# Songs that sound like they're about one thing, but are actually about something else. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 8, 2006, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960 "2006-06-08T21:41:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Rich\_Mann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ce73a5/32.png) [@Rich\_Mann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rich_Mann)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/61 "2006-06-10T06:25:28Z")
_Pink Cadillac_ is not about a car. “Honey, I just wonder what it feels like in the back…” ---
**Author:** ![Iyamity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/96bed5/32.png) [@Iyamity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iyamity)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/62 "2006-06-10T16:11:47Z")
I just read this morning before opening this thread, the Quinn the Eskimo was a cocaine dealer. The song makes a lot moe sense now. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/63 "2006-06-10T16:16:20Z")
[QUOTE=Lakai] Bolding mine. Where in the song does it say she is breaking up with her boyfriend? [/QUOTE] They interpret the “I’m keeping my baby” line to mean “I’m keeping my boyfriend”. ---
**Author:** ![Lakai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lakai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lakai)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/64 "2006-06-10T16:48:41Z")
[QUOTE=Rysto] They interpret the “I’m keeping my baby” line to mean “I’m keeping my boyfriend”. [/QUOTE] Ok, but just because Madonna keeps her baby does not mean she is breaking up with her boyfriend. So where does it say she is breaking up with him? ---
**Author:** ![aktep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f0a364/32.png) [@aktep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aktep)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/65 "2006-06-10T17:11:40Z")
[QUOTE=Lakai] Ok, but just because Madonna keeps her baby does not mean she is breaking up with her boyfriend. So where does it say she is breaking up with him? [/QUOTE] The point is that they don’t see the song as being about anything other than Madonna professing her desire to stay with her boyfriend. The fact that she’s pregnant does not occur to them. Proper interpretation: Dad, I need your help, don’t be mad, I’m pregnant and my friends are telling me to get an abortion. The father says he’ll marry me. Maybe we’ll do that. I will keep the baby. “Their” interpretation: Dad, I know what I’m doing and I love my boyfriend and I’m not leaving him, even though my friends say I should. Don’t tell me what to do, I’m sticking with him. ---
**Author:** ![Monkey\_Chews](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@Monkey\_Chews](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monkey_Chews)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/66 "2006-06-10T20:20:02Z")
Elliot Smith’s song “Waltz #2 (XO)” is not about a lover, as it might sound at first, but his mother. \*Never gonna know you now, but I’m gonna love you anyhow. \* ---
**Author:** ![pesch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pesch/32/4925_2.png) [@pesch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pesch)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/67 "2006-06-11T03:14:56Z")
[QUOTE=Sefton] I’ve never figured out _Rhythm of My Heart_ by Rod Stewart. It sounds happy and romantic, but then it has lines like _“…Running under cover of a helicopter blade…”_ _“…The flames are getting higher in effigy…”_ _“…Photographs and kerosene light up my darkness…”_ _“…I’m just yanking back the handle, no expression on my face…”_ What’s happening to this guy? Does anyone know? 😕 [/QUOTE] Google [has an answer for you …](http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=726559) > [@](#): > > Indeed the song is about the experiences of a forlorn soldier at war, > but the authenticity of the song as an autobiographically based lyric > is questionable. In fact, absent any other references it appears that > the song is merely a creative account of a momentary hardship in the > life of a fictional soldier. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/68 "2006-06-11T06:12:58Z")
[QUOTE=Kizarvexius] There’s also a subset of this category – the surprise ending song. You think they’re about one thing, and the true subject of the song is revealed at the end. The best example I can think of is _The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane_. [/QUOTE] Not familiar with that one, but I’ll offer _Richard Cory_ as performed by Simon and Garfunkle. It first sets up Richard’s life of luxury and fame, contrasts with the plight of the worker in the chorus, and ends\* with this: _He freely gave to charity, he had the common touch, And they were grateful for his patronage and thanked him very much, So my mind was filled with wonder when the evening headlines read: “Richard Cory went home last night and put a bullet through his head.”_ \*well, the chorus is repeated, but this is the last verse. ---
**Author:** ![Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harvey_The_Heavy)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/69 "2006-06-11T07:53:57Z")
Speaking of inappropriate wedding songs, I’ve heard that “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” by the Righteous Brothers is the most popular wedding song ever. Sounds more fitting to play at a divorce to me. Has anyone ever figured out who “Iron Man” is? ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/70 "2006-06-11T08:21:57Z")
My all time grand bull moose winner in this category? Taking Care of Business. Listen…it’s about a bunch of guys who HATE hard work and the 9-to-5 grind. That’s why they formed a band. Essentially Money For Nothing from the opposite POV. Not the song of choice if you’re promoting a solid work ethic, trying to win an election, or selling office supplies. Since Madonna was mentioned, I’d like to add Material Girl, where she utterly mocks shallow, useless women who sponge off of rich guys. Good call on Born In The USA, of course. Let’s not forget American Woman, a screed against misguided American values, and Little Pink Houses about…a bunch of boring lives. Was I Will Always Love You really about a breakup? I was forced to listen to it a lot of times, and I never could tell for sure. (I think the sheer _annoyance_ factor is sufficient to disqualify it as an appropriate wedding song.) ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/71 "2006-06-11T08:30:04Z")
One of my exes sent me Assemblage 23’s song _Let Me Be Your Armor_, thinking it romantic, and a promise from him to “protect” me… It’s all fine and dandy with the first few verses, and the chorus: _Let me be your armor Let me be your shield Let me take away the pain you feel Let me be the light That guides your way through darkest night Let me be your armor._ Okay, that’s \*kind \*of sweet. A nice enough sentiment that someone loves you so much they want to protect you from harm, right? Other verses follow this same vein. Until the later verses, when Tom Shear shows his sense of irony: - Let me keep you from Experience you need Let me bind you with my selfishness And greed Let me stifle you Let me have control Let me smother Every aspect of your soul\* (it’s a song with many verses, I don’t think I’ve copied more than a third of it here - it that’s a violation, my apologies, and please remove it, mods.) Anyway, yeah - not exactly the romantic song he had originally thought it was, huh? :eek: Those last verses totally change the meaning of the song. Yet I still hear many people think it’s “nice” or “romantic”. No way. ---
**Author:** ![Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bites_when_provoked/32/18073_2.png) [@Bites\_When\_Provoked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bites_When_Provoked)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/72 "2006-06-11T11:34:27Z")
They actually made a beer commercial in Australia with [The Boys Light Up](http://www.lyricsdepot.com/australian-crawl/boys-light-up.html) as the majority part of it. Just scenery, (Light) beer, and this song. Which is fine if you’ve never properly \*listened \*to the song. 😃 A lot of Australian music has an odd quirk in that if you’re not listening to the words, you think you’re getting a completely different story than what you are. It’s not so much a case of confusing lyrics as total opposition between tone and message. Bachelor Girl’s [Lucky Me](http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Lucky-Me-lyrics-Bachelor-Girl/7D28E79D60093506482568C60015978C) is quite clearly sarcastic when you listen to/read the lyrics, but the song itself is \*very \*peppy and upbeat. Ditto Mental as Anything’s [Too Many Times](http://www.lyricsdownload.com/mental-as-anything-too-many-times-lyrics.html) which has a really happy, jaunty tune to it. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/73 "2006-06-11T11:34:57Z")
Purple People Eater? ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/74 "2006-06-11T14:28:46Z")
Aren’t most of ZZ Top & AC/DC songs just loaded with double entendre (sp?)? ---
**Author:** ![Labtrash](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/labtrash/32/528_2.png) [@Labtrash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labtrash)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/75 "2006-06-11T14:30:50Z")
woohoo! 5 years to get to my 200th post! ---
**Author:** ![Kizarvexius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Kizarvexius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kizarvexius)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/76 "2006-06-11T19:59:15Z")
_The Naughty Lady of Shady Lane_ was a major hit for the Ames Brothers in the mid 1950s. It tells the story of an unnamed young lady whose arrival in the neighborhood causes something of an uproar. The listener is meant to think that the lovely lady being referred to is a creature of questionable moral character, but it is revealed in the final line that she is actually a newborn. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2006, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/77 "2006-06-11T20:09:41Z")
[QUOTE=Malienation] **One Night in Bangkok** , which is about chess playing. [/QUOTE] I must have heard that song approximately a zillion times before I found out it was from _Chess_. Suddenly, it all made sense at once. “One town’s very like another When your head’s down over your pieces, brother It’s a drag, it’s a bore, it’s really such a pity To be looking at the board, not looking at the city.” “I’d let you watch, I would invite you But the queens we use would not excite you.” ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2006, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/78 "2006-06-12T12:02:55Z")
[QUOTE=DKW] Was I Will Always Love You really about a breakup? I was forced to listen to it a lot of times, and I never could tell for sure. (I think the sheer _annoyance_ factor is sufficient to disqualify it as an appropriate wedding song.) [/QUOTE] Well, if you listen to it in its _proper_ context ( 😉 ) Dolly Parton sings it in Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. She plays a whorehouse madam who is in love with the sheriff. He has political aspirations, and she is letting go of him so he can follow his dreams. “We both know that I’m not what you need.” ---
**Author:** ![Sean\_Factotum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Sean\_Factotum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sean_Factotum)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2006, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/79 "2006-06-12T14:18:54Z")
[QUOTE=Dung Beetle] Well, if you listen to it in its _proper_ context ( 😉 ) Dolly Parton sings it in Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. She plays a whorehouse madam who is in love with the sheriff. He has political aspirations, and she is letting go of him so he can follow his dreams. “We both know that I’m not what you need.” [/QUOTE] But didn’t she write this after discontinuing her long association with Porter Waggoner? I always thought that it had more to do with that breakup than any real loss-of-love. And maybe I’ve missed it, but no one’s said anything about The Guess Who’s “American Woman”. Definitely not pro-US girls, even though the lyrics are lost on most of it’s fans. ---
**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:** [June 12, 2006, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960/80 "2006-06-12T14:39:43Z")
[QUOTE=Dung Beetle] Well, if you listen to it in its _proper_ context ( 😉 ) Dolly Parton sings it in Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. She plays a whorehouse madam who is in love with the sheriff. He has political aspirations, and she is letting go of him so he can follow his dreams. “We both know that I’m not what you need.” [/QUOTE] The song was not written for or in the original Broadway show, but put into the movie to capitalize on Dolly’s name. I hate it when they do that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-that-sound-like-theyre-about-one-thing-but-are-actually-about-something-else/359960.md?page=5)