I’ll Be That Girl Lyrics
If I were you, and I wish that I were you
All the things I'd do to make myself turn blue
I suppose I'd start by removing all my clothes
Tie my pantyhose around my neck
[Chorus]
I'll be that girl and you would be right over
If I were a field, you would be in clover
If I were the sun, you would be in shadow
And if I had a gun, there'd be no tomorrow
[Verse 2]
If you will not have me as myself, perhaps as someone else
Perhaps as you I'll be worth noticing
Then even a eunuch won't resist
The magic of a kiss from such as me
[Chorus]
I'll be that girl and you would be right over
If I were a field, you would be in clover
And if I were the sun, you would be in shadow
And if I had a gun, there'd be no tomorrow
[Bridge]
It's time to kick off your shoes, learn how to choose sadness
It's time to throw off those chains, addle our brains with madness
'Cause we've got plenty of time to grow old and die
But when at last your beauty's faded
You'll be glad that I have waited for you
When you're done with being beautiful and young
When that course is run, then come to me
[Chorus]
I'll be that girl and you would be right over
And if I were a field, you would be in clover
If I were the sun, you would be in shadow
And if I had a gun, there'd be no tomorrow
[Outro]
There'd be no tomorrow, there'd be no tomorrow
There'd be no tomorrow, and there'd be no tomorrow
About
I’ll Be That Girl is a deceptively cheery-sounding song about very dark topics. In the book Barenaked Ladies: Public Stunts, Private Stories, both songwriters are quoted as saying the song is about autoerotic asphyxiation and suicide. Steven Page gives the more complete account:
“I wanted to write a song about desperation and how a man would do anything to get the gratification he thought he wanted, deserved, needed,” Steven told [CD-ROM magazine] Launch. “And if that meant hurting himself or inducing others to hurt themselves, that’s what he would do. It’s kind of a French movie in three minutes.”
While admitting that he hadn’t tried autoerotic asphyxiation himself, Steven does admit to loving the fact that “people will go to any extreme to make themselves feel…good? strongly?—even for a brief period of time, and risk either death or humiliation to do it. I think the worst thing would be to be hanging and to still be alive. Can you imagine someone walking in, and you’re naked, genitals in hand?”
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 1.One Week
- 4.I’ll Be That Girl
- 5.Leave
- 6.Alcohol
- 8.In the Car
- 10.Who Needs Sleep?
- 11.Told You So
- 13.When You Dream
- 14.She’s on Time