Don't Try to Lay No Boogie-Woogie on the King of Rock and Roll - John Baldry

You know, I remember

A few years ago

Some funny things

Used to happen to me About 1956−57

At that time there was

No blues scene or not really

Any kind of scene in London

I used to go out and play

My guitar in the streets

And sing things with

Passing my hat down

I remember one particular night

I was playing the guitar

In a little alleyway just off

Of Wardour Street in Soho

And I got busted by the police

This policeman come up and

Dragged me and my guitar

And my hat full of pennies

Off to the police station

Anyway, the next day

I had to appear in Marlboro Street Police Court

And it was quite a day

Police officer

Giving his evidence

I was proceeding in a Southernly direction, milord

When I heard strange sounds coming

From Wardour Place, milord

A sort of boogie woogie

Music was being played

On further investigation, I saw

The defendent standing there

With a guitar and an Old hat on the floor

Collecting pennies

Well, I decided that he Was contravening a breach

Of the peace there as there was

A traffic jam about five miles

Long down Wardour Street

Wondering what all the fuss was about

So then I arrested the defendent

Ah, just one moment, officer

Well, what is this boogie woogie music

Here we’re talking about

Oh, well, milord, said the officer

Getting out his notebook, obviously

Been doing up his homework

It’s a kind of jazz-rhythm music

Peculiar to the American Negro

Oh, and what was the defendent doing

Playing this kind of music there

In Wardour street

Anyway, I got off with a caution

A years' conditional discharge

But I’ll always remember that policeman

And his boogie woogie music

So don’t try to lay no boogie woogie

On the king of rock and roll

Don’t tell me nothing

Don’t lies, a woman

Cause all you know I’ve told

Don’t sell me no alibis, sister

Cause all you’ve got I’ve sold

You better leave

At a-midnight slinking

To the one who works it out

I don’t want to hear no Rackem tackem squeaking

To go on and shut your mouth

And everything is Gonna work out tight

If you ain’t like you been told

Just don’t try to lay no boogie woogie

On the king of rock and roll

Don’t feed me no TV dinners

When you know that

I’m used to steak

I don’t need no rank beginners

When it’s time to shake the shake

You better pull your thing together

Cause you’ve been bested out

And if you feel that

You just can’t dig it You know you don’t know

What it’s all about

It ain’t a matter of par convenience

That’s gonna justify your soul

Just don’t try to lay no boogie woogie

On the king of rock and roll

Don’t try to lay no boogie woogie

On the king of rock and roll

You and I started to drive

So don’t pull nothing on me You didn’t arrive til late '45

But your head’s in '53

You got what it takes

Give your heads a spin

Down by the lonely shack

But you come on just

Like a fool woman

In the back of a red Cadillac

You can’t come

Across the Upsalquitch

Until you pay the toll

So don’t try to lay no boogie woogie

On the king of rock and roll