The group, whose style was based upon the sounds of Sun Records artists and other artists from the 1950s, were heavily influenced by Eddie Cochran, Carl Perkins, Gene Vincent and Bill Haley & His Comets. The Stray Cats quickly developed a large following in the New York music scene playing at CBGB and Max's Kansas City as well as venues on Long Island. When the Cats heard a rumor that there was a revival of the 1950s Teddy Boy youth subculture in England, the band moved to the UK. They then spearheaded the nascent rockabilly revival, by blending the 1950s Sun Studio sound with modern punk musical elements. In terms of visual style the Stray Cats also blended elements of 1950 rockabilly clothes such as wearing drape jackets, brothel creepers and western shirts with punk clothes such as tight black zipper trousers and modern versions of 1950s hair styles.
In the summer of 1980 the Cats found themselves being courted by the elite of the music world including Virgin Records, Stiff Records and Arista Records. Word quickly spread and soon members of The Rolling Stones, The Who and Led Zeppelin were at their shows. After a gig in London, Stray Cats met producer Dave Edmunds, well known as a roots rock enthusiast for his work with Rockpile and as a solo artist. Edmunds offered to work with the group, and they entered the studio to record their self-titled debut album, Stray Cats, released in England in 1981 on Arista Records. They had three hits that year with "Runaway Boys", "Rock This Town", and "Stray Cat Strut". The UK follow-up to Stray Cats, Gonna Ball, was not as well-received, providing no hits. Yet the combined sales of their first two albums was enough to convince EMI America to compile the best tracks from the two UK albums and issue an album (Built for Speed) in the U.S. in 1982. The record went on to sell double platinum in the US and Canada and was the #2 record on the Billboard album charts for 26 weeks
Musical and personal conflicts began to emerge in the ways that the individual members handled their new-found success; Phantom married actress Britt Ekland, while Setzer made guest appearances with stars like Bob Dylan and Stevie Nicks and became the concert guitarist for Robert Plant's Honeydrippers side project. In late 1984, the band added former BMT's guitarist and Long Island native Tommy Byrnes on second guitar and harmony vocals, and after a European and US tour which ended at the New Orleans World's Fair, parted ways.
Rocker and Phantom formed a trio called Phantom Rocker & Slick (the "Slick" being former David Bowie guitarist Earl Slick) which contained the single "Men Without Shame", guest musicians on this record included both Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones and Nicky Hopkins on the piano. Setzer went on to a solo career, retaining Byrnes and exchanging his rockabilly focus for a more wide-ranging roots rock/Americana sound on albums such as 1986's The Knife Feels Like Justice. In 1986, the Stray Cats reunited in Los Angeles, and recorded the covers-heavy Rock Therapy. In 1989, they reunited once again for the album Blast Off!, which was accompanied by a tour with US blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan. No longer with EMI America, they entered the studio with Nile Rodgers for the record titled Let's Go Faster, issued by Liberation in 1990. After 1992's Dave Edmunds-produced Choo Choo Hot Fish, and after another covers album, 1993's Original Cool, the group called it quits again.
In 2004, the Stray Cats reunited for a month-long tour of Europe. A live album culled from those concerts, Rumble In Brixton, included one new studio track, "Mystery Train Kept A Rollin'." In 2007, they reunited once again for a successful and long awaited US tour with ZZ Top and The Pretenders. This was their first North American tour in over 15 years. In the 2000s, the band toured Europe as part of their Farewell Tour, although the band has performed concerts intermittently in the ensuing years.
In 2008, for the first time in 18 years, the Stray Cats visited Australia and New Zealand which included several consecutive sold out shows of their Farewell (Australia) Tour.
In April 2009 the band reunited for a single show to celebrate Brian’s 50th birthday at the Fine Line Music Café in Minneapolis, MN.
Sexy + 17
Stray Cats Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Me neither, they can't make you go, no you daddyo yeah!
I ain't goin' to school it starts too early for me
Well listen man I ain't goin' to school no more it starts much, much too early for me
I don't care about readin', writin', 'rithmetic or history
I'm gonna walk to the corner and meet my little Marie
Well she's the only girl in this whole world who understands me
Well she's sexy and seventeen
My little rock-roll queen
Acts a little bit obscene
Gotta let off a little steam
Dig that sound shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Johnny and Eddie and me and Jimmy and Jack
Are gonna do a little number on the teacher when she turns her back
We're gonna cut out of class, meet the girls by the railroad track
Well ev'ry Friday night there's a band that you gotta hear
Just a dollar ticket in and twenty-five cents a beer
They play rock and roll music like it hasn't been rocked for years
Well she's sexy and seventeen
My little rock-roll queen
Acts a little bit obscene
Gotta let off a little steam
Dig that sound shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Well when I hear that rockin' beat
I can't sit still up , out of my seat
Come on babe let's jump 'round your feet
Can't learn nothin' in school they don't teach you on the street !
Wo-oh , wo-oh , baby I like your style
Wo-oh oh oh oh baby I like your style
You don't care what the other kids say, you go real wild
Well you're sexy and seventeen
My little rock-roll queen
Acts a little bit obscene
Gotta let off a little steam
Dig that sound shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Dig that sound and shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Dig that sound and shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
The lyrics to Stray Cats' song "Sexy + 17" describe the rebellious attitude of the youth during the early rock and roll era. The song opens with the frustration of the singer and his friend with attending school, stating that it starts too early and that they do not care about the education they are receiving. Instead, they choose to meet their girlfriends at the corner, one of whom is named Marie and who is the only person in the world who truly understands them.
The song then shifts to a description of a typical Friday night routine for the group of friends, as they plan to skip out on class to meet their girlfriends at the railroad tracks and eventually attend a rock and roll show. The lyrics also contain a sense of rebellion against authority figures, as the group plans to do "a little number" on their teacher when she turns her back.
As the song progresses, it becomes clear that the singer is infatuated with Marie, who is described as "sexy and seventeen" with a wild attitude that he loves. The lyrics also contain sexual undertones, with the singer describing Marie as acting "a little bit obscene" and needing to "let off a little steam."
Overall, "Sexy + 17" is a classic example of the early rock and roll genre, with a rebellious and carefree attitude that was emblematic of the youth culture of the time.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey, man, I don't feel like goin' to school no more
I don't feel like going to school anymore.
Me neither, they can't make you go, no you daddyo yeah!
They can't force you to go, man.
I ain't goin' to school it starts too early for me
School starts too early for me, so I'm not going.
Well listen man I ain't goin' to school no more it starts much, much too early for me
I'm not going to school because it starts too early for me to handle.
I don't care about readin', writin', 'rithmetic or history
I don't care about subjects like reading, writing, math or history.
I'm gonna walk to the corner and meet my little Marie
I'm going to meet my girl Marie at the corner of the street.
Well she's the only girl in this whole world who understands me
Marie is the only girl who truly understands me.
Well she's sexy and seventeen
Marie is attractive and just 17 years old.
My little rock-roll queen
Marie is my queen of rock and roll.
Acts a little bit obscene
Marie can be a bit provocative.
Gotta let off a little steam
We need to let loose and have some fun.
Dig that sound shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
I love this music and it's making me feel energized and happy.
Johnny and Eddie and me and Jimmy and Jack
Me and my buddies Johnny, Eddie, Jimmy, and Jack...
Are gonna do a little number on the teacher when she turns her back
We're going to play a prank on the teacher when she's not looking.
We're gonna cut out of class, meet the girls by the railroad track
We'll leave class and meet some girls by the railroad.
Well ev'ry Friday night there's a band that you gotta hear
On Friday nights, there's a band that's really worth listening to.
Just a dollar ticket in and twenty-five cents a beer
Entry is cheap, and so are the drinks: only one dollar and twenty-five cents.
They play rock and roll music like it hasn't been rocked for years
The band plays rock and roll music like it used to be played years ago.
Well when I hear that rockin' beat
When I hear the beat of rock and roll music...
I can't sit still up , out of my seat
I can't help but move my body out of my seat.
Come on babe let's jump 'round your feet
Let's dance together and have some fun.
Can't learn nothin' in school they don't teach you on the street !
There are things you can only learn by experiencing them outside of school.
Wo-oh , wo-oh , baby I like your style
I love your personality, baby.
Wo-oh oh oh oh baby I like your style
I really love the way you are, baby.
You don't care what the other kids say, you go real wild
You don't listen to other people's opinions, you just want to have fun and be yourself.
Dig that sound and shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
I love this music and it's making me feel energized and happy.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BRIAN SETZER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sabinoson
Now THIS is how early rock and roll should be re-introduced to current (or for the 1980's, then-current) mainstream audiences.
They presented rockabilly as an energetic, youthful, form of vintage music.
And they were able to make it in the mainstream. (I love the rockabilly scene, but it is an insular scene, with talented artists who the mainstream are often unaware of.)
The didn't present their music as "oldies," the way certain bands from a decade earlier during the "Fifties Nostalgia Fad" did.
And of course, they did original songs.
Love the Stray Cats.
@nataliatorreskalme
20k vibes
Hey, man, I don't feel like goin' to school no more
Me neither. They can't make you go. No you daddyo yeah!
I ain't goin' to school it starts too early for me
Well listen man I ain't goin' to school no more it starts much, much too early for me
I don't care about readin', writin', 'rithmetic or history
I'm gonna walk to the corner and meet my little Marie
I'm gonna walk to the corner and meet my little Marie
Well she's the only girl in this whole world who understands me
Well she's sexy and seventeen
My little rock-roll queen
Acts a little bit obscene
Gotta let off a little steam
Dig that sound shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Johnny and Eddie and me and Jimmy and Jack
Are gonna do a little number on the teacher when she turns her back
We're gonna cut out of class , meet the girls by the railroad track
Well ev'ry Friday night there's a band that you gotta hear
Just a dollar ticket in and twenty-five cents a beer
They play rock and roll music like it hasn't been rocked for years
Well she's sexy and seventeen
My little rock-roll queen
Acts a little bit obscene
Gotta let off a little steam
Dig that sound shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Well when I hear that rockin' beat
I can't sit still up, out of my seat
come on Babe lets jump 'round your feet
Can't learn nothin' in school they don't teach you on the street!
Wo-oh, wo-oh, baby I like your style
Wo-oh oh oh oh baby I like your style
You don't care what the other kids say,
You go real wild
Well you're sexy and seventeen
My little rock-roll queen
Acts a little bit obscene
Gotta let off a little steam
Dig that sound and shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Dig that sound and shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
Dig that sound and shake it around you're mine, mine, mine
@dustydoll9820
The Stray cats are one of the most under rated bands in Rock history, just plain ass kicking
@thisbambibites
Totally agree
@empire0
I agree, i'm not even big into rock, more of a metal guy, but the Cats are just fucking awesome.
@EllieMae4101
I saw the Stray Cats back in the "80's, Brian Setzer was indisputably the single, most talented musician I saw ( and I saw them all!).
@melgrant7404
Agree❤
@Troy-hv5kx
Dusty Doll I agree!
@012619631
loved being in this video. And i'm still bragging about it many many years later!!!!
@sunshinethegreaser7488
Darlene Tomlinson time stamp?
@012619631
my closeup is about 3:04. not sure how to time stamp. LOL :) :):)
@vicvasolino
Very cool! I always wondered who that was :-)