A talented singer and bass guitarist, trained in classical piano and percussion, she joined her sisters in the 60s Detroit garage rock group The Pleasure Seekers whilst still in her teens and never looked back. By the early 70s, Suzi went off to England to work with producer Mickie Most, while her sister Patti joined the all-woman rock band Fanny. An underground following spread around Suzi's charisma and powerful singing.
Suzi found herself singing the material of songwriting duo Chinn & Chapman, musicians who were also having hits with Sweet. Combining shades of bubblegum pop with a hard rock spirit, similar to the power pop ethos of the era, Suzi embraced the glam sound. Under their tutelage, she had four top ten rock hits in the U.K., but she remained mostly unknown in the U.S.
However, her U.K. fame expanded through the 70s, with Suzi becoming a successful solo singer, bassist, and songwriter with a string of charting hits. Her appeal extended into the 80s while many of her contempoaries broke up. Notable songs of his period include "Can The Can", "Devil Gate Drive", "Tear Me Apart", and "The Wild One", among many others.
Suzi extended her career to television in 1979 when she guest starred for three seasons on the hit television series 'Happy Days'. She played the character Leather Tuscadero, who was the younger sister of Fonzie's love interest, Pinky Tuscadero. In 1979, at the height of the disco era, she finally made the U.S. Top Five with the track "Stumblin' In", a duet with Chris Norman.
In her musical career she has had 16 hit singles, sold over 45 million records and toured since 1964. She has also had guest appearances in the Runaways documentary "Edgeplay" and various UK television shows including Minder, Dempsey And Makepeace and Absolutely Fabulous.
In 1990, Suzi trod the boards in London's West End playing the lead in the musical Annie Get Your Gun and wrote and starred in a musical about Talullah Bankhead.
Suzi continues to write, perform and record her own original material and has a forthcoming new album Naked Under Leather. She also hosts an excellent show on BBC Radio 2.
Quatro's first single "Rolling Stone" did not achieve popularity anywhere except Portugal, where it made number one. Most introduced Quatro to the songwriting and production team Nicky Chinn/Mike Chapman. Her second single "Can the Can" (1973) was a number one hit throughout Europe and in Australia. It was followed up by three further hits: "48 Crash" (1973), "Daytona Demon" (1973) and "Devil Gate Drive" (1974) on RAK Records. Her first two albums were also European and Australian successes.
These recordings, however, met little success in her native U.S., despite tours in the mid-1970s supporting Alice Cooper, and, except in Australia, the popularity of Quatro's rocking glam rock declined from 1975. In the interim, she did enjoy success as a session player.
Quatro's fortunes did not change until 1978 when "If You Can't Give Me Love" became a hit in the UK and Australia. This did nothing to prompt Stateside success, but "Stumblin' In", a duet recorded that same year for RSO Records with Chris Norman of Smokie secured a #4 peak in the U.S. Both tracks featured on the "If You Knew Suzi" album. A year later, Quatro released "Suzi... And Other Four Letter Words". She called it her favourite album. This featured singles, such as "She's In Love With You", which made number 11 in the UK , "Mama's Boy" (34) and "I've Never Been In Love" (56). In 1980, her song "Rock Hard" was featured on the soundtrack of the cult film Times Square, along with some punk and new wave bands like Talking Heads, Ramones, XTC and The Pretenders. This success period proved brief however, and her last UK hit was "Heart of Stone" in late 1982. In 1985 Quatro collaborated with Bronski Beat and members of The Kinks, Eddie and the Hot Rods, and Dr Feelgood on the Mark Cunningham-produced version of David Bowie's classic "Heroes", released the following year as the 1986 BBC "Children In Need" single.
In December 2005, a documentary chronicling Quatro's life, "Naked under leather" directed by former Runaway Victory Tischler Blue appeared. In February 2006, Quatro released "Back To the Drive", produced by Sweet guitarist Andy Scott. The album's title track was penned by her former collaborator Mike Chapman.
March 2007 saw Quatro release a version of The Eagles' "Desperado", followed by the publication of her autobiography, "Unzipped".
Suzi Quatro has sold over 45 million records.
http://www.suziquatro.com
If You Can't Give Me Love
Suzi Quatro Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On that discotheque floor
You were driving me out of my mind
Oh
But I could've sworn that
I saw something more in your eyes
By beauty unbounded
Your glances intended for me
And though I tried to hide it
I found myself looking to see
So then you took your chances you made your advances
Your touch took my breath away
But when you said hello are you ready to go
Well I had just one thing to say
If you can't give me love honey that ain't enough
Let me go look for somebody else
And if you can give me feelings with old fashioned meanings
Then just stay in love with yourself
If you can't give me love
If you can't give me love
If you can't give me love
Well you may be a king of this discotheque thing
But honey I ain't looking for that
What I need is a man not some sort of aristocrat
Oh if only you'd waited or just hesitated
Or maybe just asked me to dance
But you really don't know why I don't want to go
Baby that's why we don't stand a chance
If you can't give me love honey that ain't enough
Suzi Quatro's "If You Can't Give Me Love" is a song about a woman seeking genuine love from a man. The song begins with the singer recognizing a man on the dance floor who had captured her attention before. Although she noticed he was being surrounded by beautiful women, she believes he had something special in his eyes for her. Despite attempting to control her curiosity, she couldn't help but steal glances towards him. The man took his chances and made his advances towards the singer, but she knew what she wanted - a man who could give her love, not only a physical connection.
The singer is straightforward in her message that she won't settle for anything less than genuine love. She tells the man that she is willing to look for somebody else who can give her what she desires, rather than settling for just anything. She stands by her values and knows what kind of relationship she wants. In the final verse, the singer highlights the difference between what she seeks in a partner and what the man exemplifies. He may be a king of the discotheque, but she needs a man who can provide love with old-fashioned meanings, not just a physical spark.
Overall, "If You Can't Give Me Love" is a reflection of a strong-willed woman who stands for true love and won't settle for anything less.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I've seen you before
The singer has seen the person before.
On that discotheque floor
The singer saw the person on a dancing floor.
You were driving me out of my mind
The singer was attracted to the person and couldn't stop thinking about them.
Oh, But I could've sworn that
The singer was sure that they saw something more in the person's eyes.
I saw something more in your eyes
The singer felt that the person had some sort of connection with them.
Oh though you were surrounded
Despite the person being surrounded by many people,
By beauty unbounded
many of whom were attractive,
Your glances intended for me
the person was making eye contact with the singer.
And though I tried to hide it
Even though the singer tried to hide their attraction to the person,
I found myself looking to see
they couldn't help but keep looking at the person.
So then you took your chances you made your advances
Then the person took a chance and approached the singer.
Your touch took my breath away
The person's touch felt very impactful and emotionally overwhelming.
But when you said hello are you ready to go
When the person asked the singer if they were ready to leave,
Well I had just one thing to say
The singer had a clear response ready.
If you can't give me love honey that ain't enough
The singer is looking for someone who can give them emotional fulfillment, not just physical attraction.
Let me go look for somebody else
The singer would rather continue looking for someone who can give them the love they seek.
And if you can give me feelings with old fashioned meanings
The singer values traditional, meaningful emotions in a relationship.
Then just stay in love with yourself
If the person can't provide those emotions, they should focus on loving themselves rather than pursuing a relationship with the singer.
Well you may be a king of this discotheque thing
The person may be popular in the dancing scene,
But honey I ain't looking for that
But the singer isn't necessarily looking for someone in that scene.
What I need is a man not some sort of aristocrat
The singer is looking for a real, genuine person, not someone who is simply wealthy or powerful.
Oh if only you'd waited or just hesitated
If the person had waited or been less eager,
Or maybe just asked me to dance
Or if they had simply asked the singer to dance,
But you really don't know why I don't want to go
The person doesn't understand why the singer isn't interested.
Baby that's why we don't stand a chance
This lack of understanding and connection is why a relationship between them wouldn't work.
If you can't give me love honey that ain't enough
Ultimately, the singer needs more than just physical attraction to consider a relationship with the person.
If you can't give me love
The singer reiterates that love is a necessary component of a relationship.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MICHAEL DONALD CHAPMAN, NICHOLAS BARRY CHINN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind