Reading between the lines of naughty songs

[snopes]

Compilation of pieces from the '40s and '50s features big names and lyrics that are risqué.

http://www.calendarlive.com/music/cl...,5177312.story

[Ana Ng]

Risqué was so much better when it was entendre...

[BluesScale]

And available from Amazon. I just placed my order. As you may have guessed from the screenname, I am no stranger to the blues and the references to coffee grinders and honey dippers are not in any way culinary.

Of course, one very popular Chuck Berry song was "My Ding-aling".... about a small toy that he had with bells on.

Blues "Single entendre and proud of it" Scale

[Fun with a 9mm]

We were watching VH1 yesterday, one of their 2006 lists, and we cracked up at "Afternoon Delight" (neither of us had heard it in years). Talk about single-entendre!

[sovran]

Originally Posted by Fun with a 9mm

We were watching VH1 yesterday, one of their 2006 lists, and we cracked up at "Afternoon Delight" (neither of us had heard it in years). Talk about single-entendre!

My 14 year old son was singing that non-stop a few weeks ago - off key and very loudly. He professed complete ignorance to the meaning, and when it was explained to him, shrugged and continued to sing it - still loudly and off key. When I saw his teachers at the parent/teacher meeting, they were all laughing hysterically about it. Apparently, sung with an English/South African accent, it tends to become charming? Go figure

[damian]

Every time I hear "Afternoon Delight", I remember the episode of Arrested Development.

[Sister Ray]

It took them this long to find out blues songs are risque?

Sister "I could have told them that years ago..." Ray

[Cervus]

Originally Posted by Sister Ray

It took them this long to find out blues songs are risque?

Sister "I could have told them that years ago..." Ray

The article is really an overview of a new compilation disc, explaining the highlight tracks to younger listeners who may not be familiar with the genre or songs.

I always found Train Kept a' rollin' (I'm partial to the Johnny Burnette version -- earliest I think) to be an absolutely filthy song.

Originally Posted by damian

Every time I hear "Afternoon Delight", I remember the episode of Arrested Development.

I always remember the song thanks Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy. There is a bit part in the actual movie, but on the DVD there is a music video where Ron and the news crew are singing it. I can't listen to that song without thinking about it.

[sneeze042]

There's also that delightful little song by one of Prince's prodigies Vanity called Pretty little mess. I think we can all imagine what that is!

[noysey]

I have a bone to pick with the Times article. "Work with me Annie" along with "Annie had a baby" (can't work no more) were as far as I know first done by Hank Ballard and the Midnighters.

Hank Ballard was ripped off twice. Once, when "Work with me Annie" was cleaned up and called "Dance with me Henry"; and then the biggest ripoff of all was when Chubby Checker stole "The Twist" from him. Chubby Checker is known as the "King of the Twist" and made millions, but if you listen to Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, who did it first, you would have a hard time telling the two records apart.

Nobody ever said that life was fair.

[Ramblin' Dave]

Originally Posted by Dogwater

I always found Train Kept a' rollin' (I'm partial to the Johnny Burnette version -- earliest I think) to be an absolutely filthy song.

Agreed. But the filthiest song of that era has to be "Shake Rattle and Roll." There was an unofficial custom back then of "cleaning up" the lyrics to dirty songs like that when white artists covered them. But when super-non-threatening Bill Haley cleaned up the words to "Shake Rattle and Roll," the dirtiest double entendre in the song - "I'm like a one-eyed cat peepin' in a seafood store" - was so well-hidden that he left it in. And in a time when Lucille Ball couldn't say "pregnant" on television, it made the top ten.

[Tarquin Farquart]

Were'nt the lyrics of Tutti Frutti cleaned up as well?

[Ramblin' Dave]

Yes. "Boy you don't know what she do to me" became "Pretty little Susie is the girl for me." Which is worthy of a puking smiley, if you ask me!

[DarkFeline]

I was thinking about starting a thread in the forums but since I saw this thread, I guess I'll say it here. :P

The song "Ring My Bell" by Anita Ward very often leaves a very strange impression in my mind after hearing it. Does anybody also think it's somewhat like a risque song too?

Of course. Back in the disco days (sorry, it was the only way to buy alcohol if you were an underage girl!!) I was sort of proud that women could blatantly sing about their wishes as easily as men. Think of the POinter Sister's "Slowhand" (don't think it was about Eric Clapton), etc. Or the famous faked orgasm in "Love to Love you, Baby" (Donna Summer).

[Debunker]

Dr. Demento used to play a lot of the old songs that were full of double entendres and cryptic references. Alas, the only one that comes to mind right now is "The Dinghy Song" by Ruth Wallis.

[Buckle Up]

Whenever I hear talk about filthy lyrics and how we must protect our precious widdle children, I remember how naive and stupid I was when I was little. My best friend and I loved Meat Loaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" and it never occurred to us that the later part of the song was about anything but a baseball game. He's rounding the bases...sounded plausible to us, even despite the grunts and moans clearly audible in the background.

Are children today less easily fooled, or are adults today still overreacting and over-stating the "damage" naughty lyrics do to kids?

Someone was telling me that the song "Do wah diddy" (its on one of the singstar games, which is how I know it mainly) originally had lyrics in the chorus.

Instead of "Do whah diddy, diddy dum diddy dee"

it was "Do what daddy did to mom to get me"

It kind of sort of fits if you slightly slur the words, so its feasible, but I dont know if its true, or simply people assigning obscene meanings to nonsense (like "Louie Louie").