Great Rock n Roll Metaphors

These thoughts originally stemmed from an argument I had with a friend several years ago: specifically about the subtextual echoes of the word "Peaches" in the song of the same name by The Presidents of the United States of America. I read it as a literal reference to peaches themselves, whereas she saw it as the latest incarnation of sexual metaphors in rock music. She saw the line "Peaches come in a can, they were put there by a man" as a searing critique of the commodification of women; how their images are sliced and diced and placed in a semiotic syrup by patriarchal advertising agencies. In contrast, I read it as a return to the materialist mode of agrarian production. I still maintain my literal stance, seeing the song as part of the movement against the sexualization of orchard fruits in rock n roll. We first had Steve Miller claiming "really love your peaches want to shake your tree" and then The Stranglers' "walkin' on the beaches, lookin' at the peaches." The Presidents chorus "millions of peaches, peaches for me," does nothing to dissuade me.

Such a debate only serves to emphasize the fact that metaphor is as important to a three minute rock song as it is to the great novels of modern times. When Whitney Houston sings "you are the wind beneath my wings," no-one expects her to leap off the Empire State Building (although this would be a refreshing climax to the next Grammy awards). Similarly, when Evan Dando croons, "she's the puzzle piece behind the couch that makes the sky complete, " no-one believes he is actually romancing a piece of misplaced cardboard. It is the power of metaphor to say both more and less than it seems to.

We can see the influence of metaphor way back in the blues roots of rock music, when Robert Johnson sang "squeeze my lemon, 'till the juice runs down my leg" (more orchard fruits!). Heavy metal has continued this poetic legacy, providing us with some of the most intriguingly subtle similes this side of Shakespeare's sonnets. Take for instance Spinal Tap's brilliant observation, "my baby fits me like a flesh tuxedo, I want to sink her with my pink torpedo." Perhaps my favourite, however, was minted by the wordsmiths of AC/DC, who said "she had the face of an angel, smiling with sin, the body of Venus… with arms."

Obviously the threat of censorship has something to do with the metaphoric detours which circulate around the deed that is the libidinal motor of rock music. The early Beatles' hit "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" actually meant "I wanna put your hand on my big purple love-truncheon. " Drugs were also taboo, and had to be alluded to through metaphor; although I still maintain that the Beasts of Bourbon song "Chase the Dragon" was commissioned by the producers of Never Ending Story 3. (However, Peter Paul and Mary's big-seller "Puff the Magic Dragon" almost certainly pertained to narcotics). And who knows what the hell "Agadoo, push pineapple shake the tree" was about!

Some bands struggled with expressing their ideas. Take for example America's radio favourite, "Horse With No Name": "The heat was hot…there were rocks and things." And indeed it is a fine line between fantasy and metaphor. For instance, Primus's "Too Many Puppies" is not a song about cramped conditions at the RSPCA, but rather the naïve enthusiasm of the average american foot soldier. On the other hand, The Weather Girls's "It's Raining Men," is an actual fantasy involving a testosterone-drenched downpour. No metaphor involved.

Before rock music was invented young people hungry for life memorized sections of their favourite poetry which seemed to transcend the banality of their everyday existence. These days our heads are stuffed with similes broadcast by FM radio and MTV. However all these fancy words - whether forged by Shakespeare or Eminem - all circle around the same theme. Remember, "rock me" itself is a metaphor.

© Dominic Pettman