Songs That MeToo Might Blackball Today

[millineutron]

Not trying to kick the hornets' nest, and hoping I don't get run out of town by all the more sensible villagers (because I would really miss you all) ... so I hope this will be taken in the manner in which it was intended. 

So I recently saw an Instagram  post bashing Al Hirt for putting out a record called "Music to Watch Girls By" back in 1967, using hashtags like "voyeur" and "SmashthePatriarchy" ... and I just thought, "Say Whaaaaat?" I mean, I guess I get it ... but now we're going to smash the trumpet player (God rest his soul) for covering a song 50 years ago about watching girls? 

So anyway, that song is my first entry in this new category. I'm sure there are other songs that in retrospect would be deemed much more offensive than this one, so I'm just interested to see where people might go with this thread, if anywhere at all!

[1968Hoya46]

I really like this song, and am probably overthinking it, but The Wanderer by Dion might be criticized by some people in some quarters. The guy drives from town to town seducing pretty girls. He loves them then he leaves them because to him they’re interchangeable. They don’t even know his name. Should he find himself falling for one of them, he  simply hops in his car and drives to the next town for the next pretty girl. A sad dude all the same.

A similar theme can be found in Travelin’ Man by Rick Nelson. 

[BarbaraK341561]

Funky Cold Medina by Ton Loc.

He is literally singing about slipping rufies into womens' drinks.

https://youtu.be/tWLgSaAayDA 

[l483260l]

FIRST ONE I THOUGHT OF IS "TALK TO YOU BY HAND": NOT SURE WHO WROTE IT. IT'S ON THIS ALBUM BY ANSON& THE ROCKETS( I HAVE THE ORIGINAL ON VINYL- AUTOGRAPHED. USED TO LISTEN TO THEM FREQUENTLY WHEN THEY WERE GETTING FAMOUS IN DALLAS IN THE 70'S& 80'S. HORRIBLE SONG- GREAT BAND!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_6iMbQzSlw

[DMAFl]

First one that popped into my head and now it is stuck there. Oh dear.  Fat Bottomed Girls by Queen.

[l483260l]

REMINDS ME OF A BLUES CLASSIC_"BIG-LEGGED WOMAN" NOT SURE WHO WROTE IT.

[LouLit01]

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@l483260l wrote:
REMINDS ME OF A BLUES CLASSIC_"BIG-LEGGED WOMAN" NOT SURE WHO WROTE IT.

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"I don't know but I been told

A big-legged woman ain't got no soul"

Black Dog

Led Zeppelin 

[LouLit01]

Dixie Chicken

By Little Feat

I've seen the bright lights of Memphis 

And the Commodore Hotel

Underneath a street lamp

I met a southern belle

Well it's been a year since she ran away
Yes that guitar player sure could play
She always liked to sing along
She's always handy with a song

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z-GwdaKrn8

Hey, Hey, What Can I Do?

Led Zeppelin 

In the evening when the sun is sinkin' low
Everybody's with the one they love
I walk the town, keep a-searchin' all around
Lookin' for my street corner girl

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYbMPgqsGhI

The Fire Down Below 

Bob Seger

And he's looking out for Rosie and she's looking mighty fine
And he's walking the streets for Nancy
And he'll find her everytime
When the street lights flicker bringing on the night
Well they'll be slipping into darkness slipping out of sight
All through the midnight
Watch 'em come and watch 'em go
With only one thing in common
They got the fire down below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7r-V1id038

[LouLit01]

Trick of the Light

The Who

But was I all right? (was I all right?)
Did I take you to the height of ecstasy?
Was I all right? (was I all right?)
Did a shadow of emotion cross your face
Or was it just another trick of the light?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6fFtWi318s

But I Am a Good Girl

The dress is Chanel,
the shoes YSL,
The bag is Dior,
Agent Provocateur
My address today, L.A. by the way,
above Sunset Strip, The hills all the way.

My rings are by Webster, it makes their heads twirl
They all say, "Darling, what did you do for those pearls?"
What? I am a good girl

B.H I adore, Rodeo l'amour
Breakfast Polo Lounge then pool side for sure
The Chateau for cocktails,
The Courtyard at nine
Dan Tana's for dinner, the Helen's divine

You know I have found the word's going round
They all say my feet never do touch the ground
What? I am a good girl

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDPR5EoYqOs

This is the Christina Aguilera version. Great video.

[cm9889168]

OMG this was a favorite one.....love the words..."Bertha"

Troglodyte (Cave Man)

           by Jimmy Castor Bunch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCV6paTXyCU&list=RDBCV6paTXyCU&start_radio=1&t=0

[1968Hoya46]

Devil Woman- Marty Robbins. So this guy cheats on his (I’m guessing) wife with another woman. He confesses his cheating and she takes him back. He now turns to the other woman and calls her a Devil Woman and tells her to leave him alone. He actually call her evil, with irresistable, almost black-magical charms. The problem here is that he is absolving himself of any responsibility for his infidelity, choosing to fully blame the other woman, as if he had no free will in this deal.

[millineutron]

@1968Hoya46 Good point!!

[1968Hoya46]

With “Frankie and Johnny” we see role reversal. Johnny (the man) cheats on Frankie (the woman). Frankie blows away Johnny with her .44 (coincidentally the same caliber gun used by Stagger Lee when he shot poor Billy). One of the sing’s final lines suggests that Johnny had it coming....something like there is no good in man.

[LouLit01]

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@1968Hoya46 wrote:

With “Frankie and Johnny” we see role reversal. Johnny (the man) cheats on Frankie (the woman). Frankie blows away Johnny with her .44 (coincidentally the same caliber gun used by Stagger Lee when he shot poor Billy). One of the sing’s final lines suggests that Johnny had it coming....something like there is no good in man.

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.44s are popular...

Early one mornin' while makin' my rounds

I took a shot of cocaine and I shot my baby down 

I shot her down then I went to bed

I tucked that lovin' .44 beneath my head 

I shot her down because she made me slow 

I thought I was her daddy but she had five more

Cocaine Blues

Sung, with slightly changing lyrics by: Woody Guthrie, Johnny Cash, George Thorogood, Merle Haggard and others.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNE0fEEQ0Wc

This is the George Thorogood version. Some good guitar work here.

[millineutron]

@1968Hoya46 

About "Frankie and Johnny"--

it seems like a lot of the older traditional folk songs were stories about violent crimes of passion or injustice. Today we see this kind of stuff live on social media from across the planet on almost a daily basis, but not that long ago these stories were written in song and passed along, communicating the depths of human condition, or maybe as cautionary tales. 

I read somewhere that Neil Young had been listening to a lot of these old folk songs when he wrote Down By the River. I also read that he wrote this song, along with Cinnamon Girl and Cowgirl in the Sand, all in one day while he was in bed delirious with a 103 degree fever. Some people think this song is about heroin. In one interview Neil Young said, "There's no real murder in it. It's about blowing your thing with a chick. ... It's a plea... a desperation cry." But another time he introduced the song at a concert by describing it as being about a murder by "a guy who had a lot of trouble controlling himself." 

"Down by the river I shot my baby. Down by the river. Dead, oh, shot her dead." Seems pretty clear to me!

[1968Hoya46]

“Delilah”, by Tom Jones. Tom was in great voice on this song, but the subject matter is

troublesome. It seems Delilah (even her name has negative Biblical meaning as a betrayer) was this guy’s “woman”, or so he thought. Walking past her house one night he sees her silhouetted on the window shade in romantic embrace with another man. So, our guy waits there until morning and sees ther other man leave the house. He knocks on the door and confronts Delilah. She laughs at him. He “felt the knife in his hand” and “she laughed no more”. As with most domestic violence cases, the man (it’s usually a man) tries to distance himself from culpability. For example, instead of admitting that he sat there all night with a knife fully intending to kill her come morning, he says that he “felt the knife in his hand”, as if it magically appeared there. Again, even when asking for her forgiveness he justifies his deed by blaming her (“I just couldn’t take any more”)(of your two-timing).

Sorry for being long-winded. This song is less about me-too and more about domestic violence. Whether it would be recorded and sold today is anybody’s guess.

[MsStretch]

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@1968Hoya46 wrote:

“Delilah”, by Tom Jones. Tom was in great voice on this song, but the subject matter is

troublesome. It seems Delilah (even her name has negative Biblical meaning as a betrayer) was this guy’s “woman”, or so he thought. Walking past her house one night he sees her silhouetted on the window shade in romantic embrace with another man. So, our guy waits there until morning and sees ther other man leave the house. He knocks on the door and confronts Delilah. She laughs at him. He “felt the knife in his hand” and “she laughed no more”. As with most domestic violence cases, the man (it’s usually a man) tries to distance himself from culpability. For example, instead of admitting that he sat there all night with a knife fully intending to kill her come morning, he says that he “felt the knife in his hand”, as if it magically appeared there. Again, even when asking for her forgiveness he justifies his deed by blaming her (“I just couldn’t take any more”)(of your two-timing).

Sorry for being long-winded. This song is less about me-too and more about domestic violence. Whether it would be recorded and sold today is anybody’s guess.

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This song also brings to mind Hey Joe, a song originally done by the Leaves, made famous by Jimi Hendrix, and covered by many.

Yes, I did, I shot her,
you know I caught her messin' 'round,
messin' 'round town.
Uh, yes I did, I shot her
you know I caught my old lady messin' 'round town.
And I gave her the gun and I shot her!

[MsStretch]

Lot of good rock & roll and fun songs came out of the '60s, but let's face it -- some of it would not stand under the scrutiny of #MeToo.  (After all, back then, it was all about if it had a good beat and you could dance to it.)

Anybody remember Every Mother's Son who did C'mon Down To My Boat, Baby?  (Every mother's son, huh?    Sort of an anomaly, wouldn't you say?)

She sits on the dock a fishin' in the water uh, huh
I don't know her name she's the fisherman's daughter uh, huh
Come on down to my boat baby
Come on down where we can play
Come on down to my boat baby
Come on down we'll sail away.

She smiled so nice like she wants to come with me uh, huh
But she's tied to the dock and she can't get free
Come on down to my boat baby...
Fish all day sleep all night
Father never lets her out of his sight
Soon I'm gonna have to get my knife and cut that rope, cut that rope
Then we can go fishin' in my little red boat
Make you happy in my little red boat
so come on down to my boat baby.

[GailL1]

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@MsStretch wrote:

Lot of good rock & roll and fun songs came out of the '60s, but let's face it -- some of it would not stand under the scrutiny of #MeToo.  (After all, back then, it was all about if it had a good beat and you could dance to it.)

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Ever listen to some rapper lyrics or look them up when the lyrics are "bleeped" out on a nationally televised events?  I haven't heard anything from #MeToo on this disrespect of women - sometimes it is not even just "implied". And ya know what, it is not just coming from male performers either.

Isn't this current day music also about the beat, the rhythm and the rhymes?

[1968Hoya46]

Skinny Legs-   Joe Tex first admonishes a guy for being embarrassed that “his woman” has skinny legs. He then tries to see if anybody will take her, skinny legs and all. No apparent takers.

[MsStretch]

Don't get me wrong, I am a huge AC/DC fan, but sensitive #MeToo-ers might have a problem with some of their songs.

Like You Shook Me All Night Long:

She was a fast machine, she kept her motor clean
She was the best **bleep** woman that I ever seen
She had the sightless eyes, telling me no lies
Knocking me out with those American thighs
Taking more than her share, had me fighting for air
She told me to come, but I was already there
'Cause the walls start shaking, the Earth was quaking
My mind was aching, and we were making it

[Chorus] And you shook me all night long
Yeah, you shook me all night long

Working double-time on the seduction line
She's one of a kind, she's just a-mine all mine
Wanted no applause, just another course
Made a meal outta me, and come back for more
Had to cool me down to take another round
Now, I'm back in the ring to take another swing
That the walls were shaking, the Earth was quaking
My mind was aching, and we were making it.

And, of course, Big Balls.

[1968Hoya46]

“You Always Hurt The One You Love” (Clarence Frogman Henry, Ringo Starr).

This song might be a stretch: he seems to be apologizing for his poor behavior, but then justifies (explains) his poor behavior by the clever use of circular reasoning involving a dubious premise: 1) you always hurt the one you love 2) I love you 3) that’s why I hurt you 4) if I didn’t love you then I wouldn't hurt you. 

Sorry for over-thinking a good song.

[MaVolta]

Funny thing, this article showed up in USA Today with 20 of rock's most non-pc lyrics. It's no surprise to find lyrics by the Rolling Stones on the list, but The Beatles made the list also! It includes some lyrics that I hadn't really thought about in years. But sure enough, they would get the boot today! 

Here is the link to the entire list. (I see that a few have been mentioned in this thread).

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2019/01/01/20-rock-n-rolls-most-politically-incorrect-song...

[millineutron]

Wow! I haven't checked this thread for a while. You guys have come up with a LOT of creepy songs. 

@MaVolta Maybe the person who wrote the USA Today article saw our thread & got the idea haha 😂. The creepiest thing on their list is the former Kiss member who co-wrote “Goin’ Blind” (about a 16 year old!) who was convicted of possession of child pornography and is currently serving a six-year prison term. Yikes!

[1968Hoya46]

“You Got What It Takes” (Marv Johnson). She doesn’t dress well, doesn’t drive a fine car, doesn’t look like a movie star and nature didn’t give her such a beautiful face...but she’s got what it takes.

I’m ambivalent as to “objectability”. On one hand he goes out of his way to denigrate her. On the other hand he seems to be saying that he is looking beyond these superficialities and appreciates the real person.

[RosesRoses]

The description in the song fits me, so I think the singer was just being honest. Most folks will admit that they are average, but love the idea that they are also very special to someone they care about.

[StephenL413555]

"A Man Needs A Maid" ,  by Neil Young

[1968Hoya46]

“If You Want to Be Happy For the Rest of Your Life” (Jimmy Soul). Extolling the virtues of marrying an ugly woman because she’ll bring you peace of mind and will always prepare your meals on time. Toward the end of the song one guy says “I saw your wife the other day and she is ugly”. The other guy agrees that his wife is ugly but counters “but she sure can cook”. Doubtful if the song would be released today.

[1968Hoya46]

“Clementine”. (Bobby Darin). Pretty over the top song about fat-shaming.

[MaVolta]

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@1968Hoya46 wrote:

“Clementine”. (Bobby Darin). Pretty over the top song about fat-shaming.

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I had to look up the lyrics since I didn't remember it. Yeah, it was over the top and would never get played today.

[1968Hoya46]

“Two Lovers” by Mary Wells (early Motown). She’s in love with 2 lovers and loves them both the same. One is sweet and kind. The other tends toward a domestic violence type. Unfortunately, they are the same person, with (as she puts it) a split personality. The song seems to be saying that it’s OK to be in a relationship with an abuser, just as long as he has a sweet side. MeToo I’m sure would disagree.