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Son of a Gun
The Vaselines Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Swing swing up and down,
Turn turn turn around,
Round round round and about and over again.

Gun gun son of a gun,
You are the only one,
And no one else can take my place.

The sun shines in the bedroom when you play,
And the raining always starts when you go away.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to The Vaselines's song Son of a Gun can be interpreted in various ways. One possible interpretation is that the lyrics may be describing a tumultuous relationship that involves ups and downs, turning points, and perhaps even elements of addiction. The use of the phrases "swing up and down" and "turn around" suggest a sense of instability and uncertainty, which is further emphasized by the repetition of the word "round." These lyrics may be suggesting that the subject's life is characterized by constant movement and change, as if they are going in circles without ever really getting anywhere.


The use of the phrase "son of a gun" in the chorus is another interesting element of this song. This phrase can be interpreted in a few different ways, but it may be used here to signify the subject's dominance over the singer. By saying that the subject is the "only one" and that "no one else can take [their] place," the singer may be acknowledging that they are under the subject's power or control in some way. This could be a romantic relationship or even a relationship with addiction or substance abuse.


The final two lines of the song, "The sun shines in the bedroom when you play, and the raining always starts when you go away," provide a poignant conclusion to the song. These lines suggest that the relationship, whatever its nature, brings both joy and pain to the singer's life. When the subject is present, there is sunshine and happiness, but when they leave, darkness and sadness follow. This could be interpreted as a statement about the bittersweet nature of any intense relationship.


Line by Line Meaning

Swing swing up and down,
Moving back and forth with ups and downs


Turn turn turn around,
Going in circles again and again


Round round round and about and over again.
Continuously circling with no end in sight


Gun gun son of a gun,
A weapon and its offspring, a force to be reckoned with


You are the only one,
Unique and incomparable to anyone else


And no one else can take my place.
Irreplaceable and one of a kind


The sun shines in the bedroom when you play,
Supreme joy and light illuminating when this song is played


And the raining always starts when you go away.
Sadness and gloom take over when you leave the room




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Royalty Network
Written by: ORVILLE BURRELL, RICARDO DUCENT, MARION HALL, DAVE WILLARD ANTHONY KELLY, NIGEL STAFF

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

Marc L

Her voice is perfection.

bobspezial

They are from Glasgow, not Edinburgh. I interviewed them for my fanzine in Oct 1987, Great people. It's taken 20 years but it's nice to see them getting the recognition they deserve.

ali mackenzie

ok not from fife

ali mackenzie

they are from fife

S. Özgür ÖYÜŞ

@Flinchey pastels? Man, Train tractor is such a great song.

Flinchey

@S. Özgür ÖYÜŞ by most people yeah it wasn’t until nirvana but those in the scene people knew Eugene from the pastels in 87

S. Özgür ÖYÜŞ

I thought they got the attention when Nirvana covered their songs.

2 More Replies...

iwannagosurfing139

there's a reason why Kurt Chose to cover this song. listen to how good it sounds.

Pig Boy

Yep but Kurdt favorite was Jesus don't want me for sunbeam

Shredder

Leo Dottavio oh you are so controversial

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