Shelby '68 – English Lyrics

• By: Kylie Minogue
• Album: Golden

Lyrics & Translation

Dive into Kylie Minogue's 'Shelby '68,' a unique country-pop song with a personal backstory that makes it special. Learning English through its heartfelt lyrics offers a glimpse into relatable emotions of passion and risk, wrapped in a distinctive musical style. You'll pick up on emotional vocabulary and common expressions while enjoying Kylie's authentic storytelling.

[English]

There was nothin' on earth that a girl could do

The first minute I laid my eyes on you, on you

Turned sheets to the wind, I was all confused

Like burnin' my money, nothin' left to lose

I knew, I was doomed

An attraction I just can't explain

But I knew I was never gonna be the same

I'd be lyin' if I said that I always chose what was good

So where we're gonna go in your Shelby '68?

I know you're gonna break my heart

When I get in your car

Oh, the trouble I'm in when we take that spin

Yeah, I'm in

I know there'll be hell to pay

Baby, I just can't wait

Oh, I'm gonna get high when I take that ride

In your Shelby '68

I was rollin' with my very own Steve McQueen

When you were hittin' that road

And I was livin' the dream

So it seemed

Like a diamond buried in the dead of night, yeah

I knew it was wrong but it felt so right to me

Can't you see?

An attraction I just can't explain

But I knew I was never gonna be the same

I'd be lyin' if I said that I always chose what was good

So where we're gonna go in that Shelby '68?

I know you're gonna break my heart

When I get in your car

Oh, the trouble I'm in when we take that spin

Yeah, I'm in

I know there'll be hell to pay

Baby, I just can't wait

Oh, I'm gonna get high when I take that ride

In your Shelby '68, yeah

I just can't wait

Burn rubber baby, get on with this show

I'll take a ride if it's your rodeo

The horses are wild and I'll cry, but I'm ready to go

Let's go

Longest of days and the starriest nights

Rockin' the road and the moon and those lights

No destination, we're racin' baby, just drive

Drive

Take me away in your Shelby '68

I know you're gonna break my heart

When I get in your car

Oh, the trouble I'm in when we take that spin

Yeah, I'm in

I know there'll be hell to pay

Baby, I just can't wait

Oh, I'm gonna get high when I take that ride

In your Shelby '68

Ooh, I just can't wait

There'll be hell to pay

You'll take me away

Oh Shelby '68

...

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
attraction /əˈtrækʃən/ B1	noun - a feeling of being drawn towards someone or something
break /breɪk/ A2	verb - to separate into pieces suddenly or forcibly
confused /kənˈfjuːzd/ A2	adjective - unable to think clearly or understand something
doomed /duːmd/ B1	adjective - certain to have an unpleasant or disastrous outcome
drive /draɪv/ A1	verb - to operate a vehicle noun - a journey in a vehicle
high /haɪ/ A2	adjective - elevated or lifted adjective - intoxicated or euphoric
livin' /ˈlɪvɪŋ/ A1	verb - to have life; to exist
pay /peɪ/ A1	verb - to give money for goods or services
ride /raɪd/ A1	verb - to travel in or on a vehicle noun - a journey on a vehicle or animal
rollin' /ˈroʊlɪŋ/ A2	verb - to move forward on wheels or rollers
spin /spɪn/ A2	verb - to rotate rapidly noun - a rapid rotation
trouble /ˈtrʌbəl/ A1	noun - a problem or difficulty
wait /weɪt/ A1	verb - to stay in one place while expecting something
wild /waɪld/ A2	adjective - untamed or uncontrolled
wrong /rɒŋ/ A1	adjective - not correct or proper

Key Grammar Structures

• There was nothin' on earth that a girl could do

  ➔ Past simple with 'there was' + relative clause

  ➔ The line uses "was" (past simple of 'be') to establish a past situation, followed by a relative clause introduced by "that" which modifies 'nothing'. This structure describes a completed situation in the past with additional information.

• I'd be lyin' if I said that I always chose what was good

  ➔ Second conditional + reported speech

  ➔ This line contains a second conditional structure "I'd be lying if I said" which expresses a hypothetical situation. It's followed by reported speech "that I always chose what was good" where the speaker is reporting what she would say. The contraction "I'd" represents "I would".

• So where we're gonna go in your Shelby '68?

  ➔ Question word + future continuous (informal 'gonna')

  ➔ This line uses the question word "where" with an informal future construction "we're gonna go" (a colloquial form of "we are going to go"). It's asking about future plans or intentions in an informal, conversational style. "Gonna" is a common informal substitute for "going to".

• I know you're gonna break my heart

  ➔ Present simple + future with 'going to' (informal 'gonna')

  ➔ This line combines present simple "I know" with a future intention expressed through the informal "you're gonna break" (colloquial for "you are going to break"). The present simple expresses certainty about knowledge, while the "going to" form expresses a future prediction based on present evidence.

• When I get in your car

  ➔ Time clause with present simple for future

  ➔ This line uses a time clause introduced by "When" with the present simple "get" to refer to a future action. In English, present simple is often used in time clauses (with when, before, after, until, etc.) to express future meaning, even though the tense is present.

• I was rollin' with my very own Steve McQueen

  ➔ Past continuous

  ➔ This line uses the past continuous tense "was rollin'" (colloquial for "was rolling") to describe an ongoing action in the past. The past continuous is formed with was/were + -ing verb and is used to describe actions that were in progress at a specific time in the past.

• The horses are wild and I'll cry, but I'm ready to go

  ➔ Present simple + future simple + present continuous

  ➔ This line combines three different tenses: present simple "are wild" to state a current fact, future simple "I'll cry" to express a future action, and present continuous "I'm ready" to express a current state of readiness. The conjunctions "and" and "but" connect these ideas, showing contrast and addition.

• No destination, we're racin' baby, just drive

  ➔ Present continuous for current action + imperative

  ➔ This line uses present continuous "we're racin'" (colloquial for "we're racing") to describe an action happening right now. It's followed by an imperative "drive" which is a command or request. The imperative form uses the base form of the verb without a subject.