The story of the lyrics say what?!

[Globules]

I was today years old when I realised Upside Down by Diana Ross is her singing about a man who's cheating on her.

And the bottom line is that because she likes the way he makes her feel, there'll always be a place in her heart for him.

I'd never actually heard that in the song before! Shocked in the shower!

I informed my friend yesterday that Watermelon Sugar is about cunnilingus.

Pina Colada - was always a favourite with the boyfriend and I, until i looked up the lyrics during a long car journey 😳 The song's story is that I'm bored with my partner, so I look for a new one in the personal ads. I meet them, and it turns out it was my partner who placed the ad. Essentially, they're both looking to cheat on each other. Very unexpected story for such a breezy song!

We all know Every Breath you take is actually a stalker song.

Any other stories in songs that are really not what you expected?

Am surprised Angel by Sarah Mclachran not mentioned yet. It played at funerals which is fine if person died in a lonely hotel room of a heroin overdose but don't think that the case too often.

Kathy Denis was the songwriter.

Cathy Dennis - Wikipedia

I think some people on here are convinced that singers are warbling their true life experiences even when they're actually singing songs written by other people!

I actually listened to the lyrics of Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Old Oak Tree when it came on the radio today. I've heard it in the background loads of times over the years, but only now know the story. He's been released from prison after 3 long years and wonders if his love still wants him, he tells her to tie a yellow ribbon round the old oak tree to let him know she wants him back, if no ribbon is round the tree he'll stay on the bus and regretfully forget about her and blame himself. He's travelling home on the bus and is too nervous to look at the tree in case she doesn't want him any more, so he asks the bus driver to look out for the ribbon round the tree for him, as the bus arrives at the house, all the passengers cheer, there are 100 yellow ribbons round the old oak tree 🎉🥳. I love it, I keep asking Alexa to play it 😂

Love your discovery! Always got the story of this with the “I’ve done my time” so gathered it was in reference to prison even since a young kid hearing it but love that for you, it’s great suddenly having that lightbulb moment with a song like ohhhh, that’s what they’re on about! 😂💡

Taylor Swift All Too Well (10 Minute Version) -
“and I left my scarf there at your sister’s house and you’ve still got it, in your drawer even now…but you keep my old scarf from that very first week because it reminds you of innocence and smells like me, you can’t get rid of it ‘cos you remember it all too well…”. Me thinks she’s not talking about a scarf🧣 Her discussions / interview around this, including the scarf intentionally being red, in the short movie video for it, have all but confirmed it 👀

I'm enjoying this thread so just place marking for tomorrow

Lol, I never knew what that meant. My dad was a skipper on the trawlers so spent a lot of time away from home, as a child (I'm 60 now), I thought "I've done my time, I'm coming home" referred to someone like my dad, coming home from sea!! I wondered if my mum should tie a yellow ribbon round the tree in our garden 😂🤣.

What’s it about then?

Follow me by Uncle Kracker 😬😬

Well hes obviously threatening what he will do if she drops him 🤨

I LOVE this song 🎵 Tony Orlando and Dawn 😀 I like Knock 3 times as well, I probably didnt really know what it meant as a kid 😀

At least you could clearly hear the lyrics with all those lovely old songs, even if you didn't know what they meant 😂

I think "Knock 3 Times" is really creepy. Weirdo in the flat downstairs is listening to his lone female neighbour dancing to music in her flat and obsessing about her.

I like to sing

"Lock the door, put the chain on, he's a weirdo.....
Christ on a bike say the answer is nooooo".

Yes Sir I Can Boogie always strikes me as an incredibly sad, sleazy song, about sex workers in a seedy club. I mean, who else is going to call the guy chatting them up "sir"? But in Scotland it's treated as a fun, up beat song like YMCA. I just don't get it. I find it totally cringe.

@Arran2024

That's because it went viral after a video of one of the players dancing to it was posted online and the Tartan Army adopted it as an unofficial anthem.

Brace yourself, you'll be hearing a lot of it in the first couple of weeks of June.

Sounds like a cheeky schoolgirl strutting her stuff at a school disco!! (Memories of Friday lunchtime school discos in the assembly hall in the late 70s) 😂

Its just a song, you're not supposed to take it too seriously. Its certainly a banger 😁, along with YMCA

I love watching old Top of the Pops, brings back so many happy memories 😀

Blue Oyster Cult always denied that Don't Fear the Reaper was about teenage suicide but if you listen to the lyrics it's hard to believe it's about anything else.

Church by Jade (it’s been on the radio non stop) also seems to be about them, to me at least.

I feel this way about the “Don’t you want me” one by The Human League - whenever it’s the man’s bit of the song I just want to smack him, so creepy.

I know. Presumably men don't hear the sex worker references. It makes me sick.

I actually listened to the lyrics of Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Old Oak Tree when it came on the radio today. I've heard it in the background loads of times over the years, but only now know the story. He's been released from prison after 3 long years...

That's what the song was about, but at the time it was adopted as a kind of theme song for soldiers coming home from Vietnam, the majority of whom were National Servicemen, hence 'I've done my time', and the original meaning was rather overlooked.