# Creepiest non-creepy song **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 1, 2009, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627 "2009-07-01T21:00:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/61 "2009-07-06T20:14:48Z")
_Chantilly Lace_ never, ever struck me as “funny uncle” creepy. I was a kid when it came out, and I saw it as a funny song about a guy who’s hopelessly smitten, and he’s wrapped around her little finger. Later on, I saw the lust in it, but I never saw any grown man/little girl factor. Maybe it’s The Big Bopper’s wonderful glissandos in that echo-chamber bass voice that sounds eerie to you. Bass voices in pop music are rare. They suffer when they are squeezed through the cheap speakers that most people hear pop music on. In The Bopper’s time, it was AM radio, and 6" x 9" car speakers were the best that most people ever heard. Much later in the late 60s and early 70s, the Jefferson Airplane/Starship used car radio speakers as their studio monitors. They knew that’s how most people would hear their music. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/62 "2009-07-06T20:17:09Z")
> [@AskNott](#): > > _Chantilly Lace_ never, ever struck me as “funny uncle” creepy. I was a kid when it came out, and I saw it as a funny song about a guy who’s hopelessly smitten, and he’s wrapped around her little finger. Later on, I saw the lust in it, but I never saw any grown man/little girl factor. Maybe it’s The Big Bopper’s wonderful glissandos in that echo-chamber bass voice that sounds eerie to you. He’s definitely having a good time being wrapped around said finger! I only heard the song this past year after I started listening to Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper definitely comes off as a lot of fun. Like someone who would make innuendos or stuff, but wouldn’t come off as sketchy, just as really funny. Or the type of guy who can hit on all the girls but have it come off as just flattering or sweet, and not like, “Ew, get this guy away from me.” So the very opposite of Chester the Molester. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/63 "2009-07-06T22:12:34Z")
> [@malibu400](#): > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pff8VEKKkY](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pff8VEKKkY) What have you done to me? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/64 "2009-07-07T01:46:56Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Ahh, the joys of a more innocent age, when a lighthearted kids’ song could be enjoyed for what it was, and not as a covert ploy to seduce children into debauchery. Since long before the song was written, a “candy man” was a drug dealer. For lots of people the song started out creepy. ---
**Author:** ![malibu400](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/848f3c/32.png) [@malibu400](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/malibu400)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/65 "2009-07-07T02:04:05Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > What have you done to me? I don’t know. What have i done to you? 🆒 I’m pretty sure that _Mini Strawberry Pie_ song was marketed towards the obese shut-ins of Japan (as is the case with most songs sung by young teenage girls there). ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/66 "2009-07-07T02:05:48Z")
Wichita Lineman - Glen Campbell (?) always makes me shudder, don’t quite know why. We’ll Sing In the Sunshine - sounds happy and laid back; actually means I’m-outta-here in exactly one year because I will never love you. Young Girl - Gary Puckett and the Union Gap. Self-explanatory. “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” by the Police could be said to be creepy, but Sting is hot and Gary P is not! ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/67 "2009-07-07T02:29:17Z")
Yeah, but he smells bad. ---
**Author:** ![Rin\_Twisted](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/82dd89/32.png) [@Rin\_Twisted](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rin_Twisted)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/68 "2009-07-07T03:07:09Z")
I was watching Dirty Dancing about three weeks ago, and singing along to Eric Carmen’s ‘Hungry Eyes’, when I started paying attention to the words for the first time pretty much ever. “Ive got this feelin that wont subside/ I look at you and I fantasize/ You are mine tonight…” My friend and I agreed, oooh, that’s a little hard core. But we gamely sang along. “Now Ive got you in my sights/With these hungry eyes…” Wait, a gun metaphor? Some startled giggling ensued. “Now did I take you by surprise?” We stopped. Okay, this song? Officially creeped us out. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/69 "2009-07-07T03:09:42Z")
The key to enjoying pop music is to ignore what the lyrics say, even if you know them. OTOH, this can be problematic if you choose some creepy song as the one for your first dance at your wedding reception. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/70 "2009-07-07T04:35:18Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > The key to enjoying pop music is to ignore what the lyrics say, even if you know them. OTOH, this can be problematic if you choose some creepy song as the one for your first dance at your wedding reception. My fiancee and I chose _Time In A Bottle_… Is that creepy? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/71 "2009-07-07T04:50:06Z")
You want creepy? I’ll give you creepy. That song with the lyrics that go “Killing me softly, with your song, killing me softly, with your words…” I know it’s all about a breakup or something, but when I was a kid, it terrified me with images of slow, gentle suffocation, like being buried in softly-falling snow… ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/72 "2009-07-07T05:05:10Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > You want creepy? I’ll give you creepy. That song with the lyrics that go “Killing me softly, with your song, killing me softly, with your words…” I know it’s all about a breakup or something, but when I was a kid, it terrified me with images of slow, gentle suffocation, like being buried in softly-falling snow… You mean Roberta Flack’s “Killing Me Softly”? It’s actually about the first time Lori Lieberman heard Don McClean. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/73 "2009-07-07T06:23:33Z")
> [@malibu400](#): > > I don’t know. What have i done to you? 🆒 > > I’m pretty sure that _Mini Strawberry Pie_ song was marketed towards the obese shut-ins of Japan (as is the case with most songs sung by young teenage girls there). I listened to about 5 hours of Japanese bubble gum pop. It’s like Red Bull for the ears. ---
**Author:** ![Black\_Sunshine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ce73a5/32.png) [@Black\_Sunshine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Black_Sunshine)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/74 "2009-07-07T14:50:43Z")
> [@Serenata67](#): > > My fiancee and I chose _Time In A Bottle_… Is that creepy? Bit of a mini-hijack, but I went to a wedding where they played “Tears in Heaven” as their first dance. [/hijack] “In the Air Tonight” is obvious, but it spooked me so badly when I was a kid that the entire album still gives me the willies. Along with the dirty uncle theme - remember [Into the Night?](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bpOBAwrFVw). When I was 10, I thought this was a nice love song. Now that I’m 30 . . . _shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/75 "2009-07-07T15:03:29Z")
Some 60s/70s rock songs have extended instrumental sections in the middle that sound freaky bordering on eldrich. Steppenwolf and Led Zeppelin come to mind. ---
**Author:** ![ajdebosco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@ajdebosco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ajdebosco)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/76 "2009-07-07T15:46:21Z")
“Sylvia’s Mother” by Dr. Hook still creeps me out to no end. Not the song itself, but because it reminds me of the infamous torture/murder of Sylvia Likens. The house is still there in my old neighborhood, and when we were kids we were warned aginst misbehaving, lest we get sent to “Dirty Gerty’s” (Gertrude Baniszewski) house." YIKES! ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/77 "2009-07-07T15:56:33Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > You want creepy? I’ll give you creepy. That song with the lyrics that go “Killing me softly, with your song, killing me softly, with your words…” I know it’s all about a breakup or something, but when I was a kid, it terrified me with images of slow, gentle suffocation, like being buried in softly-falling snow… “Killing me softly with his song” means simply that she was listening to a singer whose lyrics resonated with her very deeply. Every song he played made her think, “It’s like he’s reading my mind! This is about feelings and experiences I’ve had… it’s eerie.” ---
**Author:** ![HelloKitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecccb3/32.png) [@HelloKitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HelloKitty)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/78 "2009-07-07T16:18:23Z")
Kind of along the lines of _Killing Me Softly_, the song _Bleeding Love_ really creeped me out the first few times I heard it: _You cut me open and I / keep bleedin’…keep keep bleedin’ love / keep bleedin’…keep keep bleedin’ love_ YUCK!!! ---
**Author:** ![Rin\_Twisted](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/82dd89/32.png) [@Rin\_Twisted](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rin_Twisted)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/79 "2009-07-07T17:55:57Z")
> [@HelloKitty](#): > > Kind of along the lines of _Killing Me Softly_, the song _Bleeding Love_ really creeped me out the first few times I heard it: > > _You cut me open and I / keep bleedin’…keep keep bleedin’ love / keep bleedin’…keep keep bleedin’ love_ > > YUCK!!! I can’t prove this, but I swear I’ve seen that song featured in one of those Kidzbop commericals…the song’s creepiness is magnified tenfold when sung by preteens who probably haven’t even made it to second base yet. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627/80 "2009-07-07T18:39:26Z")
> [@Rin\_Twisted](#): > > I can’t prove this, but I swear I’ve seen that song featured in one of those Kidzbop commericals…the song’s creepiness is magnified tenfold when sung by preteens who probably haven’t even made it to second base yet. I’ve seen it too! Blech. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/creepiest-non-creepy-song/501627.md?page=5)