Hey
Been trying to meet you
Hey
Must be a devil between us
Or whores in my head
Whores at the door
Whore in my bed
But hey
Where have you been?
If you go, I will surely die

We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained

"Uh" said the man to the lady
"Uh" said the lady to the man she adored
And the whores like a choir
Go "uh" all night
And Mary ain't you tired of this?
Uh
Is
The
Sound
That the mother makes when the baby breaks
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained
We're chained


Lyrics submitted by riffic

Hey Lyrics as written by Charles Thompson

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Songtrust Ave

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Hey song meanings
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  • +8
    My Interpretation

    I think the meaning of this song has been mostly fleshed-out over the course of the comments, but I wanted to add one thing. I've seen a lot of comments about the "Mary, ain't you tired of this?" line being in reference to the Virgin Mary (as someone here aptly wrote, "the most famous virgin in history"). However, let us not forget that there's another Mary (from the very same book, no less) who is perhaps the most famous whore in history! Mary Magdalene has been traditionally miscast a prostitute who, after meeting Jesus, reforms her ways and joins him as a disciple. Now, put that in the context of this song:

    "Mary, ain't you tired of this?" The speaker (could be Francis as Jesus at this point) is saying "Mary, aren't you tired of the casual meaningless sex? Aren't tired of being a whore? Change your ways and be with me."

    The speaker is comparing himself to Mary Magdalene because he has met the girl that he wants to be with (been tryin' to meet you), but knows that his lifestyle (his whores) are preventing him from being with her (a devil between us, or whores in my bed). Despite calling the girls he sleeps with "whores" throughout the song, it is actually the speaker that is the whore!

    Pretty amazing that Black Francis has the lyrical ability to write a song comparing a man's love for a particular woman to Mary Magdalene's love for Jesus, all while filling it with sexual imagery, grunts, and one of the best guitar riffs and solos in history.

    Saxydudeon January 28, 2010   Link

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