I always thought america was a song about the the anicommunism madness in the us.And whos jimmy nothing?

In an interview Prince said:
"It's pure patriotic"

incalgr said:

What makes you think otherwise?
Any reason?

Either way, it's pantalonios.

ThataintFunky said:

Maybe the album version is patriotic, but the music in the extended version gets dark towards the end, almost casting a warning of America's fate.

Number23 said:

That's Greek for "funky" right?

sabaisabai said:

youre right the complete version gets a bit dark in the end.i always thought that america should look into real problems(poverty,drugs)and stop caring for the reds.Comunis is DEAD.In the 80s the whole cold war thing goy out of hand and many social and economic problems werent treated as they should(sorry for my english im greek)To me it matters more not to "be in black".By the way i love capitalsm

sabaisabai said:

Geeez, another America-basher. Why dont you move somewhere else?

soulpower said:

I live somewhere else and i dont have a problem with america or americans.because i dont agree with everything doesnt mean that i hate your country!!!

Patriotically Dellusional.

MartyMcFly said:

Bargeddish for underwear.
The song's confused rhetoric and mundane riff never really blew my skirt up.

incalgr said:

if you listen to the lyrics i think its obviously a satire about america. theres no way its patriotic at all, i know prince said that, but it was that mtv interview where he basically took the piss.

"little sister, making minimum wage
living in a one room jungle monkey cage
cant get over, shes almost dead
she may not be in the black but shes happy she aint in the red


genius lyrics, some of the best ive ever read. theres no way thats patriotic, its sarcasm. theres no way someone struggling to exist goes to bed at night thinking, thank god i dont live in a communist government!

the only bit i perhaps dont get it is the last paragraph, jimmy nothing lives in a mushroom cloud. any ideas?

softandwet said:

I don't wanna sound condescending but you need to read more, dude.

softandwet said:

Nuclear bomb!

I always thought it was a naive stab at political lyrics. Prince's topical stuff always makes me cringe a little, whether he's trying to be jingoistic or radical...

Anxiety said:

Always liked the lyrics for "Pop Life" better...said more about American culture.

I always thought the song was sarcasm.

Little sister making minimum wage
living in a one room jungle monkey cage
can't get over that she's almost dead
she may not be in black but she hope she ain't in red

It sounds to be like he's saying it's better to be an impoverished American near death then a communist anyday.
Like, "America has some serious, fucked up problems, but at least we ain't commies.. Phew!" Gimme a damn break!

LittlePill said:

Sounds like some people I know in another forum here.

soulpower said:

Get out of my country

If the song is critical of the US situation does that make it unpatriotic? I consider the patriotic person to be the one that does the best for their country and the people within it, and that can mean somebody who brings up the negatives.

Number23 said:

lol, i knew someone would say that, i actually read alot and have an annoying habit of dissecting songs way too much. i stillthink the lyrics are great, perhaps i got carried away. i love the imagery he creates and i think its good. i cant explain it properly, but i think the idea of someone being near death through poverty, but counting their blessings they arent in a communist country is amusing and the way its done is great. yeah i repeat myself and i cant explain it properly but still!

Man you people read WAAAY too much into the lyrics of Prince songs. Did you ever stop to wonder that maybe the man just put the sentences together at the spur of the moment and that they doing mean a thing???

funkbible said:

I doubt that IceNine was a victim of the "liberals" and "crybabies", rather than of moderation and his own often plain stupid provokative remarks.

I never saw the song as patriotic but I don't think that its all that much of a piss-take either.

I honestly think he's saying:

Capitalism doesn't work and is as constrictive as Communism;
Patriotism doesn't work and neither does unpatriotic behaviour...

The "sister" is patriotic but that doesn't help her in her everyday life. "Jimmy Nothing" is unpatriotic and that doesn't help him either!

I think he's saying its more important to think about where you are at spiritually than in terms of defining yourself by your nationality.

BinaryJustin said:

Maybe, dude. Maybe.

Number23 said:

lol! no i think sister is not patriotic, i dont think shes meant to exist, its prince speaking and being sarcastic, she may not be in the black, but shes happy she aint in the red. course shes not happy! she doesnt think about it because her life is more about surviving on a minimum wage. i agree im unsure about jimmy nothing, i thought it might be like forcing people to fight for causes they dont believe in, like the line in a song off the dirty mind album (maybe) how you gonna make me kill someone i dont know? or something like that!

plus yes i do write songs and know sometimes things are thrown together on the spur, then you sort of change the odd word to make it have proper meaning. but when you step back and look at it, if you dont agree with what youre writing you sure as hell dont put it out!

LittlePill said:

co-sign

ThataintFunky said:

I think you misquoted him. I don't remember him saying that, although the general message was the same.