TW: Mention of rape and murder\nI’ve read that this song is supposed to be a happy lighthearted song about an aging man reminiscing about his many romantic experiences but when when I heard The Turtles’ rendition of it, I didn’t get that impression at all. I immediately thought it was about a serial killer or rapist. The “small town girls” and “city girls” are actually women he murdered. The line “we’d hide from the lights” suggested to me that he would lure these women away from anyone who might witness and then kill them. And the lines “With perfumed hair/That came undone” could mean that their hair would become loose as he attacked and eventually murdered them. The last part about aging like fine wine could mean that as an old man he doesn’t regret his actions and seems proud of them. I think the maniacal sounding repetition of the line “It was a very good year” really gives the song a creepy vibe. I wonder if it was intentionally made that way by The Turtles.
TW: Mention of rape and murder\nI’ve read that this song is supposed to be a happy lighthearted song about an aging man reminiscing about his many romantic experiences but when when I heard The Turtles’ rendition of it, I didn’t get that impression at all. I immediately thought it was about a serial killer or rapist. The “small town girls” and “city girls” are actually women he murdered. The line “we’d hide from the lights” suggested to me that he would lure these women away from anyone who might witness and then kill them. And the lines “With perfumed hair/That came undone” could mean that their hair would become loose as he attacked and eventually murdered them. The last part about aging like fine wine could mean that as an old man he doesn’t regret his actions and seems proud of them. I think the maniacal sounding repetition of the line “It was a very good year” really gives the song a creepy vibe. I wonder if it was intentionally made that way by The Turtles.