Stewart's music career began in 1962 when he took up busking with a harmonica. In 1963, he joined The Dimensions as a harmonica player and vocalist. In 1964, Stewart joined Long John Baldry and the All Stars before moving to the Jeff Beck Group in 1967. Joining Faces in 1969, he also maintained a solo career releasing his debut album that year. Stewart's early albums were a fusion of rock, folk music, soul music, and R&B. His third album, 1971's Every Picture Tells a Story, was his breakthrough, topping the charts in the UK, US, Canada and Australia, as did its ballad "Maggie May". His 1972 follow-up album, Never a Dull Moment, also reached number one in the UK and Australia, while going top three in the US and Canada. Its single, "You Wear It Well", topped the chart in the UK and was a moderate hit elsewhere.
After Stewart had a handful more UK top ten hits, the Faces broke up in 1975. Stewart's next few hit singles were ballads with "Sailing", off the 1975 UK and Australian number-one album, Atlantic Crossing, becoming a hit in the UK and the Netherlands (number one), Germany (number four) and other countries, but barely charting in North America. A Night on the Town (1976), his fifth straight chart-topper in the UK, began a three-album run of going number one or top three in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia with each release. That album's "Tonight's the Night (Gonna Be Alright)" spent almost two months at number one in the US and Canada, and made the top five in other countries. Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977) contained the hit "You're in My Heart (The Final Acclaim)" as well as the rocker "Hot Legs". Blondes Have More Fun (1978) and its disco-tinged "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" both went to number one in Canada, Australia and the US, with "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy" also hitting number one in the UK and the top ten in other countries. Stewart's albums regularly hit the upper rungs of the charts in the Netherlands throughout the 70s and in Sweden from 1975 onward.
After a disco and new wave period in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Stewart's music turned to a soft rock/middle-of-the-road style, with most of his albums reaching the top ten in the UK, Germany and Sweden, but faring less well in the US. The single "Rhythm of My Heart" was a top five hit in the UK, US and other countries, with its source album, 1991's Vagabond Heart, becoming, at number ten in the US and number two in the UK, his highest-charting album in a decade. In 1993, he collaborated with Bryan Adams and Sting on the power ballad "All for Love", which went to number one in many countries. In the early 2000s, he released a series of successful albums interpreting the Great American Songbook.
In 2008, Billboard magazine ranked him the 17th most successful artist on the "Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists". A Grammy and Brit Award recipient, he was voted at No. 33 in Q Magazine's list of the Top 100 Greatest Singers of all time. As a solo artist, Stewart was inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and he was inducted a second time into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 as a member of Faces.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Stewart
Studio albums
An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down (1969)
Gasoline Alley (1970)
Every Picture Tells a Story (1971)
Never a Dull Moment (1972)
Smiler (1974)
Atlantic Crossing (1975)
A Night on the Town (1976)
Foot Loose & Fancy Free (1977)
Blondes Have More Fun (1978)
Foolish Behaviour (1980)
Tonight I'm Yours (1981)
Body Wishes (1983)
Camouflage (1984)
Every Beat of My Heart (1986)
Out of Order (1988)
Vagabond Heart (1991)
A Spanner in the Works (1995)
When We Were the New Boys (1998)
Human (2001)
It Had to Be You: The Great American Songbook (2002)
As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook, Volume II (2003)
Stardust: The Great American Songbook, Volume III (2004)
Thanks for the Memory: The Great American Songbook, Volume IV (2005)
Still the Same... Great Rock Classics of Our Time (2006)
Soulbook (2009)
Once in a Blue Moon: The Lost Album (2010)
Fly Me to the Moon... The Great American Songbook Volume V (2010)
Merry Christmas, Baby (2012)
Time (2013)
Another Country (2015)
Blood Red Roses (2018)
The Tears of Hercules (2021)
Foolish Behaviour
Rod Stewart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm a man of panache and wealth
Sound in mind, body, soul and health
Why I wanna kill my wife?
I have this urge to take her life
Been planing for years to get rid of her
Not divorce, I really do mean to kill her
That's why I wanna kill my wife
I have a duty to take her life
Her stupid friends get right up my nose
They all wear annoyingly sensible clothes
They're all so bleeding grandiose
You know why I should kill her friends
They're all driving Mercedes Benz
He'll escape down into Mexico
Sell the house and find a nice young girl
He'll laugh and sing and he won't work anymore
Should I string her up or strangle her in bed?
Suffocate that little venomous head
Or perhaps I'll just whip her to death
Listen, do me a favor, kill my wife
Do it for mankind, take her life
Or should I act quite cold and deliberate
Or maybe blow out her brains with a bullet?
They'll think suicide, they won't know who done it
I'm gonna kill my wife, I'm really gonna take her life
He'll escape down into Mexico
Go down into Mexico
Sell the house and find a nice young girl
Find a nice young girl
He'll laugh and sing and he won't work no more
The moment of truth has come
I'm at the point of no return
I've got my hands locked round her throat
I'm about to kill my wife
Don't stop me now, I'm gonna take her life
Too late now, I'm gonna kill my wife
Can't help myself, I'm gonna take her life
Telephone rang and he woke from his sleep
His wife snoring soundly next to him
It was all a very nasty dream
The song Foolish Behaviour by Rod Stewart follows the internal monologue of a man who faces the dilemma of why he wants to kill his wife. The lyrics bring to light the violent thoughts that one can have and how they can be irrational and misplaced. The satirical tone of the song helps highlight the absurdity of the man's thoughts and the ludicrousness of his reasons for wanting to kill his wife.
The song's lyrics reveal the man's innermost thoughts, which are sinister and disturbing. The man's reasons for wanting to kill his wife are purely nonsensical, which makes it apparent that he is not in his right mind. His rantings against his wife and her friends showcase his hatred and disdain for them, which have poured over into him wanting to kill them.
The song rampages towards an ominous climax where the man is on the verge of killing his wife. The lyrics depict the scene in detail, and the voice of the singer takes on an evidently nervous quality, reflecting the man's restlessness. The song then ends on a surreal note - the man's questioning his innermost urges to kill his wife were just a dream.
Overall, Foolish Behaviour is a thought-provoking song that highlights the absurdity of violent thoughts and urges.
Line by Line Meaning
Can I introduce myself?
I'm a man with great style and riches.
I'm a man of panache and wealth
I have a lot of money and good fashion sense.
Sound in mind, body, soul and health
I'm physically and mentally fit.
Why I wanna kill my wife?
I have this intense desire to murder my spouse.
I have this urge to take her life
I possess a strong impulse to end her life.
Been planning for years to get rid of her
I've been scheming for years to eliminate her.
Not divorce, I really do mean to kill her
I don't want a separation; I want her dead.
She's so full of useless information and trivia
She talks a lot of pointless facts and details.
That's why I wanna kill my wife
That's why I want to commit murder.
I have a duty to take her life
It's my responsibility to end her existence.
Her stupid friends get right up my nose
I can't stand her foolish friends.
They all wear annoyingly sensible clothes
Their clothes are boring and unimaginative.
They're all so bleeding grandiose
They're all excessively extravagant.
You know why I should kill her friends
You know why I should eliminate her pals.
They're all driving Mercedes Benz
They all own expensive cars.
He'll escape down into Mexico
He'll run away to Mexico.
Sell the house and find a nice young girl
He will sell his home and court a younger woman.
He'll laugh and sing and he won't work anymore
He'll enjoy life without having to work.
Should I string her up or strangle her in bed?
Should I hang her or suffocate her while she sleeps?
Suffocate that little venomous head
Choke her because she is wicked.
Or perhaps I'll just whip her to death
Maybe I'll beat her to her demise.
Listen, do me a favor, kill my wife
Please do me a favor and end my wife's life.
Do it for mankind, take her life
Do it for the betterment of humanity and murder her.
Or should I act quite cold and deliberate
Should I remain calm and calculating?
Or maybe blow out her brains with a bullet?
Perhaps a gunshot to the head is the best method?
They'll think suicide, they won't know who done it
They'll assume it's a suicide and won't know who committed the crime.
I'm gonna kill my wife, I'm really gonna take her life
I'm going to end my wife's existence without a doubt.
The moment of truth has come
The decisive moment is here.
I'm at the point of no return
I have gone too far to turn back now.
I've got my hands locked around her throat
I've seized her neck with my hands.
I'm about to kill my wife
I'm on the verge of ending her life.
Don't stop me now, I'm gonna take her life
Don't try to stop me; I'm going to commit murder.
Too late now, I'm gonna kill my wife
It's too late to change my mind; I'm going to murder her.
Can't help myself, I'm gonna take her life
I can't resist the urge to end her existence.
Telephone rang and he woke from his sleep
The phone rang, and he woke from a dream.
His wife snoring soundly next to him
His spouse was sleeping soundly beside him.
It was all a very nasty dream
All of this was just a terrible nightmare.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: PHILIP CHEN, JIM CREGAN, GARY GRAINGER, GARY WILLIAM GRAINGER, STEVE HARLEY, KEVIN SAVIGAR, KEVIN STUART JAMES SAVIGAR, ROD STEWART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind