In 1978, A&M Records released Tim Curry's debut solo album. Entitled Read My Lips, the album featured an eclectic range of songs (mostly covers) performed in diverse genre. Highlights of the album are a reggae version of the Beatles song "I Will", a rendition of "Wake Nicodemus" with full bagpipe backing, and an original bar-room ballad, "Alan".
The following year, Curry's second and most successful album was released. Titled Fearless, the LP was more rock-oriented than Read My Lips and mostly featured original songs rather than cover versions. The record included Tim Curry's only US charting songs: "I Do the Rock" and "Paradise Garage".
Curry's third and final album, Simplicity, was released in 1981, again by A&M Records. This record did not sell as well as the previous offerings, due in part to a less appealing, more maudlin sound. This record combined both original songs and cover versions, and is commonly held to be the weakest of the three albums.
In 1989, A&M released The Best of Tim Curry on CD and cassette, featuring songs from his albums (including a live version of "Alan") and a previously-unreleased song, a live cover version of "Simple Twist of Fate".
Curry toured America with his band through the late 1970s and the first half of the 1980s.
Curry's first full-time role was as part of the original London cast of the musical Hair in 1968. Here he first met Richard O'Brien, who went on to create his next full-time and perhaps still most famous role, that of Frank N. Furter in the Rocky Horror Show.
Originally Curry rehearsed the character with a German accent and peroxide blonde hair, but the character evolved into the sly, very upper-class English (He says 'dine' instead of down, 'brine' instead of brown etc) drag-wearing mad scientist incarnation that carried over to the movie version and made Curry both a star and a cult figure. He continued to play the character in London, Los Angeles and New York until 1975.
For many years, Curry was reluctant to talk about Rocky Horror, feeling that it was a trend that had gone too far and had distracted attention away from his later roles. However, in recent years he has been much more open about discussing the show and now recognises it as a "rite of passage" for many young people.
Just Fourteen
Tim Curry Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She's just 14
Little movie star queen
But there isn't much she hasn't seen
She's ridden in limosine cars
Dated pop stars
With rainbow hair
She says that's nowhere
She always says
I'm just a sexy trash can
But she's just a little girl
Who thinks like a man
Now sometimes her daddy spoiled her
Sometimes he treated her tough
So sometimes she is gentle
And sometimes she's so rough
But she's always too nice to the driver
She says, "James have you had your supper yet?"
And she's always too high on arrival
And she runs on her high platform heels
And she falls flat on her face
And she knows how life feels
She got the moves
She got the looks
She got the style
She's but all the boss
And nobody got her on the She's on her daddy's trip
She's on her daddy's tail
But she's always too nice to the driver
She says, "James have you had your supper yet?"
And she is always too high on arrival
And she runs on her high platform heels
And she falls flat on her face
And she knows how life feels
And see her sipping
Her vanderbilt wine
Wondering if she's the last word
In space and time
And she knows she is
And she's so pleased
To discover that she's so hip
She's on her daddy's trip
She's on her daddy's trip
But she's always too nice to the driver
She says, "James have you had your supper yet?"
And she is always too high on arrival
And she runs on her high platform heels
And she falls flat on her face
And she knows how life feels
And she runs on her high platform heels...
The song "Just Fourteen" by Tim Curry initially seems to describe a young girl who appears much more mature than her age. The song describes her experiences in the entertainment industry, where she's met and dated famous people, but hasn't found much fulfillment despite her enviable lifestyle. The girl is portrayed as someone who tries to act tough and project an image of confidence, but is still very much a child. The lyrics "she's just a little girl who thinks like a man" highlight this conflict between her youthful innocence and her attempts to appear as a more mature person.
While the girl is not explicitly named in the song, she is referred to as being on "her daddy's trip" and "her daddy's tail", which suggests that she is being driven by her father rather than being in control of her own life. This is further emphasized by phrases like "she falls flat on her face" and "she knows how life feels", which convey a sense of the girl's vulnerability and suggest that she's struggling to navigate the complexities of the world around her.
Overall, "Just Fourteen" is a poignant reflection on the ways in which young people can be pushed to grow up too quickly, and how they can struggle to reconcile the demands of the world with their own experiences and emotions. The lyrics suggest that despite her glamorous life, the girl is ultimately just a child trying to make sense of her place in an adult world that can be both exhilarating and overwhelming.
Line by Line Meaning
Shhh here she comes
Be quiet, she's coming here now.
She's just 14
She's only 14 years old.
Little movie star queen
She's a young girl who is famous in the movie industry.
But there isn't much she hasn't seen
She's experienced a lot at a young age.
She's ridden in limousine cars
She's been driven in luxurious cars.
Dated pop stars
She's dated famous singers.
With rainbow hair
Some of the pop stars she's dated have colorful hair.
She says that's nowhere
She doesn't think it's a big deal.
She always says
This is what she usually says.
I'm just a sexy trash can
She feels objectified and used for her looks.
But she's just a little girl
Despite her experiences, she's still young and vulnerable.
Who thinks like a man
She has a mature and worldly perspective.
Now sometimes her daddy spoiled her
Her father occasionally gave her too much or too easy.
Sometimes he treated her tough
Other times, her father was strict or harsh with her.
So sometimes she is gentle
Her personality can be soft and kind.
And sometimes she's so rough
Other times, she's tough and aggressive.
But she's always too nice to the driver
Despite her behavior elsewhere, she's always polite to the driver named James.
She says, "James have you had your supper yet?"
She asks James if he's eaten already.
And she's always too high on arrival
She's either drunk or high when she arrives to her destination.
And she runs on her high platform heels
She wears high heels that make her run ungracefully.
And she falls flat on her face
She's clumsy and has fallen on her face before.
And she knows how life feels
She's experienced the harshness of life.
She got the moves
She's a skilled dancer.
She got the looks
She's physically attractive.
She got the style
She has fashion sense and can put together outfits well.
She's but all the boss
She's in control and commanding.
And nobody got her on the She's on her daddy's trip
She's a daddy's girl and follows her father's rules or expectations.
And See her sipping
Watch her take a sip.
Her vanderbilt wine
She's having a glass of wine from the Vanderbilt family's winery.
Wondering if she's the last word in space and time
She's questioning if she's the epitome of greatness and stands out in history.
And she knows she is
She believes she is the best.
And she's so pleased
She's very happy.
To discover that she's so hip
She's excited to learn that others think she's trendy.
She's on her daddy's trip
She's still following her father's rules.
Contributed by Ethan N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.