Album: Especially For You (1986)

License This Song 

• She had hair like Jeannie Shrimpton back in 1965
  She had legs that never ended
  I was halfway paralyzed
  She was tall and cool and pretty and she dressed as black as coal
  If she asked me to I'd murder, I would gladly lose my soul
  
  Now I lie in bed and think of her
  Sometimes I even weep
  Then I dream of her behind the wall of sleep
  
  Well she held a bass guitar and she was playing in a band
  And she stood just like Bill Wyman
  Now I am her biggest fan
  Now I know I'm one of many who would like to be your friend
  And I've got to find a way to to let you know I'm not like them
  
  Now I lie in bed and think of her
  Sometimes I even weep
  Then I dream of her behind the wall of sleep
  
  Now I lie in bed and think of her
  Sometimes I even weep
  Then I dream of her behind the wall of sleep
  
  Got your number form a friend of mine who lives in your home town
  Called you up to have a drink
  Your roommate said you weren't around
  Now I know I'm one of many who would like to be your friend
  And I've just got to find a way to to let you know I'm not like them
  
  Now I lie in bed and think of her
  Sometimes I even weep
  Then I dream of her behind the wall of sleep
  Behind the wall of sleep
  Behind the wall of sleep
  Behind the wall of sleep Writer/s: Pat Dinizio
  Publisher: BMG Rights Management, CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 7

• AnonymousIt's about Kim Ernst of the Bristols
• Not Alwayspc from Simi Valley, CaPat gave interview to Forbes Magazine: We’d done a gig with The Bristols, four fabulous women who looked, sounded and dressed like Roger McGuinn’s The Byrds. Kim had black hair, really long: “She looked like Jeannie Shrimpton back in 1965, she had legs that never ended, I was halfway paralyzed. She was tall and cool and pretty, and she dressed as black as coal. If she asked me to I’d murder, I would gladly lose my soul.” Our first two hits were Blood And Roses, about suicide, and this one, "if you’d ask me to I’d murder" - very dark material [laughs].
• Ken from Philadelphia, PaVery bummed to hear about the death of Pat Dinizio today (12/13/2017). The Smithereens were went from a local phenomena in Central New Jersey to a national act while I was in college just up the road from Carteret, New Jersey. I saw them play several times before... and as... they broke nationally (in the mid 80s) and saw them once more in the mid 90s. "Especially for You" was one of the last vinyl albums I ever bought and I wore that f--ker out, especially this song. People like to boil down 80s music into an amalgam of "new wave", early rap and MTV-driven dance pop. This band... and especially this song... proves that to be, at best, an oversimplification and, at worst, an outright lie.
• George from UsaThe song was written by Pat Dinuzio for a bass player of an all girls group called the Bristols out of Boston whom he met while making an album there.
• Annabella from Middle Of NowhereThe model mentioned, Jean Shrimpton, one of her nicknames was "The Shrimp".
• John from Beltsville, MdSome of the coolest lyrics from one of the best songs of the 80s!
• Jim from Long Beach, CaThis song is very powerful and It reminds me of college about this goth chick I was in love with at the time. I still dream of her behind the wall of sleep...

More Songfacts:

Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)Edison Lighthouse

The love is growing in the '70s hit "Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)" because rosemary is the name of an herb.

Run Like HellPink Floyd

Pink Floyd's "Run Like Hell" was released as a single in America because it has a catchy beat, but the lyrics describe a reign of terror instigated by the despot Pink, the main character in the concept album The Wall.

Killer QueenQueen

The Queen song "Killer Queen," according to lead singer Freddie Mercury, is about a high-class call girl.

Careless WhisperWham!

George Michael was 17 and on a bus to his job at the cinema when he came up with the idea for "Careless Whisper" and the lyrics, "Something in your eyes calls to mind a silver screen."

Blinded By The LightBruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen wrote "Blinded By The Light," which was a #1 hit for Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The "Madman Drummers" line is a reference to Springsteen's first E-Street drummer, Vinnie "Mad dog" Lopez.

When I'm 64The Beatles

In The Beatles' "When I'm 64," Paul McCartney asks a woman if she'll still be there for him when he's 64. In 2006, he got his answer when shortly before his 64th birthday, he and Heather Mills separated.

Editor's Picks

Cheerleaders In Music VideosSong Writing

It started with a bouncy MTV classic. Nirvana and MCR made them scary, then Gwen, Avril and Madonna put on the pom poms.

Shaun Morgan of SeetherSongwriter Interviews

Shaun breaks down the Seether songs, including the one about his brother, the one about Ozzy, and the one that may or may not be about his ex-girlfriend Amy Lee.

Real or Spinal TapMusic Quiz

They sang about pink torpedoes and rocking you tonight tonight, but some real lyrics are just as ridiculous. See if you can tell which lyrics are real and which are Spinal Tap in this lyrics quiz.

Ian Anderson of Jethro TullSongwriter Interviews

The flautist frontman talks about touring with Led Zeppelin, his contribution to "Hotel California", and how he may have done the first MTV Unplugged.

Stan RidgwaySongwriter Interviews

Go beyond the Wall of Voodoo with this cinematic songwriter.

Dar WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

A popular contemporary folk singer, Williams still remembers the sticky note that changed her life in college.