Dolby promoted himself as a kind of mad scientist, an egghead that had successfully harnessed the power of synthesizers and samplers, using them to make catchy pop and electro-funk. Before he launched his solo career, Dolby had already worked as a studio musician, technician, and songwriter. After starting out as a teenaged live sound man, mixing The Fall, The Members and others using a PA he built himself, he formed the arty post-punk band Camera Club (also known as Bruce Woolley & the Camera Club) with Bruce Woolley, Geoff Downes, Trevor Horn and Matthew Seligman. Within a year, he had left the group and joined Lene Lovich’s backing band and gave her his song "New Toy", which became a British hit in 1981. That same year, he released his first solo single, "Urges", on the English independent label Armageddon. By the autumn, he had signed with Parlophone and released "Europa and the Pirate Twins", which nearly cracked the UK Top 40.
Dolby started playing synthesizer on sessions for other artists in 1982. That year, he played keyboards on Def Leppard’s Pyromania and Joan Armatrading’s Walk Under Ladders. His most distinctive session credit is that keyboard line after the chorus on Foreigner’s "Waiting for a Girl Like You". In that eventful summer, Dolby also collaborating with New York rappers Whodini to create "Magic’s Wand" – a pivotal early hip hop track (the first rap single to shift 1 million copies), and it also single-handedly started the new jack swing movement.
Even with all of these achievements, 1982 was most noteworthy for the release of Dolby’s first solo album, The Golden Age of Wireless, in the summer of 1982, the landmark album reaching number 13. "Windpower", the first single from the record, became his first Top 40 UK hit in the late summer. Other cuts from the album include "The Airwaves", and "One of Our Submarines", a meditation on the futility of empire.
In January of 1983, Dolby released an EP, Blinded by Science, which includes what would become his most well-known track, "She Blinded Me with Science" featuring a cameo vocal appearance by the notorious British eccentric Magnus Pike, who also appeared in the song’s video. "She Blinded Me with Science" was a minor hit in England, but the EP and the single became a major American hit in 1983, thanks to MTV’s heavy airplay of the video. Eventually, the song reached number five on the US charts and it was included on a resequenced and reissued version of The Golden Age of Wireless, which peaked at number 13 in America.
The Flat Earth, Dolby's second album, appeared in early 1984, and harkens back to a time when songs mattered more than the video, even as MTV was discovering its strength. Opening with "Dissidents", conjuring up images of blacklisted authors and ugly snow, gray from oppression, with Matthew Seligman’s bass at the fore, lavish, growling, popping through octaves, funk-a-fied and twinkling with harmonics throughout the album. The title track is an R&B daydream of piano and Motown stabs of rhythm guitar. "Screen Kiss" has a similarly ethereal quality, and the lyrics are lush with imagery. The cover of Dan Hicks’ 1967 "I Scare Myself" is a balmy jazz club cocktail – faithfully nostalgic, right down to a bittersweet trombone solo from Peter Thomas. "Hyperactive" is one part bizarre to two parts infectious; guest vocalist Adele Bertei fuels the fire to what was already destined to be a memorable diversion beyond the reach of Top 40. The single became Thomas’ biggest UK hit, peaking at number 17.
During 1985, Dolby collaborated with artists including Stevie Wonder, Dusty Springfield and Herbie Hancock; and notched up some more high-concept production credits. George Clinton's Some of My Best Jokes Are Friends, Prefab Sprout’s Steve McQueen, and Joni Mitchell’s Dog Eat Dog were all midwifed by Dolby, who also was musical director for David Bowie at Live Aid. Also in 1985, he began composing film scores, starting with Fever Pitch. In 1986, he composed the scores for Gothic and Howard the Duck, for which he credited himself as Dolby's Cube. (That credit led to a lawsuit from the Dolby Labs, who eventually prohibited the musician from using the name "Dolby" in conjunction with any other name than "Thomas.")
Aliens Ate My Buick, Dolby's long-delayed third album, appeared in 1988 to a mixed reaction, although "Airhead" became a minor British hit. That same year, Dolby married actress Kathleen Beller. For the rest of the late 80s and early 90s, Dolby continued to score films, producing and building his own computer equipment.
1992’s Astronauts and Heretics, features guest stars such as Eddie Van Halen, Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir and Ofra Haza. The album opens with "I Love You Goodbye", one of Thomas’ most evocative songs, and ends with "Beauty of a Dream" which is also a contender for that honour. Highlights found inbetween include "Cruel" (a duet with Fairground Attraction’s Eddie Reader), "I Live in a Suitcase" and "Close But No Cigar".
The following year, Dolby founded the computer software company Headspace in Silicon Valley, releasing The Virtual String Quartet as its first program, and also pioneered technology for music on mobile phones. For the rest of the 90s, Headspace occupied most of Dolby's time and energy. In 1994, he released The Gate to the Mind’s Eye, a soundtrack to the animated short film Mind’s Eye. Also that year, Capitol released the greatest-hits collection, Retrospectacle.
Thirteen years after Astronauts and Heretics, Dolby returned to live performance in 2006 with his solo Sole Inhabitant tour, which covered North America and the UK, with Thomas recreating the highlights of his earlier work from scratch, with a camera mounted like a miner’s lamp on his head, and a big screen showing the view from the artist, turning what would be a fairly dull one-man-and-a-rack-of-synths into a fascinating audio visual experience and an unintended masterclass for music technology students.
UK indie label Invisible Hands Music released a CD and DVD box set recorded on the Sole Inhabitant tour. These fresh and modern reinterpretations of Thomas’ work to date precedes a new studio album due in 2008, which is as-yet untitled, but does include a song about Britney’s ex Kevin Federline (“K-Fed”) who used an uncleared sample from "She Blinded Me with Science" and did not respond to legal approaches until a ‘cease-and-desist’ was posted in the comments field of his MySpace page. That song is called "My Karma Hit Your Dogma", and bodes well for a mighty return to form, combining Thomas’ humour and intelligence with a unique musical vision.
2011 saw Dolby get busy by returning with a new studio album A Map of the Floating City on 29 October. The album is broken down into three genres of Urbanoia's tales of city experiences; Amerikana as Dolby's take on his years living in America and it's roots music; and Oceanea: songs of life by the sea in his home country of England. The music was debuted first as download EPs to Dolby's online community and then previewed by a transmedia interactive game also called the FloatingCity.com.
Thomas Dolby is taking the music back on tour as a solo artist and with varying line-ups of bands, doing two tours of the UK in 2011, and has his first trip to Australia in February 2012 followed by dates in Japan. In March Dolby kicks off the Time-Capsule.tv tour at the SxSW Festival in Austin playing dates in USA and Canada through April. He will have a trailer parked at venues on his tour where you can produce a 30 second video offering words of wisdom to whoever will be walking the earth in the future. Dolby wants to give people a chance to “explain to an alien visitor what went wrong with our civilization. Our species may not be around on this planet much longer, so you might as well leave a welcome message for the next guys.”
Leipzig is Calling
Thomas Dolby Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Soon you're eyeing the overseas page
The trains're running late
As you close the garden gate
Step through your steel front doorframe
"Dinner's in the microwave, sweetie"
Leipzig is calling you Henry
Leipzig is calling you Jane
Leipzig is calling you names
Cars were burning on yellow lines
Wheels turning, traffic lights change
Another misty bus-queue morning
Faces smile down from a hoarding
You stoop to the bin - drop something in
Well you'll soon feel yourself again
And everyplace is just the same, isn't it?
Like the sound of taxi brakes
The sound of a dentist's drill
The colour of skates on ice
Under clingflilm - it's calling
Leipzig is calling you names.
The lyrics to Thomas Dolby's song Leipzig is Calling offer a commentary on the mundanity and predictability of everyday life, and the desire for something new and exciting. The song begins by describing a person, perhaps approaching middle age, who is feeling a bit restless and in need of change. They are considering a move overseas and the trains in their current location are running late, implying a sense of frustration and impatience. As they enter their home, they are greeted by the message that dinner is in the microwave, a sterile and efficient method of feeding oneself.
The chorus then kicks in, with the refrain "Leipzig is calling you," repeated in reference to different individuals. This creates a sense of universality; anyone could be feeling the pull of something new and exciting. The second verse continues with a description of the city, with images of burning cars, traffic, and bus queues. Despite the chaos of city life, there is a sense of familiarity - "everyplace is just the same, isn't it?"
The song ends with a collection of disparate images and sounds, including the sound of taxi brakes, a dentist's drill, and skates on ice. The phrase "Leipzig is calling you names" takes on a slightly different tone in this final verse, perhaps suggesting that the city is taunting those who long for something more.
Overall, the lyrics to Leipzig is Calling paint a picture of restlessness and a desire for change in the face of the monotony of everyday life. The specific city of Leipzig is used as a symbol of the unknown and exciting, but there is also an acknowledgement that the grass isn't always greener elsewhere.
Line by Line Meaning
Thirty nine and you need some leeway
At the age of thirty nine, you start to crave some freedom and flexibility in your life.
Soon you're eyeing the overseas page
You begin to look at opportunities abroad and dream of escaping your current surroundings.
The trains're running late
Public transportation is unreliable and adds to the stress of daily life.
As you close the garden gate
Leaving home is a daily ritual that marks the beginning of another mundane day.
Step through your steel front doorframe
You enter your home and feel a sense of security, yet also trapped in your routine.
"Dinner's in the microwave, sweetie"
Your significant other has prepared a quick, convenient meal for you to eat alone.
Leipzig is calling you Henry
The idea of Leipzig, or more broadly, the desire for something new and exciting, is calling out to you as an individual named Henry.
Leipzig is calling you Jane
The same desire for something new and exciting is calling out to you as an individual named Jane.
Leipzig is calling you Leonard
The same desire for something new and exciting is calling out to you as an individual named Leonard.
Leipzig is calling you names
People from all backgrounds and walks of life are feeling the same desire for adventure and change, and are being called out by Leipzig (or the idea of something new).
Cars were burning on yellow lines
There is chaos and destruction in the streets, with abandoned cars set ablaze on the roadside.
Wheels turning, traffic lights change
The humdrum routine of daily life continues, with traffic moving along while people stay stationary in their lives.
Another misty bus-queue morning
It's another damp, routine morning spent waiting in line for the bus.
Faces smile down from a hoarding
Advertisements show people happy and content with their perfect, unattainable lives.
You stoop to the bin - drop something in
You mindlessly dispose of something, contributing to the apathy and routine of daily life.
Well you'll soon feel yourself again
Despite all this, you will eventually find a way to feel like yourself and regain a sense of individuality.
And everyplace is just the same, isn't it?
Despite the desire for something new and exciting, every place ultimately feels the same and routine sets in once more.
Like the sound of taxi brakes
The sound of taxi brakes is a reminder of the hustle and bustle of city life, and the monotony of daily noises.
The sound of a dentist's drill
The sound of a dentist's drill is nerve-wracking and unpleasant, reminding us of the discomforts of daily life.
The colour of skates on ice
The image of skates on ice is beautiful and serene, yet unattainable for many, further highlighting the dichotomy of daily life.
Under clingflilm - it's calling
Even the sight of wrapped food in clingfilm is a reminder of the mundane routine and monotony of daily life.
Leipzig is calling you names.
Despite the mundane routine of daily life, the desire for something new and exciting, like the idea of Leipzig, continues to call out to individuals, reminding them of the possibilities beyond their current circumstances.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Tim Kai
Everything about this is fantastic! The music, the steampunk-y attire, the casual grace used to build this song to it's full power ... ARRGH!! SO Good!
Michael Anoniem
True!
Chris Cebelenski
I was in the front row for this show - Sat there amazed the whole time, and had a nice talk with Mr. Dolby after the show. Made me buy a trigger-finger too, seeing how well he utilized it here.
Michael Anoniem
unbelievable beautiful...can listen ti it 1 million times
WulfCry
ArtPop from the golden age timeless.
MrPitatom
I love this song. He's brilliant.
Phil Thomas
Love Thomas' voice.
Hubert Vale
I was there! What an awesome show!!!!!
Oldmotherhell
Cannot explain why but this reminds me of a John Le Carre novel.
wemcal
Simply amazing