Song Lyric Sunday: She Knew How To Get Her Kicks

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This week’s theme from Jim, in his post Fashion Accessories, is to play a song that mentions clothing accessories, as suggested by Christine, of the Stine Writing blog. Having double checked on Google to make sure that both of the songs I had in mind came into this category I’m now playing them both for you. Accessories can either be worn or carried, and you’re getting one of each.

My lead song is one which I think is very well known, so it probably won’t come as a surprise that I’m playing it – and I guess I might not be alone in this choice:

And as this is Song Lyric Sunday, it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t include them, would it:

I was working part time in a five-and-dime
My boss was Mr. McGee
He told me several times that he didn’t like my kind
‘Cause I was a bit too leisurely

Seems that I was busy doing something close to nothing
But different than the day before
That’s when I saw her, ooh, I saw her
She walked in through the out door, out door

She wore a
Raspberry beret
The kind you find in a second hand store
Raspberry beret
And if it was warm she wouldn’t wear much more
Raspberry beret
I think I love her

Built like she was
She had the nerve to ask me
If I planned to do her any harm
So, look here
I put her on the back of my bike
And-a we went riding
Down by old man Johnson’s farm

I said now, overcast days never turned me on
But something about the clouds and her mixed
She wasn’t too bright
But I could tell when she kissed me
She knew how to get her kicks

She wore a
Raspberry beret
The kind you find in a second hand store
Raspberry beret
And if it was warm she wouldn’t wear much more
Raspberry beret
I think I love her

The rain sounds so cool when it hits the barn roof
And the horses wonder who you are
Thunder drowns out what the lightning sees
You feel like a movie star

Listen
They say the first time ain’t the greatest
But I tell ya
If I had the chance to do it all again
I wouldn’t change a stroke
‘Cause baby, I’m the most
With a girl as fine as she was then, oh, oh yeah

Raspberry beret
The kind you find in a second hand store (the kind you find)
Raspberry beret
If it was warm she wouldn’t wear much more
Raspberry beret

I think I, I think I, I think I love her

Raspberry beret
(No, no, no)
The kind you find in a second hand store (no, no, no)
Raspberry beret
(Tell me where have all the raspberry women gone?)
If it was warm she wouldn’t wear much more 
Raspberry beret

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Prince Rogers Nelson

Raspberry Beret lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc

Raspberry Beret is a great song, which I’ve always loved, and the video is great too – so much fun and energy and some clever animations. The video is actually an extended version of the track – that intro wasn’t part of the version which was released as a single in May 1985, reaching #2 in the US and #25 in the UK. It was the lead single from Prince and the Revolution’s album Around The World In A Day, which had been released the previous month and made #1 in the US and #5 in the UK. I found a nice little story about the video, which was filmed in early June and directed by Prince. Guitarist Pat Smear of the Foo Fighters appeared as one of the background dancers in the video, not that I could pick him out! According to Dave Grohl, he was nearly fired. In the 2010 book I Want My MTV, Grohl said: “everyone had to do a synchronised dance. Pat couldn’t dance so they sent him home. Then Prince whispered in the bodyguard’s ear, and the bodyguard said to Pat, “You can stay. He likes your hair.” I imagine he still would, if he hadn’t been taken from us way too early.

The second song I’m playing today offers a bit of a change in pace. It was written in 1967 by Mike d’Abo, who was at the time the lead singer in the pop band Manfred Mann. It was first recorded by Chris Farlowe, who had a #33 hit with it in the UK, having previously had a UK #1 with a Rolling Stones song, Out Of Time. There have been several cover versions, but this is the one which has always been my favourite. YouTube has several live performances of it, but I’m playing it as Rod first recorded it, as I think the simple beauty of the song is fabulous:

As you can see from the video Handbags And Gladrags was a track on Rod Stewart’s debut solo album, An Old Raincoat Won’t Ever Let You Down, which was released in November 1969 in the US and February 1970 in the UK. It charted in the US at #139, made #31 in Australia, but didn’t make the UK chart. In retrospect that feels a little odd, but his solo career got off to a bit of a slow start here, as his band The Faces were very successful and got most of the attention. It is a lovely album, though, as is the slightly more successful follow up, Gasoline Alley, but it wasn’t until his third, Every Picture Tells A Story, that he became a megastar. The track wasn’t released as a single in the UK, but came out – to very little attention – in the US in May 1970. It did make the charts there after a 1972 re-release, though, peaking at #42. Who cares about chart placings anyway – I’ve always loved this song and the way Rod treats it, complete with the false ending.

That’s all for today. After taking a few days off I’m back in the swing of things again, and you’ll see me again for Tuesday Tunes. I hope you’ll join me, as there are some good tunes lined up 😊

36 thoughts on “Song Lyric Sunday: She Knew How To Get Her Kicks”

    • Thank you, Carol Anne. Funnily enough I played both of these on Tuesday, though this time I went with the Chris Farlowe version of Handbags and Gladrags. Weird, though: in this post I said Rod’s was my favourite version of this but this week I said Chris’s was! On balance, Chris gets it 🤣

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    • Thanks, John, glad you liked them. You’re the second to mention Chase, of whom I’d never heard before. I listened to their version earlier but I’m afraid it did nothing for me. They took it too fast for my liking, and the brass just felt out of kilter with the feeling of the song.

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  8. Mike d’Abo also wrote one of my favorite songs, Build Me Up Buttercup. You have two great songs here by two amazing artists and if I had to pick a favorite between them it might be the Rod Stewart song. It’s so good and it brings back great memories of when the album came out. Plus (sorry Prince) it’s Rod! I don’t know if you’re into jazz or jazz-rock, but the group Chase did a cover of Handbags and Gladrags on their debut album. It’s got a much different tone and feel than Rod’s version.

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    • Glad you liked them, Michael. Build Me Up was a fun song, but I think this one was a better effort! I have good memories of that time too.

      I’m not into jazz at all, and I think the only jazz-rock I like is Steely Dan – but it is just one of the labels applied to them. I’ve never heard of Chase so I’ll look that one up.

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  9. She certainly did know how to get her kicks! What a great song from the man with many names and the perfect choice for today’s challenge.
    The second video couldn’t open for me but I’m sure I’ll have no trouble finding it on YT.
    Thanks for a great vid, Clive. See you on the flip side.

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