Doucette came by his talent and success naturally: his family being musicians by trade. As a youngster he sat in on jam sessions with his father and Uncle Jim. The family picked up their MONTREAL stakes and moved to HAMILTON, Ontario when Doucette was 4 years old, and two years later he got his first guitar. Lessons soon followed at age 8 and he joined his first band, the REEFERS, at age 11. He remained with the group for five years then moved to Toronto, playing in various bands like TRIBE, BRUTUS, ABERNATHY SHAGNASTER, and HOMESTEAD. He hooked with Alexis, who was working on a deal with Mushroom Records out of VANCOUVER, and when she got signed, she asked him to make the trek out west. Nothing came of the Alexis recording sessions and so he answered the call for a guitarist for the SEEDS OF TIME, featuring future Prism co-founder Lindsay Mitchell. Six months later he joined the ROCKET- NORTON BAND (Norton also going on to be in Prism), but two years later he was tired of the local bar scene and retired.
After sequestering themselves for three months, Doucette emerged from the basement with three of the 16 demos he'd recorded and approached Shelly Siegel of MUSHROOM RECORDS. Siegel was so impressed that he asked for three more tunes, and Jerry returned the next day with them. He was advised to put a band together and did so, featuring Duris Maxwell (drums, percussion), Don Cummings (bass), Brent Shindell (rhythm & acoustic guitars), and Robbie King (keyboards); Doucette himself handled all lead guitar and vocals, and rhythm and 12-string duties. They went into the studio in 1977 and came out three months later, in November, with Doucette's first album, 'MAMA LET HIM PLAY', which quickly went PLATINUM in Canada. Adding Jimmy Butler (guitar) and Ira Hirschel (keyboards) to his lineup, he hit the road in the US, opening for the likes of Bob Welch, Bob Weir (of the Grateful Dead), Eddie Money, and MeatLoaf. The reaction was swift and strong, and a female backup singer was added for the Canadian tour in 1978.
After the Canadian tour he went back into the studio with a new line-up of musicians and producer John Ryan, and came out in early 1979 with 'THE DOUCE IS LOOSE', which spawned the Canadian hit "NOBODY" and helped the album to ship gold. Another trip to the US saw him cross the continent twice, including nine days with the Doobie Brothers in April, but continued touring there and in Canada with acts such as the Beach Boys and the Atlanta Rhythm Section failed to boost sales of the second album to the loft heights of the first. Management and financial troubles plagued Mushroom Records at this time, which Doucette felt hurt the second album, as did continuous band personnel turnovers, and by the time Doucette settled down to write and record his next LP, the only members left in the band from previous lineups were Billy Wade (drums) and Don Cummings (bass).
Doucette attempted to gain back some of the momentum with the Rio Records release 'COMING UP ROSES', but the industry, having become new wave and keyboard dependent had little time for the guitar great. Fast forward to the 1990's and Doucette took control of his own career with the re-issue of 'MAMA LET HIM PLAY' on CD (Doucette bought back the rights to the album) and a new album engineered by Colin Nairne (Barney Bentall, Sue Medley) called 'Price of An Education' in 1995. This album comeback reminded us of his diversity and sheer genius. Backed by the tracks "BIG GOV'T MAN", "MIRACLES" and the title-track, his trademark raucous blues style of guitar was back. He did limited mini-tours in support of the record, and was met with raving crowds. Young and old, they knew who he was and were glad he was back. His new crew featured Darrell Mayes (drums), from Colin James and The Falcons, Dennis Marcenko (bass), Bobby Stewart (guitars and vocals), and Rick Hopkins on (keyboards).
Jerry Doucette continued to tour from the late 90s focusing his seasoned musical maturity on developing a fine reputation for presenting his fans with a classy blend of energized traditional blues tunes with his already Classic Rock/Blues originals. The Classic Rock event “MINNEDOSA FESTIVALL '99” featured a highlight moment with a packed audience of supportive young teens and old school fans delighted to see the Canadian Guitar Legend back with a vengeance. Dave Kilner (bass), Ian Forrest (drums), and Anthony DellaCroce (guitar) held a more than 6 year run as supporting members. Jerry’s most recent release is his VINTAGE CDrom featuring a collection of 17 of his best tunes re-mastered, most of which are not in circulation, 3 live cuts, and an extraordinarily rare UPCLOSE and PERSONAL audio interview accompanied by an over 60 picture slide show featuring RARE photos, promo, billboard charts and live photos.
All I Wanna Do
Doucette Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Holdin' out your love
Instead of holdin' me back
Yeah, I just wanna feel you
Knowin' in my heart it's gonna be all right
Tonight, whoa, whoa-o, tonight
Tonight, yeah, yeah, yeah, Tonight
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I'm really feelin'
Oooooh, oh I just wanna hold you
To feel your lovely body So close to mine
Yeah, I wanna get to know you
So I can take your love
And we can play through the night
Tonight, whoa, whoa-o, tonight
Tonight, yeah, yeah, yeah, Tonight
Oooooh, Oooooh
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I'm really feelin'
Musical interlude
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I'm really feeling
The lyrics to Doucette's song "All I Wanna Do" express a deep desire to be close to someone and to have their love reciprocated. The singer of the song is so in love that all they want to do is to be with their love interest; they long to hold them close and feel their body. The song highlights the importance of love and the overwhelming feeling of wanting to be with someone who makes life worthwhile. The lyrics seem to suggest that love is the answer to any problem and that everything will be okay as long as they are together.
The repeated chorus "All I wanna do, to be by your side, girl, is to let you know the way that I really feel," emphasises the depth of emotions that are being felt by the singer. The song suggests that they want the other person to know that they just want to be there for them and to support them. The use of 'girl' in the chorus seems to imply that the singer is a male and the subject of their love is female. The song is particularly poignant as it encapsulates the notion of the pure, unadulterated love that a person can have for another.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, oh, I, I just wanna see you
The singer expresses his desire to see the person he loves
Holdin' out your love
He wants the person to love him back openly
Instead of holdin' me back
He doesn't want the person to hold him back from loving them
Yeah, I just wanna feel you
The singer wants to physically feel the person's presence
Knowin' in my heart it's gonna be all right
He feels confident that everything will be okay when he's with the person
All I wanna do
The singer's sole desire is
To be by your side, Girl
To be with the person he loves
Is to let you know
His intention is to communicate
The way that I really feel
His true emotions and sentiments
Oooooh, oh I just wanna hold you
The singer desires to hold the person in his arms
To feel your lovely body So close to mine
He wants to be physically close to the person
Yeah, I wanna get to know you
The singer wants to understand the person better
So I can take your love
His end goal is to receive the person's love
And we can play through the night
He wants to spend the night enjoying each other's company
Tonight, whoa, whoa-o, tonight
He's excited for tonight
All I wanna do
The singer's sole desire is
To be by your side, Girl
To be with the person he loves
Is to let you know
His intention is to communicate
The way that I'm really feelin'
His true emotions and sentiments
Contributed by Ellie E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@oasisouterspace8947
, oh, I, I just wanna see you
Holdin' out your love
Instead of holdin' me back
Yeah, I just wanna feel you
Knowin' in my heart it's gonna be all right
Tonight, whoa, whoa-o, tonight
Tonight, yeah, yeah, yeah, Tonight
Oooooh, Oooooh
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I'm really feelin'
Oooooh, oh I just wanna hold you
To feel your lovely body So close to mine
Yeah, I wanna get to know you
So I can take your love
And we can play through the night
Tonight, whoa, whoa-o, tonight
Tonight, yeah, yeah, yeah, Tonight
Oooooh, Oooooh
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I'm really feelin'
Musical interlude
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I really feel
All I wanna do
To be by your side, Girl
Is to let you know
The way that I'm really feeling
Read more: Doucette - All I Wanna Do Lyrics | MetroLyrics
Read more: Doucette - All I Wanna Do Lyrics | MetroLyrics
@franciscob.deoliveira8904
Rest in Peace Jerry Doucette. I was 12-years old when my brother brought this album home 45-years ago. This is a great loss for all of us who spun vinyl back in the day as kids. You've left an indelible mark in our music heads forever. Now you'll play up in Heaven for eternity with the greats. From all your fans who grew up playing music in the North End of Winnipeg, Manitoba.
@Ross685
42 years ago, I was 13 and I played on the old stereo this extraordinary song over and over and over and over, not knowing the name of the song nor the singer. I've been looking for this song for the last 30 years with only in mind the phrase "to be by your side girl" !!! I finally found it these days and I can't be happier !!!! It's a journey through time like I rarely experimented ! Thousand thanks to you Mr. Doucette !
@MrPatrick1414
Me too!...finally found it
@mannyurena8242
Heard this song when it first came out..played it over and over..
@user-nr8uj9bw7i
I was 17 when I first heard this song..fantabulous for ever
@GOODLANDLORD
This is one of the songs I will sit in the truck and wait until it finishes.
@user-sj4hl1mq1y
RIP my Big Friend. Wish I had been brought up back in the days of the Beatles, Badfinger, All the Amazing bands. Missed my calling
Miss you Jerry x❤🎼🎸🙏🏼❤️
@caterina39
Reminds me of the good old days
@wintertime331
Rip Jerry , I met you in Regina in the early 2000’s , what a nice gentleman, and tall ! A walking gentle giant! And a Canadian legend !
@ricktrnka8076
This song reminds me of summertime at the beach with my mother. She passed away 7 months ago. This song helps with the nice memories. Thanks