Tim Rogers formed the first version of the band in Sydney, Australia, with his school friend Nick Tischler and his older brother Jaimme in December 1989. This initial line-up was short lived and by the end of 1990 both Nick and Jaimme had left the band. They were replaced by the group's one-time sound mixer Andy Kent on bass and Mark Tunaley on drums.
The band released several EPs and singles in the early 90s, though the real breakthrough came when Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth caught the band performing at 1993's Big Day Out festival and was impressed enough to produce their fourth EP, Coprolalia, and later the debut album, Sound as Ever, which went on to win the 1993 ARIA Award for Best Alternative Release.
After the release of their first album, Mark and the band parted company. He was replaced by the charismatic Russell Hopkinson (formerly of Nursery Crimes) creating the core line-up to this day. Since then, the band has been augmented by Davey Lane of The Pictures on guitar.
You Am I had toured the US extensively during the mid 90s, including playing with Soundgarden on the Lollapalooza festival, Red Kross, The Strokes and Smoking Popes to name a few. Despite little success overseas, the band became well known throughout Australia for their Pete Townshend-esque guitar windmills and their upbeat "ponce and thuggery" take on Rock 'n' Roll.
Further success came with the albums Hi Fi Way and Hourly Daily, with both picking up ARIA Awards. Hourly Daily was the first album released on the Shock label to go to number one in the ARIA charts upon launch. For many, the suburban inspired, 60s bop and folky 12 string melodies were a welcome departure from ever pervasive 70s rock sounds, or even grunge rock.
Subtle country influences became apparent on their 1998 Number 4 Record, which included the poignant Heavy Heart. A heart wrenching, almost karaoke inspired ballad about being 'dropped' by your girlfriend. Evidently each subsequent album has had a few countryish twang which have polarised some fans, who idolise the band's earlier warts and all rock beginnings.
1999 saw frontman Tim Rogers release his first solo album What Rhymes With Cars And Girls, followed up in 2004 by the record Spit Polish. In 2005 he released the critically acclaimed double-LP 'Ghost Songs' and 'Dirty Ron'.
After an album absence prolonged by touring and record label interference, Dress Me Slowly was released April 2001. Arguably containing some of the bands' best work including Damage and Kick a Hole in the Sky there were also some stellar b-Sides on the commercial singles that accompanied the album. These include a song called Older Guys which is track 2 on the Get Up single. Older Guys was one of the stand out songs on Gram Parsons' group The Flying Burrito Brothers album Burrito Deluxe and although the You Am I b-side is an original, Rogers is recognised as a keen student of music history and some connection can be assumed.
Dress Me Slowly was second guitarist, Davey Lane's first bona fide appearance on a studio record. Lane had come to the band's attention from his own work with The Pictures and transcribing, with almost scary accuracy, the band's guitar tabs on the You Am I web site. The band's last collective studio effort was Deliverance in 2002.
The likes of Nic Cester of Jet have mentioned that You Am I, at the very least, reminded them that you don't have to be American to be a successful rock band. Iconic references to Australian everyday suburban life remain a constant theme of Roger's material. The Vines also credit You Am I as a major influence and Silverchair take their name, in part, from You Am I's song Berlin Chair.
Their seventh album "Convicts" was released in May 2006. An about face on the previous two albums, Convicts rocks hard all of the way through with much more straight forward production and higher energy that makes you jump.
Their eighth album "Dilettantes" was released in September 2008.
Secrets
You Am I Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
While our folks would drink casks and curse the sand.
I noticed him staring at the ceiling like Gene Vincent
Singing to a crowd
For a girl of 14 I thought I knew I would meet
Someone with a thought that was free of TV
Leering and affected just like Gene Vincent
Like he was barely allowed
I give you the last thing truly mine
But your secrets are safe with me
You can ignore now just what you swore
Your secrets are safe with me
So I'll keep my love buried, but breathing
Your secrets are safe with
Ahh, they're safe with me
Behind the tunes he looked in my eye
But did I want him to
Trusting his mistrust, but I was just another voice in the crowd
I'm hardly getting over it now
I give you the last thing that's truly mine
But your secrets are safe with me
You can ignore now just what you swore
Your secrets are safe with me
So I'll keep my love buried, but breathing
Your secrets are safe with
Ahh, they're safe with me
You told me I felt like you own me
Now I care for nothing at all
What I gave you wasn't a favour
Now I care for nothing at all
Didn't trust nothing that much
Now I care for nothing at all
Now I care for, now I care for
Now I care for nothing at all
The first verse speaks of a summer where the singer and their family stayed in caravans by the beach. While the adults drank and complained, the singer noticed a boy staring at the ceiling and singing like Gene Vincent. The singer, at the age of 14, thought that she would meet someone who thought freely and differently from those influenced by TV. However, the boy only seemed to sing to a crowd as if he was barely allowed to express himself. The second verse is about the singer offering the only thing she has left to the boy but letting him know that his secrets are safe with her. She would keep her love for him buried but breathing, and his secrets would always be safe with her. Behind the tunes, he looked her in the eye, and she trusted his mistrust but knew that she was just another voice in the crowd.
The last verse shows that the boy told her that he felt like he owned her. She cared for nothing after that and realized that what she gave him was not a favor. She did not trust anyone that much and now cares for nothing at all. The song speaks of the stifling nature of small-town life and how the singer looked at the boy as a means of escaping that life. Still, she realized he was not the escape she was looking for and chose to keep his secrets to herself.
Line by Line Meaning
Each summer we'd slumber in caravans
During every summer, we would sleep in caravans.
While our folks would drink casks and curse the sand.
While our parents drank wine from a cask and spoke unfavorably about the heat and sand.
I noticed him staring at the ceiling like Gene Vincent, singing to a crowd.
I saw him looking upwards and singing like Gene Vincent, performing in front of an audience.
For a girl of 14 I thought I knew I would meet someone with a thought that was free of TV, leering and affected just like Gene Vincent singin' to a crowd, like he was barely allowed.
At age 14, I thought I would find someone who had unique ideas and wasn't influenced by television, and who performed like Gene Vincent even if he seemed hesitant to do so.
I give you the last thing truly mine, but your secrets are safe with me.
I will give you the last thing I truly own, but I promise to keep your secrets confidential.
You can ignore now just what you swore, your secrets are safe with me.
You can forget the promises you made, knowing that I will never reveal your secrets.
So I'll keep my love buried, but breathing, your secrets are safe with, ahh, they're safe with me.
I will hide my love for you, but it still exists, and I will never disclose your secrets to anyone.
Behind the tunes he looked in my eye, but did I want him to, trusting his mistrust, but I was just another voice in the crowd, I'm hardly getting over it now.
He gazed into my eyes while playing music, but I'm uncertain if I wanted him to do so. Despite feeling unsure about his intentions, I trusted him, but in reality, I was just another person in the audience, and I'm still having a tough time moving on from this experience.
You told me I felt like you own me, now I care for nothing at all.
You claimed to have a sense of ownership over me, which caused me to feel indifferent towards everything else.
What I gave you wasn't a favour, now I care for nothing at all.
What I did for you wasn't done out of kindness, and now I have no feelings towards anything.
Didn't trust nothing that much, now I care for nothing at all, now I care for, now I care for, now I care for nothing at all.
I didn't trust anything or anyone deeply, and now I don't care about anything at all, now and forever.
Contributed by Violet V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@mochamadtaufan901
[Verse 1]
I need another story
Something to get off my chest
My life gets kinda boring
Need something that I can confess
'Til all my sleeves are stained red
From all the truth that I've said
Come by it honestly I swear
Thought you saw me wink, no
I've been on the brink, so
[Chorus]
So tell me what you want to hear
Something that will light those ears
I'm sick of all the insincere
So I'm gonna give all my secrets away
This time
Don't need another perfect lie
Don't care if critics ever jump in line
I'm gonna give all my secrets away
[Verse 2]
My God, amazing how we got this far
It's like we're chasing all those stars
Who's driving shiny big black cars
And every day I see the news
All the problems that we could solve
And when a situation rises
Just write it into an album
Send it straight to gold
But I don't really like my flow, no
[Chorus]
So tell me what you want to hear
Something that will light those ears
I'm sick of all the insincere
So I'm gonna give all my secrets away
This time
Don't need another perfect lie
Don't care if critics ever jump in line
I'm gonna give all my secrets away
[Bridge]
Ooh
Got no reason, got no shame
Got no family I can blame
Just don't let me disappear
I'ma tell you everything
[Chorus]
So tell me what you want to hear
Something that'll light those ears
I'm sick of all the insincere
So I'm gonna give all my secrets away
This time
Don't need another perfect lie
Don't care if critics ever jump in line
I'm gonna give all my secrets away
So tell me what you want to hear
Something that'll light those ears
I'm sick of all the insincere
So I'm gonna give all my secrets away
This time
Don't need another perfect lie
Don't care if critics ever jump in line
I'm gonna give all my secrets away
@Audioandlyrics
I feel this music video is better than the sorcerer's apprentice one.
@koryretallick6242
Yh but the sorcerers apprentice is my childhood and everytime I watch that scene it gives me chills
@nucleargaming0
Dude... 🤦♂️ The sorcerer's apprentice version is the original this is a cover not that this one is bad it's good by the sorcerer's apprentice version is the original
@whatthedogdoin7040
@@nucleargaming0 wdym this is the original song
@ilyastnn312
@@nucleargaming0 what??
@MilcahsGame
@@nucleargaming0 you a delulu. Get a therapy nerd.
@GabaLeth
I remember first hearing this song in an idra StarCraft 2 montage, but I've forgotten it for maybe 10 years until finally hearing it again at Lowes
@myrandomlife8881
I'm crying when i know the tittle 🥲
@PETER-pb8yw
@@myrandomlife8881yep😊
@DennisTheInternationalMenace
1st time i heard it was on CSI Miami