Louie Louie
Pop (Iggy) Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
[Chorus:]
Louie Louie
Oh baby I gotta go
Louie Louie
Oh baby I gotta go
The capitalists are just breakin' hearts
Money is the reason to be
It makes me just want to sing Louie Louie
[Chorus]
A fine little girl is waitin' for me
But I'm as bent as Dostoevsky
I think about the meaning of my life again
And I have to sing Louie Louie again
[Chorus]
Let's give it to 'em right now
Oh man, I dunno like, health insurance
The homeless and world peace and aids and education
I'm tryin' to do right
But Hey
Life after Bush and Gorbachev
The wall is down but something is lost
Turn on the news it looks like a movie
It makes me want to sing Louie Louie
Louie Louie
Oh baby I gotta go, let's go
In Iggy Pop's "Louie Louie," he uses the popular tune to express his opinions on society and the current state of the world. The chorus repeats the line "Oh baby I gotta go," which could be interpreted as his desire to escape from the world around him. He begins the song by saying "And now the news," alluding to the influence the media has on people's views of the world. The following line, "The communist world is fallin' apart/The capitalists are just breakin' hearts," speaks to the political climate of the time and the sense of instability in society.
Line by Line Meaning
And now the news
The singer is introducing a new topic to talk about
Louie Louie
The singer is referring to the song 'Louie Louie'
Oh baby I gotta go
The singer feels a need to move on to something else
The communist world is fallin' apart
The political system of communism is in decline
The capitalists are just breakin' hearts
The economic system of capitalism is causing harm to people's emotions
Money is the reason to be
The focus on money has become central to people's lives
It makes me just want to sing Louie Louie
The singer feels a desire to escape from the stress caused by money by listening to 'Louie Louie'
A fine little girl is waitin' for me
The artist has a romantic interest waiting for them
But I'm as bent as Dostoevsky
The artist is feeling mentally unstable, like the writer Fyodor Dostoevsky
I think about the meaning of my life again
The artist is reflecting on the purpose of their existence
And I have to sing Louie Louie again
The singer is reverting to their desire to listen to 'Louie Louie' as a form of escape from their thoughts
Let's give it to 'em right now
The artist is suggesting to take immediate action or to start something new
Oh man, I dunno like, health insurance
The singer is expressing confusion or uncertainty with regard to the topic of health insurance
The homeless and world peace and aids and education
The singer is referencing several social issues that need to be addressed
I'm tryin' to do right
The singer is attempting to do the right thing regarding these issues
But Hey
The artist is introducing a new thought or idea
Life after Bush and Gorbachev
The artist is referring to the post-presidential lives of George H.W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev
The wall is down but something is lost
The fall of the Berlin Wall marked a turning point in history, but something valuable has also been lost
Turn on the news it looks like a movie
The news has become sensationalized, like a dramatic movie
It makes me want to sing Louie Louie
The artist feels a desire to escape from the sensationalized news by listening to 'Louie Louie'
Louie Louie
The song 'Louie Louie' is referenced again
Oh baby I gotta go, let's go
The artist, feeling the need to move on or change topics, is inviting the listener to go with them
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: RICHARD BERRY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
ESTREMONIAS
Iggy Pop is so right, The wall is down, but something is lost.
When the wall fell, ............... that we have?...................... this
Greetings Iggy for your magnificent cover
And now...the news:
Yeah!
Louie Louie, whoa baby
I gotta go now
Louie Louie, whoa-oh baby
I really gotta go now
The Communist world is fallin' apart
The capitalists are just breakin' hearts
Money is the reason to be
It makes me just wanna sing Louie Louie
Louie Louie, whoa baby
I gotta go now
Louie Louie, whoa-oh baby
I really gotta go now
There's a fine little girl, she's waitin' for me
But I'm as bent as Dostoevsky
I think about the meaning of my life again
And I have to sing Louie Louie again
Louie Louie, whoa baby
I gotta go now
Louie Louie, whoa-oh baby
I really gotta go now
Let's give it to' em right now!
Oh man, I dunno, like...man, like you know
I don't know, health insurance and the homeless and world peace
And...AIDS...and education... I mean, uh, I'm trying to do right, but...hey
Life after Bush and Gorbachev
The wall is down, but something is lost
Turn on the news, it looks like a movie
It makes me wanna sing Louie Louie
Louie Louie, whoa baby
I gotta go now
Louie Louie, whoa-oh baby
I really gotta go now
Say I gotta go now!
I gotta go now!
I really gotta go now!
Let's go!
thisisahorse
This is exactly what a "cover version" is supposed to be - take a song and make it different, make it your own. My shirt goes off to Iggy!
scorpion.666
Wait this a cover who actually created the song
Punctured Bicycle
@scorpion.666 The Kingsmen
Xogroroth666
"My shirt goes off to Iggy!"
As long as you keep them pants on, I can't care.
Siggy Lloyd
Let's all donate a shirt to Iggy, why don't we ! Haha
Toph Majora
Yeah man you either cover it so perfect that the original singer thinks you sang it better or you sing it in a way that's unique to yourself that the original singer thinks you sang it better
Tattyshoes Shigure
Great version of this classic by Iggy, undoubtedly the best cover of the song I’ve heard.
emerpus01
The original is actually a calypso song by Richard berry. Iggys version sounds more like Richard berrys in that you can understand the words!
Tattyshoes Shigure
@emerpus01 indeed it is a Richard Berry original. I read a hilarious story about the FBI investigation into the song’s lyrics as they were thought to be possibly obscene, because at the time no one could understand the Kingsmen’s popular version of the song!
TheWiegos
Iggy, what a man, what a singer, what a frontman?! How can not love such artist?! He is super for ever!