# Songs you used to like until you really listened to the lyrics **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 6, 2011, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470 "2011-06-06T02:52:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/41 "2011-06-07T13:10:39Z")
It took me lo 20 years or so (yes I can be slow on the uptake on some things), but REM’s “Man on the Moon” apparently implies that a faked moon landing would be more “cool” than the real one (which was indeed the coolest event of my lifetime). Now perhaps I am taking the lyrics too literally (this is Michael Stipe we’re talking about, after all), but I can no longer listen to it without it seriously bugging me. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/42 "2011-06-07T13:26:03Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > I love _Spirit in the Sky_ Me too, probably my favorite song mentioned in this thread. I remember buying it on 45 the week it came out in 1969 (:eek:), and I still have it somewhere. Pretty funny that it was written and recorded by a Jewish dude. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/43 "2011-06-07T13:38:01Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Too many to list, but off the top of my head: > > [Spirit in the Sky](http://www.metrolyrics.com/spirit-in-the-sky-lyrics-norman-greenbaum.html) How do you possibly miss the lyrics to that? What did you think it was about? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/44 "2011-06-07T13:44:59Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > It took me lo 20 years or so (yes I can be slow on the uptake on some things), but REM’s “Man on the Moon” apparently implies that a faked moon landing would be more “cool” than the real one (which was indeed the coolest event of my lifetime). Now perhaps I am taking the lyrics too literally (this is Michael Stipe we’re talking about, after all), but I can no longer listen to it without it seriously bugging me. He also makes some uncited claims about Mott the Hoople playing the board game Life. Seriously, it’s a mistake to read his lyrics that literally and he definitely does not say a faked moon landing would be cooler than the real one. ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/45 "2011-06-07T13:49:55Z")
_Brown Sugar_. Ugh. And ditto on _Under my Thumb_. ---
**Author:** ![Pliny\_the\_younger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aca169/32.png) [@Pliny\_the\_younger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pliny_the_younger)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/46 "2011-06-07T14:26:25Z")
My entry is The Seed 2.0 by the Roots. Love the beat but what is up with the lyrics? _I only wanna fertilize another behind my lover’s back I sit and watch it grow standin’ where I’m at Fertilize another behind my lover’s back And I’m keepin’ my secrets mine_ ---
**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 7, 2011, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/47 "2011-06-07T14:43:25Z")
Box Tops [Sweet Cream Ladies Forward March](http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/t/the_box_tops/sweet_cream_ladies_forward_march.html). Did ANYONE look at the lyrics before giving it so much airplay in the innocent 1960’s? They are not implying or infering anything. This song is about prostitutes. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/48 "2011-06-07T15:12:17Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Box Tops [Sweet Cream Ladies Forward March](http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/t/the_box_tops/sweet_cream_ladies_forward_march.html). > > Did ANYONE look at the lyrics before giving it so much airplay in the innocent 1960’s? They are not implying or infering anything. This song is about prostitutes. That’s pretty much **why** it got the airplay it did. The funny thing is using that song years later to sell cream pies. ---
**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:** [June 7, 2011, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/49 "2011-06-07T18:04:18Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > John Lennon’s _Imagine_. At first, it sounded like a bit of idealistic optimism. Then I realized it’s just a Communist Manifesto masquerading as pop music! Same here. I used to like the song until I started paying attention to the lyrics. It’s pretty obvious the song is an ode to communism. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/50 "2011-06-07T18:47:17Z")
**Happy Boy** by the _Beat Farmers_. A local radio station always plays just the first verse and my 5 year-old son liked it: I was walkin’ down the street on a sunny day hubba hubba hubba hubba hubba Feelin’ in my bones that I’ll have my way hubba hubba hubba hubba hubba Chorus: Well, I’m a happy boy (happy boy) So I downloaded the full version. The rest of the song is about how the guys dog got hit by a car, he put the dead dog in a drawer, forgot about it for a month, then when he found it again laughed about it. ---
**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/51 "2011-06-07T18:57:03Z")
I was a big Bowie fan as a young teen, then I grew up a little and realized that many of his songs I loved (Velvet Goldmine, Queen Bitch, etc.) were essentially about gay sex. It squicked me out to listen to them. Then I grew up a little more and wasn’t bothered by it anymore, and I started listening again. I’m glad John Lennon got a mention. I loved his solo work as a teen as well. Then I started to really listen to his lyrics and it slowly dawned on me that he was just a shallow, hubristic, narcissistic prick who could write good melodies. I can’t listen to any of his stuff anymore without being repulsed. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/52 "2011-06-07T19:06:55Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > **Happy Boy** by the _Beat Farmers_. > > The rest of the song is about how the guys dog got hit by a car, he put the dead dog in a drawer, forgot about it for a month, then when he found it again laughed about it. A month _and a half_. That makes a difference. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/53 "2011-06-07T19:09:33Z")
_“Follow Me”_ by Uncle Kraker. Nice catchy song, good hook. But then I really listened to the second verse. Killed it for me. ---
**Author:** ![Tranquilis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tranquilis/32/3639_2.png) [@Tranquilis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tranquilis)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/54 "2011-06-07T19:20:37Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Too many to list, but off the top of my head: > > [Spirit in the Sky](http://www.metrolyrics.com/spirit-in-the-sky-lyrics-norman-greenbaum.html) Well, you can’t be too shocked at Greenbaum getting his evangelical theology wrong - IIRC, he’s Jewish. _shrug_ Still a dang catchy tune, though I find myself wanting to yell at the radio occasionally that he’s got it wrong. Oh, and I see that **Khadaji** called out Uncle Kracker before I did. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/55 "2011-06-07T19:28:56Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > **Happy Boy** by the _Beat Farmers_. That’s just a weird song all around - I remember when it first came out. I have to add \*\*Possum Kingdom by the Toadies \*\*- cool, rocking song until you realize it is about a serial killer luring a victim to their death. ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/56 "2011-06-07T19:29:28Z")
> [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](#): > > I’m glad John Lennon got a mention. I loved his solo work as a teen as well. Then I started to really listen to his lyrics and it slowly dawned on me that he was just a shallow, hubristic, narcissistic prick who could write good melodies. I can’t listen to any of his stuff anymore without being repulsed. It’s interesting you say that, just about everyone else goes on about his artistic vision. I always thought that he had one hell of a toxic personality, which makes Paul McCartney kind of a genius to just be able to work with him. He seems to have mellowed a bit as he got older, though. Hell, didn’t he give David Chapman an autograph? ---
**Author:** ![ministryman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@ministryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ministryman)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/57 "2011-06-07T20:43:46Z")
> [@tumbleddown](#): > > No, the music was written by Taupin, the lyrics were written by Elton, as with all of their songs. > > It’s pretty clear, to me, that it’s about a man who’s fallen in love with another man who was unsure, then began to return the affections, then got scared. I was going to disagree with you, but then I put in my contacts and carefully read the lyrics. +1 One more song I won’t be singing in the shower. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/58 "2011-06-07T22:33:44Z")
I will pile on In The Summertime. It obviously states the rich daughter of the rich family is going to be taken out for a meal. If the other girl is poor, she (who would appreciate/could probably use a meal), will be subjected to whatever the man singer feels like doing. I thought this the first time I heard it eons ago, and I think this today. Unfair. Unfair to the poor girl. Why doesn’t SHE get taken out to a restaurant? It’s unfair, and cruel. Miss Bigbucks is a spoiled rich bitch who could very well pay for the male singer and her meal ten times over. Miss Poorgirl lives on food stamps. Which one deserves a date involving eating in a restaurant most? ---
**Author:** ![Apollyon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/apollyon/32/4238_2.png) [@Apollyon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apollyon)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/59 "2011-06-07T22:50:49Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > The song says it’s OK to treat women differently based on whether or not they come from a rich or poor family. I agree with your interpretation Lynn. The song also says it’s OK to drink-and-drive. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470/60 "2011-06-07T22:50:52Z")
> [@ministryman](#): > > One more song I won’t be singing in the shower. Just keep a firm grip on the soap and you’ll be fine. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-used-to-like-until-you-really-listened-to-the-lyrics/584470.md?page=4)