Dignity

"Dignity" is the debut single and one of the most iconic songs by the Scottish pop-rock band Deacon Blue. Written by lead singer Ricky Ross, it tells the story of a humble council street sweeper with dreams of dignity and freedom. It was the song that earned Deacon Blue their first record deal.

At the song's center is "Bogie," a Glasgow council street sweeper who has spent 20 years brushing up crisp packets and cigarette ends but secretly dreams of saving enough money to buy a boat named Dignity. Bogie's escape plans aren't glamorous, but they're steady and honest: he wants to sail up the west coast of Scotland, take holidays, and prove that achievement can come from persistence rather than luck. It's the pop song version of that scene in "Fast Car" where Tracy Chapman imagines driving away from her troubles.

Ross got the idea from some street sweepers he observed outside his tenement window in Pollokshields, Glasgow, a working-class neighborhood. He wrote the song while on holiday in Greece, staring at a very different street and a very different beverage, which explains his line about raki, the local firewater. "I was sitting messing around with lyrics, bored on holiday, in a far away scene," Ross told The Daily Record.