Back in the day, in 1970, The Guess Who released their third album, American Woman. The song of the same title is the opener. I’d have to say it was kind of a shock.
At our next military posting after The Nam, my young warrior turned me on to The Guess Who. They were a group he’d listened to in the jungle. The tunes were catchy, and the music unexpected but fitting. They dealt with the culture of our day. We enjoyed their albums Wheatfield Soul and Canned Wheat.
Then we got mugged by ‘American Woman’.
The opening riff is nice, gets you in the mood to rock. But with no warning you’re smacked in the kisser with the lyrics, especially if you happen to be an American woman. I was and I still am.
Was it something I said?
Those in the band and connected with it have differing stories about the origin and meaning of the song. Depending on who you believe, it was a flat out anti-war song, or an anti-American song, or just an off the cuff warm-up song made up of nonsense words. The Beatles used to do that (‘Why Don’t We Do It In the Road’).
Burton Cummings’ official story is that one of Randy Bachman’s guitar strings broke at a concert in an Ontario curling rink. Bachman broke into a riff while tuning the new string, and Cummings ad-libbed words. They kept going, and as it turned out, a kid with a tape recorder caught it all. They’d never have remembered it (I bet not) except that the kid turned over the tape when they asked. Yeah, okay. Like he didn’t see that he could make some money with it himself.
If you ask me (and you didn’t, of course, but this is my blog), Burton Cummings was all full of himself that night and was in the habit of saying things for the shock value. He liked the attention it got him. So ‘American Woman’ could have been his way of stirring the stuff and seeing which way the wind blew the stink. It might not have been exactly anti-American, on the whole. But it could have been. And it could also have been directed at a specific annoying girl at that gig. And she knows it, to this day.
Time & Place
I’m American, obviously. Back then, we heard anti-war songs all the time, couldn’t avoid it even if you listened to country music. So, you can get offended at ‘American Woman’, or you can be all in with it. That’s all in your own interpretation. Let’s remember The Guess Who’s audience.
Most of The Guess Who’s popularity was in… wait for it… Canada. Their exposure in America was secondary. Mind you, they didn’t turn down the American dollars spent on their products. But they also weren’t above taking potshots at their good neighbors to the south. And it’s the same today. Just enjoy the experience of crossing the border from the US into Canada!
For myself, after getting over the overt slap in the face from this song, I grew to like it. Good beat, decent guitar work, you can understand the lyrics and sing along if you like. Evidently a lot of other people liked it too, since it reached #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and #3 for 1970. The album went gold in just 6 months. But, you can judge for yourself.
‘American Woman’
The Guess Who, 1970
“Uh!
American woman, stay away from me
American woman, mama, let me be
Don’t come a-hangin’ around my door
I don’t wanna see your face no more
I got more important things to do
Than spend my time growin’ old with you
Now woman, I said stay away
American woman, listen what I say
American woman, get away from me
American woman, mama, let me be
Don’t come a-knockin’ around my door
Don’t wanna see your shadow no more
Coloured lights can hypnotize
Sparkle someone else’s eyes
Now woman, I said get away
American woman, listen what I say, hey
American woman, said get away
American woman, listen what I say
Don’t come a-hangin’ around my door
Don’t wanna see your face no more
I don’t need your war machines
I don’t need your ghetto scenes
Coloured lights can hypnotize
Sparkle someone else’s eyes
Now woman, get away from me
American woman, mama, let me be…”
It doesn’t have to make sense.
… and on it goes, about leaving her, on and on. And on. We don’t know if he ever did go, or if he stayed and just talked about leaving. If I’d been the American woman in question, I’d have walked out myself, just to stop his nagging. See? Even if it’s just a harmless little song, it makes people edgy somehow.
The Guess Who were invited in July 1970 to play for President and Mrs Nixon at the White House. What?! Why in the world would a Canadian rock band get a White House gig? Well, reportedly it was because Trisha Nixon was a huge fan. After some discussion, the band decided to accept. Good will across the border, and all that.
But Pat Nixon had heard about ‘American Woman’, and specifically requested that the song be excluded from the concert. The Guess Who were unwilling to provoke their hosts, so ‘Hand Me Down World’ was substituted, and a good time was had by all.