Album: The Sweet's Biggest Hits (1972)

Charted: 4 3

License This Song 

• North side , east side
  Little Willy, Willy wears the crown, he's the king around town
  Dancing, glancing
  Willy drives them silly with his star shoe shimmy shuffle down
  
  Way past one, and feeling all right
  'Cause with little Willy round they can last all night
  Hey down, stay down, stay down, down
  'Cause little Willy, Willy won't go home
  
  But you can't push Willy round
  Willy won't go, try tellin' everybody but, oh no
  Little Willy, Willy won't go home
  Uptown, downtown
  
  Little Willy, Willy drives them wild with his run-around style
  Inside, outside
  Willy sends them silly with his star-shine shimmy shuffle smile
  Mama done chase Willy down through the hall
  
  But laugh, Willy laugh, he don't care at all
  Hey down, stay down, stay down, down
  'Cause little Willy, Willy won't go home
  But you can't push Willy round
  
  Willy won't go, try tellin' everybody but, oh no
  Little Willy, Willy won't go home
  Little Willy, Willy won't
  Willy won't, Willy won't
  
  Little Willy, Willy won't
  Willy won't, Willy won't
  Little Willy, Willy won't
  Willy won't, Willy won't
  
  Little Willy, Willy won't
  Willy won't, Willy won't
  Little Willy, Willy won't go home
  But you can't push Willy round
  
  Willy won't go, try tellin' everybody but, oh no
  Little Willy, Willy won't go home
  Little Willy, Willy won't go home
  But you can't push Willy round
  
  Willy won't go, try tellin' everybody but, oh no
  Little Willy, Willy won't go home Writer/s: MICHAEL DONALD CHAPMAN, NICHOLAS BARRY CHINN
  Publisher: Universal Music Publishing Group
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 17

• Fledermaus from Seattle"With Little Willy 'round they can last all night." This has to be about a dealer of some substance, especially some substance that improves male performance. This was before the little blue pill.
• AnonymousThe beauty of this song is that it’s so catchy and you can pretty much make it mean whatever you want it to mean, just a fun song that’s fun to listen to.
• AnonymousWilly was bullied, made friends who taught him how to defend himself. Like him his friend's parents were always fighting. Why go home for more abuse?
• AnonymousBilly Wizz is the name for speed, amphétamine sulphate: this is what the song’s about!
• Damo.b from London, UkI loved Sweet's songs as a kid and this tune was no exception. We had next door neighbours in West London who had a black and white cat adopt them and became part of the family. They named him Willy long before the song was released; he never went back to his original home, so who knows, maybe the song was about him.
• D M W from Somewhere Mo UsaOk, guys, I was a girl of just 13 and this was my 1st 45. I loved this song. So catchy. And thanks for ruining it for me. I'd like to go on believing it's about a little boy who was not wanting to go home. Misbehaving. His mother chasing him down a hall. There's a name for guys like y'all and it ain't Willy. D!@&$
• John H Reid Jr from West VirginiaAs a teen ager I was told by older people what a willy is to the brits. I'm not degrading these people for we all have slang words in our own country. I was informed that to the uk populace a willy is the man's penis. Just read the lyrics you cant put willy where willy won't go and, but little willy willy wont go home. Then there was, wee willy wonka and the chocolate factory. After all that we heard a perv ask a little boy if he wanted to see his 8 inch willy, disgusting. Then after all we realized that we all liked the song, oh well just who do we think we are anyway.
• Rusty Russell from NcI had a little accident this afternoon and this Sweet Tune popped into my head. This was a hit my Sr year in HS(US). So for the last 49+ years I have hummed and uttered the lyrics without really comprehending what was going on. I just blissfully thought it was about a bothersome little boy. I know that Male Brits consider their junk as a willy.
• Jennieinky from 40165So, am I a total perv for thinking this song was about some dude's junk?
  Thank you, Anthony Wiener.
• Cliff Scowen from LondonI always thought it was about a stray cat that hung around the recording studios.
• Gilly Setterfield from Milford Haven Sweet were great, all their songs were classics
• Shannon from Usa This song is definitely about someone's penis, right?!
• Joe from HereHow is this song NOT about anything but cocaine?
• Leo from Mclean, VirginiaI thought this was about a teen who always had a boner wherever he went. The song says u cant push it down and it is everywhere so idk
• Charlie from BostonI always assumed that this song referred to some kid's boner that wouldn't subside. You know, the old adolescent erection at the most awkward time and place?
• Les from Joplin, MoSweet had 4 Top 10 hits in the U.S., but "Little Willy" was their first and greatest.
• Zabadak from London, EnglandLittle Willy was the band's 5th hit in the UK. Up to and including that song, they did not play the instruments on their A-sides but hey wrote and performed on the flips. These usually had a harder, rockier edge than the teenybopper-friendly chart fare and this schism would eventually drive some of their fans away, especially at gigs, where they tended to play lesser-known songs in favour of whatever was bothering the Hit Parade at the time...

More Songfacts:

KashmirLed Zeppelin

"Kashmir" is the only Led Zeppelin song to use outside musicians, as it needed strings and horns.

LolaThe Kinks

When The Kinks released "Lola," most people didn't realize Lola was a man. "I was dancing with this beautiful blonde, then we went out into the daylight and I saw her stubble," Ray Davies said of the inspiration.

That'll Be The DayBuddy Holly

Buddy Holly got the title for his hit song "That'll Be The Day" from a phrase John Wayne repeats in the 1956 movie The Searchers.

Piano ManBilly Joel

Billy Joel is surprised that "Piano Man" is so successful. He called it "an old, long song about a guy at a depressing piano bar."

Without YouNilsson

The song "Without You," a hit for Nilsson in 1972 and Mariah Carey in 1994, was written and originally recorded by Badfinger in 1970.

Blaze Of GloryJon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi earned his first movie credit - Young Guns II - by writing "Blaze Of Glory" for the film.

Editor's Picks

Facebook, Bromance and Email - The First Songs To Use New WordsSong Writing

Where words like "email," "thirsty," "Twitter" and "gangsta" first showed up in songs, and which songs popularized them.

Stand By Me: The Perfect Song-Movie CombinationSong Writing

In 1986, a Stephen King novella was made into a movie, with a classic song serving as title, soundtrack and tone.

AdeleFact or Fiction

Despite her reticent personality, Adele's life and music are filled with intrigue. See if you can spot the true tales.

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"Songwriter Interviews

Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."

John Lee HookerSongwriter Interviews

Into the vaults for Bruce Pollock's 1984 conversation with the esteemed bluesman. Hooker talks about transforming a Tony Bennett classic and why you don't have to be sad and lonely to write the blues.

Al Jourgensen of MinistrySongwriter Interviews

In the name of song explanation, Al talks about scoring heroin for William Burroughs, and that's not even the most shocking story in this one.