# Songs where performer and character are different genders **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [December 16, 2025, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749 "2025-12-16T12:23:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/21 "2025-12-16T14:13:04Z")
> [@icon](#): > > Stormy Weather (1933). This is a torch song written by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler and originally sung by Ethel Waters, but since then has been sung by many a male singer (e.g. Duke Ellington, Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, etc.). Have any of them kept the original lyric? I’ve looked at youtube. Duke Ellington either has a female vocalist, or the performance is instrumental with no lyrics. Sinatra substitutes “my girl” for the original “my man”. Neither of these count. It isn’t a male singing a song from a female POV. There’s nothing in the song that explicitly indicates the gender of the narrator, other than the one single word that can be easily changed . ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/22 "2025-12-16T14:35:40Z")
We have Patti Smith singing “Gloria,” adding and changing a lot of lyrics but leaving the gender situation as it is. There’s no reason why you couldn’t look at her version as a song narrated from the POV of a lesbian, but in real life, she’s not a lesbian. She explained her choice as a matter of artistic freedom. I doubt that anyone has ever thought that Mick Jagger has for real stuck a knife down anyone’s throat (or, for that matter, that he would call his own mother a “toothless, bearded hag”). [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bPO0bTaWcFQ/maxresdefault.jpg "Patti Smith - Gloria (Official Audio)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPO0bTaWcFQ) ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/23 "2025-12-16T14:39:19Z")
Orville Peck covered “Maybe This Time” from _Cabaret_, as previously sung by Kaye Ballard and Liza Minelli. Some lyrics stayed the same: _Maybe this time, I’ll be lucky Maybe this time, he’ll stay Maybe this time, for the first time Love won’t hurry away_ …while some changed: _Everybody loves a winner So nobody loved me ‘ ~~Lady~~ Mr. Peaceful’, ‘ ~~Lady~~ Mr. Happy’ That’s what I long to be_ Peck is gay so it’s not an unexpected change. Amusingly, Peck has also been appearing in _Cabaret_, albeit as the Emcee rather than as Sally Bowles. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/24 "2025-12-16T14:50:25Z")
Sinatra also recorded “The Man That Got Away” as “The Gal That Got Away.” ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/25 "2025-12-16T14:51:34Z")
Pete Townsend sings as the “Acid Queen” on Tommy. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/26 "2025-12-16T14:58:33Z")
> [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](#): > > Sinatra also recorded “The Man That Got Away” as “The Gal That Got Away.” Again, that doesn’t count. There’s a million songs that were recorded by two performers of different genders. The list would go on forever. I want songs where the narrator is explicitly female, and the performer is male, or vice versa. If there’s no clear indicator of gender, or if it changes the lyrics to match the performer, it isn’t what I want. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/27 "2025-12-16T15:36:22Z")
Got it. How about Frank Bessinger’s recording of “I’d Rather Be the Girl in Your Arms”? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/84ZtaUrkVvQ/maxresdefault.jpg ""I'd Rather Be The Girl In Your Arms" - Jean Goldkette & His Orchestra, v/ Frank Bessinger (1926)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84ZtaUrkVvQ) ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/28 "2025-12-16T15:48:05Z")
Yeah, that’s an example. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/29 "2025-12-16T16:28:50Z")
How about a brother & sister duet who both sing about a girl? > I found a real cute baby, she’s a real swingin’ baby > And she says we’ll go steady just > As soon as I get me a hot rod [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CflFhAox2RQ/hqdefault.jpg "The Collins Kids, "Hot Rod" (Western Ranch Party, 1958)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CflFhAox2RQ&t=13s) ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/30 "2025-12-16T17:47:43Z")
_Free Man in Paris_ by Joni Mitchell. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/31 "2025-12-16T19:03:37Z")
Could call Free Man in Paris a song from the point of view of someone quoting a man. ---
**Author:** ![mtnmatt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a3d4f5/32.png) [@mtnmatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mtnmatt)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/32 "2025-12-16T19:09:54Z")
In “Boots of Spanish Leather” you sing both parts of a conversation between a man and a woman, including the woman singing “I got a letter on a lonesome day, from his ship, a’sailing.” ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/33 "2025-12-16T19:36:09Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > The Beatles covered the Shirelles’ “Boys.” They changed the “I” to “my girl” in the verses, but kept the titular “boys” in the chorus. Not really a change in perspective, though — it sorta implies they’re singing about “boys [like me],” while the Shirelles sang about “boys [like him].” I’ve always noticed this but couldn’t care less - Ringo hits it out of the park. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/34 "2025-12-16T19:37:28Z")
Agreed. And, Brian Epstein didn’t mind. (Sorry, couldn’t resist). ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/35 "2025-12-16T19:50:29Z")
The first song to come to mind is “[Your Woman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Your_Woman)” by White Town. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/lVL-zZnD3VU/maxresdefault.jpg "White Town - Your Woman (Official HD Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVL-zZnD3VU) ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/36 "2025-12-16T20:12:21Z")
How about an entire concept album? The story is sung by a male, from the perspective of a 17-year-old girl. > It was round about this stage that the song ideas took me back to a memory of an intriguing radio broadcast from the Bristol Police some years ago on GWR radio. The police had picked up a young woman wandering on the Severn Bridge who refused or was unable to speak to them. In desperation the appeal was broadcast to the general public in an attempt to discover her identity. I heard this on the radio and thought it was a great first page to a mystery story. I was also concerned for her and wrote a few words of support which, of course she would never see or hear. I suppose it’s as near as I come to saying a prayer. I believe that good thoughts eventually lead to good things. ‘Runaway’ took me back to her - wondering what became of her - and I thought we might dream up a story which would become a piece of music like a fictional documentary of her life and the circumstances which led her to the bridge. We now had a concept album on our hands at a time when the whole genre was and probably still is terribly unfashionable. Suits us just fine! > **[marillion.com | Racket Records Store](https://www.marillion.com/music/albums/brave.htm)** > > The official website of Marillion. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/37 "2025-12-16T20:20:54Z")
Stand By Your Man sung by John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd (Blues Brothers) ---
**Author:** ![mtnmatt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a3d4f5/32.png) [@mtnmatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mtnmatt)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/38 "2025-12-16T20:21:40Z")
And Lyle Lovett ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/39 "2025-12-16T20:24:14Z")
The Pogues cover of “I’m a Man You don’t Meet Everyday” had Cait O’Riordan doing the vocals. First line of the song is, “My name is Jock Stewart.” [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/FJt4y4fH938/hqdefault.jpg "The Pogues - I'm a Man You Don't Meet Every Day") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJt4y4fH938) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2025, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749/40 "2025-12-16T20:30:31Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > _House of the Rising Sun_ is a song narrated from the point of view of an explicitly female prostitute. (It’s been the ruin of many a poor **girl** , and God I know I’m one). > **[The House of the Rising Sun](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Rising_Sun)** > > "The House of the Rising Sun" is an American traditional folk song, sometimes called "Rising Sun Blues". It tells of a person's life gone wrong in the city of New Orleans. Many versions also urge a sibling or parents and children to avoid the same fate. The most successful commercial version, recorded in 1964 by the English rock band The Animals, was a number one hit on the UK Singles Chart and in the U.S. and Canada. As a traditional folk song recorded by an electric rock band, it has been d... _The narrative of the lyrics has varied between male and female narrators. The earliest known printed version from Gordon’s column is about a woman’s warning. The earliest known recording of the song by Ashley is about a rounder, a male character. The lyrics of that version begin:__[[20]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_House_of_the_Rising_Sun#cite_note-20)_ \* There is a house in New Orleans They call the Rising Sun Where many poor boys to destruction has gone And me, oh God, are one.\* So, one version is boys another is girls. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-where-performer-and-character-are-different-genders/1025749.md?page=3)