# Hey Joe, wanna give it a go? Songs about whores **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 1, 2004, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134 "2004-01-01T17:02:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/1 "2004-01-01T17:02:57Z")
The oldest profession. Ladies of the evening. Prostitutes, Whores. Whatever you wanna call 'em. How many songs can you name about them? “X Offender” - Blondie “Walk on the Wild Side” - Lou Reed just to name a couple… ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/2 "2004-01-01T17:10:46Z")
“Love for Sale” written by Cole Porter. ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/3 "2004-01-01T17:13:27Z")
“Dirty Women,” by Black Sabbath. ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/4 "2004-01-01T17:15:25Z")
Just thought of this as I hit Submit: wasn’t “Roxanne” by the Police and/or Sting about a prostitute? I never really listened to the lyrics that closely, but I got the impression it was a song about a prostitute in a red dress . . . ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/5 "2004-01-01T17:25:27Z")
“Roxanne, you don’t have to put on the red light, those days are over, you don’t have to sell your body to the night.” The red light is a symbol that there is a prostitute in the house … there is a lyric in the song about a dress, but it isn’t (necessarily) a red dress. Another one is “Wild Thing” by Tone Loc. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/6 "2004-01-01T17:26:25Z")
Oh, duh, from the title of the OP: “Lady Marmalade” - LaBelle As for “Roxanne”, I think she is a prostitute, but Sting is trying to convince her to stop. I’m guessing he was a customer of hers who fell in love with her. ---
**Author:** ![Iteki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/eada6e/32.png) [@Iteki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iteki)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/7 "2004-01-01T17:33:04Z")
Simon and Garfunkles “The Boxer” has a line about “a come on from the whores on seventh avenue” and how he does declare that there were times he was so lonesome he took comfort there. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/8 "2004-01-01T17:34:58Z")
Donna Summer’s Bad Girls. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/9 "2004-01-01T17:40:47Z")
_Give This Girl A Hand_ Rodgers-Hart A nightclub hostess is one of those dames Whose natural father was old Jesse James. You may be a doctor, a lawyer or a yegg man But when the hostess grabs you, you’re a butter and egg man. She will proudly bring to you Little girls who sing to you, Who won’t mean a thing to you. Well, They must have champagne And some more chow mein When the hostess starts to yell: Oh, won’t you And the best prostitute song of all time _Girls On The Avenue_ by Richard Clapton Girls on the avenue, Know how to get you in Casting out signs like drinks from a hat All the miss lonely hearts Ooh, they look awful hard And sometimes they seem as fragile as glass But don’t you slip Don’t you slip in love with the girls on the avenue Friday night, we see the girls on the avenue Like a child at big store windows, you feel confused So many girls on the avenue-ue Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah Don’t you slip, don’t you slip In love with the girls on the avenue Well worth finding - a bloody classic. ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/10 "2004-01-01T17:41:48Z")
“Hot Child in the City” byt Nick gilder ---
**Author:** ![Ender\_Will](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Ender\_Will](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ender_Will)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/11 "2004-01-01T17:51:19Z")
“House of the Rising Sun”, though the Animal’s version makes it a little less obvious, changing “ruin of many a poor girl/God I know I’m one” to “ruin of many a poor boy/God I know I’m one” for instance ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/12 "2004-01-01T17:54:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ender\_Will \* > \*\*“House of the Rising Sun”, though the Animal’s version makes it a little less obvious, changing “ruin of many a poor girl/God I know I’m one” to “ruin of many a poor boy/God I know I’m one” for instance \*\* Good call according to these [bozos](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mrisingson.html). ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/13 "2004-01-01T17:54:09Z")
_Minnie the Moocher_. by Cab Calloway ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/14 "2004-01-01T17:56:04Z")
Rum and Coca Cola. Mother and daughter working for the Yankee Dollar. ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/15 "2004-01-01T18:07:38Z")
_Walkin’ All Night_ by Little Feat. ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/16 "2004-01-01T18:11:55Z")
“Wrong way” by sublime and not sure if it counts as about a prostitute but that Primus song “Is it Luck” has an encounter with one in it ---
**Author:** ![A\_wizard\_song\_for\_thee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/46a35a/32.png) [@A\_wizard\_song\_for\_thee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_wizard_song_for_thee)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/17 "2004-01-01T18:27:22Z")
“Angeline” by P.J. Harvey. ---
**Author:** ![nitroglycerine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c5a1d2/32.png) [@nitroglycerine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nitroglycerine)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/18 "2004-01-01T18:29:26Z")
The only one that I can think of that hasn’t been mentioned is “Tenderloin” by Rancid. The Ramones’ 53rd and 3rd is Dee Dee’s tale about male prostitution. Jon ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/19 "2004-01-01T18:37:25Z")
If I had Maggie in the wood I’d do her all the good I could If I had Maggie in the wood I’d keep her there til mornin’ I gave Maggie half a crown Maggie pulled her knickers down Spread herself on down the ground And rolled about til mornin’ ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134/20 "2004-01-01T19:10:09Z")
Can’t believe I’m the first to mention “Fancy”, by Bobbie Gentry. > [@](#): > > It sounded like somebody else that was talkin’ > Askin’ Mama what do I do > She said be nice to the gentlemen Fancy > And they’ll be nice to you [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-joe-wanna-give-it-a-go-songs-about-whores/222134.md?page=2)