Armatrading has mixed eclectic musical styles over decades of recording and performing. She has had several British hit singles, the biggest of which were "Love & Affection", "Me Myself I", and "Drop the Pilot". Her music is generally pop, with forays into rock, folk, jazz, and even reggae. Her popularity is primarily as an album artist.
She gained a new audience following her writing and performing "The Flight of the Wild Geese", which was used during the opening and end titles for the 1978 film The Wild Geese.
Armatrading first performed in a concert at Birmingham University for her brother at the age of about 16 (circa 1966). She only knew her own songs, but her brother asked her to perform something that would be familiar to the audience; she chose "The Sound of Silence".[9] She then performed her own songs around the local area with a friend from school, and played bass and rhythm guitar at local clubs.
Watch Your Step
Joan Armatrading Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And he phones her every night
Because she's his fancy
She's bound to love him too
And he's proved his feelings
He gives her all she needs
This boy can't understand
He won't whisper words of love
He thinks it's alright
Love can come later
But woman
Love is all she needs
He will never get his way
With ease
He has to woo her properly
Or he'll never win her heart
Man likes to own
A woman shares
Man has his needs
A woman cares
Never means to make her cry
Oh he wants this girl so bad
The boy can't understand
He thinks it's alright
Love can come later
But woman
Love is all she needs
He will never get his way
With ease
He has to woo her properly
Or he'll never win her heart
The lyrics of Joan Armatrading's song Watch Your Step is the story of a boy who is madly in love with a girl known to be his fancy. He brings her flowers every day, and he phones her every night, showing that he has proved his feelings and gives her everything she needs. However, the boy fails to understand the fact that love is all the girl needs. Despite having her in his arms, he doesn't whisper words of love and thinks it's alright as love can come later.
The girl's emotions are never understood by the boy who wants her so bad, and he never means to make her cry, but he needs to woo her properly if he wants to win her heart. The song tells the tale of how men like to own things, but a woman can't be owned like a property; hence, she shares. Man has his needs, but a woman cares. Therefore, love is all that she needs, and the boy should not take her for granted, thinking love can come later.
Overall, Watch Your Step is a compelling story of a boy's love for a girl who he fails to understand. The girl needs love, but the boy thinks love can come later. The song speaks to the audience and tells them that it is essential to recognize and understand the underlying emotions in a relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
Brings her flowers every day
He brings her flowers every day to show his affection for her.
And he phones her every night
He calls her every night to let her know that he's thinking of her.
Because she's his fancy
He likes her a lot and wants to be with her.
She's bound to love him too
He believes that because he loves her, she should love him back.
And he's proved his feelings
He has shown her that he cares about her and wants to be with her.
He gives her all she needs
He does everything he can to make her happy and fulfill her needs.
This boy can't understand
He doesn't understand why she doesn't love him back.
Though he holds her in his arms
Even though he's physically close to her, he still feels emotionally distant from her.
He won't whisper words of love
He doesn't feel comfortable expressing his feelings of love to her.
He thinks it's alright
He believes that not expressing his love is acceptable.
Love can come later
He thinks that love can develop over time and doesn't need to be rushed.
But woman
However, she feels differently.
Love is all she needs
She wants him to express his love for her and show her affection.
He will never get his way
His attitude towards love will never get him what he wants.
With ease
He won't be able to win her heart easily.
He has to woo her properly
He needs to make an effort to show his love for her and make her feel special.
Or he'll never win her heart
If he doesn't change his approach to love and show her affection, she won't fall in love with him.
Man likes to own
Men like to feel in control and own the person they are with.
A woman shares
Women like to share their feelings and connect emotionally with their partner.
Man has his needs
Men have physical needs that they want to fulfill.
A woman cares
Women want to feel loved and cared for by their partner.
Never means to make her cry
He doesn't want to hurt her or make her cry.
Oh he wants this girl so bad
He really wants to be with her and loves her.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: JOAN ANITA BARBARA ARMATRADING
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind