He began his career fronting the group Shakin' Stevens and the Sunsets, managed by Paul Barrett. Also known as the The Sunsets, the 50s-esque rock n roll outfit originaled from Penarth, South Glamorgan. An early break for the band arrived when they were given a support slot for The Rolling Stones in December 1969. Yet, despite landing a recording contract with the seminal label Parlophone Records the following year, the band found success hard to come by. At least in their native Great Britain, they couldn't quite break through commercially, though they had hit singles in other countries. After seven years of constant touring and recording, Shaky left the band in 1977. He gained a lead role in Jack Good's "Elvis!" musical, which brought him praise from many critics.
Regular TV appearances on the revamped TV show Oh Boy led eventually to his first chart success, a reworked version of a Buck Owens song "Hot Dog", which Owens would go on to re-record using Stevens arrangement which had been created by pedal steel guitar player B.J. Cole.
In 1979, Shaky signed what was to be his most successful management deal with Freya Miller, and in 1981, he had his first UK number 1 with "This Ole House" and would have 10 more songs reach the top 5, including three number 1 hits with "Green Door", "Oh Julie" and "Merry Christmas Everyone", while "You Drive Me Crazy" and "A Love Worth Waiting For" reached number 2 in 1981 and 1984 respectively. His 1984 hit "Teardrops" featured Hank B. Marvin on guitar and Stevens has often featured famous musicians such as Albert Lee, Roger Taylor, Bonnie Tyler and more recently Tony Joe White on his recordings. In the mid 80s, Stevens reunited with former producer Dave Edmunds to record an album Lipstick, Powder and Paint and the Christmas smash "Merry Christmas Everyone".
The hits continued throughout the 1980s, making Stevens the biggest selling artist of the decade, and into the early 1990s. Chart successes also included his album Shaky reaching number 1.
It was in the 1990s, however, that Stevens took a lengthy break from recording and was stung by a court ruling requiring a substantial payout to former bandmates The Sunsets. In 1999, Shaky returned to performing and undertook tours that year and the year following. In 2004, things started to look up for Stevens he had a further platinum CD/DVD album in Denmark and a gold album in South Africa.
In 2005, he returned once again to the charts in the United Kingdom, with his greatest hits album The Collection, which reached the UK top 5. That year, he also appeared in the video to Tony Christie's and Peter Kay's #1 hit single "Is This the Way to Amarillo", alongside many other UK stars, including Ronnie Corbett, Jim Bowen, Michael Parkinson and Geoffrey Hayes. He was the winner on the reality television show, Hit Me Baby One More Time. This was quickly followed by a re-release of his cover and his own biggest hit sung in the show, ("Trouble" covering Pink's version) / "This Ole House"), which reached #20 on the UK Singles Chart in June 2005, his 33rd Top 40 hit in the United Kingdom.
In May 2007, Stevens released a brand new album in Denmark entitled Now Listen.
Don't Be Two Faced
Shakin' Stevens Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't make me waste my tears on you.
Ooh, don't be two faced.
Don't look at me the way you do,
Your eyes are blue, but they're not true.
Ooh, don't be two faced.
Then you pretend your love is true,
A kiss from you is just the way,
It just leaves a bitter taste.
Ooh, don't be two faced.
Then you pretend your love is true,
In the end, it will hurt only you.
A kiss from you is just the way,
It just leaves a bitter taste.
Ooh, don't be two faced. Ooh,
Don't be two faced. Ooh, don't be two faced.
The lyrics to Shakin' Stevens's song Don't Be Two Faced are very straightforward - it's about someone who is warning their lover not to play games with their heart. The singer is cautioning their lover to be sincere in their love and not to pretend, because if they do, it will only hurt them in the end.
The first verse of the song tells the listener not to say that you love them if you don't as it's not worth wasting tears on a relationship that isn't genuine. The refrain, "Ooh, don't be two-faced," emphasizes the message of the song. The second verse warns the listener not to look at them with insincerity or say things that aren't true as it is only hurting the person listening. The repetition of the refrain is used again to reinforce the point.
The bridge of the song explains that the kiss (a symbol of affection) from the person who isn't sincere just leaves a bitter taste. It warns again that pretending to love can only result in hurt to oneself in the end. The repetition of the refrain is used once more to conclude the song and emphasize the message again.
Line by Line Meaning
Don't say you love me unless you do,
Don't tell me that you love me unless you truly feel that way.
Don't make me waste my tears on you.
Don't make me cry over you if you don't truly love me.
Ooh, don't be two faced.
Don't be two-faced or deceitful with your actions.
Don't look at me the way you do,
Don't look at me in a way that is disingenuous or fake.
Your eyes are blue, but they're not true.
Your blue eyes might look beautiful, but they don't reflect the true emotions and feelings you have for me.
Then you pretend your love is true,
You try to pretend that you love me, even though it's not really sincere.
In the end it will hurt only you.
If you fake your love, you will be the one who gets hurt in the end.
A kiss from you is just the way,
Your kisses might seem like a promise of love, but they don't mean anything real.
It just leaves a bitter taste.
Your kisses, promises, and actions leave me feeling upset and disappointed.
Ooh, don't be two faced.
Once again, don't be two-faced or fake with your emotions.
Ooh, don't be two faced.
One more time, don't be deceitful or insincere in your actions and words.
Contributed by Ruby P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.