andrewtsks: oldtobegin: the replacements,...

andrewtsks:

oldtobegin:

the replacements, “alex chilton”

i’m in love
what’s that song?
i’m in love
with that song

OK, can we talk about the lyrics to this song? Specifically the second of four lines Jess quotes up there. Because way back when I was 16 and first had Pleased To Meet Me, I didn’t think it made sense for him to be saying “what’s that song?” there, so I wondered if I was hearing the words right. And then I read some rock critic—Gina Arnold, in her book Route 666: The Road To Nirvana, if I remember correctly—transcribe that line as “the words of that song.” Which would make the first two lnes of the chorus “I’m in love [with] the words of that song.” Brackets around “with” because Westerberg clearly doesn’t ever sing that word there. Anyway, that made tons more sense to me than “what’s that song?” did, even if, to buy it, I had to believe that Westerberg was slurring the fuck out of the second line in the chorus in order to cram all that in. In fact, listening to it now, I still hear “the words that song” when he sings that line—no “with,” no “of,” but definitely a “the.” And if it’s really there, and not just a combination of my overactive imagination and a suggestion planted by a book I read 18 years ago, then I gotta figure that I’m closer to right than everyone who thinks Westerberg is singing “What’s that song?” Because seriously, even if they were write about the word “what’s,” that would mean that, according to what I hear every time I listen to this song, he’s not singing, “What’s that song?” he’s singing “the what’s that song,” and there’s no way that makes any sense to anyone.

AND SO: this post is here to make a general inquiry of the tumblr-verse: am I crazy, or is “what’s that song?” a mistranscription? It seems really hard to come up with obvious evidence from listening to the song, but I have to say that I still believe Paul is singing something a lot closer to “I’m in love with the words of that song” than “I’m in love—what’s that song?”

Do any of you have an opinion in either direction? If so, please let me know.

Man, I never thought it was anything other than “what’s that song” but after reading this and listening to it again I’m convinced that you and Arnold are right on—at least with the first chorus. I definitely hear the “the” there but don’t hear it at all in the second one and then the last set is questionable.

I always thought of the chorus not being sung by Westerberg though but as him quoting the kids going crazy over something so wonderful and poppy—like in the way I’ll dig something I keep hearing in a friend’s car and have no idea who sings it or what they look like until I catch them on an awards show. Or what you want to hear a friend say when a song you love comes up on the radio—that is if they’re not already getting down with you. It’s an instant excitement and hunger which is totally different for me than liking the lyrics because it’s usually not the first thing I notice. That’s another feeling and now this chorus is another feeling.

Anyway, this is my first time on the internet today but I spent the day listening to Alex Chilton and Big Star in a bizarre display of subconscious thought. A little sad, a little eerie.

andrewtsks:

oldtobegin:

the replacements, “alex chilton”

i’m in love
what’s that song?
i’m in love
with that song

OK, can we talk about the lyrics to this song? Specifically the second of four lines Jess quotes up there. Because way back when I was 16 and first had Pleased To Meet Me, I didn’t think it made sense for him to be saying “what’s that song?” there, so I wondered if I was hearing the words right. And then I read some rock critic—Gina Arnold, in her book Route 666: The Road To Nirvana, if I remember correctly—transcribe that line as “the words of that song.” Which would make the first two lnes of the chorus “I’m in love [with] the words of that song.” Brackets around “with” because Westerberg clearly doesn’t ever sing that word there. Anyway, that made tons more sense to me than “what’s that song?” did, even if, to buy it, I had to believe that Westerberg was slurring the fuck out of the second line in the chorus in order to cram all that in. In fact, listening to it now, I still hear “the words that song” when he sings that line—no “with,” no “of,” but definitely a “the.” And if it’s really there, and not just a combination of my overactive imagination and a suggestion planted by a book I read 18 years ago, then I gotta figure that I’m closer to right than everyone who thinks Westerberg is singing “What’s that song?” Because seriously, even if they were write about the word “what’s,” that would mean that, according to what I hear every time I listen to this song, he’s not singing, “What’s that song?” he’s singing “the what’s that song,” and there’s no way that makes any sense to anyone.

AND SO: this post is here to make a general inquiry of the tumblr-verse: am I crazy, or is “what’s that song?” a mistranscription? It seems really hard to come up with obvious evidence from listening to the song, but I have to say that I still believe Paul is singing something a lot closer to “I’m in love with the words of that song” than “I’m in love—what’s that song?”

Do any of you have an opinion in either direction? If so, please let me know.

Anyway, this is my first time on the internet today but I spent the day listening to Alex Chilton and Big Star in a bizarre display of subconscious thought. A little sad, a little eerie.

Posted 1 year ago 20 notes