A much-loved musical spectacle in his native Newcastle for many years now, Dawson is a skewed troubadour who sings and plays guitar with a rare intensity and a very singular style. Dawson’s music is a collision of opposites, his hoarsely cracking voice suddenly rising to a magical soar that’s been compared to Tim Buckley, John Martyn and Richard Youngs, while his battered acoustic guitar veers from stumble to sublime in a way that can recall Sir Richard Bishop or Captain Beefheart, add this to his snaring way with words and Dawson’s got you pinned.
Jogging
Richard Dawson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To the point I find it hard to leave the flat
The days drain away, scouring eBay
Or looking on Zoopla at houses where I'll never live
I know I must be paranoid
Everytime I get the bus
I feel the many pairs of eyes
I was offered and took voluntary redundancy
From my role as counsellor at St. Cecilia's Secondary School
So I went back freelance as a graphic designer
Business is okay but I miss working with the young folk
I know I must be paranoid
When I pick up the groceries
One of the girls who works the check-out
Tuts under her breath and it destroys me for a week
Dr. Shen prescribed me beta-blockers
And recommended taking daily exercise
So I've started jogging
To my own great surprise
Hundreds of miles going nowhere
I know I must be paranoid
This morning in memorial park
I thought I caught a busker
Sneak an ugly word into "Wonderwall"
As I went by
Jogging, jogging, I'm jogging, jogging
Jogging, jogging, jogging, jogging
Jogging, jogging, I'm jogging, jogging
Jogging
There's a Kurdish family on the ground floor
Had a brick put through their kitchen window
The police know who did this, still they do nothing
It's lonely up here in Middle-England
I know I must be paranoid
I feel the atmosphere
'Round here is growing nastier
People don't smile anymore
There's no such thing as a quick-fix
But jogging has provided me
A base on which to mould my time
And let my worries go awhile
I know I must be paranoid
But I feel the atmosphere
'Round here is growing nastier
People don't care anymore
Would you like to sponsor me
For running the London Marathon?
Though it's really daunting
We're aiming to raise a thousand Pounds
For the British Red Cross
The Richard Dawson song "Jogging" is a poignant narration of a person struggling with anxiety, paranoia, and neurosis. The song begins by describing the singer's battle with anxiety, which impedes their ability to leave their home, pushing them to browse through online shopping portals or real estate websites, searching for houses they will never buy. The lyrics convey a sense of isolation and detachment from society, with the singer viewing every pair of eyes on the bus as a piercing gaze, which only exacerbates their condition.
The song also tells the story of the singer's employment struggles. They have quit their job as a counselor and switched back to freelance work as a graphic designer, even though they miss working with young people. The sense of loneliness deepens as the song continues, with the singer's personal encounters becoming increasingly sour, including a rude checkout girl and witnessing a busker insult Oasis' "Wonderwall," fueling their suspicion and paranoia.
The singer's condition prompts them to visit Dr. Shen, who prescribes beta-blockers to manage their anxiety and reminds them to take up exercise. The singer begins jogging every day, which helps to release their stress and anxiety to a degree, as they manage to run hundreds of miles. The song concludes with the singer aspiring to participate in the London Marathon and raise money for the British Red Cross.
Line by Line Meaning
Recently I've been struggling with anxiety
Lately, I have been facing anxiety that has been troubling me
To the point I find it hard to leave the flat
It has become so intense that it has made it difficult for me to even step outside my home
The days drain away, scouring eBay
To pass time, I spend hours browsing through eBay
Or looking on Zoopla at houses where I'll never live
I also check out the properties on Zoopla, but I know I will never be able to live in such houses
I know I must be paranoid
I am aware that my thoughts may not be rational, and there may be some paranoia involved
Everytime I get the bus
Whenever I am on the bus
I feel the many pairs of eyes
I sense multiple gazes
Weighing on my person surreptitiously
Examining my being clandestinely
I was offered and took voluntary redundancy
I took up the option of voluntary redundancy when it was presented to me
From my role as counsellor at St. Cecilia's Secondary School
I left my job as a counselor at St. Cecilia's Secondary School
So I went back freelance as a graphic designer
As a result, I decided to work as a freelancer graphic designer again
Business is okay but I miss working with the young folk
Although my business is satisfactory, I miss the good old days of working with young people
When I pick up the groceries
While I am at the supermarket
One of the girls who works the check-out
One of the girls at the checkout counter
Tuts under her breath and it destroys me for a week
Sighs contemptuously under her breath and it hurts my feelings for an entire week
Dr. Shen prescribed me beta-blockers
Dr. Shen prescribed me beta-blockers for my condition
And recommended taking daily exercise
Dr. Shen also recommended that I should exercise every day
So I've started jogging
As a result, I have started jogging
To my own great surprise
Much to my amazement
Hundreds of miles going nowhere
I run hundreds of miles, but it seems as if I am not going anywhere
This morning in memorial park
Just this morning, while I was at the Memorial Park
I thought I caught a busker
I felt like I heard a busker
Sneak an ugly word into "Wonderwall"
Squeeze in an unpleasant term into the song "Wonderwall"
As I went by
As I was passing by
Jogging, jogging, I'm jogging, jogging
Running, Running, I am running, running
There's a Kurdish family on the ground floor
The people on the ground floor belong to the Kurdish community
Had a brick put through their kitchen window
Their kitchen window was broken when someone threw a brick at it
The police know who did this, still they do nothing
Although the police are aware of the culprit, they are unable to take any legal actions
It's lonely up here in Middle-England
Living here in Middle-England is quite depressing and often times lonely
I feel the atmosphere
I sense the general vibe
'Round here is growing nastier
It is getting worse as time progresses
People don't smile anymore
Not many people smile these days
There's no such thing as a quick-fix
There is no easy solution to this problem
But jogging has provided me
However, since I have started running,
A base on which to mould my time
It has given me a structure to work from
And let my worries go awhile
And it has allowed me to alleviate some of my concerns
Would you like to sponsor me
Would you be interested in sponsoring me?
For running the London Marathon?
For when I run the London Marathon?
Though it's really daunting
It is intimidating for me
We're aiming to raise a thousand Pounds
However, we are hoping to collect one thousand Pounds
For the British Red Cross
To donate to the British Red Cross
Writer(s): Richard Michael Dawson
Contributed by Jordan P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Social Repose
what an amazing tune
Stee
omg this person has a 1M+ sub channel.... i knew I'd heard the name from somewhere - like onision's channel or something
Jacob Russell
It's amazing how melodic he's able to make some of these lyrics. They don't jump out at me as being especially poetic or well metered.. but with Richard's vocal stylings he's able to milk melody out of them that you wouldn't think was there. He forces the common place to be artistic, the awkward to be melodic. Very interested to hear the new album.
hexonatapeloop
@shadshowadradna we don’t know, and could interpret it a million ways, and the best stuff is like that
shadshowadradna
I'm not sure most people commenting have understood this song, unless they're being as ironic as he is. I'd say the name of the school and his former position there are key to what's going on.
Georgia J 🌹
@fishfullness immediately I like your attitude but he is being ironic. Adding unnecessary details is not him being earnest, he is being humorous.👍 x
jamie collins
@[redacted] Sounds just like Jonathan's voice doesn't it
fishfullness
That line where he fits the full name of the school in is so satisfying :)
maxxx0rbison
When this album came out I had it in regular rotation for about a month. Of course I put it on the shelf after a bit and then quarantine happened. One day at the beginning of May, after having been laid off from what should have been the start of my carrier and cooped up in my apt since late March, I was cleaning and thought "Oh yeah, this seems like a relevant album for the moment." Cut to the last verse of this song and I'm crumpled on the kitchen floor sobbing. I didn't listen to the album again for the rest of the year because it was just too much. Now it's new years day, I'm still unemployed and locked in my apartment and three days ago my covid test came back positive. I'm sad and I'm angry but the worst is that most of the time I just feel numb to it all, because letting myself succumb to the reality of the situation would paralyze me. I listened to this song again today and I'm thankful to have it as a release. Here's to fully recovering and being able to ride my bicycle again once the weather improves. Happy New Year
maxxx0rbison
@Brian CP Yeah, I'm doing better now. Thank you.