BY MIKEY MIGO
All great artists have done it, thus all of the greatest musicians have done it. They dig deep into their soul and search for what currently makes them tick and they use it in their expression. The greats have painted it, written it, and sung it. It's not always just a case of the typical ode to love. Sometimes, it's very specific.
In this edition of the Savage Animal, I'm going to take a look at some of the more famous songs that are specifically named after someone. It may be a wife, a girlfriend, someone the artist lusted after, or even a creation used as a narrative. My picks are pretty broad. I didn't want to JUST list twenty songs that were my favorites. I have a few "personal picks" in the listing, but this is such a broad topic that we could have done "Fifty Songs about a Girl" and would still be debating.
So now, in no particular order, here's my "Twenty Songs About A Girl":
"Molly" by Mindless Self Indulgence
"She was a good girl/But it felt great to be a liar" is one of the main lines in this track. It's more of a negative track than a positive. The story here is that she's a good girl, but taken advantage of and lied to. It's one helluva fun song to dance around to, but really sorta morbid on the lyrical side. If you're a fan of MSI, you'd expect nothing less. I can't really vouch for the past few years, but I STILL stand by the fact that Mindless Self Indulgence is the THEE best concert experience I've had. All ten times.
"Happy Birthday Lisa" by Bart Simpson/Michael Jackson
This is personal pick and probably the most unconventional ones of the bunch. Without doing any research, I can tell you that during one of the first few seasons of The Simpsons their hype was crazy. They were starting to get some really big stars to do guest spots. In this specific episode two main plotlines were going on. Homer had gone crazy and was institutionalized. He gets there and is roomed with a heavy-set white guy who claimed to be and sounded exactly like Michael Jackson. Meanwhile, Bart is a bad brother and screws Lisa on a Birthday present. She's all sad and emo about her 10 year old brother not getting her something as if he's already working for the Mafia, Brothel, or making that phat boy band cash. At this point, he was still unemployed, people are losing their homes, gas prices have been crazy, and the market has crashed but that didn't stop her from crying about it. Anywho, Homer comes home with the white(er) Michael Jackson and he and Bart put together this genuinely lovely song to calm Lisa's greedy nerves.
"I Love You Mary Jane" by Cypress Hill
B-Real of "Cypress Hill" had a life long crush on this girl he grew up with named Mary Jane. They went through some rocky times and eventually had the fairy tale ending and got married. This was his ode to her love. Okay, that's complete bullshit. This song is about weed. There will be more on this list that show their tribute and relationship with this sometimes seedy woman.
"Come on Eileen" by Dexy's Midnite Runners
Until writing this column, I had no idea that this song was done by "Dexy's Midnight Runners". Their overalls and neckerchiefs aside, I actually like the video. The song is pretty good 80's fluff, but the story about "Eileen" is why we're watching this right now.
"I Want Candy" by Bow Wow Wow
I am not afraid to admit that I own this song on CD. I'm sort of afraid to admit it's because I own "Bio Dome" soundtrack. I believe the song is originally done by "The Strangeloves" or something like that, but the Bow Wow Wow version is what most of us know as is used to. You could probably assume that it's about real candy, but it's not. At least, I'm leaning towards that way.
"Black Betty" by Ram Jam
Same story as above except this is on the "Blow" soundtrack. The story in this one is "meh", but the actual song is addicting. If you're of legal age and are looking for a challenge try a shot every time "bam-a-lam" is said. There are actually a few songs on this list you could have a drinking game to. We'll get to those later.
"Dani California" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
This is one of the more current tracks on the list. I like it a lot and it gave me hope in regards to the future of the band. It's probably the best Peppers song released in the past few years and rightfully so. They ganked Tom Petty pretty hardcore.
"Mary Jane's Last Dance" by Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers
See! Listen to the Peppers song and then listen to this one. Musically it's just about the same and even the lyrics are similar. I know the Peppers didn't do it on purpose, but maybe subconsciously. Luckily, Petty is a cool guy and didn't sue their socks off. There's room in my collection for both. This one is also another metaphorical take on "weed".
"Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond
Your eyes and ears are not deceiving you. That's not Neil Diamond in the clip. It's The Edge from U2 singing the song at a concert in 1997. That's how popular this song is. It's another bar song. I wouldn't rock this in a car, but it's a pretty hard song not to enjoy in a large group of people.
"Roxanne" by The Police
I dare you to try this drinking game, again if you're of legal age and not driving. One shot or drink per "Roxanne" would lay Andre the Giant out in his day. Well, maybe not Andre but someone like KoKo B. Ware would get pissed on this one.
"Judith" by A Perfect Circle
I love this song. When seeking it out, I read somewhere that it's about Maynard's mother and how she didn't question her faith even while dieing. If that's the true story behind it, then I'm speechless. I've put my own meaning behind it after listening to it many many times, but wow… that's some personal shit. Lyrically, it makes sense. If any Tool/APC fans want to chime in with some verification, please do so. I'd love to hear the back story on this one. This song is from an album that could of taken up most of this column, "Mer De Noms"(Sea of Names).
"Janie's Got a Gun" by Aerosmith
This is almost twenty years old. That makes me feel old as shit. They don't make music videos like this anymore. An interesting fact here is that David Fincher, director of awesome movies such as "Fight Club", "Lost Highway", and "Zodiac", put this together. The story is pretty obvious. "Janie" is being abused by her father and once it becomes too much, she get a gun and kills him. Probably one of the most original takes on the list in terms of use of a female character. This is a great song, awesome video, and intense narrative.
"Peggy Sue" by Buddy Holly and the Crickets
This footage is awesome. YouTube is sometimes like being able to time travel. I'm sure this wasn't the first, but it was one of the first "woman name" songs out there to really make it big. In modern times, the song might not be as "hip" as what most of us are used to. This is one of those songs that are hidden in the influence and style of many of the bands and songs we love. I put this here to show proper respect for a song that I'd still say is timeless.
"Eleanor Rigby" by The Beatles
The clip is from "Yellow Submarine", but the song is from my favorite Beatles' album, "Revolver". They had a few tracks with a woman's name, but I'm sticking to a "one per band rule" to keep things more varied. I am a huge fan of the violin in this song and the story of "Eleanor Rigby" is something you don't see in modern music anymore. Great song and great storytelling here.
"Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson
Fuck what you heard, Michael Jackson is always going to be the King of Pop. This song is a great example of the amazing talent that my fellow Gary, Indiana native has. The lyrics might be the most mature and best that Michael ever made. I recently heard a stripped down cover of it by Chris Cornell and as good as that version was, it only made me want to listen to this one. Timberlake, Kayne, Usher… I hope you guys are taking notes.
"Darling Nikki" by Prince
Prince gets all sexual and there's this weird mystique about him. Pretty much any Prince video you have stored away in your brain will work to imagine this. Maybe not the Bat Dance one. This specific song, as brilliant as it is, is the reason why the CD's we buy have Parental Advisory stickers on them. What a naughty little guy Prince is.
"Jane Says" by Jane's Addiction
You can always list Nirvana, Tu Pac, Biggie, Pearl Jam, and others as the most influential and iconic bands of the 90's, but you can't sleep on Jane's Addiction. In this specific version, Flea is playing bass which makes it that much cooler. This beautifully written song will probably always be Jane's Addiction's most requested song only rivaling their other mega hit "Caught Stealing". If you don't already, you should have this song in your ipod.
"Sweet Jane" by the Velvet Underground
I forgot how much I loved this song. It's been awhile since I've heard it. The last thing with Lou Reed I read was a recent interview in SPIN a few months ago. He acted holier than thou and wouldn't really open up on things to the interviewer. He wasn't being asked about his bowel movements, sex life, or anything specific just Reed's career and hobbies. It was a huge turn off and I left that article a bit annoyed. Then dammit, you listen to a song like this and you realize that he's almost allowed to be a dick. Almost.
"Wind Cries Mary" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience
If you've gotten this far, consider this video a treat. This is what I consider to be Hendrix's best song. There's a lot of songs that are metaphors and that are creatively worded, but this one is the best in that regard. What I wouldn't give to be there, right then, in that moment when this song was being sung in the video. Then again, this song transcends time and space so with a little relaxation, meditation, and probably a threesome with this song, yourself, and "Mary Jane" you'd be right there.
"Layla" by Eric Clapton
I know this song is originally by "Derek and the Dominoes", but the Clapton version is what I grew up with and in my opinion one of the rare cases that a cover is better than it's original. I know this list isn't in any specific order, but I was saving what I feel is the best for a reason. This is one of the best guitar songs of all time and the lyrics are just as strong. Even if you don't agree with most of my list, you'd have to admit that this would at the VERY least deserve a mention on anyone's list if not the number one spot.
Those are just twenty song titles with a woman's name that I choose for this collection. There's plenty more. There's one thing I noticed is that there's a lot older songs with a woman's name than newer ones. I'm sure I'm missing quite a bit. What did I miss? What would YOUR twenty (or five or ten even) songs about a girl? Remember the rules, it must have a woman's name in it and you can't use the same band twice (or whatever)!
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