gloom-laden world. A modern-day Bananarama when they were scruffy drunks, giggling on Saturday morning kids TV and not giving a fuckβ¦ before they became a gay cabaret affair.
The band have no time for fillers or soppy ballads. βJe Suis Une Dollyβ is their in-yer-face, tongue-in-cheek theme tune (though weβre not sure whose cheek). βGold Diggerβ is an inspired collision of Kid Creole and Tom Tom Club with a vicious lyric about the kind of girl whoβs all βrefurb tits and turned up noseβ. βHow Did I End Up With Youβ tackles domestic abuse and falling for married men. And βNorth Vs Southβ is a roaring celebration of the Midlands (no really), updating the Britpop blueprint with a song that sounds like Alex Turnerβs kid sisters.
Thereβs no room for the fake American accents that other girlbands sing in. The Dolly Rockers are a celebration of Britishness in all its regional glory; blunt, honest and bullshit-freeβ¦
Sophie: βI went to of one of the roughest schools in Leeds. I knew if I stayed Iβd just be hanging round the same places with the same people for the rest of my life.β
Lucie: βI went to a posh boarding school but was expelled when I was 14 because I passed out in assembly. It was from the night before so technically I wasnβt drunk at school. But I didnβt want to become a snob so itβs a good thing they kicked me out.β
Brooke: βYou see, weβre only young so weβve not got any heartbreak stories to tell you, weβve just got stories about nights out in pubs.β
Lucie: βAnd we sing in our own accents because weβre singing about our own lives. Our songs arenβt about love, more about snogging. We write songs about the things that happen to us and the things we talk about.β
But isnβt it inevitable that when Dolly Rockers become successful, theyβll all end up in gossip mags with footballer boyfriends and cosmetic surgery?
Brooke: βWe hate glamour models. Itβs unnecessary and makes girls look cheap. No footballers! Thatβll be a t-shirt slogan for Dolly Rockers.β
Sophie: βListen to our songs. βChampagne Shirleyβ is about girls like Jodie Marsh: βShe thinks sheβs fit with her new fake tits & her liposuction / She hires limousines making massive scenes just to go the pub inβ.
Lucie: βI donβt like boobs. I think girls look nicer when they have no boobs. And nowadays, you can be famous for falling out of Chinawhite, drunk. We donβt want to be celebrities, itβs meaningless. But maybe itβs changing. Maybe people who actually do something can be stars again.β
The Dolly Rockers arenβt some media-trained, goodie-goodie, wonβt-put-a-foot-wrong bunch of stage-school starlets sitting on the conveyor belt of processed pop. Thereβs no Disney-schmaltz or slick svengali at work here. Dolly Rockers are reality writ large and unashamed, telling it like it is and ready to fight for their right to be heard. Theyβve come to kick the world of pop, glamour and celebrity firmly where it hurts and then gleefully jump up and down on it in cheap stilletos. Forget Gucci and Chanel, this is Primark pop and council chaosβ¦ as they sing on βChampagne Shirleyβ:
βShe comes from Hull but she talks like the queen / She wears haute couture, what the fuck does that mean ?!...
She says she works in Selfridges, head of the clothes department / but weβve seen her on the tills in Home & Bargainβ
The Dolly Rockers arenβt doing things in a conventional manner β currently in the midst of a tour of shopping malls, theyβll soon be playing Butlins before touring schools (God help us!), gay clubs and meat-markets. But alongside that theyβll be putting on shows in the likes of Hoxton Bar and Grill and titillating the cool crowd with their knowing, hard-edged club-aware pop music. The Doll Revolution starts here!
In summer 2008, they created a DIY video for "Je Suis Une Dolly", which some think was an inspiration for a mobile phone company's advertising campaign, a couple of months later.
Site: Discogs, MusicBrainz, Wikipedia, YouTube and http://theDollyRockers.com
Je Suis Une Dolly
Dolly Rockers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sat there waiting by the phone
Got to get all dressed up on my own
Got to get myself to a hot spot
It looks nice and Parisian
A little bar full of married men
So ooh la la
I'll be staying out til God knows when
Coz I can get a bit wild on a holiday
Got nowt to loose in the Moulin Rouge and we'll flash our pants when we Can Can
Coz I can get a bit wild on a holiday
Is it dΠΉja vu that I'm here with you?
Gonna get an eyeful
Je suis une dolly in my St. Tropez
Have a little dance avec moi touchΠΉ
Voulez vous you buy the Chardonnay
Have a little drink and laugh with me tonight
Oh oh oh
Think I'm in love again
With a tall dark man who's 6ft 10
Speaks with an accent now and then
And drives around in a Citroen
Lights on and it's time to roam
He looks more like a garden gnome
With his platform shoes and a shiney dome
His hands look French but their Roman
Coz I can get a bit wild on a holiday
Got nowt to loose in the Moulin Rouge and we'll flash our pants when we Can Can
Coz I can get a bit wild on a holiday
Is it dΠΉja vu that I'm here with you
Gonna get an eyeful
Je suis une dolly in my St. Tropez
Have a little dance avec moi touchΠΉ
Voulez vous you buy the Chardonnay
Have a little drink and laugh with me tonight
Je suis une dolly in my St. Tropez
Have a little dance avec moi touchΠΉ
Voulez vous you buy the Chardonnay
Have a little drink and laugh with me tonight
Oi
What you doing tomorrow night?
Might go down the High Street to the Moulin Rouge for a beer do you fancy it?
Give you a call about 9 then?
Oh oh oh (Si Si)
Oh oh oh (oui oui)
Oh oh oh (Mais oui)
Oh oh oh (Si Si)
Oh oh oh (oui oui)
Oh oh oh (Mais oui)
Je suis une dolly in my St. Tropez
Ave a little dance avec moi touchΠΉ
Voulez vous you buy the Chardonnay
Have a little drink and laugh with me tonight
The lyrics of Dolly Rockersβ song Je Suis Une Dolly depict a fun-filled night out with friends. The singer is waiting for her friends to call her to announce the plan for the night. The idea is to get dressed up and head out to a hot spot β a bar in Paris that's always full of married men. The singer seems to be very excited about the idea and sings, βIβll be staying out until God knows when".
The plot thickens when the singer meets a charming Frenchman who's 6 feet 10 inches tall with an accent every now and then. Despite having a shiny dome and platform shoes, the singer seems to have fallen for him. The two proceed to have fun by drinking Chardonnay, dancing on the dance floor, and laughing the night away. The chorus "Je suis une dolly" translates to "I am a dolly" in English, suggesting that the singer is having a great time being out and about in Paris.
Overall, the song presents a carefree and exciting mood, highlighting the importance of having fun, enjoying yourself, and letting loose - especially while on vacation.
Line by Line Meaning
One night and we're all alone
They are alone and have nothing better to do than go out.
Sat there waiting by the phone
They are waiting for someone to call them to go out.
Got to get all dressed up on my own
They have to dress up nicely to go out alone.
Got to get myself to a hot spot
They have to take themselves to a place where it's happening.
It looks nice and Parisian
The place they're going to looks classy, like Paris.
A little bar full of married men
The place they're going to is a bar filled with married men.
So ooh la la
It's a fancy place.
Here we go again
They've been here before.
I'll be staying out til God knows when
They plan to stay out very late.
Coz I can get a bit wild on a holiday
They feel like letting loose while on vacation.
Got nowt to loose in the Moulin Rouge and we'll flash our pants when we Can Can
They're planning to go to Moulin Rouge and have fun, possibly show off a little.
Is it dΠΉja vu that I'm here with you?
Feels like they've been here before with the same person.
Gonna get an eyeful
They're going to see lots of things.
Je suis une dolly in my St. Tropez
I am a playful and outgoing person in my current very fancy vacation location Saint Tropez.
Have a little dance avec moi touchΠΉ
Let's have a dance and pass by each other.
Voulez vous you buy the Chardonnay
Do you want to buy some Chardonnay for us?
Have a little drink and laugh with me tonight
Let's enjoy some drinks and have fun tonight.
Think I'm in love again
They feel like they're in love again.
With a tall dark man who's 6ft 10
They are in love with a tall and handsome man.
Speaks with an accent now and then
The person they're in love with has a foreign accent.
And drives around in a Citroen
They like the car the person drives.
Lights on and it's time to roam
It's time to go out and explore.
He looks more like a garden gnome
The person they're with doesn't look as good as they did before.
With his platform shoes and a shiney dome
The person they're with is short and bald, but still tries to dress nicely.
His hands look French but their Roman
The person's hands have distinct features.
Oi
Hey!
What you doing tomorrow night?
What are you planning for tomorrow night?
Might go down the High Street to the Moulin Rouge for a beer do you fancy it?
They suggest going to Moulin Rouge for a drink tomorrow night.
Give you a call about 9 then?
They plan to call them around 9 PM to discuss the plans.
Oh oh oh (Si Si)
Expressing joy and agreement.
Oh oh oh (oui oui)
Expressing joy and agreement.
Oh oh oh (Mais oui)
Expressing joy and agreement.
Ave a little dance avec moi touchΠΉ
Dancing together, touching each other.
Voulez vous you buy the Chardonnay
Do you want to buy some Chardonnay for us?
Have a little drink and laugh with me tonight
Let's have a drink and laugh together tonight.
Contributed by Alexis S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Sabazinus
Thanks Novympia, now I've got this stuck in my brain.
@thelunacyyt
Specifically Olympia as the references from her so obscure af
@richjdnz
Oh dear god, me too...
@GinaGodfrey
Also here because of Olympia naming this one of her βfavesβ π π
Shout out to @Novympia π€
@ronjaengarde
Thank you Olympia
@decoraborealis
I've watched this over 10 times in the last 24 hours because of Novympia, and I've also saved it to my spotify xD
@Moluayy
i blame Novympia for this
@alexonmymind4925
ππππ start the shit show
@jarleivour374
Been stuck in my head all week
@danielkumar5376
I'm so glad I'm not suffering alone in this! π