take your mind back
i don't know when
sometime when it always seemed to be just us and them
girls that wore pink
boys that wore blue
boys that always grew up better men
than me and you
what's a man now
what's a man mean
is he rough or is he rugged
cultural and clean
now it's all changed
it's got to change more
we think it's getting better
but nobody's really sure
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
see the nice boys
dancing in pairs
golden earring, golden tan
blow-wave in the hair
sure they're all straight, straight as a line
all the guys are macho
see their leather shine
you don't want to sound dumb
don't want to offend
so don't call me a faggot
not unless you are a friend
then if you're tall
handsome and strong
you can wear the uniform and i could play along
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
time to get scared
time to change plan
don't know how to treat a lady
don't know how to be a man
time to admit
what you call defeat
'cause there's women running past you now
and you just drag your feet
man makes a gun
man goes to war
man can kill and man can drink
and man can take a whore
kill all the blacks
kill all the reds
if there's war between the sexes
then there'll be no people left
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
i don't know when
sometime when it always seemed to be just us and them
girls that wore pink
boys that wore blue
boys that always grew up better men
than me and you
what's a man mean
is he rough or is he rugged
cultural and clean
now it's all changed
it's got to change more
we think it's getting better
but nobody's really sure
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
dancing in pairs
golden earring, golden tan
blow-wave in the hair
sure they're all straight, straight as a line
all the guys are macho
see their leather shine
don't want to offend
so don't call me a faggot
not unless you are a friend
then if you're tall
handsome and strong
you can wear the uniform and i could play along
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
time to change plan
don't know how to treat a lady
don't know how to be a man
time to admit
what you call defeat
'cause there's women running past you now
and you just drag your feet
man goes to war
man can kill and man can drink
and man can take a whore
kill all the blacks
kill all the reds
if there's war between the sexes
then there'll be no people left
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
and so it goes, go round again
but now and then we wonder who the real men are
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I think in this song, the writer is trying to describe the feelings of a man who realises that he is gay. In passages like "don't know how to treat a lady, don't know how to be a man", the person is in a state of confusion and cannot truly understand his feelings. He no longer knows what a man is.
This song also seems to be about how boys and girls are raised differently (blue vs. pink etc.). These male/female roles are changing slightly but its hard to say how much. As thehe man in the song grows up he is gay... Because of homophobia he is left to wonder if he is a "real man." He then takes a gun and goes to war... He does all the things that stereotypes tell us "real men" do. Toward the end of the song a strong statement is made about sexist and racist violence. The last line (and so it goes, go round again / but now and then we wonder who the real men are ) to show a contemplation about what really makes a "real man. This song is a powerful statement agaist sexism, sexist roles and stereotypes, racism and homophobia.a stromg message that we need to redefine what we see as a "real man."
It was originally written and performed by Joe Jackson. Not a Tori original, but she does a spectacular version of it.
I actually like her version better than Joe Jackson's. I think the way she sings it forces you to absorb each and every line...very powerful.
Pansy Division did a remake of her remake.
Gender lines blurring and men can't get used to not being the strong one. Don't understand why they have a problem with that, it's not like they're getting weaker but they feel like so!
or is it that women just can't get used to being the weaker one? not that they are, they just feel that way so they over compensate by taking feminism over the top. instaed of up with women,they say down with men (you know it's true so keep your cursor away from the minus symbol!)
or is it that women just can't get used to being the weaker one? not that they are, they just feel that way so they over compensate by taking feminism over the top. instaed of up with women,they say down with men (you know it's true so keep your cursor away from the minus symbol!)