The JCB Song

You may or may not have heard The JCB Song by Nizlopi, the two man band from Leamington Spa, anyway the song was released in 2005 and quietly stormed the UK, earning the band a certain quiet and fanatic cult status, eventually pushing their album to number 1.

I first watched the video of this song a couple of years ago, but only listened to the sing properly for the first time on sunday and all I can tell you is that I was reduced to tears- rather shamefully I must admit.

The song is basically the reminiscence of a 5-year old, Dyslexic kid who was bullied at school on account on his condition by both the teachers and as you would expect-kids. He recalled his dad picking him up from school early in his JCB digger and his relief and feeling of safety thereupon. Particularly touching being his visions of his dad as a giant or Bruce Lee, who would protect him from his fears, particularly telling being the line about I wish a Tyranosaurus Rex would eat up all the bullies, teachers and their pets.

What moved me was the simplicity and honesty of the lyrics, the synergy and the obvious deep emotional bond between father and son, a simple story of paternal affection and the need for a child to see a hero in a parent- In particular the following lines "He's probably had a hard old day but he's still up for a laugh" and "I'll tell my mates my Dad's BA Barracus only with a Nonchaku like Bruce Lee". Okay, okay Its a silly old song and I'm a softy but its honest simplicity and truthful account of a real life story of loving family is moving, if your mind and heart are open enough to absorb it.

I was in a bit of a mood for the whole day, thinking about the subject of parental love, thoughts of my two children -who I was obviously missing, memories of my own childhood- co-related to the present, memories of a more innocent time et al. In particular I thought about friends and loved ones who had lost loving fathers and mothers fairly early or even recently such as Old Pedantic, Toks and The Delectable Designer and I considered myself fortunate to have both parents still alive and realised equally what a wonderful gift that was and the simple fact is that memories cannot be stored real-time, you can't go back to your childhood, photos and videos will never be a substitute for a life lived and experiences and emotions felt.

Please value those you love, step out of self-indulgence and make that phone-call or pay a visit home as often as you can, parents and indeed children will not be there forever treasure every moment because this very second you're experiencing will never come back again.

This is what this song meant to and did for me. It truly is a wonderful piece of work and I can only say its ironic that the single was deprived of Number 1 in Xmas 2005, by Shane Ward.

On a less serious note I was loathe to admit to those around me on sunday i.e Big Mike and the Energetic Environmentalist why I was in such an Introspective mood, least of all that I was moved to tears by a pop song, however researching the band on the Internet, I came across the following reviews on Amazon from people in similar circumstances i.e Straight, Rugby playing Dads- and felt a little better-

I CRY LIKE A BABY EACH TIME, 3 Feb 2006
By Philip Barry - See all my reviewsI'm 34, straight and a dad of a little 8 month son. We were both watching MTV and this cartooney vid comes on for some reason I HEARD the lirics by the end of the song my son was crying. He had never seen his Dad cry before. I'm half English half Greek living in Greece for the last 5 years so I had no idea that this song had exploded in the UK. Went to every record shop in Athens and no one had heard of the JCB song so I got it off the internet. Still makes me cry. Having read the other reviews I realise that it does something different for every fan/listener. For me its the memory of the god like perception I had of my Dad but also the painful realisation of his normality when growing up. It also makes me think of the way my son, who I adore, will perceive me. I hope I'm his Bruce Lee. This is one of my all time favourite songs and all the others are time tested classics. I hope there is more of this to come from Nizlopi.

By "il_direttore" - See all my reviewsThis single is fantastic - to be honest, it sums up childhood memories of me and my dad when he came home from work, and it does bring a tear to my eye sometimes! And I'm 16 stone of solid Gaelic footballer! If you haven't seen this pair live yet, you really should do. Their combination of hip-hop beatboxing and Luke's truly sublime voice make them unmissable.Please buy this, or, even better, the wonderful album, and even if you only like them because of their name, you'll be telling ALL your friends about these blokes who sing about diggers!

By Stott (Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviewsThe first time I heard this song was on teatime Radio 2, earlier in the summer. I was just parking up to meet my sister in law. The song came on and I had to stay in the car to continue listening. The build up to the song was enough, but when I heard it, I was laughing and crying at the same time. Eventually, when I got out of the car, I could not speak to my sister in law. I was trying to tell her about the song, but I couldn't speak! I was crying. I love music, but I don't think I can remember any song doing this to me! Thankfully, the DJ also gave the website address of the video (www.jcbsong.co.uk) and immediately went home to watch this excellent video - absolutely fantastic!!!!!!!!!! My kids love it - my dad has a farm, and we all work on it in one way or another, so the kids spend loads of time on tractors, diggers, bobcats, etc... it is just great! I also took the opportunity to buy 2 cd's - one for me and one for my brother. After two days of continually playing the JCB song and video in the office, I had to relent and get some work done!
It is just great!

Bless it!!, 15 Dec 2005
By A CustomerThis is just one of those songs that gets you write there without being really sentimental. Anyone who ever spent a day with their dad when they were little can't help but be touched by this song...this better be number one!!

I guess I've made my point, please take time and watch the video on Youtube, another truly moving experience. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3WhQB7Hq0Q