The Vibrators recorded sessions at for John Peel at BBC Radio 1 in October 1976, June 1977, and February 1978. They were one of the pioneering punk bands that played at London's Roxy Club. They headlined in January 1977, supported by The Drones, and in February they played twice at the venue. In March 1977 the band supported Iggy Pop on his British tour. Later that year they backed ex-Mott the Hoople frontman Ian Hunter.
The band signed to Epic Records in early 1977. Their debut album, Pure Mania was co-produced with Robin Mayhew, the sound engineer for David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust live shows, and reached the Top 50 of the UK Albums Chart. The album is well regarded by some music critics and, 17 years after its release The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music named Pure Mania one of the 50 best punk albums of all time.
Their follow-up album, V2, narrowly missed the UK Top 30. The only single to be taken from that album, "Automatic Lover", was the only Vibrators’ single to reach the UK Top 40 where it reached #35. It earned the band a TV appearance on the prime-time TV show Top of the Pops. The Vibrators’ final single on Epic, "Judy Says (Knock You In The Head)", was released in June 1978. It reached #70 in the UK singles chart. Years later it was included in Mojo magazine’s list of the best punk rock singles of all time.
A lack of further chart activity, and with only one UK Top 40 single to their credit, sees the Vibrators join the list of one-hit wonders; a list that includes other UK punk and new wave acts such as The Banned, John Cooper Clarke, The Flying Lizards, Jilted John, 999, the Radio Stars, and the Rich Kids.
During the 1980s, John Ellis recorded and toured frequently with Peter Hammill, and subsequently The Stranglers, eventually joining the latter full-time in the 1990s. Pat Collier went on to work closely with The Soft Boys, producing their seminal album, Underwater Moonlight, and Robyn Hitchcock, producing and mixing some of his solo albums (to which Knox also sometimes contributed). Despite numerous line-up changes, The Vibrators are still touring to this date as a three-piece, "Knox" and "Eddie" being the only original members.
You Broke My Heart
The Vibrators Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh yes you did now!
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah aw Yes you did now!
I don't know why it is that you drive me crazy
I don't know why it is you do those things that you do to me!
And,
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah
You broke my heart OH, you broke my heart
Aw yes you did now!
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah
I don't know why it is that you drive me crazy
I don't know why it is you do those things that you do to me!
And,
Oh, you are always on my mind
And,
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah (oh yes you did now!)
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah (oh yes you did now!)
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah (oh yes you did now!)
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah (oh yes you did now!)
The lyrics to The Vibrators' song "You Broke My Heart" are a lament by the singer about how his heart has been broken into small pieces by an unknown person. The lyrics suggest that the person responsible for the heartbreak is someone the singer cares about deeply, but who drives him crazy and does things that hurt him emotionally. The chorus of the song repeats the phrase "You broke my heart into little tiny pieces" several times, underscoring the depth of the singer's pain.
The lyrics suggest that the singer is struggling to understand why he is so deeply affected by the actions of this person. The line "I don't know why it is that you drive me crazy" suggests that the singer is aware that his response to the heartbreak is irrational, but he cannot control his feelings. The repeated phrase "Oh yes you did now!" emphasizes the singer's belief that the person responsible for his heartbreak is fully aware of the harm they have caused.
The song's lyrics reflect a common theme in popular music of heartbreak and unrequited love. The Vibrators were part of the British punk rock scene in the late 1970s, and the song's simple, repetitive lyrics and driving beat reflect that genre's characteristic energy and emotional intensity.
Line by Line Meaning
You broke my heart into little tiny pieces
You caused a great deal of emotional pain and heartbreak that shattered my heart into many small fragments
Oh yes you did now!
It is an affirmative statement emphasizing that the pain and heartbreak the singer is feeling was indeed caused by the person they are addressing
I don't know why it is that you drive me crazy
The singer is puzzled by why the person they are addressing has such an intense effect on their emotions that makes them feel irrational
I don't know why it is you do those things that you do to me!
The artist does not understand why the person they are addressing engages in such behavior that hurt and cause pain to them
You broke my heart OH, you broke my heart
An emotionally intense statement emphasizing how the person they are addressing has caused significant emotional pain and heartbreak to the artist
Oh, you are always on my mind
The person they are addressing is constantly occupying the singer's thoughts, which can be distressing and painful
Yeah-yeah yeah-yeah yeah yeah (oh yes you did now!)
A repetitive confirmation that the person they are addressing indeed caused significant heartbreak and emotional pain to the singer
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: IAN MILROY CARNOCHAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind