| The Gun Club – For The Love of Ivy Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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For what it is worth, it is clearly a reference to "Poison Ivy" from The Cramps. The song is co-written by Brian "Kid Congo Powers" Tristan, whom JL Pierce taught guitar. Tristan quit The Gun Club to join The Cramps during the recording of The Gun Club's Fire of Love (and then rejoined a few years later on and off). Ivy's husband and bandmate in The Cramps was "Lux Interior," who had an overdriven Elvis bouffant haircut, and did a kind of psychobilly Elvis presentation. That is clearly the "You look like an Elvis from HELL" reference in the song. I can't help that you guys don't "get" the use of "nigger" in the lyrics. It was a different time, culture, and context, and he was portraying classic Southern evangelical evil (that was still present in the late 50s when Pierce was born). Before this album Pierce both ran the Blondie fan club and also championed Reggae as it appeared on the emerging punk rock scene (it was "revolution" music). Pierce wrote about it in Slash magazine, and even adopted a "reggae name" -- "Rankin' Jeffery Lea." During this period he stayed in Jamaica, even staying with the famous Winston Rodney (Burning Spear). Under "Jeffery Lee Pierce" he wrote about 50s rockabilly and 20s blues, saying that it was the "punk rock" of its time. Pierce was biracial himself (he is half Latino), and had a multiracial line up in various band and solo recordings. I know it is easier to just yell "racist" than to look at what kind of edge he was walking as he made an album(s) that clearly worships Delta blues and the darkness of the legends of the major players. The album's lyrics even use exact phrases from Blind Willie Johnson, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Robert Johnson. But there is something going on underneath that surface. Context, folks. Context. |
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