"Josie and the Pussycats" evolved from DeCarlo's "She's Josie" comic, first published by Archie in 1963. The change in format came about as a result of the success of The Archies in the books, on television, and on the pop charts. When "Josie and the Pussycats" migrated to a Saturday morning cartoon in 1970 (courtesy of Hanna-Barbera Productions), a full Pussycats album and several singles were released on Captiol Records. These recordings feature Cathy Doguher as the singing voice of Josie, with Patrice Holloway (sister of Motown singer Brenda Holloway) as Valerie, and Cherie Moor (later Cheryl Ladd) as Melody. While the Pussycats' songs were featured heavily in the cartoon series, they were not successes on the pop charts as the Archies' recordings had been. Producer Danny Janssen gave the Pussycats a pop-soul sound with all three women sharing lead vocals.
Three decades later, Universal Pictures and MGM produced a live-action "Josie and the Pussycats" feature film, directed by Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont and released in April 2001. R&B/pop producer Babyface, an executive producer for the film, supervised a soundtrack of new Pussycats recordings, done in a modern pop rock style. Kay Hanley, from the band Letters to Cleo, provides the singing voice of Josie and sings lead on all ten Pussycats songs. Rachael Leigh Cook, Tara Reid, and Rosario Dawson, who appear in the film as Josie, Melody, and Valerie respectively, provide some of the background vocals on the soundtrack recordings. Unlike the 1970 album, the 2001 soundtrack charted on the Billboard 200 albums chart, peaking at number 16.
Pretend to Be Nice
Josie and the Pussycats Lyrics
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And says it looks like we're wearing some kind of disguise,
Because your hair sticks up and your shoes are untied,
And I hope you got that shirt at half price,
And every word I say falls flat on the floor,
I try to tell a joke but he's heard it before,
And I don't think I can take it no more,
Cause he's driving me right out of my front door,
Why do you do what you do to me baby,
You're shaking my confidence you're driving me crazy,
You know if I could I'd do anything for you,
Please don't ignore me cause you know I adore you,
Can't you just pretend to be nice,
Can you at least pretend to be nice,
If you could just pretend to be nice,
Everything in my life would be alright,
Oooh wee....
Oooh wee....
And I try so hard just to figure him out,
But he won't tell me what he's thinking about,
And then he falls asleep on the living room couch,
With his sunglasses on and his tongue hanging out,
And then he disappears for a week at a time,
And then he just shows up just like everything's fine,
And I don't get what goes on in his mind,
But I'm tired of hearing the same stupid line,
Why do you do what you do to me baby,
You're shaking my confidence making me crazy,
You know if I could I'd do anything for you,
I don't mean to bore you cause you know I adore you,
But can't you just pretend to be nice,
Can you at least pretend to be nice,
If you could just pretend to be nice,
Everything in my life would be alright,
Oooh wee....
Oooh wee....
The lyrics of "Pretend to Be Nice" by Josie and the Pussycats describe a frustrating relationship where the singer is struggling to understand and connect with their partner. The opening lines describe the partner's criticisms of the singer's appearance, such as their hair and untied shoes. The singer's attempts at humor fall flat and they feel like they are being driven out of their own home by their partner's behavior. The chorus expresses the desire for the partner to simply pretend to be nice, which would make everything in the singer's life alright.
The second verse continues to describe the confusing and maddening behavior of the partner, who refuses to communicate their thoughts and disappears for long periods of time. The singer is tired of hearing the same excuses and wants the partner to make an effort to be kind and understanding. Overall, the lyrics paint a picture of a dysfunctional relationship where one party is trying to keep the peace and the other is causing chaos and confusion.
Line by Line Meaning
Well he looks at me with those Innocent eyes
The subject is describing the way their love interest looks at them with an innocent gaze
And says it looks like we're wearing some kind of disguise
The love interest suggests that they both look like they are trying to hide something behind their appearances
Because your hair sticks up and your shoes are untied
The love interest points out the subject's physical quirks
And I hope you got that shirt at half price
The love interest teases the subject about their shirt, implying that it looks cheap
And every word I say falls flat on the floor
The subject's words have no effect on their love interest, they don't seem to care what they have to say
I try to tell a joke but he's heard it before
The love interest has heard the subject's jokes before, making them uninterested
And I don't think I can take it no more
The subject is reaching their breaking point with the love interest's behavior
Cause he's driving me right out of my front door
The love interest's behavior is pushing the subject to leave
Why do you do what you do to me baby
The subject questions the love interest's motives
You're shaking my confidence you're driving me crazy
The love interest is negatively affecting the subject's confidence and mental state
You know if I could I'd do anything for you
The subject still has strong feelings for their love interest despite their behavior
Please don't ignore me cause you know I adore you
The subject pleads with the love interest not to ignore them because they care deeply for them
Can't you just pretend to be nice
The subject wishes their love interest could at least pretend to treat them better
Can you at least pretend to be nice
The subject reiterates their desire for the love interest to pretend to be nicer
If you could just pretend to be nice
The subject believes that if their love interest could just pretend to be nice, their relationship could improve
Everything in my life would be alright
The subject believes that if their love interest could just put on a façade of kindness, everything would be okay
And I try so hard just to figure him out
The subject struggles to understand their love interest's behavior
But he won't tell me what he's thinking about
The love interest is not open with the subject about their thoughts and feelings
And then he falls asleep on the living room couch
The love interest can be careless, falling asleep in random places
With his sunglasses on and his tongue hanging out
The love interest is carefree, even when it comes to their appearance
And then he disappears for a week at a time
The love interest is inconsistent, going missing for extended periods of time
And then he just shows up just like everything's fine
The love interest returns as if nothing has happened, making the subject feel confused and frustrated
And I don't get what goes on in his mind
The love interest's thoughts and feelings are incomprehensible to the subject
But I'm tired of hearing the same stupid line
The love interest repeats the same things over and over again, making the subject feel exasperated
Oooh wee....
A sound of frustration
Oooh wee....
A repeated sound of frustration
Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ADAM L. SCHLESINGER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
nivenfres
I loved this movie. It was very self-aware and didn't take itself seriously at all.
MXRDER 8
And managed to be one of the best movies of all time
Erick Mazur
Its one of my all time faves. Its the punk spinal tap
Paul Gaither
Josie and the pussycats is the greatest movie of all time.
ayden
@Paul Gaither JOIN THE ARMY
Crashburndicoot
Almost like Dogma?
Michelle H
20 years later and I still know all the words lmao literally havenβt watched it since it came out.
largol33t1
So do I! I also love the opening song "Three small words".
shareata carter
Ditto
Christina M
Same!!! I alway fall into relationships like this too