After Be-Bop-A-Lula had become a huge hit in 1956 (peaking at #7 and spending 20 weeks in the Billboard Pop Chart), Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps (often mis-named as 'the' Blue Caps) were unable to follow it up with the same level of commercial success, but released critically acclaimed songs like Race With The Devil (#96 in Billboard) and Bluejean Bop (#49).
Following a visit to Europe in 1959, Vincent managed to attract a new huge and discerning audience there, especially in England and France. By that time his career had mostly ended in the US. In 1960, while on tour in Britain, Vincent and songwriter Sharon Sheeley were seriously injured in a high-speed traffic accident. Vincent broke his ribs, collarbone, and added further damage to his already weak leg which he had injured in a motorcycle accident in 1955 and refused to have amputated, and Sheeley suffered a broken pelvis. Both Vincent and Sheeley survived, but the accident killed Vincent's tourmate and Sheeley's fiancé, Eddie Cochran.
Vincent subsequently moved to England in 1963. His stage shows became "must see" events and his bands through those years were to spawn some of the most respected players in the world today. It was during his early tours of Britain that he adopted the trademark leather outfit, at the suggestion of British Rock 'n' Roll impressario, Jack Good.
Say Mama
Gene Vincent Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Say Mama would it be all right?
They got a record party down the street
Say Mama cant you hear that beat
Whoaaaaaa
Say Mama don't you look that way
Well a Mama don't get mad
Your going to say go ask your Dad
Whoaaaaaa
Say Mama don't you look that way
Cause I know what you going to say
Well a Mama don't get mad
Your going to say go ask your Dad
The lyrics to Gene Vincent's song, Say Mama, are a request from a young man to his mother to allow him to go out to a record party. He is trying to persuade his mother to permit him to go by asking her if it would be all right. He points out that the party is just down the street and he can hear the beat of the music. The singer is aware of his mother's disapproval, and he tells her not to look at him that way, predicting what she will say. He knows that his mother will tell him to go ask his dad and he pleads with her not to get mad.
The song, with its rockabilly rhythm and catchy chorus, captures the rebellious spirit of youth and their desire to escape parental restrictions. The song's lyrics are a relatable theme for teenagers across time and the song was one of many hits during the infancy of rock and roll. Vincent's energetic and raw delivery, along with the infectious hook, "Say Mama", has made the song a classic of the Rockabilly genre.
Line by Line Meaning
Say Mama can I go out tonight?
Asking mother for permission to leave the house for the evening
Say Mama would it be all right?
Checking with mother if going out for the evening is acceptable
They got a record party down the street
There is a party with music nearby
Say Mama cant you hear that beat
Asking mother if she can hear the loud music from the party
Say Mama don't you look that way
Advising mother not to give disapproving looks
Cause I know what you going to say
Believing that mother will disapprove of going to the party
Well a Mama don't get mad
Hoping that mother will not be angry
Your going to say go ask your Dad
Expecting mother to refer to father for final decision
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Johnny Earl, Johnny Meeks
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Billy Howard
The greatest rock and roll record ever...
Steve
I agree, can anyone tell me a better one? Everything is perfect.
ukbarton
I saw him perform this live when he was on tour in the UK with the GREAT GREAT Eddie Cochran That was just before Eddie left us. Rock shows didn't come much better.
Daniel Alejandro Alarcón Coya
Excelente para escuchar y bailar
Oskar Williamsson
If you begged me to pick out just ONE record by Gene Vincent - I´d pick this gem. It has pretty much a nearly complete setting of the details that made Good Old Rock ´n Roll great. Gene didn´t get the credits he earned for this one. Maybe the radio stations had started to let softer numbers get more and more time as this wasn´t recorded 1956 like Be Bop A Lula. On the other hand Chuck Berry and Little Richard still had great charts, so it marks out that 1958 was a year when Rock ´n Roll in several ways began to fade away a bit. Not from being great music, but from being played as much as when Be Bop A Lula came out two years earlier.
willpn100
Gene Vincent rocks and The Blue Caps roll! Amazing.
Tammy Holt
My dad wrote this song and passed on December 10th. He was so proud of it, Wish someone else would record it.
Steve
Your Dad wrote one of the best, if not the best, rock 'n' roll songs recorded in my opinion. Gene Vincent did a fantastic job with it ! I'm not surprised he was proud ! All these years later and we are still talking about it.
Andre Rollo
Congratulations for your dad's work, Tammy.
May he be in the peace of our Lord's shelter.
Marty Forrer
Someone did. In New Zealand a wonderful band called the Keil Isles recorded it.