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Never Been To Spain Lyrics
Well I never been to Spain
But I kinda like the music
Say the ladies are insane there
And they sure know how to use it
The don't abuse it
Never gonna lose it
I can't refuse it
Well I never been to England
But I kinda like the Beatles
Well, I headed for Las Vegas
Only made it out to Needles
Can you feel it
It must be real it
Feels so good
Oh, feels so good
Well I never been to heaven
But I been to Oklahoma
Well they tell me I was born there
But I really don't remember
In Oklahoma, not Arizona
What does it matter
What does it matter
Well I never been to Spain
But I kinda like the music
Say the ladies are insane there
And they sure know how to use it
They don't abuse it
Never gonna lose it
I can't refuse it
Well I never been to heaven
But I been to Oklahoma
Well they tell me I was born there
But I really don't remember
In Oklahoma, not Arizona
What does it matter
What does it matter
But I kinda like the music
Say the ladies are insane there
And they sure know how to use it
The don't abuse it
Never gonna lose it
I can't refuse it
But I kinda like the Beatles
Well, I headed for Las Vegas
Only made it out to Needles
Can you feel it
It must be real it
Feels so good
Oh, feels so good
But I been to Oklahoma
Well they tell me I was born there
But I really don't remember
In Oklahoma, not Arizona
What does it matter
What does it matter
But I kinda like the music
Say the ladies are insane there
And they sure know how to use it
They don't abuse it
Never gonna lose it
I can't refuse it
But I been to Oklahoma
Well they tell me I was born there
But I really don't remember
In Oklahoma, not Arizona
What does it matter
What does it matter
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The song writer, Hoyt Axton, was from Oklahoma. He also wrote "Joy to the World".
@mmeziere He also wrote "Greenback Dollar" (Kingston Trio, Trini Lopez), "The Pusher" (Steppenwolf), and "Snowblind Friend)" (also Steppenwolf) among many others. He struggled with drug and alcohol addiction for years, and died relatively young (1999, age 61). It's true he was from Oklahoma, but as an artist and musician with long-standing substance dependence issues, he found he wasn't always welcome in his often-conservative, sometimes-intolerant home state. I don't know what the song is about but always found 3DN's insinuating, mesmerizing take on it captivating- starting slow and quiet and getting more intense as the song progresses. My take is that...
@mmeziere He also wrote "Greenback Dollar" (Kingston Trio, Trini Lopez), "The Pusher" (Steppenwolf), and "Snowblind Friend)" (also Steppenwolf) among many others. He struggled with drug and alcohol addiction for years, and died relatively young (1999, age 61). It's true he was from Oklahoma, but as an artist and musician with long-standing substance dependence issues, he found he wasn't always welcome in his often-conservative, sometimes-intolerant home state. I don't know what the song is about but always found 3DN's insinuating, mesmerizing take on it captivating- starting slow and quiet and getting more intense as the song progresses. My take is that Axton was saying he's never been to heaven, meaning that he's sought perfect peace and contentment in many places, and in his imagination in places to which he has never traveled, and hasn't found it yet. He's been to Oklahoma and is told he was born there, but it's just another place ("Oklahoma or Arizona, what does it matter"), he didn't find peace or contentment there either. One can guess that his failed trip to Vegas, ending in the California desert town of Needles, represented one more dream turned to ashes, probably fueled by (and derailed by) hard drug use. The drugs themselves for Axton (as for most addicts, and not just drug addicts) were means of deadening the pain of living, of NOT being in heaven, or for trying to catch a glimpse of heaven. I do NOT think the song is meant to compare Oklahoma to heaven or to be a jingoistic shill for the Sooner State. That wasn't Axton's frame of mind at all, in this song or in his life in general. I'm from Texas by the way (though I've lived in Illinois the past 38 years, and in California for four years before that), so all the Texas-hating Oklahomans are free to troll me to death here.
This song is awesome. It's full of those funny connections people make with places they've never visited: Oh, I've never been to Hawaii, but I went a luau once . . . I've never been to Japan, but I really like sushi. It's great. As a personal bonus, I'm from Oklahoma, so I always have a funny connection with it. Comparing it to Heaven, that's great stuff . . . LOL
to me, its a pretty simple message...
what does it matter if ive never been there? does that mean i cant appreciate what it has to offer? so what if i've never been to spain or england? i've never been to heaven, either, but i certainly like what i hear about it....
Since I live in Tulsa, Oklahoma I hear this song on the local classic rock station ALL THE TIME. I figured there would be more comments on this one...
Do they not play it heavily in any other states?
@Clark3934 They do not. I learned about it because Macy Gray uses the music as a backdrop for one of hers. Since signing up for Spotify, I hear it often there (because I love 3DN).
@Clark3934 They do not. I learned about it because Macy Gray uses the music as a backdrop for one of hers. Since signing up for Spotify, I hear it often there (because I love 3DN).
@Clark3934 They do not. I learned about it because Macy Gray uses the music as a backdrop for one of hers. Since signing up for Spotify, I hear it often there (because I love 3DN).
@Clark3934 They do not. I learned about it because Macy Gray uses the music as a backdrop for one of hers. Since signing up for Spotify, I hear it often there (because I love 3DN).
@Clark3934 the song was non-existant in the Detroit market, even in the 80s when other Three Dog Night hits were still in regular rotatio.
@Clark3934 the song was non-existant in the Detroit market, even in the 80s when other Three Dog Night hits were still in regular rotatio.
It gets played a lot on the classic rock stations in Arizona.
Just a fun song to listen to...
I believe the general idea of the song is simply that your happiness/life doesn't have anything to do with where you are or where you live. Where you are born doesn't matter either.
I get a kick out of the comment that he tried to go to Las Vegas, but only made in to Needles. Either he must have been lazy, or his car broke down.. I dunno.
He doesn't even remember anything about Oklahoma. The song's narrator is most certainly not comparing Heaven to Oklahoma (that's ridiculous anyways...)
@raiderroadtrip00 That's about where you'd run out of gas going from LA to Las Vegas.
@raiderroadtrip00 That's about where you'd run out of gas going from LA to Las Vegas.
Of course the author is comparing oklahoma to heaven. The author is saying that oklahoma is second only to heaven. That there are a lot of spectacular places in the world (Spain, England, Vegas)...but none compare to his home of oklahoma besides heaven. That he has been gone for so long that he has forgotten all but that oklahoma is most certainly second only to heaven. The closing of the chorus indicates that he has given up on ever returning to his home but will always remember nonetheless.
I grew up in western Washington and I’ve heard this song a lot. I think it was a hit all over the country. It feels like it was written in a drug induced state where reality and his imagination run together. He’s experienced all the carnal pleasures in life but they just can’t make him happy. This song has always made me feel sentimental.
[Edit: An added thought]
Three dog night gets played alot on the classic rock stations here in Tampa, Florida. Anyways i think the songs simply about a guy who has never been to any of these places, but still appreciates the stuff those places have to offer, pretty easy to relate to actually.
I love hanson's cover of it! Their harmony is awesome and of course the oklahoma part, was three dog night from okla? I'd never heard it before until I heard Hanson's version