For… Read Full Bio ↴Haysi Fantayzee were a British new wave band of the early 1980s.
Formed and fronted by white dreadlocked singers Jeremy Healy (also known as Jeremiah) and Kate Garner, and with Kate's boyfriend songwriter/producer/manager Paul Caplin in the background, the band had several UK hits in 1983 such as the singles John Wayne Is Big Leggy, Shiny Shiny, and Sister Friction. The band never broke through to the same kind of success in the US, although they did have some popularity there.
Originally Caplin and Garner had intended to make music with just Garner performing, but then they met Healy (who at 19 was much younger than Garner) and decided to pair them up. The band used their artsy look as a selling point, making a crude video performance and using that instead of a demo tape to sell the band to record companies. Their attention-getting outfits were often designed by Garner herself. The two singers looked like distorted mirror images of each other, with similar hair and makeup. Their glamorous ragamuffin style was frequently compared to Boy George.
The band's catchy music often had darkly humorous, subversive lyrics. Shiny Shiny is an upbeat dance tune about the apocalypse, while John Wayne is Big Leggy is about John Wayne refusing to remove his holster when he has sex with a squaw.
The band often garnered musical comparisons to such other new wave pop acts as Bow Wow Wow, Bananarama, and Adam and the Ants. Garner appeared alongside Bananarama in the 1983 music video Who's That Girl by the Eurythmics.
The band's history was brief and the duo released only one studio album: 1983's Battle Hymns for Children Singing on RCA Records. On his website, Healy claims to have made up the album's title on the spot when some journalists asked him what the record would be called.
Kate Garner had a brief solo career after the break-up of Haysi Fantayzee and then focused on a career in photography. One of her many noteworthy achievements is a photograph she took of Sinéad O'Connor that eventually became the cover art for O'Connor's 1987 debut album The Lion and the Cobra. Garner has also photographed many musicians and celebrities. Among them are: Björk, Boy George, Milla Jovovich, David Bowie, PJ Harvey, Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Tyson Beckford, Carmen Kass, Kate Moss and numerous others. Jeremy Healy became a DJ and mixer for other artists, including his former school chum Boy George. Paul Caplin now runs Caplin Systems, an internet software company.
Shiny Shiny
Haysi Fantayzee Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Good times come to me now
I ain't lying 'cause there ain't no time
No city it's a pity 'cause I dress divine
City smokes, people choke
Big meanie he's a genie and we ain't got a hope
No chance, no chance
Well, I feel fine, no it ain't no crime
I was dreamin' of a demon and I ate a dime
The dime floats, the colonel boasts
Send 'em up the hill boys, this ain't no joke
No chance, no chance, no chance, no chance
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny sha-na-na-na
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Your sure look fine your shoes they shine
I taste your face your love is mine
Mercury Dan with a spikey hand
I'm a hot retard, marquis de sade
No chance, no chance, no chance, no chance
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Saw a cop on the line, machine gun shine
I was dreaming not believing that I was alive
My mind broke, the cop he choked
Get out of here, boy, or I'll use the colt
No chance, no chance
You sure look fine your shoes they shine
No heat can compete with this blue-eyed liar
The child spoke, "We ain't got a hope press the button
Press the button, it's all remote"
No chance, no chance, no chance, no chance
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
The lyrics of Haysi Fantayzee's Shiny Shiny are a whirlwind of surreal imagery and nonsense phrases that seem to center around the idea of rejecting the bleakness of modern life and embracing a more colorful, hedonistic existence. The repeated refrain of "good times come to me now" seems to be a defiant cry against the oppressive forces of society, represented by the "city smokes" and "big meanie" who is a "genie" with seemingly unlimited power. The singer seems to be urging others to join in their rebellion against the status quo, with the repeated phrase of "no chance" representing a rejection of the idea that they are doomed to live in a world without hope.
The verses of the song are filled with bizarre images, like the dream of a demon and the eating of a dime, that seem to be symbolic of some deeper meaning beyond their surface weirdness. The line "Mercury Dan with a spikey hand" suggests a dangerous, potentially violent character while "marquis de sade" conjures up images of sexual deviancy and debauchery. The repeated refrain of "shiny shiny bad times behind me" suggests that the singer is rejecting their past and embracing a new, brighter future.
Overall, the lyrics of Shiny Shiny are difficult to fully comprehend, but they seem to be a call to arms for those who feel oppressed by the world around them. The song encourages listeners to reject conformity and embrace their individuality, even if it means being labeled a "hot retard" or a "blue-eyed liar."
Line by Line Meaning
Good times come to me now
I'm feeling optimistic and expecting things to start going well for me.
I ain't lying 'cause there ain't no time
I'm telling the truth because there's no point in lying when things are moving so quickly.
No city it's a pity 'cause I dress divine
It's a shame there's no city that can appreciate my great sense of style.
City smokes, people choke
The pollution and congestion in the city are making it hard for people to breathe.
Big meanie he's a genie and we ain't got a hope
Those in power are like destructive genies who don't care about us and we don't have much chance of changing that.
No chance, no chance
It's an unfortunate reality that we don't have much opportunity to improve our situation.
Well, I feel fine, no it ain't no crime
I'm feeling good and there's nothing wrong with that.
I was dreamin' of a demon and I ate a dime
I had a strange dream that didn't make much sense.
The dime floats, the colonel boasts
The trivial things don't seem important to me, while the people in power continue to gloat.
Send 'em up the hill boys, this ain't no joke
Those in charge are blindly sending people away on a dangerous mission.
Shiny shiny bad times behind me
It's a relief to have left the difficult times behind and look forward to better days.
Your sure look fine your shoes they shine
You look really good, and your shoes are particularly impressive.
I taste your face your love is mine
I'm very attracted to you and feel like I have a connection with you.
Mercury Dan with a spikey hand
There's a guy named Mercury Dan around here and he has spiky hands.
I'm a hot retard, marquis de sade
I'm like a wild, unpredictable person, similar to the Marquis de Sade, but also a little foolish.
Saw a cop on the line, machine gun shine
I saw a cop with a machine gun who was very intimidating.
I was dreaming not believing that I was alive
I had a surreal experience that made me question what was real.
My mind broke, the cop he choked
I felt overwhelmed and the cop seemed to be suffocating me.
Get out of here, boy, or I'll use the colt
The cop threatened to use his gun on me if I didn't leave immediately.
No heat can compete with this blue-eyed liar
I'm a skilled and charming liar, and nobody can outdo me.
The child spoke, "We ain't got a hope press the button
Even a child knows that we have very little hope, so just press the button to take us to the next destination.
Press the button, it's all remote"
Just press the button and we'll be taken to the next place without having to do anything.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JEREMY HEALY, KATE GARNER, PAUL CAPLIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind