I'm rather amazed that none of Dory's songs have been commented on; hers are fun lyrics to dissect. This is the first song I heard by Previn, through my father, who first learned it from an inmate at a mental hospital he was admitted to.
On the very surface, the song appears to be sexual -- Jesus "sitting on her bed" added to her parents' reaction, and the brilliant "so instead of seeing Jesus, she began to see a lot of other men". The song has nothing to do with sex, but I believe Dory most likely made the song appear to be; the song is bouncy and there's a humorous tone to her voice.
The fact of the matter is that when Esther sees Jesus and all of these other men, she's not seeing them as in dating them, but actually seeing them. This is a song about schizophrenia.
It's also interesting to note the antagonistic position of the parents (namely the mother, though the father's displeasure is implied). Instead of facing their daughter's disease (a scary thing, especially in the 1970's), they not only avoid it but scare Esther's brain into avoiding part of it (She never sees Jesus again). The theme of parents who misunderstand their daughters is prominent in Previn's work, largely due to her own experiences with a mentally-ill father.
I'm rather amazed that none of Dory's songs have been commented on; hers are fun lyrics to dissect. This is the first song I heard by Previn, through my father, who first learned it from an inmate at a mental hospital he was admitted to.
On the very surface, the song appears to be sexual -- Jesus "sitting on her bed" added to her parents' reaction, and the brilliant "so instead of seeing Jesus, she began to see a lot of other men". The song has nothing to do with sex, but I believe Dory most likely made the song appear to be; the song is bouncy and there's a humorous tone to her voice.
The fact of the matter is that when Esther sees Jesus and all of these other men, she's not seeing them as in dating them, but actually seeing them. This is a song about schizophrenia.
It's also interesting to note the antagonistic position of the parents (namely the mother, though the father's displeasure is implied). Instead of facing their daughter's disease (a scary thing, especially in the 1970's), they not only avoid it but scare Esther's brain into avoiding part of it (She never sees Jesus again). The theme of parents who misunderstand their daughters is prominent in Previn's work, largely due to her own experiences with a mentally-ill father.