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Handbags And Gladrags Lyrics
Ever seen a blind man cross the road,
Try'na make it to the other side.
Ever seen a young girl growing old,
Try'na make herself a bride.
So what becomes of you my love,
when they have finally stripped you of
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy you.
Once I was a young man,
and all I thought I had to do was smile.
Well you are still a young girl,
and you bought everything in style.
So once you think you're in, you're out,
'cause you don't mean a single thing without
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy you.
Sing a song of sixpence for your sake
and drink a bottle full of rye.
Four and twenty blackbirds in a cake,
and bake them all in a pie.
They told me you missed school today,
so what I suggest you just throw them all away.
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy.
They told me you missed school today,
so what I suggest you just throw them all away.
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy you.
Try'na make it to the other side.
Ever seen a young girl growing old,
Try'na make herself a bride.
when they have finally stripped you of
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy you.
and all I thought I had to do was smile.
Well you are still a young girl,
and you bought everything in style.
'cause you don't mean a single thing without
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy you.
and drink a bottle full of rye.
Four and twenty blackbirds in a cake,
and bake them all in a pie.
so what I suggest you just throw them all away.
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy.
so what I suggest you just throw them all away.
The handbags and the gladrags
that your poor old Grandad had to sweat to buy you.
Song Info
Submitted by
jon On Jan 19, 2002
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it's simply saying that there is more to life than your looks etc. A person is more than the trappings that surround them
This is song is about materialism, bu it is mostly about growing up. It begs a question to everybody who has had everything handed to them, everybody whose ancestors worked their asses off so that they could buy cool crap without having to work with it. In the context of the lyrics, today "handbags and gladrags" could easily be replaced with "ipods and laptops".
It's kind of about just being grateful and realizing that you're eventually going to have to grow up too. Again, in an especially modern context, what happens to you when you piss away your parents money by getting shitfaced at college for 4 years? Where has that gotten you? Life isn't as ideal as you think it's going to be (you can't just smile your way through it).
In the specific sense it does have to do with a girl who has prioritized fashion and stuff, but the song works in a much more general way. She has prioritized the shallow, meaningless things in life because she hasn't ever really had to live enough to see that there's more, to grow up. The use of "fashion" could easily just be replaced with things like materialism, somebody watching TV all day, laziness--anything really when you're pissing away all that is given to you because it's given to you. And when you have spent your life focused on meaningless, useless things, and then you have to grow up and use real life skills and do real life work, you've got nothing without your shallow, meaningless existence that you've created for yourself.
@parkerstoneftw Hahaha. Only just read this 11 years too late. In 2019 it's great to see that iPods and laptops have now been replaced by other devices on such a short time. Good post mate
@parkerstoneftw Hahaha. Only just read this 11 years too late. In 2019 it's great to see that iPods and laptops have now been replaced by other devices on such a short time. Good post mate
I agree with toxicgeek. You can dress yourself up in all the gladrags in the world but it doesn't mean nothing if you don't have the personality to back it up. The song is about a girl who puts her entire life in how she looks and all the education she's recieved doesn't mean a thing because fashion takes a higher rung. Even though the Stereophincs version is pretty much exactly he same as Rod Stewart's (I think Mike D'Abo of Manfred Mann wrote it originally), Kelly Jones is much sexier than Rod. So there. :)
This song is a bit of a guilt trip, but it's not just about today. It's historical, that's why it says "that your poor old grandad had to sweat to buy you". It's about all the things that our ancestors have done so that we can live in the luxury we've become accustomed to. So when the line comes up "They told me you missed school today", that's a privilege that our grandads/great-grandads didn't have and fought for, yet we treat it as though it's a nuisance. Without it and the gladrags and handbags, we wouldn't have the choices we have and such an easy life.
That's what ran through my mind anyway.
Yes, according to the book accompanying the CD it is written by Michael D'Abo. Perhaps it shouldn't be here under Stereophonics? But I guess there's no harm in it staying.
If anyone is wondering, Michael D'abo was a member of Manfred Mann.
Excellent song, and even a better choice to show up as the theme song for The Office.
I like this song and I didn't know any of these groups sing it. I know about it from a Bill Chase marching show I had in marching band last year. Bill Chase was a GREAT trumpeter. I recommend this song, Get It On and also Open Up Wide by the group Chase.
Reminds me of my Grandad actually- and when i used to live with him.. and how much i took without giving. He's dead now.
i think this song is about a girl that is young but is old in some ways and the lyrics say "your grandad sweat to buy you" i assume that means she wasted the gladrags that he had to sweat to buy her. i am kinda confused with this song