The Dead Milkmen's songs found moderate success on alternative and college radio stations. Videos, notably Punk Rock Girl, even found their way onto MTV in the late 1980s. Topics for their music include satire on the 1980s music scene, toxic waste, jellyfish afterlifes, UFOs, conspiracy theories, and cover bands.
Irreverent absurdity fueled their initial popularity, particularly among college DJs. However, this genre was somewhat abandoned with the 1992 release of Soul Rotation, a much more subtle album.
After the Dead Milkmen went on indefinite hiatus in 1994, Genaro and Sabatino formed a new band, Butterfly Joe. Sabatino was also in the punk rock bands Narthex, Big Mess Orchestra, and Hunger Artists. Genaro was in a band called Touch Me Zoo. Linderman was in a band called Burn Witch Burn. Schulthise left music in the early 1990s after developing tendonitis, preventing him from playing bass, and committed suicide in 2004.
The Dead Milkmen took the stage again for two consecutive nights in November 2004 at the Trocadero Theatre in Philadelphia to play a show in memory of Dave Schulthise. Proceeds were donated to a variety of mental health organizations and to a Serbian monastery that Schulthise supported.
Lucky
Dead Milkmen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Little Billy drunk on beer
Plops down behind the steering wheel
His prom date pukes on her brand new dress
He wonders who'll clean up the mess
His car skids goes off the road
Hits a tree and then explodes
Hope when I die I go that way
But, you may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
Little Debbie drunk on wine
Says she's havin' a very good time
She thinks she's havin' the time of her life
Prom date sharpens a big butcher knife
Like a cheap horror movie on the silver screen
The night is filled with deadly screams
Word gets out of his famous capers
It even made the big-city papers
You may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
President laughs shaves his head
Pushes the button and bombs the Reds
Reds hits back with all they've got
Now we're all in the melting pot
Let's have a big cheer for the government
Who's finally ended our descent
Vaporized masses in the shopping mall
Never got to see the H-bomb fall
Little Billy drunk on beer
Plops down behind the steering wheel
His prom date pukes on her brand new dress
He wonders who'll clean up the mess
His car skids goes off the road
Hits a tree and then explodes
His death was quick painless they say
Hope when I die I go that way
But, you may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
You may not be so lucky
Never gonna be so lucky
Little Debbie drunk on wine
Says she's havin' a very good time
She thinks she's havin' the time of her life
Prom date sharpens a big butcher knife
Like a cheap horror movie on the silver screen
The night is filled with deadly screams
Word gets out of his famous capers
It even made the big city papers
The Dead Milkmen's song "Lucky" is a dark commentary on the fragility of life and how easily it can be destroyed. The song tells two separate stories, both involving teenagers at prom night who meet untimely and violent ends. In the first story, "Little Billy drunk on beer" crashes his car and dies instantly in the explosion. Despite describing the death as "quick" and "painless," the song acknowledges that Billy was not lucky to die in such a violent and preventable way. The second story involves a girl named "Little Debbie drunk on wine," who is brutally murdered by her prom date. The song presents this story like a "cheap horror movie" with deadly screams filling the night.
The final verse takes a political turn, as the song describes a bleak future in which the President of the United States "pushes the button and bombs the Reds." This leads to retaliation and the end of the world. The lyrics condemn the government for "ending our descent" by using a nuclear bomb that kills "vaporized masses in the shopping mall." The song's title is a sarcastic reference to the idea that anyone who dies in these situations could be considered "lucky" by avoiding a longer, drawn-out death.
Overall, "Lucky" is a powerful commentary on the fragility of life and the ways in which senseless violence can destroy it. By juxtaposing the two stories of teen violence with the larger, global threat of nuclear war, the song draws attention to the different ways in which life can be threatened and taken away.
Line by Line Meaning
Little Billy drunk on beer
Young Billy had too much beer to drink and got behind the wheel.
Plops down behind the steering wheel
He carelessly sat down behind the steering wheel.
His prom date pukes on her brand new dress
His date vomited on her new dress due to Billy's drunk driving.
He wonders who'll clean up the mess
Billy was so unconscious that he did not even care who would clean up the mess.
His car skids goes off the road
His car skidded off the road due to his reckless driving.
Hits a tree and then explodes
His car collided with a tree and exploded immediately.
His death was quick, painless, they say
The rumor is that Billy's death was quick and painless.
Hope when I die I go that way
The singer wishes to die a quick and painless death like Billy.
You may not be so lucky
The singer warns the listeners that they may not be as lucky as Billy to die painlessly.
Little Debbie drunk on wine
Debbie also drank too much and is now intoxicated.
Says she's havin' a very good time
Despite being drunk, Debbie claims to be having a good time.
She thinks she's havin' the time of her life
Debbie believes this is the best night of her life.
Prom date sharpens a big butcher knife
Debbie's date becomes aggressive and sharpens a big knife.
Like a cheap horror movie on the silver screen
The situation feels like a cheap horror movie playing out in real life.
The night is filled with deadly screams
There are screams of terror coming from the scene.
Word gets out of his famous capers
The details of this chaotic event become well-known.
It even made the big-city papers
The event was so significant that it even made headlines in big-city newspapers.
President laughs shaves his head
The President is depicted as a crazy and foolish figure who laughs while shaving his head.
Pushes the button and bombs the Reds
The President initiates a nuclear war by pushing a button to bomb communist countries.
Reds hits back with all they've got
The communist countries retaliate against the president's attacks with full force.
Now we're all in the melting pot
As a result of the nuclear war, everyone is at risk and the situation is dire.
Let's have a big cheer for the government
The song is sarcastic and suggests the government should not be glorified for starting a nuclear war.
Who's finally ended our descent
The government is portrayed as having finally put an end to a negative trend that is bringing us down.
Vaporized masses in the shopping mall
The horrific result of the nuclear war is depicted as masses of people in a shopping mall being vaporized.
Never gonna be so lucky
The singer asserts that no one will be lucky enough to die painlessly in a nuclear blast like Little Billy did.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: JOSEPH GENARO, RODNEY LINDERMAN, DEAN SABATINO, DAVID SCHULTHISE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind