Our Lips Are Sealed

Not many people know that this song was co-written by Jane Wielden and Terry Hall - everyone assumes that Fun Boy Three just covered it. The Go-Go's version is definitly better though :]

The lyrics above are like they appear in the booklet of the Go-Go's CD Beauty and the beat (and also on the inner sleeve of the original LP). However, that's not what you hear on either original record. I have posted the lyrics to two other versions of OLAS, the one originally used on the CD (OLAS original LP version) and the one they sang live, which is more or like what is posted here but longer, except for the part "that's when YOU'll be feared" which is a typo and should read WE'll be feared. The Go-Go's sang the version I posted live in Los Angeles in 1984. This concert is available on a bootleg CD. I didn't check other live concerts to see if they always sing the song this way, but from memory that's what I remember hearing when I saw them live myself. Regarding the story of OLAS, The Kinks had nothing to do with the song. It goes a bit like this: The Specials were playing in LA... and saw the Go-Go's and Terry took a liking to Jane Wiedlin, and they started dating. After he went back to England, they kept up through mail, and Terry Hall sent her some lyrics she added her own and that's how Our Lips Are Sealed happened (with thanks to Chris for the story). The Specials split up in Oct. 81 and Terry Hall formed the Fun Boys Three with two other ex-Specials.

Yeah, people get jealous that they can't find a love that's mutual so they throw lies to each party to fill them with doubt. A good song, I can see how two guys who don't want the world to find out they are gay and going out can relate to this, as well as straight couples where the people around them can't stand to see a good thing. I like how the wailing singing matches the wailing guitar, it is almost bluesy to an effect. This is a pop new wave songs from the 80s that unrightfully got lumped in with the sucky ones.

I always thought it had the double meaning: they are kissing (our lips) and they are being secretive from gossipy, catty people. Feels like a high school song, like the movie "Heathers", where people will rip you down when they find out that you have feelings for someone. She's saying the gossipers are jealous (Can you see...right through them). She's defending their relationship and saying how sweet it is for it to be secret; their weapon is silence. It's that standing up to social bullies thing: "look right through them/that's when they'll disappear (back down)/that's when we'll be feared".

NO!!!! the song is *NOT* about "Virginity"---it's about girls that are accused of being "Whores"---"Sluts" in High school.....ie. It doesn't matter what they say In the jealous games people play Our lips are sealed They're saying "Pay no mind to what they say"----we're not Whores...."our lips are sealed".....

This song was not originally written with high school girls as the target audience. The rhythm guitarist, Jane Wiedlin, wrote the song to her then boyfriend with whom she'd had an affair before he returned to England. Being the pre-email years, she and the guy exchanged a lot of written letters for the duration of their romance. Jane wrote these song lyrics and music in her parents' basement--a recording of which survives to this day--and the music sounded much slower and more downbeat, almost bluesy. When the Go Gos got signed and recorded their first album, the song was chosen as the lead-off hit single, but only after the producer and Go Gos transformed the somewhat dark song into poppy, happy, very upbeat song.

in my searches for this song i've found four versions. go go's, fun boy three, hippo's and ever clear. none of them use the lyric's sited here. i'm interested to know where the fourth verse comes from. i've not heard it anywhere. what little i know about this fine song is that one of the go go's had an afair with one of the davies brothers (of the "kinks" fame) and was soon adapted by fun boy three who's slight changes to the lyric's found favor amoung gay audiances who felt the song spoke to them.

Um...my older brother "Jason" told me that this song was about virginity...

Great song, I always liked it. Its about gossip and lies. High School Drama.

Great song, I always liked it. Its about gossip and lies. High School Drama.