A Little Soul
Neneh Cherry/Pulp Lyrics

Hey, man
Starting point of the conversation.

How come you treat your woman so bad?
Asking why the man treats his woman poorly.

That's not the way you do it
Stressing that his behavior is not right.

No, no, no, you shouldn't do it like that
Reiterating that he needs to change his approach.

I could show you how to do it right
Offering to teach him how to treat his woman properly.

I used to practice every night on my wife, now she's gone
Admitting he learned from experience but lost his wife anyway.

Yeah, she's gone
Confirming that his wife has left him.

You see, her mother and me
Explaining why their relationship didn't work out.

We never got along that well, you see
Acknowledging that there was a lack of understanding between them.

I'd love to help you
Expressing willingness to help.

But everybody's telling me you look like me
Noticing a resemblance between them.

But please don't turn out like me, you look like me
Warning him not to make the same mistakes he did.

But you're not like me I know
Acknowledging that they are different.

I had one, two, three, four shots of happiness, I look like a big man
Boasting about his past achievements.

But I've only got a little soul
Admitting he lacks depth and substance.

Yeah, I wish I could be an example
Expressing regret that he could not set a good example for him.

Wish I could say I stood up for you
Wishing he could have defended him.

And fought for what was right
Adding that he should have stood up for what was right.

But I never did
Admitting he never took the initiative to do so.

I just wore my trenchcoat and stayed out every single night
Implying self-destructive behavior instead of productive actions.

You think I'm joking?
Challenging him to try him.

Try me
Encouraging him to test him.

Try me
Repeating the encouragement.

Yeah come on, try me tonight
Challenging him to prove him wrong today.

I did what was wrong though I knew what was right
Admitting he made bad decisions in spite of what he knew was the right thing to do.

I've got no wisdom that I want to pass on
Being self-deprecating about his own worth.

Just don't hang round here, no, I'm telling you son
Warning him to keep his distance.

You don't want to know me
Stressing that he is not worth knowing.

Oh, that's just what everybody's telling me
Acknowledging that everyone tells him that.

And everybody's telling me you look like me
Reiterating that there is a similarity between them.

But please don't turn into me
Encouraging him to be different from him.

You look like me
Recognizing the resemblance again.

But you're not like me I hope
Expressing hope that he is different.

I have run away form the one thing that I ever made, now
Admitting that he ran away from his own creation.

Only wish that I could show you
Wishing that he could teach him something valuable.

Wish I could show a little soul
Wishing he could show more depth and substance.