Coe's rebellious attitude, wild image, and unconventional lifestyle set him apart from other country performers, both winning him legions of fans and hindering his mainstream success by alienating the music industry establishment. Coe continues to be a popular performer on the country circuit.
Coe was born in Akron, Ohio. His favorite singer as a child was Johnny Cash. After being sent to the Starr Commonwealth For Boys reform school at the age of nine, he spent much of the next 20 years in correctional facilities, including three years at the Ohio Penitentiary. Coe claimed he received encouragement to begin writing songs from Screamin' Jay Hawkins, with whom he had spent time in prison.
After concluding another prison term in 1967, Coe embarked on a music career in Nashville, living in a hearse which he parked in front of the Ryman Auditorium while he performed on the street. He caught the attention of Shelby Singleton, owner of the independent record label Plantation Records and signed a contract with his label.
He is the father of Tyler Mahan Coe, who created the country music podcast Cocaine & Rhinestones. He has a daughter, Shelli Coe Mackie, and is father-in-law to the late Michael Mackie, formerly of Texas band 'Thunderosa'.
Coe's musical style derives from blues, rock, and country music traditions. His vocal style is described as a 'throaty baritone'. His lyrical content is often humorous or comedic, with William Ruhlmann describing him as a 'near-parody of a country singer'. Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes Coe as "a great, unashamed country singer, singing the purest honky-tonk and hardest country of his era […] he may not be the most original outlaw, but there is none more outlaw than him".
Coe's lyrics frequently include references to alcohol and drug use, and are often boisterous and cocky. Coe's debut album Penitentiary Blues was described as "voodoo blues" and "redneck music" by Allmusic's Thom Jurek. It focused on themes such as working for the first time, blood tests from veins used to inject heroin, prison time, hoodoo imagery, and death. The album's influences included Charlie Rich, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bo Diddley, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Tony Joe White. Coe later explained to Kristofer Engelhardt of Review: "I didn't really care for some of the country music until people like Kris Kristofferson and some of those people started writing songs. They had a little more to say than just, 'Oh baby I miss you', or whatever. I don't do anything halfway. Once I got into country music, I went back and researched it, and learned everything there was to know about it. I could do impersonations of Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow, Marty Robbins, just about anybody. I knew just about all there was to know about country music."
Coe's first country album, The Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy, has been described as alt-country, 'pre-punk' and "a hillbilly version of Marc Bolan's glitz and glitter". Credited influences on the album include Merle Haggard. In his early career, Coe was known for his unpredictable live performances, in which he would ride a Harley-Davidson motorcycle onto the stage and curse at his audience. Coe has also performed in a rhinestone suit and a mask which resembled that of the Lone Ranger, calling himself the 'Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy'.
The album Rebel Meets Rebel featured a song, "Cherokee Cry", which criticizes the United States government's treatment of Native Americans. When asked why he did not write more political songs, Coe replied, "I live in my own world, not thee world. I just write songs about what affects me in everyday life. At one point I wrote a song that was sort of a protest about when they were talking about drafting women into the military. It was about my son making it past the draft, but my daughter didn't. And I've done Farm Aid."
In his review of Coe's 1987 album A Matter of Life...and Death, Allmusic's Thom Jurek wrote, "Coe may have had some hits, but it is records like this that make one wonder if there was not a conspiracy to marginalize him and make him fail. Coe is a brilliant songwriter well into the 21st century, and deserves to be lauded along with the likes of [Willie] Nelson and [Waylon] Jennings and Kristofferson and Newbury – and even Cash."
david alan coe
David Allan Coe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I guess for about ten bucks
And it came by special delivery
In a plain brown cardboard box
Well she opened it and inspected it
(Someone in the audience yell's "How long was it")
(David answered "Bout twelve inches long")
Well she went and dipped it in her Crisco can
Well she hummed and a wiggled, squirmed and giggled
Collapsed into utter pleasures
She's a Vibrator Queen
She's in love with a machine
She swears it's an American dream
AC/DC try it and you'll see
It's guaranteed to make you cream in your jeans
Well she fell in love with what she had bought
A 12 - inch wonder that the mailman had brought
But through her love she could not see,
What a terrible fate there was to be.
Well she found her answer to all of her dreams
In a battery operated sex machine
Man nor beast could take it's place
She was destined to die with a smile on her face
She's a Vibrator Queen
She's in love with a machine
She swears it's an American dream
AC/DC try it and you'll see
It's guaranteed to make you cream in your jeans
One day while she was in the bath
She decided poorly,
To do her thing in the water
She paid no mind to that caution sign
That old AC current got her
Now people say, for miles around
They can still hear that dildo a hummin
But 'at's when I realized she cant be dead
Hell! Her ass must still be cummin
She's a Vibrator Queen
She's in love with a machine
She swears it's an American dream
AC/DC try it and you'll see
It's guaranteed to make you cream in your jeans
She's a Vibrator Queen
She's in love with a machine
She swears it's an American dream
AC/DC try it and you'll see
It's guaranteed to make you cream in your jeans
The lyrics of David Allan Coe's "Vibrator Queen" describe a woman's love affair with her vibrator. The song starts off with her ordering the vibrator from a magazine for about "ten bucks" and eagerly waiting for it to come by special delivery in a plain brown cardboard box. She inspects it and then goes to dip it in her Crisco can before turning it on. The lyrics go on to describe her moaning with pleasure until she dies from electrocution caused by using the vibrator in the bathtub.
The song is meant to be humorous and satirical, poking fun at American consumer culture, sexuality, and the taboo around discussing sex in public. It also highlights how women's sexual desires have often been stigmatized or ignored. While the lyrics are crude, they aim to celebrate female sexual pleasure and freedom to pleasure oneself. The song also critiques how powerful consumer culture can be, with the vibrator becoming the woman's only source of pleasure and eventually leading to her death.
Line by Line Meaning
Well she ordered it from a magazine
She bought a vibrator from a magazine
I guess for about ten bucks
It cost around 10 dollars
And it came by special delivery
It was delivered specially
In a plain brown cardboard box
It arrived in a nondescript cardboard box
Well she opened it and inspected it
She opened it and checked it out
(Someone in the audience yell's "How long was it")
Someone in the audience asked how long it was
(David answered "Bout twelve inches long")
David answered that it was about 12 inches long
Well she went and dipped it in her Crisco can
She lubricated it with Crisco
And turned that sum-a-bitch on
She turned it on
Well she hummed and a wiggled, squirmed and giggled
She experienced pleasurable sensations
Collapsed into utter pleasures
She had an orgasm
She's a Vibrator Queen
She's obsessed with her vibrator
She's in love with a machine
She has strong feelings for her vibrator
She swears it's an American dream
She believes owning a vibrator is a symbol of American freedom
AC/DC try it and you'll see
The singer challenges AC/DC to try a vibrator
It's guaranteed to make you cream in your jeans
He claims it will cause sexual arousal
Well she fell in love with what she had bought
She became infatuated with her vibrator
A 12 - inch wonder that the mailman had brought
It was a 12-inch vibrator delivered by the mailman
But through her love she could not see,
Her attachment to the vibrator blinded her
What a terrible fate there was to be.
She was headed for doom
Well she found her answer to all of her dreams
Her vibrator was the answer to her sexual desires
In a battery operated sex machine
Her vibrator was powered by batteries
Man nor beast could take it's place
No one could replace her vibrator
She was destined to die with a smile on her face
She would die while using her vibrator
One day while she was in the bath
One day while bathing
She decided poorly,
She made a bad decision
To do her thing in the water
To use her vibrator in the bath
She paid no mind to that caution sign
She ignored the safety warning
That old AC current got her
She was electrocuted by the vibrator
Now people say, for miles around
People say
They can still hear that dildo a hummin
They hear the sound of the vibrator
But 'at's when I realized she cant be dead
The singer doesn't believe she is dead
Hell! Her ass must still be cummin
He believes she died while having an orgasm
Contributed by Parker H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@oldiesbest6421
I have stage 4 cancer. this song along with a few others from the old guards are going to be played when pass away. Not looking for pitty. I had a great life. seen all kids grown and a few grandkids also.
@burtmacklin380
Hope you’re doing okay
@user-ys2qz6ji6t
@@burtmacklin380 same
@furrycircuitry2378
God speed
@zenith7949
Rest in peace man ❤️
@Moon-it8ij
Hope you're doing ok
@granddaddykush5532
Coe they'll sadly never put you in the country music hall of fame, but you're definitely in mine!
@robertmccarthy3731
He's right. It is the perfect country and western song. A song that everyone can sing along with in the bar.
@jamesdavis9589
Who else still listening to this in 2021? True legend!!
@texastactalk542
Every day brother