Writen By Joyce, Leyton, J. Summers, N. Summers, Rhoda Dakar, Barker, and Owens
This one did more than that the first time I heard it.
The first time I heard this song was oin my room late at night in almost complete darkness about a week and a half after my 19th birthday.
It had been over two years since I'd been raped and I still hadn't admitted it to myself.
Anyway...
I was lying there in bed listening to a tape that my new boyfriend{1} had given me on our first date. He'd made me a mix tape of various Ska songs because I'd told him that I wasn't too familiar with it.
I had just listened to "Ghost Town" by the Specials (which I still rate as one of my favorite songs EVER) when I heard this very eerie warbling coming from the speakers... a saxaphone sounding like a cat screeching.. and then a woman speaking rhythmically to a hypnotic beat.
After you read the lyrics...
I think you'll understand why I ended up screaming hystericallly on the floor oin a fetal position crying over what I'd lost so long before.
I know a lot of people who say it's sick that I listen to this song fairly often...
... I call it cathartic.
{1}Yes.. the infamous exfiance
I was getting some gear
And this guy offered to pay
"Who's the hun?"
I think to myself
For so many years I've been left on the shelf
An old boiler
And then we went walking
Back down the high street
And I felt really proud
'cause he looked so neat
He was a real hard man,
Tough as they come
He said I was cool but,
I still felt like
An old boiler
He bid me come out
How could I say no?
He said "Meet me at eight,
'round at my place, you know?"
With my new gear on and a blow dried hairdo
But in my mind I knew
I was still
An old boiler
We danced all night long
To a nice steady beat
But my hair went to frizz in the terrible heat
My mascara ran and so did my tights
Confirming in my sight
I must be
An old boiler
So we came out this club
Hot and sweaty
'cause we'd been dancing all night
And he says to me
"Well babe, what you doing then?"
"Well, I think I might get a cab"
I said casuallly
"Oh no, no, come back to my place, I only live just 'round the corner, you can go home in the mornin' y'hear?"
"Well, I don't think so. I mean, I've only known you a day, it's a bit soon, isn't it? Gimme a ring sometime, yeah?"
But then he start to get mad
"Listen 'ere, Girl. I bouoght that gear you got on, I paid you in here tonight bought you all them drinks and now you wanna go home I should've been feedin' you cocoa"
And then he stormed off
Well I felt alll right like,
Well you would, wouldn't you?
So I ran after him
Caught him up
There we are walking down the street 'bout
Hundred mile per hour
Arm in arm
No talking
Atmosphere you coulda' cut with a knife
There was no one about
Nothin to take your mind off it you know?
No cars, not even the occasional stray animal
It was cold and
The winds whistling through the trees
Blowin newspapers against me legs so I tripped as I tried to keep up with him
There was all of these alleyways and railway bridges
Stink of piss
Then all of a sudden
He grabbed hold of my arm
And he start dragging me up one of these alleyways
And he starts hittin me reallly hard against the face you know?
He was hittin' me
And grabbin' at me
And it was awful 'cause he was so big
Hittin' me he was
And tearin' at my clothes And there was nothing I could do I was helpless
And then
HE TRIED TO RAPE ME
And there was nothing I could do
So all I could do was scream
NOO!
LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!!
NOOOOO!!
NOOOOOO!!!!
NOOOO!!!
PLEASE STOP!!!
NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!
NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!
(assorted screams, cries, and finallly, a sound resembling someone vomitting)