Graham Parker (born November 18, 1950 in London) is a British rock singer a… Read Full Bio ↴Graham Parker (born November 18, 1950 in London) is a British rock singer and songwriter. He continues to be best-known as the leader (and singer) of the popular British band Graham Parker & the Rumour, though he has has a number of solo albums to his name. Despite moderate commercial success, he has consistently been hailed by critics as one the most prominent musicians of his generation, with his wittily-heated, often class-conscious lyrics and energy-fueled music preceding the arrival punk rock and new wave music. Many fellow musicians, including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Frank Black, have expressed admiration for his music

Beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Parker sang in small-time amateur English bands such as the Black Rockers and Deep Cut Three, while working in dead-end jobs at a glove factory and a petrol station. In late 1974 he placed an ad in Britain’s "Melody Maker" music mag seeking like-minded musicians and he began performing professionally. In 1975, he recorded a few demo tracks in London with Dave Robinson, who would shortly found Stiff Records and who connected Parker with his first backing band of note.

Graham Parker & the Rumour (with Brinsley Schwarz and Martin Belmont on guitar, Bob Andrews on keyboards, Andrew Bodnar on bass and Steve Goulding on drums) formed in the summer of 1975 and began doing the rounds of the British pub rock scene. Their first album, Howlin' Wind, was released to acclaim in 1976 and rapidly followed by the stylistically similar Heat Treatment. A mixture of rock, ballads, and reggae-influenced numbers, these albums reflected Parker's early influences (Motown, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan) and contained the songs which formed the core of Parker's live shows -- "White Honey", "Soul Shoes", "Lady Doctor", "Fool's Gold", and his early signature tune "Don't Ask Me Questions", which hit the top 40 in the UK. Like the pub rock scene he was loosely tied to, the singer's class-conscious lyrics and passionate vocals signaled a renewal of rock music as punk rock began to flower in Britain.

Parker preceded the other "new wave" English singer-songwriters, Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson. Early in his career his work was often compared favorably to theirs, and for decades journalists would continue to categorize them together, long after the artists' work had diverged. Characteristically, Parker would not hesitate to criticize this habit with caustic wit.

The first two albums' critical acclaim was generally not matched with LP sales. Graham Parker and the Rumour appeared on BBC television's Top of the Pops in 1976, performing their top 30 hit version of The Trammps' "Hold Back the Night".

At this point, Parker began to change his songwriting style, reflecting his desire to break into the American market. The first fruits of this new direction appeared on Stick To Me (1977). The album broke the top 20 on the UK charts but divided critical opinions.

Energized by his new label, Arista, and the presence of legendary producer Jack Nitzsche, Parker followed with Squeezing Out Sparks (1979), widely held to be the best album of his career. For this album, The Rumour's brass section, prominent on all previous albums, was jettisoned, resulting in a spare, intense rock backing for some of Parker's most brilliant songs. Of particular note was "You Can't Be Too Strong", one of rock music's rare songs to confront the topic of abortion, however ambivalently.

Squeezing out Sparks is still ranked by fans and critics alike as one of the finest rock albums ever made. Rolling Stone named it #335 [1] on their 2003 list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In an early 1987 Rolling Stone list of their top 100 albums from 1967-1987, Squeezing Out Sparks was ranked at #45, while Howlin' Wind came in at #54 [2].

Although marginally less intense than its predecessor, 1980's The Up Escalator was Parker's highest-charting album in the UK and featured glossy production by Jimmy Iovine and guest vocals from Bruce Springsteen. Nevertheless it was Parker's last album with the Rumour, although guitarist Brinsley Schwarz would join most of the singer's albums through the decade's end.

The 1980s were Parker's most commercially successful years, with well-financed recordings and radio and video play. Over the decade, the British press turned unkind to him, but he continued to tour the world with top backing bands, and his 1985 release Steady Nerves included his only US Top 40 hit, "Wake Up (Next to You)". The singer began living mostly in the United States during this time.

In early 2011, Parker reunited with all five original members of The Rumour to record a new album. The record, titled Three Chords Good, was released in November 2012.

She Wants So Many Things
Graham Parker Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴

Pre>(struck by lightning)

She wants so many things (g. parker)
Capo 2

Intro: em / d/ a/ d (3 times)

G d a d

She wants so many things you can't give to her
G d a g
She wants so many things you don't have much
She wants so many things you can't deliver to her
She wants so many things all at once

Verse (chords: g / a / g / a)
Like a brick wall that'll keep her from crumbling
And a camouflage jacket to hide from herself in
And a system of worship like a powerful magnet
That'll draw in the heathens pick them up in a dragnet
And pull them underwater till they all go stagnant

Bridge (chords: d / a / d / a)
She wants so many things beamed in on a satellite
Served up on a silver tray a wasp and parasite

G d a d
She wants so many things where you gonna find them all
G d a g
She wants so many things get up and run
She wants so many things you're at her beck and call
You're the puppet she pulls the strings just for fun

Verse (chords: g / a / g / a)
Like a blue ocean that's devoid of fishes
Cause they're all on her table prepared into dishes
Like an army of lieutenants all standing to attention
And a book about you where you don't get a mention
With her hand on a Bible she's right in your face
She's a living example of god's bad taste
And with him for an ally she can't be a heretic
But her heart's from a laboratory spun from a synthetic

Bridge (chords: d / a / d / a)
She wants so many things brought without question
The gardens of babylon hanging and festooned
A ship in the desert your soul on a plate
She can't wait any longer don't make her wait

G d a d
She wants so many things you can't negotiate
G d a g
She wants so many things you feel the crunch
She wants so many things don't make her reiterate
She wants so many things all at once

Verse (chords: g / a / g / a)
A collection of clowns who were dragged up in public school
Who dream up the rhythms that she dances in the disco to
They all surround her and yes her to death
With their hands on their mouths to hide their bad breath
And she lives in a fortress at the back of a project
And she'll let you in soon but not now and not yet
And she likes to see you immersed in greed
Confusing what you want with what you need

Bridge (chords: d / a / d / a)
She wants so many things split up into atoms
She owns the crown jewels but you can't get at 'em

Chorus 2 repeat then instrumental verse with doo dooo doos
Then intro repeat

G d a d
She wants so many things you can't keep up with her
G d a g
She wants so many things at the same time
She wants so many things you can't keep it up her
She wants so many things you'll never find

Verse (chords: g / a / g / a)
Like three million shoes and a closet full of whips
And two dozen hats and then everyone fits
And the kind of acceptance that needs a lobotomy
That'll help you accept every single contradictory
Statement that hits you like a force nine gale
And makes you go pale every time that you fail
To bring home the bacon and bring in the goods
Get the musk from the deer and the shell from the turtle
And the gold from the fools and the shells from the sea
She says load them in a caravan bring them to me

Bridge (chords: d / a / d / a)
She wants so many things brought to her feet
Cover every inch of the world in concrete
You better do it it's only your fate
She can't wait any longer don't make her wait

G d a d
She wants so many things you can't give to her
G d a g
She wants so many things you don't have much
She wants so many things you can't deliver to her

Everything's attached to strings you can't touch
(fade on) she wants so many things /pre>

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Graham Parker's song "She Wants So Many Things" are a commentary on the actions of a person who is incapable of being content. The opening line "struck by lightning" sets the tone for the lyrical dissection of a person who always wants more, yet is never satisfied. The constant repetition of "she wants so many things" emphasizes this point. The first verse describes some of the things she wants: a brick wall to prevent her from crumbling, a camouflage jacket to hide from herself, a system of worship that draws in others. The second verse follows up with more things she wants, like the control over other people in her life, an empty ocean made full of fish, a fortress to protect herself, and the acceptance that requires a lobotomy. The chorus repeats and emphasizes that she is never completely satisfied with what she has, always wanting more.

The bridge highlights some of the extremes this person would go to obtain these things she desires, such as having things brought to her feet, covering the earth in concrete, or owning the crown jewels. The overall message of the song is not necessarily about material things but the constant need for more and the inability of some individuals to be content with what they have. The doo doo doos and fade out in the end also emphasize the never-ending cycle of wanting more.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: GRAHAM THOMAS PARKER

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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