Walk Of Life – English Lyrics

• By: Dire Straits
• Album: Brothers in Arms

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the story behind Dire Straits' hit song "Walk of Life," a vibrant tribute to street musicians and the unifying power of music. Learn about the song's creation, its Cajun music influences, and its rise to fame, all while improving your English vocabulary and understanding of cultural references from the 80s .

[English]

(gentle suspenseful music)

(gentle upbeat music)

(spirited upbeat music)

♪ Whoo-hoo, whoo-hoo ♪

♪ Whoo-hoo ♪

♪ Here comes Johnny singing oldies, goldies ♪

♪ "Be-Bop-A-Lula," "Baby, What I Say" ♪

♪ Here comes Johnny singing, "I Gotta Woman" ♪

♪ Down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay ♪

♪ He got the action, he got the motion ♪

♪ Oh, yeah, the boy can play ♪

♪ Dedication, devotion ♪

♪ Turning all the night time into the day ♪

♪ He do the song about the sweet lovin' woman ♪

♪ He do the song about the knife ♪

♪ He do the walk, do the walk of life ♪

♪ Yeah, he do the walk of life ♪

(spirited upbeat music continues)

♪ Whoo-hoo ♪

♪ Here comes Johnny, gonna tell you the story ♪

♪ Hand me down my walkin' shoes ♪

♪ Here comes Johnny with the power and the glory ♪

♪ Backbeat, the talkin' blues ♪

♪ He got the action, he got the motion ♪

♪ Yeah, the boy can play ♪

♪ Dedication, devotion ♪

♪ Turning all the night time into the day ♪

♪ The song about the sweet lovin' woman ♪

♪ He do the song about the knife ♪

♪ Then he do the walk, do the walk of life ♪

♪ Yeah, he do the walk of life ♪

(spirited upbeat music continues)

♪ Whoo-hoo, hoo ♪

♪ Here comes Johnny singing oldies, goldies ♪

♪ "Be-Bop-A-Lula," "Baby What I Say" ♪

♪ Here comes Johnny singing, "I Gotta Woman" ♪

♪ Down in the tunnels, trying to make it pay ♪

♪ He got the action, he got the motion ♪

♪ Oh, yeah, the boy can play ♪

♪ Dedication, devotion ♪

♪ Turning all the night time into the day ♪

♪ And after all the violence and double-talk ♪

♪ There's just a song in all the trouble and the strife ♪

♪ You do the walk, yeah, you do the walk of life ♪

♪ Mm, they do the walk of life ♪

♪ Whoo-hoo ♪

(spirited upbeat music continues)

♪ Whoo-hoo, hoo ♪

♪ Whoo-hoo, hoo ♪

♪ Whoo-hoo ♪

♪ Whoo-hoo, hoo ♪

♪ Yeah, you do the walk of life ♪

(spirited upbeat music fades)

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
singing /ˈsɪŋɪŋ/ B1	verb - to produce musical sounds with the voice
action /ˈækʃən/ A2	noun - an act or movement
devotion /dɪˈvoʊʃən/ B2	noun - deep love and commitment
dedication /ˌdɛdɪˈkeɪʃən/ B2	noun - the act of giving considerable time and effort to a purpose or activity
walk /wɔːk/ A1	noun - the act of moving on foot verb - to move at a regular pace by lifting and setting down each foot in turn
life /laɪf/ A2	noun - the existence of an individual human being or animal
shine /ʃaɪn/ B2	verb - to emit light verb - to be very talented or successful
glory /ˈɡlɔːri/ B2	noun - great beauty or praise
try /traɪ/ A2	verb - to make an effort to do something
pay /peɪ/ A2	verb - to give money in exchange for goods or services
trouble /ˈtrʌbəl/ B1	noun - a state of difficulty or distress
storm /stɔːrm/ B2	noun - a violent weather condition with strong winds and rain
glad /ɡlæd/ A2	adjective - feeling pleased or happy
smile /smaɪl/ A2	noun - a facial expression showing happiness verb - to make a smiling expression
dream /driːm/ B2	noun - a series of thoughts, images, or emotions occurring during sleep or aspiration verb - to experience dreams during sleep or to hope for something

Key Grammar Structures

• Here comes Johnny singing oldies, goldies

  ➔ Present Simple for habitual actions and 'Here comes...' structure.

  ➔ The line uses the present simple to describe a recurring action, Johnny "singing" old songs. "Here comes" introduces the character or action about to happen.

• Trying to make it pay

  ➔ Gerund as part of a larger phrase

  ➔ "Trying" is a gerund acting as part of a phrase explaining Johnny's actions. It describes what Johnny is doing “down in the tunnels.”

• He got the action, he got the motion

  ➔ Repetition for emphasis with simple past tense.

  ➔ The repetition of "he got" emphasizes Johnny's talent and skills. The simple past "got" describes what he possesses or has achieved.

• Turning all the night time into the day

  ➔ Present participle as adjective/descriptive phrase.

  ➔ "Turning" acts as a present participle, modifying the action he is doing. It provides more detail on the dedication and devotion.

• Hand me down my walkin' shoes

  ➔ Imperative with phrasal verb ('hand down')

  ➔ The phrase 'Hand me down' is an imperative, meaning it's a command or request. 'Hand down' is a phrasal verb, meaning 'to give or pass something to someone.'

• Backbeat, the talkin' blues

  ➔ Appositive Phrase

  ➔ The phrase "the talkin' blues" is an appositive phrase, further describing "backbeat." It renames or clarifies the preceding noun.

• After all the violence and double-talk

  ➔ Prepositional phrase acting as an adverbial phrase

  ➔ "After all the violence and double-talk" indicates when something (a song) exists. This describes the circumstances/time when the song appeared, thus acting as an adverbial modifier.