ITT: songs with a yawning chasm between what they’re pretending to be about vs. what everybody knows they’re really about.
With the substitution of one anatomical noun for another, for example, an ostensibly innocent tribute to an unbreakable father-daughter bond becomes possibly the dirtiest song in the American songbook:
Not a clue what you’re on about with this. This song is about a sugar daddy, not a genetic daddy. And it’s ribald, not dirty (unless you’re a puritan).
“I never dream of making the team, 'cause my heart belongs to Daddy.” One of the better lines, from one of the verses that isn’t usually performed on records. Porter often wrote several extra verses for his songs, not sure why, maybe just to exercise his cleverness.
When she sings “Because Daddy, he treats it so well,” is the “it” referring to her heart?
On a related note, I have a sneaking suspicion that Krokus’ “Long Stick Goes Boom” might not have been about dynamite.
They left out the introduction, which makes it clear that “daddy” is a “sweet millionaire.”
She’s not talking about her heart.
(Where’s Cheri Oteri when you need her?)
Grammatically, yes.
But Porter was certainly well aware that it could mean something else.
Note that “finnan haddie” is a type of fish dish, but also could have another meaning the way it’s used here.
The double entendres were deliberate and probably noted upon from the start.
In the early 1950s most records were still 10" in diameter, even though the 12" long playing (the source of the LP) disk by Columbia was making inroads.
I say that because when Bull Moose Jackson whipped out his version of Fred Weismantel’s “Big Ten Inch Record,” he might not, possibly, have been referring to just a disk.
Last night I tried to tease her
I gave my love a little pinch
She said now stop that jivin’
Now whip out your big ten inch
Record of a band that plays the blues
Aerosmith’s cover is far better known.
Porter also wrote “Let’s Do It,” which also has a double meaning.
I remember when this song came out. Took a while for folks to figure out about what a teenaged girl meant by her brand new pair of roller skates and a teenaged boys brand new “key”.
No, she was clear in that the song had a double meaning, so she meant both the innocent and the sexual meaning.
Cool song.
No she wasn’t. At least Not at first she wasn’t.
She didn’t acknowledge the double meaning until an interview several years after it was released. And while she recognized there was a double meaning she denied that was her intent. Prior to that a lot of people amazingly did not detect it.
Yes, that is true, in fact she did not write it to have one:
wiki
Melanie has acknowledged the possibility of detecting sexual innuendo in the lyrics, but has denied any deeper meaning:
> [The song], “Brand New Key”, I wrote in about fifteen minutes one night. I thought it was cute; a kind of old thirties tune. I guess a key and a lock have always been Freudian symbols, and pretty obvious ones at that. There was no deep serious expression behind the song, but people read things into it. They made up incredible stories as to what the lyrics said and what the song meant. In some places, it was even banned from the radio. My idea about songs is that once you write them, you have very little say in their life afterward. It’s a lot like having a baby. You conceive a song, deliver it, and then give it as good a start as you can. After that, it’s on its own. People will take it any way they want to take it.[3]
In an interview with Examiner.com, Melanie described what she claimed was the inspiration for the song: “I was fasting with a 27-day fast on water. I broke the fast and went back to my life living in New Jersey and we were going to a flea market around six in the morning. On the way back… and I had just broken the fast, from the flea market, we passed a McDonald’s and the aroma hit me, and I had been a vegetarian before the fast. So we pulled into the McDonald’s and I got the whole works… the burger, the shake, and the fries… and no sooner after I finished that last bite of my burger… that song was in my head. The aroma brought back memories of roller skating and learning to ride a bike and the vision of my dad holding the back fender of the tire. And me saying to my dad… ‘You’re holding, you’re holding, you’re holding, right?’ Then I’d look back and he wasn’t holding and I’d fall. So that whole thing came back to me and came out in this song.”[1]
So she didn’t mean a double meaning but later she agreed it could be interpreted that way.
Very nearly “single entendre” in my book.
I’ve mentioned this in other threads. Some thought it was a love song. Some kind of sweet ditty about his lovely lady. In fact it’s actually depressing. The guy is completely miserable. He’s suspicious. He’s paranoid. He’s constantly worried she’s going to cheat on him or one of his buddies will steal her away. He feels alone and is very unhappy. It’s a sad song, really.
“Hot Child in the City” by Nick Gilder is basically about child prostitution.
Yeah, I agree, completely. I used to think it was about some little chick walking around looking for something she didn’t understand she really didn’t want to get, but when I saw the movie Angel (1984) I realized what the song was all about.
So we’re clear that the organ being referred to, figuratively, is not the heart.
I’m pretty sure “Squeezebox - The Who” isn’t about an accordion.
But Chuck Berry’s ding-a-ling really is just a toy made of bells on a string, right?