The band released their self-titled first album in March 1995 via PopLlama Records. After they garnered massive acclaim, Columbia Records quickly signed them. The album peaked at number six on the Billboard 200 and has shipped over three million copies. The RIAA has certified it as triple platinum. Songs "Peaches", "Kitty", "Lump", and "Dune Buggy" received major airplay.
Their 1996 follow-up album, "II", did not reach the same acclaim, though it reached the top forty on the Billboard 2000. Single "Mach 5" also garnered some airplay. The band then fell of the radar for many listeners, dropped by their major label. However, their albums of the new millennium, 'Freaked Out and Small' followed by 'Love Everybody' and 'These Are the Good Times People' (released in 2000, 2004, and 2008, respectively), picked up positive critical reviews, such as from the All Music Guide. Although their touring schedule became more sporadic into the 00s and 10s, they continue to perform and satisfy audiences with their off-beat humor and catchy hooks.
Poke and Destroy
The Presidents of the United States of America Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ow!
("Want to push it, want to rip it, want to kill it!")
Girls, girls, girls, girls are so polite
They don't crush everything that they see
You can take 'em to a funky funky forest with big glass spiderwebs
Hangin' from the ceilin'
They wouldn't feel the uncontrollable urge
Poke and destroy
Poke and destroy
Poke and destroy
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy
Poke and destroy
Poke and destroy
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
("Poke and Destroy")
I want to poke!
Waah!
(And destroy!)
Boys, boys, boys, boys are set to kill
They want to crush everything that they see
You could take 'em to a creepy museum with dinosaur bones
Hangin' from the ceilin'
They'd feel the uncontrollable urge
To tip and push and kick and rip and tear and smash and squish and'
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
(Poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke, poke and destroy!)
I want to poke!
(Kick it down, rip it down, burn it down and kick it! Yeah!)
And destroy
(And we'll do it five hundred more times!)
Ah, ah, ah, ah!
Out in the wild with a girl I know
She see a little thing in the sand
She will tend to leave it alone, leave the creature in it's home
But I don't understand
If I find a delicate thing
I wonder how it would look split at the seams
Girls talk, say "it's beautiful"
I gotta poke it to know it, I gotta light it on fire and...
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy!
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
Poke and destroy! (and destroy)
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy, ah, (cough cough) ahem!
The song "Poke and Destroy" by The Presidents Of The United States Of America is a playful take on the differences between boys and girls. The song states that girls are usually polite and gentle and wouldn't have an urge to destroy things, whereas boys want to crush everything they see. The lyrics liken boys to sticking and breaking things and relates girls to taking care of fragile things. The song uses exaggeration and hyperbole to emphasize the differences between boys and girls.
The song title is a play on the famous punk song "Search and Destroy" by Iggy Pop and The Stooges. The song pokes fun at punk music and the aggressive behavior often associated with it. The lyrics are mostly nonsensical and lack a clear narrative, but they capture the spirit of adolescent rebellion.
Line by Line Meaning
Girls, girls, girls, girls are so polite
Females are typically well-mannered
They don't crush everything that they see
They don't destroy everything in sight
You can take 'em to a funky funky forest with big glass spiderwebs
They can appreciate unique sights, like a forest with a surreal touch of spiderwebs made of glass
Hangin' from the ceilin'
Dangling from above
Poke and destroy
Poke and destroy
I'm a boy, I want to poke and destroy!
As a male, I have the instinct to poke and destroy
Boys, boys, boys, boys are set to kill
Males are inherently destructive
You could take 'em to a creepy museum with dinosaur bones
Even in a museum that contains fragile things, like dinosaur bones, males might still cause destruction
If I find a delicate thing
When I see something that's fragile
Girls talk, say "it's beautiful"
Females often use words like "beautiful" to describe delicate things
I gotta poke it to know it, I gotta light it on fire and...
To understand it better or derive pleasure from it, males are more likely to poke or destroy it
Poke and destroy!
Poke and destroy
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: CHRISTOPHER WELDON BALLEW
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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And... why is this album not more popular?
A
the name of the band made it super dificult to find any of it...i actually still search a song from them that i had the single as a child and i'm 34 now, never found it, even on their actual channel, got it from my older sister , anyway, never was able to find anything on this band before project gotham racing 3(this song is in it)
Another band suffer from that pgr3 syndrome lol, "art of the strike" from numbs, this song have so little view on youtube like why...
Jay Sharp
Weird. I was just singing Naked + Famous, Kitty and Peaches on my walk home tonight... Was my phone spying on me again??
I log into youtube and this is the 2nd recommendation for me. And I've NEVER listened to PUSA on YouTube on this account EVER
ashley jeffery
Dont complain, it done you a favour!
Pseudonymble
I miss POTUSOA
Priscilla Rodriguez
They're back!?!? 😜
William Alan Photo
It's true though.