Early career:
Both Datchler and Nocito were born into musical families. Datchler's father, Fred, was a member of two chart-topping bands from the 1950s. The Stargazers had the distinction of being the first British band to reach No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart. As part of the Polkadots, Fred Datchler sang backing vocals for The Beatles, Frank Sinatra, and Petula Clark. Nocito hails from an American family based in Europe with the United States armed forces. His mother was a singer in a close-harmony group called The Cactus Kids, performing for troops throughout Northern Europe.
Having been a singer, guitarist, and keyboard player in numerous bands as a teenager, Datchler released his first single on the London independent record label, Bluebird Records at the age of 17, backed by members of reggae band Aswad. He went on to work with Rusty Egan of Visage, fusing electronic music with soul, and performed often on the London club scene. He was subsequently signed to Warner Brothers Music as a songwriter and moved to Los Angeles.
Nocito was a guitarist in school bands, having grown up alongside friend and fellow record producer Phil Thornalley, as well as members of Katrina and the Waves. He became a recording engineer and worked with Pink Floyd, The Police, The Cure, Duran Duran, and the Thompson Twins.
The two met in 1982 at RAK Studios in London. Datchler had just become the lead singer in the band Hot Club, alongside the third and final original JHJ member Calvin Hayes. The line-up also included bass player Glen Matlock and guitarist James Stevenson. In 1983, Hot Club released a single on RAK Records and performed at London's Marquee Club, a performance that impressed RAK head (and Hayes' father), Mickie Most. He decided to sign Datchler to the label as a solo artist. It was Most who suggested that Datchler works with Nocito, who was an engineer at RAK Studios at the time. Over the next four years, the two worked together on Datchler's solo recordings. Most also guided Datchler, producing several of his recordings in the mid-1980s.
Original tenure:
In April 1986, Datchler, Nocito, and Hayes released the first Johnny Hates Jazz single, "Me and My Foolish Heart", on RAK Records. It was not a commercial success, but gained substantial airplay and was Sounds magazine's record of the week.
Datchler began writing new songs, which included "Shattered Dreams." JHJ then performed a showcase at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club and was subsequently signed to Virgin Records. "Shattered Dreams" was released in March 1987 and became a top-five hit in the UK throughout mainland Europe and Asia, and reached No. 2 in Japan. Three other worldwide hits, “I Don't Want to Be a Hero,“ ”Turn Back the Clock (featuring Kim Wilde on backing vocals), and “Heart of Gold” followed it. In 1988, "Shattered Dreams" reached No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100, No. 1 on the US Adult Contemporary chart, and climbed to No. 4 in Canada. That same year, their album, Turn Back the Clock, entered the UK Albums Chart at No. 1, selling four million copies.
At the end of 1987, JHJ made two music videos with director David Fincher. The videos were for the US releases of "Shattered Dreams" and "Heart of Gold." Datchler left the band at the end of 1988.
Hayes and Nocito continued the band and replaced Datchler with their friend Phil Thornalley, a Grammy Award-nominated engineer and record producer and a former bass player for The Cure. The new line-up released a second album, Tall Stories, in 1991. However, the album was unsuccessful and the band dissolved the next year.
Post-break-up:
Datchler moved to Amsterdam at the end of the 1980s and focused on his solo work, recording the albums Raindance and Fishing for Souls. Returning to the UK, he based himself at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios near Bath throughout the 1990s. In 2000, he moved to the US and created a solar-powered home and studio, where he recorded much of his most recent album, Tomorrow. Throughout this time, he studied the philosophy of indigenous people and became environmentally active. In 2008, he received a GreenTec Award (formerly the Clean Tech Media Awards) in Berlin.
Following the dissolution of Johnny Hates Jazz, Nocito based himself in Cambridge, England, and produced the Katrina and the Waves single "Love Shine a Light," winner of the 1997 Eurovision Song Contest and a top-10 hit throughout Europe. He also produced and wrote for Hepburn, Gina G, and Orson, and continued to work extensively with Katrina and the Waves.
New era:
Datchler and Nocito met again in 2009 after Datchler wrote a song called "Magnetized," which he felt would be ideal for Johnny Hates Jazz. Soon after, they decided to record a new album. Datchler moved back to the UK and wrote the rest of the songs for the project. At the same time, the original line-up of Datchler, Nocito, and Hayes performed live at various international festivals. However, after several shows in 2010, Hayes left the band before the recording of the new album commenced.
That same year, Datchler received a BMI award for "Shattered Dreams" in recognition of receiving over 3.2 million broadcast performances of the song in the US alone.
The subsequent album was titled Magnetized. Recording spanned much of 2011 and 2012 and took place at Real World Studios near Bath, Hamp Sound near Cambridge, and Angel Recording Studios in London. It featured Datchler as songwriter, vocalist, and keyboard player, and Nocito as producer and engineer. There were also string arrangements and additional keyboards from The Art of Noise's Anne Dudley, who had arranged the strings on "Turn Back The Clock." Other contributors included drummer Alex Reeves, guitarists David Rhodes, and Marcus Bonfanti, synthesizer player Pete Watson, and mix engineer Stephen W. Tayler.
The first single, "Magnetized," was released in the UK on 28 April 2013, and received widespread airplay, being A-listed for several weeks on BBC Radio 2. It was also released in Germany and achieved similar success on the radio there. The album was subsequently released on 5 May in the UK. However, Datchler collapsed in London shortly after this time and was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. As a result, all promotions came to halt. It was not until the following year that he made a full recovery, but by that time, the album had lost momentum, and the band decided to focus on live work instead.
Since then, they have performed extensively in the UK, as well as in Germany and Asia. In 2017, they released a remixed version of "Magnetized" in China, as well as performed live. Subsequently, they began writing and recording material for a new album. Also, Datchler has co-written eight songs with Mike Rutherford for the Mike + the Mechanics album, Let Me Fly.
As of 2020, the band released a new single called "Spirit Of Love." This new single was released on 29 May 2020 and has a few inspirations and musical roots from the 1970s during which Datchler and Nocito grew up. Also on 29 May, Wide Awake, a new album was announced in a trailer and that it would be released on 14 August 2020. This album has spent over "two years in the making," and that it contains "... a mixture of soulful melodies, uplifting lyrics, and positive energy that is present from start to finish." On 4 June 2020, a music video was released that featured fan pictures and videos of what they loved most and the band members walking around and visiting different spots in Japan.
I Don
Johnny Hates Jazz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With a gun in my hand
But I won't pull the trigger
Our destiny is here
Beneath the red, white and blue
So lead me to the slaughter
Now don't be afraid
For the ultimate in sacrifice
It's an old-fashioned story
Of hope and of glory
A ticket for taking a life
[Chorus:]
I, I don't want to be a hero
I don't want to die for you
I don't want to be a hero
Oh send me off to war
In a far away land
I never knew existed
Subject me to the truth
To the horror and pain
Until my mind is twisted
And what if I fail
Will you put me in jail
For a murder I will not commit?
'Cause you don't understand
Till there's blood on your hands
That it's time to forget and forgive
[Chorus]
And those who return
Come back only to learn
That they're hated by those who they love
'Cause you don't understand
Till there's blood on your hands
That it's time to forget and forgive
[Chorus]
The lyrics to Johnny Hates Jazz's song "I Don't Want To Be a Hero" deal with the topic of war and the pressures of society to conform to traditional notions of masculinity and heroism. The song begins with the singer being willingly sent off to war with a gun in his hand, but stating that he won't pull the trigger. Instead, he questions the glory and sacrifice associated with war, as he is being asked to take a life in the name of an old-fashioned story of hope and glory.
The chorus repeats the titular refrain of not wanting to be a hero and not wanting to die for others. The second verse explores the psychological toll of war, with the singer being subject to the truth, horror, and pain of a foreign land until his mind is twisted. He also questions the morality of being punished for not committing murder and highlights the lack of understanding from those who have not experienced the blood on their hands.
The song's concluding verses touch upon the sentiments of those who return from the war, their alienation from loved ones, and the importance of forgiveness in moving forward. Overall, "I Don't Want To Be a Hero" is a powerful commentary on the human cost of war and the societal pressures placed on individuals to conform to traditional notions of heroism.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, send me off to war
The singer is willing to be sent to war.
With a gun in my hand
The singer is expected to carry a weapon while at war.
But I won't pull the trigger
The singer refuses to kill anyone even though he is asked to do so.
Our destiny is here
The artist wants to stay where he belongs instead of going to war.
Beneath the red, white and blue
The artist is referring to the American flag.
So lead me to the slaughter
The singer is comparing war to a slaughter since it involves killing.
Now don't be afraid
The singer is trying to encourage people to join the war effort.
Come and join the parade
The artist is inviting people to support the war effort.
For the ultimate in sacrifice
The artist is referring to dying in the war as the ultimate sacrifice.
It's an old-fashioned story
The artist believes the concept of war and sacrifice is outdated.
Of hope and of glory
The singer is saying that going to war is often glorified as an honorable thing to do.
A ticket for taking a life
The artist is saying that going to war is like being given a ticket that permits you to take someone else's life.
I, I don't want to be a hero
The singer does not want to become a hero by dying in the war.
I don't want to die for you
The singer does not want to die for the cause of the war.
I don't want to be a hero
The singer is repeating that he does not want to be considered a hero for going to war.
Oh send me off to war
The artist is repeating the idea of being willing to go to war.
In a far away land
The artist is referring to being sent to a foreign country to fight the war.
I never knew existed
The singer is saying that he's never heard of the place he's being sent to before.
Subject me to the truth
The singer is saying that going to war will expose him to the harsh truth about it.
To the horror and pain
The artist is referring to the emotional and physical pain of war.
Until my mind is twisted
The artist is saying that war has the potential to mentally affect someone's mind.
And what if I fail
The artist is concerned about the consequences of not meeting the expectations of war.
Will you put me in jail
The singer is asking if he will be punished for not following the orders of war.
For a murder I will not commit?
The artist is saying that he will not kill someone, and therefore will not commit murder.
'Cause you don't understand
The singer is telling others that they do not understand the true horrors of war.
Till there's blood on your hands
The singer is saying that people won't understand the consequences of war until they have actually experienced it firsthand.
That it's time to forget and forgive
The singer is saying that it's time to move on from war and forgive those who were involved.
And those who return
The artist is referring to soldiers who return from war.
Come back only to learn
The artist is saying that soldiers return home only to realize that they are not accepted by their loved ones.
That they're hated by those who they love
The singer is saying that soldiers feel rejected by friends and family when they come back from war.
'Cause you don't understand
The singer repeats that people cannot understand the difficulties of war unless they have experienced it personally.
Till there's blood on your hands
The artist repeats that people won't understand the true consequences of war until they have experienced it themselves.
That it's time to forget and forgive
The artist repeats this line, emphasizing the importance of moving on from war and showing forgiveness.
I, I don't want to be a hero
The artist repeats the statement about not wanting to be considered a hero for going to war.
I don't want to die for you
The singer repeats his belief that he should not have to die for the cause of war.
I don't want to be a hero
The artist repeats that he does not want to be glorified for participating in war.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: CLARK DATCHLER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@lucanick1974
Oh, send me off to war
With a gun in my hand
But I won't pull the trigger
Our destiny is here
Beneath the red, white and blue
So lead me to the slaughter
Now don't be afraid
Come and join the parade
For the ultimate in sacrifice
It's an old-fashioned story
Of hope and of glory
A ticket for taking a life
I, I don't want to be a hero
I don't want to die for you
I don't want to be a hero
Oh send me off to war
In a far away land
I never knew existed
Subject me to the truth
To the horror and pain
Until my mind is twisted
And what if I fail
Will you put me in jail
For a murder I will not commit?
'Cause you don't understand
Till there's blood on your hands
That it's time to forget and forgive
I, I don't want to be a hero
I don't want to die for you
I don't want to be a hero
And those who return
Come back only to learn
That they're hated by those who they love
'cos you're not satisfied
Till the thousand will die
And your anger is paid for in blood
I, I don't want to be a hero
I don't want to die for you
I don't want to be a hero
@Dead-Ball-Situation
These guys created some beautiful songs and this was one of them. I just wish we had this back again today. I miss the 80's
@terryburton971
You have cds and YouTube i love and live in the 80s
@fermincastro7094
Me too...
@samgreak352
Look up fazzio death race or lost in thoughts both good songs FM attack which are bands race or darkwave/ synthwave
@canadiensuperman6496
nothing beats the eighties
@marcomaldotti4056
@@fermincastro7094 ⁰p0
@peterchambers2553
I just wish Johnny Hates Jazz had done more albums. Brilliant pop music with intelligent lyrics, great singing and musicianship.
@Vasu979
1980s was the best decade for music! Hands down
@kkwan5208
Always wonder why 80’s this decade can generate such a huge number of fabulous music
@derpysquid-8164
This era still cold war I belive that in turn created fun music to lighten mood, upbeat songs like this with serious lyrics, and good slower songs. In a way fear of war brought out the artists and passion.