the lyrics to this song seems cryptic.was prince trying to pass a coded message in that song?

raveon2tnek said:

yeah I think if you play it backwards you can hear creepy voices

I don't think it's cryptic at all, to me he says just what he means.
[Edited 9/20/08 13:28pm]

It's not particularly cryptic.

He's writing about a girl (based on someone described to him by his then girlfriednd, Susannah Melvoin), who is mentally challenged and sees the world with a different perspective to others.

I thought they didnt believe lucy at first when she said she had "Starfish and Coffee" for breakfast and then when they opened her lunchbox "You know what we found"
So i thought it was about truth is stranger than fiction sotta thang
[Edited 9/20/08 9:42am]

No doesnt' sound cryptic. Love this song by the way. Its cute.

optimus said:

(I think you mean Cynthia rather than Lucy)

For me, one way of hearing it is:

When you open your mind to the merest possibility that, instead of dismissing a Cynthia - i.e.rejectinging someone, simply because they appear odd, or strange or make outlandish statements - maybe, just maybe, there's a different way of seeing things, then maybe it's worth taking just a fleeting moment to see things from someone else's point of view

And that point of view might open up a whole new, richer, imaginative, exciting perspective on life...?

I agree with you on that view langeblue.

I think the 'starfish and coffee, maplesyrup and jam etc..' are just put in there to make the lyrics more colourfull, but the message in the background is that you shouldnt take everything on face-value, and that some one who might appear odd at first (Cynthia in this song) can be an interesting person, offering another, fresh point of view.
[Edited 9/20/08 13:23pm]

Was he?

By the way,

I still think its a brave step to put such a 'innocent' song about childhood memories right behind a song dealing with almost frustating sexual obsession (IT).

Somehow, with Prince, that 'works'.

langebleu said:

oh yeah it is cynthia...were did i get lucy from? sorry

Riverpoet31 said:

NOW THAT IS INTERESTING!

Cynthia is a dreamer, and happy in her world where her imagination keeps her content.

Riverpoet31 said:

Really brave; he should get a medal.

I think the song replicates how children talk to each other.

Young children often boast about what they have or what they have done in their lives, even if they haven't done very much.

Also children are prone to exaggeration and making up stories.

Often children create their own fantasy world with fairies and make believe objects and characters.

Stafish and Coffee replicates this world of make believe and childhood innocence.

Also Cynthia seems to be the girl in the class who doesn't fit in. Probably making up stories to make herself more interesting to her classmates.

Prince depicts her as quirky and eccentric rather than weird and an odd-bod.

He's saying - we didn't believe in her but then we opened up her lunch box and we were wrong, she was telling the truth....


[Edited 9/21/08 7:07am]

song.

mELdOURADOsELVAGEM said:

He was on a different level with this song and album. Thanks Prince for all of the music over the years.

langebleu said:

Sweet.