Described as "classic UK rock delivered with whiskey vocals", the band have been summarised as possessing a sound akin to the genres of alternative rock and "British traditional rock". Stereophonics' debut album, Word Gets Around, was released in August 1997 and charted at number six in the UK, aided by the singles "Local Boy in the Photograph", "More Life in a Tramps Vest" and "A Thousand Trees". The band reached mainstream success with the release of Performance and Cocktails (and its promotional singles "The Bartender and the Thief", "Just Looking" and "Pick a Part That's New") in 1999 and have achieved a total of ten top-ten singles as well as one number one: "Dakota" (2005). Having sold around 10 million copies worldwide by 2016, Stereophonics are one of the most successful Welsh rock acts. Upon their release of Pull the Pin, they achieved five consecutive UK number one albums.
The band have also been praised for their live performances, which have landed them headlining slots at many of the UK and Ireland's most high-profile music festivals, including Reading and Leeds in 2000, Glastonbury in 2002, V Festival in 2002, the Isle of Wight in 2004 and 2009, Oxegen in 2010, Tramlines Festival and TRNSMT in 2018, and Latitude in 2019. The band is part of the Cardiff music scene.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereophonics
Studio albums
Word Gets Around (1997)
Performance and Cocktails (1999)
Just Enough Education to Perform (2001)
You Gotta Go There to Come Back (2003)
Language. Sex. Violence. Other? (2005)
Pull the Pin (2007)
Keep Calm and Carry On (2009)
Graffiti on the Train (2013)
Keep the Village Alive (2015)
Scream Above the Sounds (2017)
Kind (2019)
Oochya! (2022)
Not Up to You
Stereophonics Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Street orange glow shades the odds against
One more sip, a shoe, a miss, a shaving nick
One extra kiss, who's to know whatever!
[Chorus]
Not up to me,
Not up to you
Not up to you
Swings don't swing, the parks been dead for years
How do you know the last swing
Weren't your last for good, hard book on freaks fresh summer
Peach creased magazine, sugar chocolate treat, who's to know whatever!
[Chorus]
The street's so long where she lost her pocket purse
Kept the last picture of the man she committed first
Cracked windscreen rain, french murder play
Junk take away, tired street parades
Who's to know whatever!
Whatever!
[Chorus]
Not up to anything we do
Not up to me,
Not up to, oh, you
Oh you, oh you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
The lyrics to Stereophonics’ song “Not Up to You” speak to the idea that life is not entirely within our control, and things can happen beyond our influence or understanding. The first verse sets the scene of a man waiting for a ride on a road covered in salt, with the orange glow of the streetlamps casting a shadow on the odds against him. He takes a sip, puts on his shoe and accidentally cuts himself shaving. He has an extra kiss, but who’s to know where it might lead. The chorus repeats the message that nothing is up to anyone in particular; it’s just the way life goes.
The second verse describes a park with swings that no longer swing, and the street’s so long where a woman lost her purse with the last picture of the first man she ever committed to. The cracked windscreen and rainy day only add to the depressing vibe of the French murder play she’s listening to. The third verse ends with more despair, with the junk take away and tired street parades. The song’s overall message is to accept that some things are uncontrollable and to live with whatever happens.
Line by Line Meaning
Salt grips the road awaits his lift again
The singer is waiting for a ride on the salt-covered road
Street orange glow shades the odds against
The orange streetlights cast shadows against the singer's chances
One more sip, a shoe, a miss, a shaving nick
The singer takes a sip, kicks a shoe, misses a target, and nicks themselves while shaving
One extra kiss, who's to know whatever!
The artist doesn't know the consequences of an extra kiss
Not up to me,
Not up to you
Not up to me,
Not up to you
The events of life are out of our control
Swings don't swing, the parks been dead for years
The swings in the uninteresting park have stopped moving and haven't been used in years
How do you know the last swing
Weren't your last for good, hard book on freaks fresh summer
The singer questions how one knows that the last swing they take won't be their last, and then mentions a book they read
Peach creased magazine, sugar chocolate treat, who's to know whatever!
The artist doesn't know the true value of a creased magazine and a sweet treat
The street's so long where she lost her pocket purse
A woman lost her purse on a long street
Kept the last picture of the man she committed first
The woman kept the last photo of a man she was once committed to
Cracked windscreen rain, french murder play
The singer observes a cracked windshield in the rain and thinks of a French murder play
Junk take away, tired street parades
The artist witnesses the removal of junk and the exhaustion of street performers
Not up to anything we do
Not up to me,
Not up to, oh, you
Oh you, oh you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
It's not up to you
Once again, the singer emphasizes that life is out of our control
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Kelly Jones, Richard Mark Jones, Stuart Cable
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind