Fan reviews

BAD BOY
(Words and Music by Rick Springfield)

I woke up from the drink I had 
The room was dark and suddenly began to swirl 
I should have heeded mother's words 
She said she'd heard it said you were a naughty girl 
But what does a mother know 
That we really need to know 
And what would she say if she knew
 
Na na na na you're just a Bad Boy 
Who, who, who 
Na na na na they'll drive you mad boy 
Who, who, who 
But mother, what a way to go
Na, na, na ,na.....

I looked out as the sun came up 
I shook my head and said I really should be gone 
I grabbed my shoes and daily news 
And walked out in the heat beneath the summer sun 
But father was there outside with no place to run and hide 
He looked most upset as he said "Where've you been?"

Na na na na you're just a Bad Boy 
Who, who, who 
Na na na na they'll drive you mad boy 
Who, who, who 
But mother, what a way to go
Na, na, na ,na.....

But what if she'd walked in and caught us 
Do you think she'd have been shocked 
The way that she talked you'd think I was a daughter 
Anyway the door was locked
I know that mother disagrees 
But I would really like to see you again 
And if you want to see me too 
Then meet me in the bushes by the river bend 
And no one will find us out 
'Cause no one will be about 
But still I can hear them all say

Na na na na you're just a Bad Boy 
Who, who, who 
Na na na na they'll drive you mad boy 
Who, who, who 
But mother, what a way to go
Na, na, na ,na.....

(total playing time: 3:09)

This song can be found on Comic Book Heroes and The Best of Rick Springfield.

MORE FAN REVIEWS

Not much mystery to this one. ;o)  I think we know exactly what he is talking about and what is going on.... LOL!

One thing that confuses me about the song and maybe this has already been discussed... Who's house are they at??

He says "he" should be gone. I take that to mean he is NOT at his house. Then he says he grabs his shoes and the daily news. What?? Steals the newspaper? Ha!  He said he walks outside and he is busted by his Dad, which makes me think he is at HIS house. But why is his Dad catching him coming out of his own house and asking him where he has been? At home obviously. Better question here would be "what have you been doing?". Ha!  That and the fact he keeps talking about what if his Mom had caught them... But the door was locked.

Geez, the things my brain picks apart sometimes...

The line "The way she talked you'd think I was a daughter." Reminds me of the mentality back then, and still to some extent today, that it was okay for a guy to "tom cat" around. It was/is an acceptable behavior for a guy. If the roles were reversed the girl was/is "loose" and looked down upon. The ironic part of that in this song for me is in the first verse he talks about how she was a "naughty girl". She was probably just behaving in the exact same way as he is but in society she is the "bad girl" and he is just exhibiting acceptable "guy" behavior.

Musically this song really has a Beatles feel for me. The phasing and the cadence of the verses really remind me of several Beatles songs, mostly from the Sgt. Peppers stuff.

I tend to skip this song on this CD.  Why? I'm not sure.  So I've been sitting, listening to this one for days trying to come up with something that resembles a review.   I want to be objective and find some good things about this song, and not just point out what I don't like.

I always thought the first line was, 'I woke up from the drug I had".  Could've been drink.  Either one works here.  

I believe Rick is trying to convey that he wasn't very "Good" the night before.   Shocking, since the title is "Bad Boy" that I came up with that one.  What cracks me up as this song goes on, is that Rick is referring to himself in the 3rd person here, and I don't think he tends to do that much with his music.  What also cracks me up is that I get the feeling that the girl he keeps referencing seems to be more of a bad girl than him being the bad boy.  The way I read the lyrics (which I didn't pick up on before just by listening) is that SHE spent the night with Rick (oh sorry, our Bad Boy) at his house, and not the other way around.  I'm getting this because he refers to the parents as simply mother and father, and not her or your  mother or father.  I could be wrong, but that certainly gives this song a different angle.  Also, the line, "the way she talked you'd think I was a daughter" makes me think it's his mom reprimanding him and not her mother yelling at him.   

This seems like a fun song, and I really do like the abundance of accent we get to hear from Rick.  That and the adorable laugh at the end.  Makes me wish he had kept that accent a bit longer, could you just imagine JG with that?  Sigh...   That and the way he says 'bushes', like boo-shes.  I giggle every time.

Anyway, the keystone kop-ness (I know, it's not a word, but I'm trying to convey a thought here) of the way this song gallops along is what rattles my nerves.  Almost as if this song was playing in an old time saloon. I can see Rick dressed in that cowboy hat from the Garland show" now, jumping out of a window with just  "Simple" shoes and a newspaper on an old-time black & white crackly reel.

I think I'll just leave ya'll with that visual now...

You know, one of the best things in this song is his laugh (faintly in the background) at the end of the song.  *sigh*  Love his laugh! Love him!  ;o)

As far as she being the *bad* one, it took two to tango, even back then,  and having spent the weekend w/ my brother (who is the same age that Rick would have been when writing this song), I'm thinking that the young man of the song didn't have to be asked twice. 

I thought he was at her house, because when he comes out the door, he runs into his dad. Why would Rick be leaving his own house in the morning, instead of the girl? 

Plus, this line about "you'd think I was a daughter" she must have been trying to put some of the responsibility on HIM, instead of just dumping it on the girl, which is where it's been for centuries, I think.  I can just hear this mom telling daughter, "hon, you've got to wait, you've got to be careful, people will talk, we'll have to send you away when the baby comes", whereas dad telling son "hey, boy, go be a man" nudge nudge, wink wink. 

This song totally takes me back to the 70's, but I can't quite put my finger on what it reminds me of.  Maybe one of the songs that you'd hear on the Partridge Family or maybe a TV commercial from back then trying to sell candy, I can't quite figure it out.

I like the tune, very catchy.  My favorite line is "but mother, what a way to go" and I also love the laugh at the end.
One of the things I don't understand is "I should have headed mother's words", because not only does he not seem that sorry, he wants to do it again.