Ok everybody, Comrade_Liar is here to (despite his name) dispense a little truth and tell you all what it means once and for all.
The original was sung by Otis Redding, and it was basically Otis telling his woman "You can damned well do what you want when I'm aint about, but I wear the trousers round here and you Will respect me in my house!"
Aretha heard it and decided to do the womans responce to Otis' song, which I spose means this could be seen to be a Womans' Equal Rights song. (The best example of this is how in the original song Otis says "And I am about to just give you all my money" but in this Aretha says "And guess what?/So is my money", as if to say she dont need her man to support her, she's earning her own way through)
However beyond that it is not a civil rights song.
Aretha's woman in this song is saying that no she aint as bad as Otis makes out (In the original Otis says "Do me wrong/Honey if you wanna/You can do me wrong/Honey while I am gone" to which Aretha replys "I ain't gonna do you wrong while you're gone
Ain't gonna do you wrong 'cause I don't wanna") but if he wants to make this relationship work, he better buck up his ideas in the bedroom. She is basically agreeing to give Otis the respect he wants, if he can give her the "respect" she demands between the sheets. (What did you think "Whip it to me" meant?)
She also warns him at the end that if he cant give it to her, she'll find someone else who can (which is the whole of the last verse really)
A classic song by the all time Queen of soul. As a side note, next time I see Beyonce described as the Queen of Soul, I will become very very unhappy.
Comrade_Liaron June 26, 2005 Link
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