Influenced by 60s British Invasion music (such as the songs of The Kinks, The Who, The Beatles, The Hollies, and The Rolling Stones), 70s Detroit garage rock and hard rock (as represented by such performers as Iggy Pop, The Stooges, and the MC5), and the classic punk of Ramones, the Romantics play a hook-based form of rock known as power pop. The band is also commonly classified into the category of "new wave" (probably due more to the band's image and era than the sound of its music) by pop music historians.
The Romantics' original lineup consisted of rhythm guitarist/harmonica player/singer Wally Palmar, lead guitarist Mike Skill, bassist Rich Cole, and drummer/singer Jimmy Marinos. All four band members made songwriting contributions to the group, but Palmar and Skill were considered the band's primary tunesmiths. After a few years of playing local and regional gigs in Detroit and the Midwest, this lineup of the Romantics recorded the band's self-titled debut album for Nemperor Records in 1980. The album yielded the hit "What I Like About You," which reached #48 in the US, and #12 in the Netherlands, where the band was especially popular. "What I Like About You" would become much better known later in the 1980s, when its placement in television commercials and other high profile media made it an evergreen power pop anthem. The band became as well known (if not better known) for its flashy and audacious fashion sense as it did for its exciting music. The Romantics' signature look featured bouffant hairdos and skin-tight red leather suits, as worn by the band members on the cover photo of their debut album.
Mike Skill left the band after the release of its second album, National Breakout, in 1981. He was replaced by lead guitarist Coz Canler. This lineup of the band recorded the album Strictly Personal in 1982 before Rich Cole left the band that year and was replaced by a returning Mike Skill, who then became the band's bassist.
The Romantics achieved their greatest commercial success in 1983/84 with the release of the album In Heat. The first single taken from In Heat, "Talking In Your Sleep", rose to Number Three on the Billboard charts, and was also a substantial international hit. A second single, "One In A Million", charted as high as Number Thirty-Seven during the following year. The Romantics' music videos were frequently shown on the cable television network MTV during this period, solidifying the band's popularity. Also during 1983, the Romantics played well received U.S. and international concert tours in support of In Heat, and appeared on such pop music-themed television shows as Solid Gold, American Bandstand, and Soul Train.
In 1984, drummer Jimmy Marinos, dissatisfied with the artistic direction of the band (which was quickly abandoning its power pop roots in favor of more generic mainstream pop rock) and convinced that he could find success as a solo act, left the Romantics. He was replaced by David Petratos, who would serve as the band's drummer until 1990. This lineup recorded one album, Rhythm Romance, in 1985. On Rhythm Romance, the Romantics eschewed much of the energetic electric guitar- and drums-based modern rock 'n roll sound that had come to define the band's music in favor of the synthesizer pop that had won commercial success for such contemporary bands as Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, Culture Club, and other similar New Wave bands during the early 1980s. By 1985, however, synthesizer pop was beginning to fall out of popular favor. Moreover, the style was not the Romantics' strength. As a result, Rhythm Romance was not a commercial success and was also regarded as an artistic nadir by the band's fans.
In the late 1980s, the Romantics discovered that their managers had been misappropriating the profits earned by the band from its hit records and live performances. Additionally, the Romantics' best known song (the aforementioned "What I Like About You") had been licensed for use in television commercials without the band's knowledge or approval. Consequently, the Romantics filed a lawsuit against their management in 1987, and the legalities involved prevented the band from recording new music until the mid-1990s.
Former Blondie drummer Clement (Clem) Burke replaced David Petratos as the Romantics' drummer in 1990. For much of the 1990s, the Romantics played obscure performances in small venues, largely forgotten and out of the public spotlight.
The Romantics' fortunes began to rise again in the middle of the 1990s, as the band's success in its lawsuit against its former management freed the band to record again (and ensured that future earnings from the licensing of Romantics songs would go to the band). The first fruit of the band's new recording activity was the 1993 EP Made In Detroit. Several Romantics greatest hits packages were issued during the 1990s, as was the live album The King Biscuit Flower Hour Presents: The Romantics Live In Concert, a 1996 release of an October, 1983 recording of a Romantics concert in San Antonio, Texas at the height of the band's popularity.
Jimmy Marinos, the Romantics' original drummer, temporarily returned to the band for a series of performances in 1996-1997 (with Clem Burke returning to the Romantics' drumstool after Marinos departed again), and late 1990s nostalgia for 1980s pop culture caused a minor resurgence of interest in the band. In 2003, twenty years after the release of their most commercially successful album, In Heat, the Romantics released 61/49 - a more roots rock and blues-oriented record than the band's previous efforts. The album was not a great commercial success, but won the Romantics a newfound critical respect that they had not enjoyed during their popular and commercial heyday in the early 1980s. 61/49 also offered proof that despite the band's years out of the public spotlight, the Romantics remain a potent musical unit.
A fourth drummer, Brad Elvis, replaced Clem Burke as the Romantics' regular drummer in 2004 after Burke returned full time to a reactivated Blondie. The Romantics continue to play live concerts today (with occasional guest performances by previous members Jimmy Marinos, Rich Cole, and David Petratos). The band is said to currently be working on a follow up to 61/49.
She's Got Everything
The Romantics Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She's got everything
I've got a girl and she is mine
She's got everything
Pretty ringlets in her hair
Pretty clothes that she can wear
What's she got?
Everything
All other guys just stand and stare
She's got everything
I ain't got a dime but she don't care
I got everything
I don't need money 'cause I got
Everything that I could want
What I've got?
Everything
Everything
I've got a girl who's oh, so good
She's got everything
She's got everything
She's got everything
And I can't live without her love
And I can't live without her kisses
She is mine forever now
She's got everything
She's got everything
She's got everything
She's got everything
She's got everything
She's got everything
I've got a girl who's oh, so good
She's got everything
I've got a girl who's oh, so fine
She's got everything
She's got everything
The Romantics' "She's Got Everything" is about the lead singer's admiration and love for a girl who he believes has everything he could ever want. The song's chorus repeats the phrase "She's got everything" in order to emphasize the idea that this girl has all the qualities he desires in a partner. He lists physical attributes, such as "pretty ringlets in her hair" and "pretty clothes that she can wear," but also notes that other guys are envious of her, implying that she also has an intangible quality that draws people to her.
The singer also acknowledges that he doesn't have much material wealth, saying "I ain't got a dime but she don't care." However, he expresses that he doesn't need money because he has found everything he wants in this girl. The lyrics show that he is deeply devoted to her, stating that he "can't live without her love" and that she is "mine forever now."
Overall, "She's Got Everything" is a love song that focuses on the idea that true happiness can be found in finding someone who possesses all the qualities we admire and desire in a partner, even if they don't necessarily possess material wealth.
Line by Line Meaning
I've got a girl who's oh, so good
The singer is expressing how great his girlfriend is.
She's got everything
The girlfriend possesses everything the singer could want or need in a partner.
I've got a girl and she is mine
The singer is celebrating his relationship with his girlfriend and the fact that she is committed to him.
Pretty ringlets in her hair
The girlfriend has beautiful, styled hair that the artist finds attractive.
Pretty clothes that she can wear
The girlfriend has fashionable clothing that makes her look attractive, and the artist appreciates it.
What's she got?
The singer is posing a rhetorical question, implying that the answer is obvious: his girlfriend has everything he could want in a partner.
All other guys just stand and stare
The singer feels proud that his girlfriend attracts the attention of other men, but he's secure in their relationship and not threatened by it.
She's got everything
Reiterating that his girlfriend has everything the artist wants and needs in a partner.
I ain't got a dime but she don't care
The artist may not have much money, but his girlfriend loves him for who he is, not for what he can provide financially.
I don't need money 'cause I got everything that I could want
The artist feels content and fulfilled in his relationship, so he doesn't crave material possessions.
What I've got?
The singer is asking a rhetorical question, implying that he already has everything he could want in his girlfriend.
And I can't live without her love
The artist feels strongly about his girlfriend and can't imagine his life without her.
And I can't live without her kisses
Physical intimacy is an important part of the singer's relationship, and he craves it from his girlfriend.
She is mine forever now
The singer is committed to his girlfriend and feels a sense of permanence in their relationship.
She's got everything
Reiterating once again that the girlfriend has everything the singer could want in a partner.
I've got a girl who's oh, so good
Repeating the opening line, signifying the importance of the girlfriend to the artist.
She's got everything
Closing the song with a final repetition of the main theme of the song: the girlfriend has everything the artist could want in a partner.
She's got everything
Closing the song with a final repetition of the main theme of the song: the girlfriend has everything the singer could want in a partner.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: RAYMOND DOUGLAS DAVIES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Robert Cochran
on What I Like About You
Winter of '84, 4 feet of snow drops on Harrisburg, PA the night the Romantics are to play the local club The Metro, Called to find out the band were there. Took the girlfriend to a venue of a dozen people and the band. They played that song at least 6 times, once me sing it on stage. Best concert I was ever at.