Meanings behind songs that people don't seem to know...

[Arlanymor]

Do you remember the Real Fires advert with the dog kissing the cat and the cat kissing a mouse? My mum brought it up the other day as one of their neighbours has just got a dog that looks identical to the one in the advertisement. Awww!

I couldn't quite remember the song that was the soundtrack so I looked it up later... it's Will You Love Me Tomorrow by The Shirelles and I brought it up on YouTube to listen to it. It's about a one night stand isn't it? I had no idea until now... there I was thinking it was a lovely warm anthem for chaste kisses between pets!

By the way, not remotely making a judgement about the topic, I've a had a few 'Shirelles' nights of my own in the past... I just never knew what it was about before. Have you had any similar revelations?!

Not what I read. Apparently the song is inspired by an Alice Walker book that deals with FGM but it is about bitchy girls and how female friendships can be betrayed.

I thought it was Angel Delight 🤣

There are so many songs with meanings that not everybody knows about though. I remember singing the Bloodhound Gang - Bad Touch at full volume in my bedroom when I was in my teens and never even clocked what the lyrics said (and they ARE NOT subtle 😂)

Argh! Just realised i thought this too. DH looked it up. We are shook!

He also looked very guilty and furtive when he was caught out as a secret lemonade drinker

Yes. This is me.

I haven't lead a very adventurous life so am not familiar with terminology relating to drugs, sex etc

I have no idea what the majority of songs are about nowadays and even if explained to me I still probably wouldn't get it.

St Elmo’s Fire - Rick Hansen was paralysed age 15 and later went on to do a wheelchair sponsored world tour to raise money for charity.
The song is inspired by him, his bravery and strength of character. if you listen to the words it really gets you.
The line ‘You broke the boy in me but you won't break the man‘ has me in tears every time!

That was his dad (if you mean EC) 😁

Edit. His dad might have written it but I remember at the time people saying the actor was his dad. Google now says otherwise 🤦‍♀️

Nor here. And I was at high school in the 90s!!!

I thought it was only me! I feel validated!

There is one album that is definitely NOT going to appear here, and that is Lily Allen’s new one, West End Girl. No mistaking the meaning of any of those lyrics 🤣

'Black Velvet' by Alannah Miles is about Elvis Presley.

Elvis was blond and the shade of black hair dye he used was apparently called 'Black Velvet.'

Always loved the song, heard it lots of times when it was out but had never really listened to the words. Then, years later it came on the radio while I was driving home one night. A shiver went up my spine when I realised it was about Elvis.

'A new religion that'll bring you to your knees.'

I don´t understand most references to drug use, in what way does that make me better than those that do?

Haven't read all the posts so it may have been mentioned but Murder She Wrote by Chaka Demus and Pliers is about abortion (so I'm told).

Agree. I was a 70s child and my dad loved that song. Didn’t know until I was well into adulthood.

Quite and zero sex education either at my school, same era. A much beloved teacher did a myth busting session about this, drugs and suicide with us during what was meant to be an English lesson when we were about 15 (yes, you can get pregnant the first time etc) and although of course we thought we knew it all, some things still came as a revelation.

She said she didn't approve of the culture of pretending such things didn't exist because it wouldn't enable us to be safe, where knowledge would.

I originally thought Luka was about a female and it was a song about DV. The first time I realised it was a boys name was from the character on ER 🙈

Apparently the Alphaville one hit wonder Big in Japan has two meanings

The innocent one being about how pop groups can be a flop everywhere else but the Japanese market adores them

The second about it being about male prostitution and that Asian men like European guys as they have bigger penises (allegedly)

Some of the lyrics are suggesting the latter - ‘neon on my naked skin’ ‘pay and I’ll sleep by your side’ ‘I’ll wait here for my man tonight’ ‘big in Japan, be tight’

Or that could have been what the singer, who despite having four wives was one of the campest men ever, wanted the listeners to think 🤣

The ambiguity wasn't accidental though, and it's fine for songs to be ambiguous.

Brought up on Elvis and didn’t know that. Will tell my dad later.

This

Haha, that's wonderful. Some kind of corporate song. Ireland's industry, that is what we are. 😆

ohhhhhhh my word !!

I read that his dad wrote it but he (Declan/Elvis) sang it!

This is a great website for finding out about songs

songfacts.com

I am old. There were no drug education classes.