Your Mama Don't Dance
Kenny Loggins Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't
Rock and roll
Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't
Rock and roll
But when evening comes around and it's time to
Hit the town
Where do you go, you gotta rock it
The old folks say that ya gotta end your date
By ten
But if you're out on a date don't you
Bring her home late 'cause it's a sin
You know there's no excuse
You know you're gonna lose you never win
I'll say it again

And it's all because your mama don't dance
And your daddy don't rock and roll
Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't
Rock and roll
When evenin' rolls around and it's time to
Hit the town
Where do you go, to rock it, rock it

(lead)
Everyone gather round let me tell you all
About it
You see I pulled into a drive-in and
I found a place to park
We hopped into the backseat where it's
Always nice and dark
I'm just about to move thinking to myself Mmm
Bret this is a breeze
Then there's a light in my eye and a guy says
Out of the car long hair
Oowee, you're coming with me
Said the local police

And it's all because your mama don't dance
And your daddy don't rock and roll
Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't
Rock and roll
When evenin' rolls around and it's time to
Hit the town
Where do you go, play me a little C.C.

Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't
Rock and roll
Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't
Rock and roll
They just ain't cool and they ain't about to start
Your mama don't dance and you daddy don't rock

Your mama don't dance, no
She just don't dance, no




You mama don't dance
And you daddy don't rock and roll, oww no

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of the song Your Mama Don't Dance by Kenny Loggins talks about the generational gap and how young people enjoy rock and roll music, which older generations may not appreciate. The song's chorus repeats the line "Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't rock and roll," which means that the parents of the younger generation do not enjoy or appreciate this type of music. However, despite that, young people still enjoy rock and roll music and want to dance to it. The song is describing how young people need to hide their love of rock and roll from the older generation because they do not approve of the music.


The song's first two stanzas talk about how young people like to go out and have fun when the evening comes but are restricted by curfews set by the older generation. The songwriter is telling young people that they must follow the older generation's rules, or they will get caught and will be punished. The last stanza is a story about how the songwriter gets caught by the police while parked in a car with a girl, trying to make out. The police officer caught them and took them away, which emphasizes the need for young people to hide their activities from law enforcement.


Line by Line Meaning

Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't Rock and roll
Your parents are not interested in dancing or rock and roll music.


But when evening comes around and it's time to Hit the town Where do you go, you gotta rock it
When it's time to party, you have to find a place to dance and rock out.


The old folks say that ya gotta end your date By ten But if you're out on a date don't you Bring her home late 'cause it's a sin You know there's no excuse You know you're gonna lose you never win I'll say it again
Traditional people believe that you must end your date by 10 pm. If you stay out late with your date, you'll face the consequences of your actions.


And it's all because your mama don't dance And your daddy don't rock and roll
Your parents' disinterest in dancing and rock music is the reason for your party problems.


Everyone gather round let me tell you all About it You see I pulled into a drive-in and I found a place to park We hopped into the backseat where it's Always nice and dark I'm just about to move thinking to myself Mmm Bret this is a breeze Then there's a light in my eye and a guy says Out of the car long hair Oowee, you're coming with me Said the local police
The artist describes being in a drive-in, where he was soon caught by the police while on a date.


Where do you go, play me a little C.C.
Where do you party at? Play some music by C.C.


Your mama don't dance and your daddy don't Rock and roll They just ain't cool and they ain't about to start
Your parents will not start liking rock and roll or dance because it's just not their thing.


Your mama don't dance, no She just don't dance, no You mama don't dance And you daddy don't rock and roll, oww no
Simply put, your parents won't dance or rock and roll to this tune.




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Jim Messina, Kenneth Clark Loggins

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

Genre not found
Artist not found
Album not found
Song not found
Comments from YouTube:

Glynis Mcgourlick

My favourite Kenny Logins song, especially with Howard Levy on harmonica. .... he's fantastic. Great during lock down

Blake Whittington

Saw him with Bela Fleck dude is amazing like a force of nature on harp n piano

rideoffintothesunset

Still one of the greatest tracks from one of the greatest live recordings of all time.

Marcel van Lierop

Amen!

Anton Farmer

Utterly brilliant, stunning band 🎶🎶🎶

Gary Gray

Kids would listen to this today and say what!?? My grandmother danced and rocked and rolled 😆

Linda Huff

Saw Kenny in the early 80's. Great performer always.

sj tab

Great players, especially harmonia and drums. Kenny and the whole band are jammin’

Gerald Aguilar M.

This is just the BEST blues harmonica solo... EVEEERRR!!!!!!

Glentegrity _

Howard Levy (from Bela Fleck & The Fleckstones) puttin' it down!

More Comments

More Versions