For those of you that read this, you know that I don't normally refer to myself directly in this blog. Usually my posts resemble an article rather than the typical blog, but with this subject, I've decided to use a direct experience I had this morning...
While driving this morning and scanning for something to listen to on AM radio, I came across a man talking about music in a talk format style show. I stopped there for a moment because he was talking about Kurt Cobain. I didn't realize until I listened to it for a few more seconds and realized it was a man complaining about music in the last twenty years. His theory was that music changed fundamentally around 1993-1996 and became raunchier. He believed that music since then has been nothing, but filth, sex, and adultery related because of the music artists Kurt Cobain, Madonna, Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, and Shirley Manson of Garbage. He listed an example from each artist, Kurt Cobain (Nirvana's "Rape Me"), Madonna (her albums Erotica and Bedtime Stories along with the movie Body of Evidence and her book called Sex), Nine Inch Nails ("Closer" and "Happiness In Slavery"), Marilyn Manson (for his appearance and the song "The Beautiful People"), and Shirley Manson (Garbage's "#1 Crush").
In this guy's opinion these artists were to blame for the rise of what he called "sex hungry" music artists such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake, Chris Brown, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, and Drake. Frankly, I was sort of shocked that he left out Miley Cyrus, but how many artists he named, he probably just accidentally left her out. He said that the topic of sex in music is tearing apart the minds of the youth and he would rather that if given a choice between music that focuses on sex and music that focuses on violence, he prefers violence. In his opinion music about violent topics, is not enough to inspire a kid to commit acts of violence. If this is true, then how would a song about sex be able to do the same thing? As far as he was concerned, music about sex was to blame for everything from popular raunchy books such as Fifty Shades of Gray, raunchier movies (he named Don Jon as one of them, although I'm sure Joseph Gordon-Levitt would like to forget about that one), and the way that women like "those Kardashians" dress today in materials such as leather and latex like they were dominatrixes.
He went on to say that before the mid-90s, that he was hard pressed to find a single hit song about sex and definitely not one that was raunchy in nature. Really? You can't think of one "raunchy" hit song before then? Well, I now present a list to you of examples of raunchy songs pre-mid-90s. Maybe this guy will find this blog while Googling for "raunchy" music...
"Darling Nikki" by Prince: Released on the Grammy Award-winning album Purple Rain, this song was released in 1984. The opening lyrics are, "I knew a girl named Nikki/I guess u could say she was a sex fiend/I met her in a hotel lobby/Masturbating with a magazine". Although raunchy, much of Prince's music is about sex. Maybe it was an excuse to surround himself with all those women that started as dancers and backup singers for him and would eventually find themselves hooking up with him.
"Venus in Furs" by Velvet Underground: Written by Lou Reed and released in 1967, this song was about a relationship between a sex slave and a dominatrix. With lyrics such as, "Shiny, shiny, shiny boots of leather/Whiplash girlchild in the dark/Comes in bells, your servant, don't forsake him/Strike, dear mistress, and cure his heart" as the opening of the song, it doesn't take long for the listener to know that this song is far from G-rated.
"Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)" by Joan Jett: Joan is the queen of rock and very well known for hooks that are often repeated many times throughout the song. She asks over and over whether or not if you want to touch her "there" in this 1983 hit. Always dressed in skintight leather, Joan Jett looked like she could kick your butt and be a sex goddess at the same time.
"Master and Servant" by Depeche Mode: Released in 1984 on Depeche Mode's second album Some Great Reward, this song doesn't hide the subject matter. It's right in the title and almost thirty years before artists like Rihanna were so open about writing a song on S&M.
"Like a Virgin" by Madonna: The guy I referred to earlier in this blog suggested that 90s Madonna helped kick off the raunchy music explosion. Perhaps he forgot about Madonna's 1984 hit in which she sings about losing her virginity. It was her performance of this song at the very first MTV Music Video Awards that changed the public's perception of Madonna from pretty girl in spandex to sexpot who will writhe around in lingerie. Other music videos of Madonna's pre-mid-90s such as "Express Yourself" feature her in her famous bullet bra, in a latex dress crawling on her hands and knees to lick up something from a bowl (Christina Aguilera would recreate this moment in her music video "Not Myself Tonight"), and collared and chained while laying in a bed. While the lyrics of "Express Yourself weren't horribly raunchy, the video was.
"Afternoon Delight" by Starland Vocal Band: This song, released in 1976, might be the most famous song about "nooners". It asks the listener to consider why they should wait until night time to hook up with their love. Starland Vocal Band's first single, it was also be their only hit single.
"Calling Dr. Love" by KISS: Despite their costumes and makeup, they were one of the most sexually charged bands during their prime. "Calling Dr. Love" is a perfect example of that with lyrics trying to convince a woman to give him oral sex. It's no surprise that band leader Gene Simmons claims to have slept with over 10,000 women.
"I Wanna Be Your Dog" by The Stooges: Led by Iggy Pop, this song is another about a man wanting to be the sex slave of a woman. Not filled with many lyrics, it also didn't hide the "hidden" meaning very well in this 1969 hit song.
"Cherry Pie" by Warrant: Basically their only song that has survived to this day, "Cherry Pie" is a favorite of strip clubs. Full of sexual innuendo, the music video of "Cherry Pie" features a blonde model who dresses up as a sexy baseball player, a waitress, then finally in a getup that would be a more modern version (at the time) of Daisy Duke's outfit. The band even hoses her down using a fireman's hose.
"Pour Some Sugar on Me" by Def Leppard: Another strip club favorite, this hair band released this single in 1987. Despite the innuendo in the lyrics and the places the song can still be heard, the music video was far from sexy and only featured Def Leppard concert and rehearsal footage.
"Hot For Teacher" by Van Halen: Released in 1984, this song is about a student that falls hard for his teacher. The student is trying everything he can to garner her attention and even debates about staying after school for detention just to be with the hot teacher for a little bit longer. In the music video the teachers strip off their clothes and start dancing on school desks.
Photo: Screencap from the Madonna music video for "Human Nature"
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