Oh, I know that she has made a fool of him
Like many girls have done so many times before
Time and time again
But he's so strange, I don't know why
But somebody, somebody has to cry
There's gonna be no dancing when they get home

There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing when they get home

Now he's telling her every little thing he's done
Once he glanced at the jackets of some paperbacks
Now he's read every one
He's such a drag (he's such a drag)
He's not insane (he's not insane)
It's just that everybody has to feel his pain
There's gonna be no dancing when they get home

He's getting down on his knees
He finds that her brother's not so easy to please, oh, oh
After all, his nights were just a paper striptease
She's caught it like some disease

If he says "No dancing"
There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing on my own

She can't even speak to him, he can't face her now
He says, "Even though I want to shake your hand
All I ever do is bow
So now do you see, how can it be?
Why can't you give me anythin' but sympathy?"

There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing
There's gonna be no dancing on my own


Lyrics submitted by fearofmusic

No Dancing Lyrics as written by Elvis Costello

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group

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No Dancing song meanings
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    General Comment

    As usual, it's another song by Elvis about our "last taboo" as D.H.Lawrence put it: Beautiful, uninhibited, joyous, animal, angelic sex. The song says "no dancing, but this is an excellent portrait of the dance of neurosis; the fear of love, the fear of connection.

    razajacon February 28, 2005   Link

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