Your Stuck in my Head Song(s) of the Day

I had been thinking about my last post for awhile and the song that came to me was David Bowie's Boys Keep Swinging, one of those crypto-homo rock songs that everyone loves, but especially among the lyrics the line "When you're a boy, other boys check you out" I'm not sure exactly why, besides maybe certain other boys don't check me out. And it is also true when you're a boy "clothes always fit ya", especially girls clothes because designers seem to design only for models who have the body types of boys.Hmm he makes a convincing point for going back to being a boy. Anyway it is a tremendous song and is a really good video that caused some consternation, as all good rockers should. P.S. Bowie looks best as the brunette.


But then while I had this song in my head I was thinking about the notion of masculinity and heterosexuality and Joe Jackson's Real Men popped into mind. "Sure they're all straight, straight as a line...every now and then I wonder who the Real Men are." I know I can relate to these lyrics; my whole life I've wondered about being a "Real Man;" I probably fail:
Take your mind back - I don't know when
Sometime when it always seemed
To be just us and them
Girls that wore pink
And boys that wore blue
Boys that always grew up better men
Than me and you

What's a man now - what's a man mean
Is he rough or is he rugged
Is he cultural and clean
Now it's all change - it's got to change more
'Cause we think it's getting better
But nobody's really sure...
See the nice boys - dancing in pairs
Golden earring golden tan
Blow-wave in the hair
Sure they're all straight - straight as a line
All the gays are macho
Can't you see their leather shine

You don't want to sound dumb - don't want to offend
So don't call me a faggot
Not unless you are a friend
Then if you're tall and handsome and strong
You can wear the uniform and I could play along...

Time to get scared - time to change plan
Don't know how to treat a lady
Don't know how to be a man
Time to admit - what you call defeat
'Cause there's women running past you now
And you just drag your feet

Man makes a gun - man goes to war
Man can kill and man can drink
And man can take a whore
Kill all the blacks - kill all the reds
And if there's war between the sexes
Then there'll be no people left

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are

Yup, yup, yup. I first heard the Tori Amos version and so I prefer it; it also adds another level of gender subversion and you can watch it here, but the Joe Jackson version, he wrote it and I'd guess he lived it so it has that power of authenticity that can't be denied or faked. I finally found a video; here it is


Hmm... I need to go to bed,I have way too many thoughts in my head; thoughts of gender, tboughts of authenticity all things that trouble me. But as for you all: good night my loves. :)

Sphere: Related Content