Candyman
Siuxie & The Banshees Lyrics


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Sickly sweet, his poison seeks
For the young ones who don't understand
The danger in his hands
With a jaundiced wink see his cunning slink
Oh trust in me my pretty one
Come walk with me my helpless one

Candyman

Syrup lies upon your tongue
Gelatin saliva spills
A flash of a guillotine a smile

Candyman -- oh Candyman

No pity for him, their misery screams
Unspeakable things

A cool missile, yes it's in his smile
With open arms to welcome you
Beware the masked pretender
He always lies, this candyman
Those lips conspire in treachery
To strike in cloak and dagger, see!

Candyman -- oh Candyman

And all the children, he warns "Don't tell,"
Those threats are sold




With their guilt and shame they think they're to blame
For Candyman -- oh Candyman

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of the song "Candyman" by Siouxsie & The Banshees are an allegory of a manipulative and dangerous person who preys on young individuals. The first verse talks about how this person's poisonous charisma is attractive to those who do not comprehend the peril he represents. The phrase "jaundiced wink" suggests that the manipulator is seasoned in the art of gaining the trust of others and "my pretty one" and "my helpless one" evokes his ownership over them. The word "Candyman" itself denotes somebody who is sweet but has a sinister side that's not clear to everybody.


Line by Line Meaning

Sickly sweet, his poison seeks
The sweetness of his words is not genuine but rather cunning and deceitful.


For the young ones who don't understand
The Candyman preys on innocent and naive children who are unaware of his harmful intentions.


The danger in his hands
The Candyman is a threat to the safety and well-being of the children he preys upon.


With a jaundiced wink see his cunning slink
The Candyman's deceitful nature is evident in his sly and sneaky behavior.


Oh trust in me my pretty one
The Candyman manipulates his victims by feigning trustworthiness and charm.


Come walk with me my helpless one
The Candyman takes advantage of the vulnerability and helplessness of his victims.


Candyman
The Candyman represents the deceptive, harmful, and manipulative individual who preys on the innocent.


Syrup lies upon your tongue
The lies that the Candyman tells are coated in falsehood and deception.


Gelatin saliva spills
The Candyman's words are slick and slippery, sliding easily off his tongue.


A flash of a guillotine, a smile
The Candyman's intentions are hidden behind a seemingly friendly and harmless facade, but they are just as deadly as a guillotine.


No pity for him, their misery screams
The Candyman shows no remorse for the harm he inflicts on his victims, as evidenced by the pain and suffering they experience.


Unspeakable things
The Candyman's actions are so horrific that they cannot be put into words.


A cool missile, yes it's in his smile
The Candyman's disarming and charming demeanor is like a weapon that he uses to his advantage.


With open arms to welcome you
The Candyman appears welcoming and friendly to his victims, but this is all part of his manipulative tactics.


Beware the masked pretender
The Candyman is a deceptive and false pretender who hides his true intentions behind a mask of charm and friendliness.


He always lies, this candyman
The Candyman is a proven liar who cannot be trusted.


Those lips conspire in treachery
The Candyman's words are full of deceit and betrayal.


To strike in cloak and dagger, see!
The Candyman's actions are shrouded in secrecy and deception, making it difficult for his victims to see his true intentions.


And all the children, he warns "Don't tell,"
The Candyman threatens his victims with harm or shame if they reveal the truth about his actions.


Those threats are sold
The Candyman uses fear and intimidation to control his victims and keep them silent.


With their guilt and shame they think they're to blame
The Candyman's victims may feel responsible for their own harm and believe that they deserve what happened to them.


For Candyman -- oh Candyman
The Candyman is a recurring figure who preys on the vulnerable and naive, leaving them in harm's way.




Contributed by Kaelyn E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@mroldnewbie

It is about her own experience according to many interviews. I think I trust her more about it than I trust you.
From an interview:
"It's a song about child abuse. "Oh trust in me my pretty one/ Come walk with me my helpless one..."

"...That song," says Siouxsie, "was an outlet for a lot of things that had not been expressed."

At the age of nine, Susan and a friend were sexually assaulted. When they told adults what had happened the police were called, and Susan was taken to see a police doctor who examined her; but her family quickly swept the fuss under the carpet - it was another undiscussible item. Presumably that was the moment that Siouxsie started to acquire that total disrespect for adulthood and authority that she exuded in later years?

"Definitely" she agrees. "I grew up having no faith in adults as responsible people. And being the youngest in the family I was isolated - I had no-one to confide in. So I invented my own world, my own reality It was my own way of defending myself - protected myself from the outside world. The only way I could deal with how to survive was to get some strong armour..."



@mnmlstellar

#lyrics  Sickly sweet, his poison seeks
For the young ones who don't understand the danger in his hands
With a jaundiced wink see his cunning slink
Oh, trust in me my pretty one, come walk with me my helpless one

Candyman

Syrup lies upon your tongue
Gelatine saliva spills the flash of a guillotine a smile

Candyman
Oh, candyman

No pity for him, their misery screams unspeakable things
No pity for him, their misery screams unspeakable things

Candyman

A cool missile, yes, it's in his smile
With open arms to welcome you beware the masked pretender
He always lies, this candyman
Those lips conspire in treachery to strike in cloak and dagger, see

Candyman
Oh, candyman

And all the children, he warns, don't tell those threats are sold
With their guilt and shame they think they're to blame for candyman

Candyman
Candyman
Candyman
Candyman



All comments from YouTube:

@wildechild5

I wish I was still a teenager when this song came out and I just thought it was a cool song. That was long before I knew everything about this song. It always guts me to hear it and to think about what Siouxsie Sioux went through as a child. For those of you that don't know (if you don't want to know stop reading now) this song is about the sexual assault of Siouxsie Sioux at the age of nine, she and a friend were sexually assaulted by a stranger. The assault was ignored by both her parents and the police, and was not spoken of in the family. The incident and its later treatment would lead Siouxsie to distrust adults. Years later, she stated:

"I grew up having no faith in adults as responsible people. And being the youngest in the family I was isolated – I had no one to confide in. So I invented my own world, my own reality. It was my own way of defending myself – protecting myself from the outside world. The only way I could deal with how to survive was to get some strong armour."
💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜💜

@lucius0malfoy

Thanks so much.

@wildechild5

@El gran regreso del consejero Rojo' for what?

@lucius0malfoy

@The Real Wilde Child For share this valuable information.

@wildechild5

@El gran regreso del consejero Rojo' you are very welcome. It is extremely sad when happened to her and my heart broke when I read the interview. It sickens me to know there are people out there that do this especially to children. It also sickens me that her parents did nothing for her.

@lucius0malfoy

@The Real Wilde Child i feel the same i guess.

9 More Replies...

@MebThemes

Siouxsie is easily among the greatest frontwomen of all time.

@MD-ru5vs

Sure, what a performance !!

@petekelsall4299

I’ll second that.

@d3athr0ck3r

She is the greatest

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