However, while the band felt they weren't making any progress on their musical path and had moved on, their English manager took the demo to a small Yorkshire record label, Making Waves, who liked the material and released the demos as the "Keep The Faith" EP in 1985 (Kerrang #113). The press response to the EP was positive and prompted the band to reform in the US. Baird had been playing with the Woodpeckers in NC, while Richards remained in Atlanta with the Hell Hounds, who included both Mauro Magellon (drums) and Rick Price (bass). With Baird essentially joining the Hell Hounds the Satellites were reborn and American record labels started taking notice of the band.
By 1986 only Elektra Records were willing to sign the band, who then reunited with Glixman to record their debut full-length album at Axis Sound Studios in Atlanta. Their album, Georgia Satellites, was their most successful album to date, featuring the track "Keep Your Hands To Yourself". That song went all the way to #2 on the Billboard chart, topped only by Bon Jovi's "Livin' On A Prayer". It went into extremely heavy MTV rotation at the time. Other hits included "Battleship Chains" (#86) and "Can't Stand The Pain".
In 1988, the band recorded a cover of The Swinging Blue Jean's 1964 hit, "Hippy Hippy Shake" to the Tom Cruise movie soundtrack Cocktail. Released as a single the song made it to #45 on the Billboard chart. During the year the band released their second album "Open All Night," which infamously included a cover of the Ringo Starr song "Don't Pass Me By," though the album wouldn't build on the success of the debut. A single, "Open All Night" backed with "Dunk 'N' dine" failed to chart. A third studio album, "In The Land Of Salvation And Sin," was released in 1989, which included re-recordings of "Six Years Gone" and "Crazy" from the 1985 EP. Baird left the band in 1990 for a solo career when the album failed to find any commercial success.
Sheila
The Georgia Satellites Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I was dying in desert sand
And then above watching over me
Stood an angel with a golden hand
Singing Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila
Screeling and a reeling
Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila
Living here in this old town
There ain't a lot to do
And after work I just ride around
Looking out for something new
When I saw you standing in a drugstore
Trying on your diamond ring
Had to run in jump through the front door
Grab your hand and start to sing about
Singing Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila
Screeling and a reeling
Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila
My heart she was stealing
She don't run, she don't hide
Sheila thinks that everyone is beautiful inside
Sheila put your red dress on and let your long hair down
We're gonna make them turn the lights on
On the hill at the edge of town
I was lost and on my own I was lost and broken down
And when you sing that old Shirelle song
I'm the king with the golden crown
Singing na na na na oh sheila sheila
Sheila's inside of the night,
Trying to take me into the light
The Georgia Satellites’ “Sheila” is a song that tells a story of a guy named Sheila, which he describes as having the power to steal hearts, change moods with her smile, and make people believe in themselves. The song opens up with the singer mentioning a dream he had where he was dying in the desert sand, and an angel with a golden hand appeared and started singing Sheila’s name. It's not clear who this Sheila is, but from the lyrics, we know that she has been on the singer's mind for some time now.
The rest of the song has the singer giving more details about Sheila, how he finally met her, and getting together to have a good time. He describes that Sheila is someone who thinks everyone is beautiful inside, and he's captivated by her. Sheila is his escape from the dull routine of living in an old town, and when they're together, they have the time of their lives. The singer is thankful for her presence in his life, and he knows that he's found someone special.
Overall, “Sheila” is a love song that describes a special person that can make everything seem alright. The lyrics are easy to understand and to sing along to, with a catchy chorus that listeners can quickly remember.
Line by Line Meaning
The other night, I had a dream
The singer had a dream one night
I was dying in desert sand
In the dream, the singer was dying in desert sand
And then above watching over me
Above where the singer was dying there was an angel watching over them
Stood an angel with a golden hand
This angel had a golden hand
Singing Sheila Sheila, Sheila Sheila
The angel was singing the name 'Sheila' repeatedly
Screeling and a reeling
The angel's singing was ecstatic, and full of excitement as if it was dancing and jumping around
My heart she was stealing
The angel's singing of 'Sheila' was making the singer's heart skip a beat
Living here in this old town
The artist is living in an old town
There ain't a lot to do
In this old town, there is not much to do
And after work I just ride around
After work, the artist just rides their bike around
Looking out for something new
While riding around, the singer is looking for something new
When I saw you standing in a drugstore
While looking for something new, the artist saw 'Sheila' standing in a drugstore
Trying on your diamond ring
While in the drugstore, 'Sheila' was trying on a diamond ring
Had to run in jump through the front door
The singer quickly ran and jumped through the front door of the drugstore
Grab your hand and start to sing about
The singer grabbed 'Sheila's' hand and started singing to her
She don't run, she don't hide
'Sheila' doesn't run or hide from anything
Sheila thinks that everyone is beautiful inside
'Sheila' believes that everyone is beautiful on the inside
Sheila put your red dress on and let your long hair down
'Sheila' is being asked to put on a red dress and let her long hair down
We're gonna make them turn the lights on
The singer and 'Sheila' are going to do something that will make others turn the lights on
On the hill at the edge of town
The artist and 'Sheila' are on a hill at the edge of town
I was lost and on my own I was lost and broken down
The artist was lost and broken down as an individual
And when you sing that old Shirelle song
When 'Sheila' sings an old Shirelles song
I'm the king with the golden crown
The singer feels like the king with a golden crown when 'Sheila' sings
Singing na na na na oh sheila sheila
Repeating the name 'Sheila' and adding 'na na na na oh' to the singing
Sheila's inside of the night
'Sheila' is inside of the night, metaphorically meaning she is in a dark place
Trying to take me into the light
The singer feels like 'Sheila' is trying to bring them out of the darkness and into the light
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DANIEL JOHN BAIRD, NEILL BOGAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
tatey39
One of the greatest bands ever....Saw them on the Land of Salvation and Sin Tour and they just blew the doors off the place. I've seen most of the "major" acts throughout the years and the Satellites were the best live band by a large margin...!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Clean and Good
This is awesome. They are one of the best Bands of all time!
Paul Hause
Don't remember this one being in heavy rotation on MTV in the day, but was def a good song. They deserved more airplay than they got.
Robert Baratheon
This is perfect for a stormy day. Cracking this song in my car on a stormy day is just awesome.
Johnny Foreigner
I was into these & The Scorchers back in the early 1980s when hardly anyone else in the UK had heard of them-lifelong fan to this day.
Inver D
Saw them live in Glasgow and the band couldn't believe that we all were word perfect on the songs. I was even lucky to get a drumstick souvenir. Great band
Sheila Jean
My high school sweetheart hooked me on to this song over a decade ago... still love them!!! and I'm loving its title... xoxo thanks again... Sheila!
hazor777
Great song! Great Band! Miss this lineup and those days ! Rick's guitar solo is awesome !
GreenCanvasInteriorscape
Love it, been sharing these guys with my kids and they approve
Adeline Mc Cann
❤️ this song so much.