| Leonard Cohen – Don't Go Home with Your Hard-On Lyrics | 13 years ago |
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"Beauty salon" is code for brothel. Thus, his father was a pimp, not a hair dresser. These codes are how the family referred to their profession in company, and what the boy was told too, though at some point he knew better. The clue is this line: "my mother was a girl you could count on/ when you called, she would always be there." His mother was a prostitute. Now a man, looking back, sees humor in the circumstances of his family of origin, but has nevertheless entered the family business. "Don't go home with your hard on" is his sales pitch to potential customers. What makes it interesting is that the singer doesn't grow up to condemn but rather embraces the profession... his mother would "always be there", "it will only drive you insane"... he almost views it in pragmatic terms. The mood of the song, its upbeat tempo and almost disco swankiness and swagger, as well as the humorous language of "beauty salon" and "hair dresser" to describe a brothel and pimp respectively, all indicate that he's content with the situation. |
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