My Old Man
Ian Dury/Blockheads Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He was never home for long
Drove a bus for London Transport
He knew where he belonged
Number 18 down to Euston
Double decker move along
Double decker move along
My old man
Later on he drove a Roller
Chauffeuring for foreign men
Dropped his aitches on occasion
Said, "Cor blimey!" now and then
Did the crossword in the Standard
At the airport in the rain
At the airport in the rain
My old man
Wouldn't ever let his governers
Call him 'Billy', he was proud
Personal reasons make a difference
His last boss was allowed
Perhaps he had to keep his distance
Made a racket when he rowed
Made a racket when he rowed
My old man
My old man
My old man was fairly handsome
He smoked too many cigs
Lived in one room in Victoria
He was tidy in his digs
Had to have an operation
When his ulcer got too big
When his ulcer got too big
My old man
My old man
Seven years went out the window
We met as one to one
Died before we'd done much talking
Relations had begun
All the while we thought about each other
All the best, mate, from your son
All the best, mate, from your son
My old man
My old man
Ian Dury's song My Old Man is an ode to his father who worked as a bus driver for London Transport. The first verse introduces us to Dury's father who wore "three piece whistles" (a Cockney rhyming slang for suit), but was hardly at home as he was always on the move. The classic London bus route, which was number 18, took him from his home to Euston station. The chorus, which is simply repeated, reinforces the significance of his father to Dury as he repeats the phrase "My old man" throughout the song.
The second verse highlights his father's change of job as he becomes a chauffeur for foreign businessmen. The song emphasizes his father's Cockney accent and slang as he occasionally dropped his "aitches" and said "Cor blimey!" The Bridge got personal as his father's boss was the only person allowed to call him Billy, which highlights his father's pride, and maybe his struggle to keep his distance from his boss's slights.
The final verse is a melancholic reflection of his father's life. Dury describes his father as "fairly handsome," yet unhealthy and living in one room in Victoria. He had to have an ulcer operation which adds to the sadness of the song. Dury also reflects on his relationship with his father which was impacted by the father's early passing. He wishes his father all the best and acknowledges the potential for more in their relationship if only they had more time.
Line by Line Meaning
My old man wore three piece whistles
My dad wore fancy three-piece suits
He was never home for long
He didn't stay at home for very long
Drove a bus for London Transport
He worked as a bus driver for London Transport
He knew where he belonged
He was content with his life and job
Number 18 down to Euston
He drove the number 18 bus route to Euston station
Double decker move along
He urged his passengers to move along to the top deck of the double-decker bus
Later on he drove a Roller
Later he drove a Rolls-Royce car
Chauffeuring for foreign men
He worked as a driver for foreign businessmen
Dropped his aitches on occasion
He sometimes dropped the letter H from his speech
Said, "Cor blimey!" now and then
He used the exclamation 'cor blimey' every now and then
Did the crossword in the Standard
He enjoyed doing crossword puzzles in the Standard newspaper
At the airport in the rain
He did crossword puzzles even when it was raining at the airport
Wouldn't ever let his governers
He never let his bosses call him Billy
Call him 'Billy', he was proud
He was proud of his name and didn't like to be called by a nickname
Personal reasons make a difference
He had personal reasons for not wanting to be called Billy
His last boss was allowed
His last boss respected his wishes and called him by his real name
Perhaps he had to keep his distance
Maybe he had to keep his distance from his bosses for some reason
Made a racket when he rowed
He made a lot of noise when he argued with someone (could be his bosses)
My old man was fairly handsome
My dad was quite good-looking
He smoked too many cigs
He smoked too many cigarettes
Lived in one room in Victoria
He lived in a small room in Victoria, London
He was tidy in his digs
He kept his small room clean and tidy
Had to have an operation
He had to have surgery
When his ulcer got too big
When his ulcer became very painful and big
Seven years went out the window
We lost touch for seven years
We met as one to one
We finally met again one-to-one
Died before we'd done much talking
He passed away before we could have a proper conversation
Relations had begun
We had just started getting to know each other again
All the while we thought about each other
Both of us were thinking about each other
All the best, mate, from your son
I wish you all the best, dad, from your son
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: IAN ROBINS DURY, STEPHEN LEWIS NUGENT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@9jerrymane11
My old man wore three piece whistles
He was never home for long
Drove a bus for London Transport
He knew where he belonged
Number 18 down to Euston
Double decker move along
Double decker move along
My old man
Later on he drove a Roller
Chauffeuring for foreign men
Dropped his aitches on occasion
Said, "Cor blimey!" now and then
Did the crossword in the Standard
At the airport in the rain
At the airport in the rain
My old man
Wouldn't ever let his governers
Call him 'Billy', he was proud
Personal reasons make a difference
His last boss was allowed
Perhaps he had to keep his distance
Made a racket when he rowed
Made a racket when he rowed
My old man
My old man
My old man was fairly handsome
He smoked too many cigs
Lived in one room in Victoria
He was tidy in his digs
Had to have an operation
When his ulcer got too big
When his ulcer got too big
My old man
My old man
Seven years went out the window
We met as one to one
Died before we'd done much talking
Relations had begun
All the while we thought about each other
All the best, mate, from your son
All the best, mate, from your son
My old man
My old man
@robjones2408
The best tribute to a father to be recorded.
"Died before we'd done much talking/Relations had begun."'
A brilliant heartfelt lyric. Ian Dury was a class act.
@Stiffd1
Yeh you’ve nailed it. My old man was called Bill. Nevaaar Billeee.
@kayvancooten4657
The musicianship is second to none. One of few albums where i enjoy every track back to back. ❤️🎶
@Maryonpark
You can hear real emotion in his voice, this is a really personal song from Ian to his dad.
@toejoe9105
Agreed. One of my favorite songs on the album. Ian was the bomb. I miss him greatly.
@ParanoiDave
Not just the sincerity of the lyrics - the great backing music of the Blockheads
@jerrystohner712
Just one of Ian's Brilliant songs..... backed with the Blockheads so very fine musicians
@Stiffd1
This. And the video for I wanna be Strreert! I’mCharlie..how yer deein? Champion!
@9jerrymane11
My old man wore three piece whistles
He was never home for long
Drove a bus for London Transport
He knew where he belonged
Number 18 down to Euston
Double decker move along
Double decker move along
My old man
Later on he drove a Roller
Chauffeuring for foreign men
Dropped his aitches on occasion
Said, "Cor blimey!" now and then
Did the crossword in the Standard
At the airport in the rain
At the airport in the rain
My old man
Wouldn't ever let his governers
Call him 'Billy', he was proud
Personal reasons make a difference
His last boss was allowed
Perhaps he had to keep his distance
Made a racket when he rowed
Made a racket when he rowed
My old man
My old man
My old man was fairly handsome
He smoked too many cigs
Lived in one room in Victoria
He was tidy in his digs
Had to have an operation
When his ulcer got too big
When his ulcer got too big
My old man
My old man
Seven years went out the window
We met as one to one
Died before we'd done much talking
Relations had begun
All the while we thought about each other
All the best, mate, from your son
All the best, mate, from your son
My old man
My old man
@OldJoeClarke
Gotta be one of his best songs, very emotional.