… Read Full Bio ↴Ian Dury (1942-2000) was an English singer, songwriter, and bandleader.
Born on 12th May 1942, he is best known as founder and lead singer of the British band Ian Dury and the Blockheads, though he began his musical career in pub-rock act Kilburn & the High Roads. He wrote many famous songs including "Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick", "What a Waste", and "Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll". He died on 27th March 2000.
At the age of seven, Dury contracted polio; very likely, he believed, from a swimming pool at Southend on Sea during the 1949 polio epidemic. After six weeks in a full plaster cast in Truro hospital, he was moved to Black Notley Hospital, Braintree, Essex, where he spent a year and a half before going to Chailey Heritage Craft School, East Sussex, in 1951. Chailey was a school and hospital for disabled children, and believed in toughening them up, contributing to the observant and determined person Dury became.
Quick Quick Slow
Ian Dury Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
Get there before you go
Climbing upon my toes
No more fandango
Give me a tango
So much simp�tico
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
The one with the most appeal
Is played with a dirty feel
Similar are difficile
To hang out your balance, wheel
Tougher than jangle
Give me the tangle
Rock me back on my heels
Bend your body down low
Give me the quick quick slow
Lay it down far below
Let's get on with the show
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow
Give me the quick quick slow...
The song "Quick Quick Slow" by Ian Dury is a playful and rhythmically charged love song that calls out for a particular way of dancing in its chorus. The repeated lines "Give me the quick quick slow" not only conjure up the specific steps of Quickstep, a lively ballroom dance, but they also serve as a metaphor for the ups and downs of a romantic relationship. Through the lyrics, Dury is asking his lover to dance this dance with him- one that's fast, slow, and unpredictable, much like the journey of love.
In the verses, Dury paints a picture of the couple's struggle to find their footing in the dance of love. "Get there before you go" suggests the urgency to keep up with the changes in the relationship and not let it slip away. "Climbing upon my toes" symbolizes the discomfort and unnerving feeling of the dizzying heights of love. "No more fandango, give me a tango" and "tougher than jangle, give me the tangle" indicate the desire for a more steady and complex form of dancing that would require more skill and patience, much like a relationship that requires work and commitment.
The song's final verse urges the couple to lay down their guard and surrender to the passion and excitement of the dance of love. "Bend your body down low, Give me the quick quick slow, Lay it down far below, Let's get on with the show" suggests the need for vulnerability, trust, and a willingness to take risks in a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Give me the quick quick slow
The singer wants a dance that alternates between quick and slow steps.
Get there before you go
The singer wants to be in the right position before starting to dance.
Climbing upon my toes
The singer wants to be lifted by their dancing partner.
Gives me the vertigo
The lifting motion makes the artist feel dizzy and disoriented.
No more fandango
The artist doesn't want to dance a fast, elaborate Spanish dance.
Give me a tango
The singer wants to dance a slower, more intense Argentine tango.
So much simp�tico
The singer finds the tango charming and full of style.
The one with the most appeal
The artist is looking for the most attractive dance partner.
Is played with a dirty feel
The artist wants their dance partner to be sensual and passionate.
Similar are difficile
Other dances are more challenging to master than the one the artist wants.
To hang out your balance, wheel
Dancing a difficult dance can make you lose your balance and fall.
Tougher than jangle
These difficult dances are harder to dance than noisy, lively dances like the jangle.
Give me the tangle
The singer wants a dance that is intricate and challenging, like a tangled knot.
Rock me back on my heels
The singer wants their dance partner to make them move backwards using their heels.
Bend your body down low
The singer wants their dance partner to lean down towards the ground.
Lay it down far below
The artist wants their dance partner to move their body down low to the floor.
Let's get on with the show
The artist wants to start dancing right away.
Contributed by Carter E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.