Substitute Lyrics
You think my shoes are made of leather
I look pretty tall but my heels are high
The simple things you see are all complicated
I look pretty young, but I'm just back-dated, yeah
I can see right through your plastic, mac
I look all white, but my dad was black
My fine-looking suit is really made out of sack
The north side of my town faced east, and the east was facing south
And now you dare to look me in the eye
Those crocodile tears are what you cry
It's a genuine problem, you won't try
To work it out at all you just pass it by, pass it by
Substitute my coke for gin
Substitute you for my mum
At least I'll get my washing done
This song is about how a guy is simply a substitute for a guy that a girl used to have. She's changing everythign about him, his whole image, but he's still the same guy inside.
I've read that it was loosely based on the idea that The Who were in those days just a "Substitute" for The Rolling Stones, and that this song was just a way to voice that while coming up with a Can't Get No kinda song for them. For me, it goes a little deeper than that. I've had the experience of being with several wonderful women recently who were still very hung up on their exes. Deny it as they might, I know that I was just a "Substitute" for that other guy. So, I could definitely see it as a metaphor for being in that sort of situation, where someone is all over you, yet completely distracted by another at the same time. Then toward the end I suppose he gets frustrated and finally leaves?
the girl thinks he is a rich man but in reality he is froom the working class. he is substituting his working class image for a rich image lines that really reveal this inlcude
I was born with a plastic spoon in my mouth - if you were rich you were said to have a silver spoon in your mouth, so the play on the saying is obvious
my fine looking suit is really made out of sack - fairly obviuos
Those crocodile tears are what you cry - cocadile tears are false tears so he is sayin that although you are really sad that i was really poor not rich and you are crying for yourslelf
love the song especially the bass solo
coulnt have said it better truthspeaker, that annoys me too when people associate every rock song with getting stoned
There's one line that mentions a drug and who guys have to freak out and tell the nobody who said anything that it isnt about drugs? You guys have to settle down. This site is to share what you think the song is about, not to tell people what it ISNT about.
She said it
i love this song. pretty self explanitory i think. the pistols do a pretty good cover of it
Love this song, especially the line when he says that, with his mom at least he'd get his washing done. Its about a guy dating a rich girl and she thins he's rich too but in reality he is not and he's sick of pretending.
You guys are all wrong. Townshend has said the song is about The Who being a substitute for The Rolling Stones. Of course it could be about things not really being as they seem but I'm not gonna argue with the songwriter.