“Girl” by Beck

Ok, I know this song is old news, but I was recently baffled because the lyrics are NOTHING like what I thought they were. I always thought “Girl” by Beck was an amazing summer anthem with the words “Hey, my sun-eyed girl” repeated in the chorus. My dad and sister thought it was “Southern girl” and we all thought it was a happy, beachy song.

We were wrong. Here are the actual lyrics:

I saw her, yea I saw her
With her black tongue tied round the roses

A fist pounding on a vending machine
Toy diamond ring stuck on her finger
With a noose she can hang from the sun
And put it out with her dark sunglasses
Walking crooked down the beach
She spits on the sand
Where their bones are bleaching

And I know I’m gonna steal her life
She doesn’t even know what’s wrong
And I know I’m gonna make her die
Take her where her soul belongs
And I know I’m gonna steal her life
Nothing that I wouldn’t try

Hey, my cyanide girl
Hey, my cyanide girl
My my cyanide girl
Hey, my cyanide girl

I saw her, yea I saw her
With her hands tied back
Rags a’ burnin’
Calling out from a landfilled life
Scrawlin’ her name upon the ceiling
Throw a coin in a fountain of dust
White noise, her ears are ringing
Got a ticket for my midnight hanging
Throw a bullet from a freight train leaving

And I know I’m gonna steal her life
She doesn’t even know what’s wrong
And I know I’m gonna make her die
Take her where her soul belongs
And I know I’m gonna steal her life
Nothing that I wouldn’t try

Hey, my cyanide girl
Hey, my cyanide girl
My my cyanide girl

The coolest part about this song is not that it’s super creepy when we all thought it was happy, but it’s purposely deceiving. The music video is a hint at the fact that things are not always how they seem, but again it’s not direct. You don’t see any psychopaths hanging in the shadows plotting their murders, you just see signs and scenes that completely change meanings when you take a closer look.

It’s brilliant. Thanks, Beck, for making me feel like Nancy Drew for the day.