# Strange famous songs - what do they mean?



## horusd (19 Feb 2011)

Keeping up the muscial theme on AAM, what are the oddest song lyrics, do you know what the songs are actually about, and does it even matter ?

I'll kick off with two:

1. American Pie. I heard this was & wasn't about JFK.

2. REM Sidewinder sleeps tonight. I haven't the foggiest what this great song is about.


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## Purple (19 Feb 2011)

horusd said:


> 1. American Pie. I heard this was & wasn't about JFK.



When Don McLean was asked what the song meant he said "It means I never have to work again." 
It's about the 1959 plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper


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## horusd (19 Feb 2011)

Lol, and I bet that was true! Didn't ever hear the other story about the plane crash tho....ye live n learn eh!


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## Purple (19 Feb 2011)

horusd said:


> Lol, and I bet that was true! Didn't ever hear the other story about the plane crash tho....ye live n learn eh!



Yep, that was the "day the music died"

Eleanor Mcevoy referred to "Only a woman's heart" as house music. She said it bought her a house.


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## RMCF (19 Feb 2011)

Madness "House of Fun" - think its about buying condoms.

Eagles "Hotel California" - about some drug induced dream/nightmare?


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## PetrolHead (19 Feb 2011)

House of Fun is definitely about coming of age, of which buying condoms is used as an example. 

I love the meanings that people get completely wrong like 'You're Gorgeous' (Babybird) and 'Time of Your Life' (Greenday) but I've started a whole thread on that before. 

'More Than Words' by Extreme is about a guy trying to persuade his girlfriend to perform fellatio... 

On a side note (and no Wikipedia people.......). Anyone know which 'Town' is the eponymous 'Dirty Old' one?


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## BillK (19 Feb 2011)

"Shirt factory" suggests that it's Derry.


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## Newbie! (19 Feb 2011)

BillK said:


> "Shirt factory" suggests that it's Derry.


 
I cheated and googled and...................it's not Derry.......


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## Lex Foutish (20 Feb 2011)

I've heard that "The Langer Song" is about a Dub who moved down to Cork.


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## Purple (20 Feb 2011)

Lex Foutish said:


> I've heard that "The Langer Song" is about a Dub who moved down to Cork.



LOL excellent!


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## horusd (20 Feb 2011)

Lex Foutish said:


> I've heard that "The Langer Song" is about a Dub who moved down to Cork.


 
Ha! cheeky or wot?   .  Anti-Dublin slaggin from Cork shows how well-balanced Corkonians are: They have a chip on *both* shoulders


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## PetrolHead (20 Feb 2011)

BillK said:


> "Shirt factory" suggests that it's Derry.



Not sure where you got shirt factory from.... maybe another Dubliners song, 'The Town I Loved so well'...

Anyway, Newbie! was right (even if it was from cheating.....), it's not Derry.


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## dockingtrade (20 Feb 2011)

Purple said:


> When Don McLean was asked what the song meant he said "It means I never have to work again."
> It's about the 1959 plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper


 
Killing me soflty is about Don Mclean

A famous one is "sweet home alabama" by Lynard Skynnard is a retort to Neil Young's "Alabama" then Neil young wrote "southern Man" after thats(not sure about the sequence)

Angie by the rolling stones is about Angie Bowie.

There are many interesting ones some probably urban legends


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## Lex Foutish (20 Feb 2011)

Carly Simon's huge hit, *You're So Vain* is actually about David Geffen, not Warren Beatty.


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## Lex Foutish (20 Feb 2011)

RMCF said:


> Madness "House of Fun" - think its about buying condoms.
> 
> Eagles "Hotel California" - about some drug induced dream/nightmare?


 
Correct on both counts, RMCF. Two of my favourite songs.

[broken link removed]

Hotel California lyrics


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## RMCF (20 Feb 2011)

Sir Mix-a-lot's "Baby Got Back" is about girls with big backsides !!


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## BillK (20 Feb 2011)

PetrolHead said:


> Not sure where you got shirt factory from.... maybe another Dubliners song, 'The Town I Loved so well'...
> 
> Anyway, Newbie! was right (even if it was from cheating.....), it's not Derry.


 
Spot on! That is the song I was thinking of. 
Put the error down to my advanced years and tone deafness!


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## Betsy Og (20 Feb 2011)

Read recently that Dirty Old Town was written about Liverpool, think it was Ewan McColl or someone non-Irish that wrote it. The lyrics would work well with Dublin as well.

The Town I loved so Well is jam packed with Derry references e.g. "drew the women from the Creggan, the Moor and the Bog (bogside)", so no mystery there.

Golden Brown by the Stranglers about heroin ?????
Nighttrain by G'n'R about a brand of fortified wine (Buckfast style).


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## Caveat (20 Feb 2011)

Betsy Og said:


> think it was Ewan McColl or someone non-Irish that wrote it.



Correct!



> Golden Brown by the Stranglers about heroin ?????



Often disputed though - might be an urban legend.

Same with Lou Reed's Perfect Day.

Not quite the same thing but the craziest one I heard was that if you play Floyd's DSOTM at the same time as The Wizard of Oz, there are loads of lyrical references that fit with the movie. Apparently, it works (at a stretch) but certainly not Floyd's intention - some chronic acid imbiber with way too much time on his hands must have started that one!


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## Shawady (21 Feb 2011)

Puff the magic dragon = Marijuana?


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## TarfHead (21 Feb 2011)

PetrolHead said:


> .. another Dubliners song, 'The Town I Loved so well'...


 
Huh ?

Since when did that song get associated with The Dubliners  ? It's a Phil Coulter song and is unequivocally about Derry.

And, apparently, 'Relax' by Frankie Goes To Hollywood isn't about just chilling out. Allegedly.


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## Liamos (21 Feb 2011)

"*L*ucy in the *S*ky with *D*iamonds".


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## foxylady (21 Feb 2011)

'More Than Words' by Extreme is about a guy trying to persuade his girlfriend to perform fellatio... 



I used to love this song until just now


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## Caveat (21 Feb 2011)

Liamos said:


> "*L*ucy in the *S*ky with *D*iamonds".


 
Seemingly one of the most enduring urban legends.

Supposedly, the real story was that a young kid (relative? not sure) proudly showed Lennon a very colurful drawing they had just done -  depicting a young classmate surrounded by stars. As you do, Lennon asked "Oh what's that then?" (or words to that affect) and the kid replied "That's lucy in the sky with diamonds"


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## elefantfresh (21 Feb 2011)

Turning Japanese - google it.


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## Hoagy (21 Feb 2011)

PetrolHead said:


> 'More Than Words' by Extreme is about a guy trying to persuade his girlfriend to perform fellatio...


 
I'd say that's what most pop songs are about.


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## TarfHead (21 Feb 2011)

Caveat said:


> Supposedly, the real story was that a young kid (relative? not sure) proudly showed Lennon a very colurful drawing


 
The version of that story that I heard was that the child was a pal of Julian Lennon.


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## VOR (21 Feb 2011)

PetrolHead said:


> On a side note (and no Wikipedia people.......). Anyone know which 'Town' is the eponymous 'Dirty Old' one?



Salford (now in Manchester) . That's where MacColl was from.


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## Perplexed (21 Feb 2011)

There she goes..............by the LA's 

Definitely about heroin.


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## Betsy Og (21 Feb 2011)

Perplexed said:


> There she goes..............by the LA's
> 
> Definitely about heroin.


 
Dont say that, I used it as music over the start of 2 wedding videos (people arriving etc) recently


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## PetrolHead (21 Feb 2011)

I'm loving the number of old urban legends that are getting a run out.....

Well done VOR..... hope you didn't cheat...


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## daithi (21 Feb 2011)

*strange famous songs*

Can anyone tell me what was mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm  by the Crash Test Dummies all about??

daithi


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## dockingtrade (21 Feb 2011)

daithi said:


> Can anyone tell me what was mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm  by the Crash Test Dummies all about??
> 
> daithi



smarties


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## horusd (21 Feb 2011)

Betsy Og said:


> Dont say that, I used it as music over the start of 2 wedding videos (people arriving etc) recently


 

Lol.  Married into the mob ?


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## DB74 (22 Feb 2011)

dockingtrade said:


> smarties


 
Brilliant


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## PetrolHead (22 Feb 2011)

daithi said:


> Can anyone tell me what was mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm  by the Crash Test Dummies all about??
> 
> daithi





Well, you see, once there was this kid who's parents made him come directly home right after school.................


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## PMU (24 Feb 2011)

elefantfresh said:


> Turning Japanese - google it.


Yeah. I think Betty Boo was also doing it - "Doin' the do" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sM_9As_2VAg


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