PARAMORE recently announced that they’re no longer playing the song “Misery Business” because of the line, “Once a whore you’re nothing more, I’m sorry, that’ll never change.”
And SLASH recently admitted that some of the old GUNS N’ ROSES songs are “sort of sexist.”
There are a lot of other songs that haven’t survived the changing times. Here are a few of them:
1. “I Saw Her Standing There“, The Beatles. “She was just 17 / You know what I mean.” Yeah, and so does R. Kelly.
2. “Under My Thumb“, The Rolling Stones. It’s all about controlling a woman, down to what she wears and how she talks. She’s even referred to as a “squirmin’ dog” and “the sweetest pet in the world.” And the Stones STILL play this one.
3. “Young Girl“, Gary Puckett & the Union Gap. It’s all right there in the chorus: “Young girl, Get out of my mind / My love for you is way out of line / Better run, girl, You’re much too young, girl.” And now, I need a shower.
4. “In the Summertime“, Mungo Jerry. This one seems pretty innocuous, except for this: “Have a drink, have a drive / Go out and see what you can find.” Sorry, Mr. Mungo . . . we’re not supposed to do that anymore. Another line that feels more than a little offensive: “If her daddy’s rich take her out for a meal / If her daddy’s poor just do what you feel.” (???)
5. “He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)“, The Crystals. A woman is HAPPY that her man hit her after he found out she cheated, because that proves he loves her. Carole King co-wrote this with her then-husband in 1962. She regrets it now.
6. “Turning Japanese“, The Vapors. They could have done without that riff that EVERYONE associates with Asians.
By the way, the Vapors have always DENIED that the song compares a person’s “O-face” to Asian people’s eyes . . . which is what a lot of people find offensive about the song.
The band says the song is about a man going crazy because he lost his girlfriend . . . and, quote, “Turning Japanese is all the clichés about angst and youth and turning into something you didn’t expect to.”
7. “Ur So Gay“, Katy Perry. This one’s pretty self-explanatory and contains other questionable lyrics.
8. “Baby It’s Cold Outside“, by whomever. This dude will do ANYTHING to convince his lady to stay the night. It’s pretty inappropriate by today’s standards, but people still consider it a Christmastime classic.
WILL FERRELL and ZOOEY DESCHANEL even sang it in “Elf” . . . and unintentionally made it even SLIMIER by having Zooey in the shower, not knowing Will was right outside.
(There are more. You can check out the complete list here.)
– Lisa G
