# Classic Songs That Glorified Pretty Rotten Behaviour ... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 22, 2008, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745 "2008-02-22T17:49:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Purd\_Werfect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e47c2d/32.png) [@Purd\_Werfect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Purd_Werfect)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/41 "2008-02-22T19:56:31Z")
😃 ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/42 "2008-02-22T19:58:52Z")
Bounder? You mean like in _Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Bloke?_ 😛 ---
**Author:** ![BlueKangaroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3d9bf3/32.png) [@BlueKangaroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlueKangaroo)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/43 "2008-02-22T20:13:14Z")
[QUOTE=ArchiveGuy] [mild hijack]I’ll be honest with you–I’ve heard this meme over and over again: “People think it’s romantic”, “People think it’s a love song”, etc. Does _anyone_ actually think that anymore? Is there anyone out there who doesn’t know it’s about obssession–either because they’ve listened to the song, or they’ve had someone persistently remind them–“You know, that song’s actually about STALKING”? I’ve been to plenty of weddings whose participants grew up with the Police, and I’ve never heard this played once. Ever. It’s almost become like Richard Gere’s gerbil–everyone knows someone who knows someone who doesn’t know what this song really means, but I have never once encounted firsthand anyone who actually doesn’t. Back in the 80s? Sure, perhaps. But now? Uh-uh.[/mildhijack] [/QUOTE] I got married this decade and had every intention of telling the DJ not to play this song, because it’s creepy. However, weddings are too much and I completely forgot. When my ex and I walked into the reception hall, the DJ cut off one song in the middle to play this song. I was pissed, but I hadn’t said anything about it ahead of time, so I gritted my teeth and dealt with it. A friend later asked me if I was going to throttle the DJ, and I basically said no, since I hadn’t made my wishes clear, but I can’t believe anyone with half a brain would play it at a wedding anyway. So, given the behavior of that wedding DJ, I’d expect plenty of people still want that song played at their wedding. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/44 "2008-02-22T20:21:07Z")
How about **50 Ways To Leave Your Lover**? ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/45 "2008-02-22T20:30:00Z")
[QUOTE=Freudian Slit] To the topic of girlfriend killing–“Used to Love Her” by Guns N Roses. [/QUOTE] Hmm…I was always under the impression that this was about a pet dog. A quick googling reveals…nothing. Some people think it’s about a dog, some about a person. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/46 "2008-02-22T20:35:23Z")
**Johnny Get Angry** **Judy’s Turn To Cry** and any number of other songs of the period want males to act like cavemen and assault anyone who flirts with their woman. This feminist shudders. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/47 "2008-02-22T20:38:20Z")
[QUOTE=Zebra] … Short People (the bridge seems to indicate that short people are, in fact, OK. They are not.) [/QUOTE] At the time, Randy Newman said over and over again that the song is a parody of mindless bigotry. I believe him. Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m On Fire,” though, sounds like a love song of a perv to a very young woman. Similarly, “Aqualung” by Jethro Tull. “The Night The Lights Went Out in Georgia” is a defiant confession by an uncaught murderer. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/48 "2008-02-22T20:46:29Z")
[QUOTE=Diogenes the Cynic] According to Steven Van Zandt, the song was intended as basically a good natured rebuttal to Neil Young’s “Southern Man” which the band thought came off as too sweeping. [/QUOTE] Just wanted to straighten you out on your Van Zan[d]ts here. Steven Van Zandt played with Springsteen. **Ronnie** Van Zant was the singer for Lynyrd Skynyrd. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/49 "2008-02-22T20:47:29Z")
[QUOTE=Purd Werfect] \ As for the thread, how about “I Shot The Sheriff”? “Thanks for not shooting Deputy Fife, Mr. Marley, but we’re still pretty upset about you whacking Sheriff Taylor. Yes, I understand he badmouthed your garden.” [/QUOTE] Slight hijack - this week’s episode of “Supernatural” had a hysterical play on this song (I won’t spoil it for people who have the ep recorded). **Archive Guy** , that’s a good question. Maybe I’ll start a poll thread on that. So, bounders and cads, eh? So basically every rap song? 😃 How about Bill Withers’ “Use Me,” with the woman as the bounder and cad? It’s okay that she treats him like shit, cause boy, is she hot in bed. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Call\_Me\_Shirley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Don\_t\_Call\_Me\_Shirley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Call_Me_Shirley)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/50 "2008-02-22T20:49:52Z")
Whoa, everyone has missed the most rotten behavior of all- cannibalism. [“Timothy” by the Buoys](http://www.lyricsdownload.com/the-buoys-timothy-lyrics.html) The singer is trapped in a mine with Joe and Timothy. They are “hungry as hell and no food to eat,” Then “Timothy, Timothy, Joe was looking at you Timothy, Timothy, God what did we do?” And, when they are finally rescued: “My stomach was full as it could be And nobody ever got around To finding Timothy” ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/51 "2008-02-22T20:58:16Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] **Johnny Get Angry** **Judy’s Turn To Cry** and any number of other songs of the period want males to act like cavemen and assault anyone who flirts with their woman. This feminist shudders. [/QUOTE] You can add **Johnny Get Angry** (“I want a brave man, I want a caveman”) to that list. ---
**Author:** ![Indistinguishable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/90ced4/32.png) [@Indistinguishable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indistinguishable)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/52 "2008-02-22T21:13:32Z")
[QUOTE=jayjay] [QUOTE=silenus] **Johnny Get Angry** **Judy’s Turn To Cry** and any number of other songs of the period want males to act like cavemen and assault anyone who flirts with their woman. This feminist shudders. [/QUOTE] You can add **Johnny Get Angry** (“I want a brave man, I want a caveman”) to that list. [/QUOTE] Am I being whooshed? ---
**Author:** ![Don\_Draper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/53 "2008-02-22T21:17:44Z")
**Take the Money and Run** - the Steve Miller Band: > [@](#): > > This heres a story about Billy Joe and Bobbie Sue… > > …And here is what happened when they decided to cut loose… > > They headed down to old El Paso. > Thats where they ran into a great big hassle. > Billy Joe shot a man while robbing his castle, > Bobbie Sue took the money and run… > > …Bobbie Sue, whoa, whoa, she slipped away, > BillyJoe caught up to her the very next day. > They got the money, hey, > You know they got away. > They headed down south and theyre still running today, > Singin go on take the money and run…" ---
**Author:** ![Ponder\_Stibbons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponder_stibbons/32/343_2.png) [@Ponder\_Stibbons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponder_Stibbons)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/54 "2008-02-22T21:21:20Z")
[QUOTE=Atomicktom] I’ve always been bothered by **Sweet Home Alabama** , by Lynyrd Skynyrd, since it’s a retort to **Southern Man** , by Neil Young, a song decrying the racism and brutality of the South. [/QUOTE] Speaking of Neil, don’t forget “Down by the River”, whereupon the protagonist shot his baby, shot her dead. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/55 "2008-02-22T21:29:54Z")
[QUOTE=Don’t Call Me Shirley] Whoa, everyone has missed the most rotten behavior of all- cannibalism. [/QUOTE] As grizzly as the song is, it does not glorify cannibalism. “Go Ask Alice”: Feed Your Head ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/56 "2008-02-22T21:36:55Z")
Me and Mrs. Jones I mean, _we have a thing going on_ for godsakes. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/57 "2008-02-22T21:43:12Z")
[QUOTE=Indistinguishable] Am I being whooshed? [/QUOTE] No, I’m being reading-incomprehensive. I didn’t even see that you mentioned it in the same post I responded to… ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/58 "2008-02-22T22:06:11Z")
If you pretend Timothy was a cow or pig, its not that bad. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2008, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/59 "2008-02-22T22:44:41Z")
[QUOTE=Annie-Xmas] As **grizzly** as the song is,\ [/QUOTE] {Bolding mine} Hee. Did this song take place in the Rockies, maybe? ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2008, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745/60 "2008-02-23T00:30:02Z")
**Back Door Man** (the men don’t know, but the little girls understand?!?) **YMCA** (You can stay there, and I’m sure you will find many ways to have a good time… They have everything that you need to enjoy, you can hang out with all the boys…) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/classic-songs-that-glorified-pretty-rotten-behaviour/438745.md?page=4)