I'm on Fire

This song is a sexy ass song...and it's not about pedophedilia in my opinion...that would be taking it to the complete literal sense, which is usually not the case with music...there's always somethin much more profound in it...I mean come on, so then every time we see the word "baby" used in a song we all assume that we're talking about a child? No...

Here's what I think:

1. "Little Girl", I feel is his stance on her maturity level.
2. "Daddy", obviously is the guy that she's with, not her real father because the verse that says "tell me baby is he good to you, can he do all the things that I can do...", expresses that it's the man she's with....
3. The soakin in the sheets and all that...he desires her, he's tortured by the idea that he can't have her...it torments him to know that he's better than that guy she's with...

It's what us guys go thru at least once in our lives when we see or know a girl that we're just completely infatuated with and never get to have...and it takes us to that level of, man, I wish I had her, ya know...its a good song...It's one of those songs you listen to when you fantasize about the girl you want, but can't have, starin up at the ceiling just wishin and hopin...

Wow! a lot of comments on this one!

I think it's about a teenage boy who wants a girl who is already commited to someone else. No pedophelia here. "Daddy" refers to that person she's involved with. The "6 inch valley" and "Sheets soakin' wet" represent the psychological torture he feels at times knowing he can't have her. Great song.

I'll paraphrase Nick Cave, "Why do love, desire, and sex always have to be pure in music? Can't they be dark, dirty, and scary sometimes?"

Barack Obama said that this was one of his favorite songs. here is a link to the complete top ten npr.org/templates/story/story.php

I sincerely doubt that this song is about paedophilia, as some people seem to be suggesting. When referring to the girl's "daddy", he's obviously not talking about her actual father, but her partner. Especially in light of the lyrics "Tell me now baby, is he good to you / Can he do to you the things that I'll do". Bruce singing about incest and paedophilia in one song, that'd be a first.

To me, the song is pretty straightforward in its meaning: a man (or maybe a horny teenage boy) passionately lusting after a woman who's already committed to someone else, losing sleep and his mind over it. Bruce's "screams" at the end are fantastic expressions of this agonizing frustration.

RE: part "Sometimes it's like someone took a knife baby-Edgy and dull and cut a six-inch valley-Through the middle of my soul" I see depth here than other comments. I don't know how deep, but I'm sure the night sweats and the intense heat and could be literal. I know from personal experience and others I know that have gone through this, especially as a boy begins adolescence.
The knife is figurative of course. Everyone has a personal view of where the soul is within them. Some figure the soul radiates from the center of their torso, thus the torment seems to rip through their body.
Think about if anytime you've witnessed someone die accidentally or when you've gotten news that someone you know has died unexpectedly. For me, my immediate reaction is helplessness, a painful emptiness in my stomach, a shock reaction that is of dimmed vision and lightheadedness, a chill throughout my body, a weakness in my torso and gut [eg OJ gutting me figuratively].

I heard this song on the radio when I was missing someone and it was perfect......it was so mellow which fit my mood.....you seem to like songs more when they fit your mood.

this song is so beautiful. perfect picture of a boy's longing.

My interpretation of this song is as follows: The singer is in love with a woman who has a boyfriend already, maybe even a husband. This husband/boyfriend is probably not good to her, perhaps he even treats her as if he were her father instead of her lover. The singer wants to step in and be her lover.

I believe this song is about a man in love with a woman he cannot have. Being on fire and the burning desire are his love and lust for the woman. Second verse he is just stating that he believes he can love her more completely then the man she is with. Best verse is the third one. Were I believe the knife is his lust/love and his impulse to act on it but not being able to puts the knife through his skull. Skull meaning heart and soul. The knife both edgy and dull because it hurts him in more then one way that he cannot have her. fourth verse is clear no need to explain it. And for anyone that thinks this is a song of pedophilia maybe you should see a psychiatrist to talk about that with.