Society’s Child (1965)
Society's Child (originally titled Baby I've Been Thinking) is a song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Janis Ian in 1965. Its lyrics concern an interracial romance – a still-taboo subject in the mid-1960s. Ian was 13 years of age when she was motivated to write and compose the song, and she completed it when she was 14. Released as "Society's Child (Baby I've Been Thinking)", the single charted high in many cities in the autumn of 1966 but did not hit big nationally until the summer of 1967, when it peaked at no. 14 on Billboard's Hot 100.[1]
Key Lyrics
Now, I could understand your tears and your shame
She called you 'Boy' instead of your name
When she wouldn't let you inside
When she turned and said, "But honey, he's not our kind"
She says I can't see you any more, baby
Can't see you anymore
Background
The lyrics of the song center on the feelings of a young girl who witnesses the humiliation that her African American boyfriend receives from the girl's mother and the taunts that she herself endures from classmates and teachers. It closes with her decision to end her relationship with the boyfriend because of her inability to deal with the social pressure. This came up from Ian’s personal experience in 1964, where she lived in East Orange, New Jersey. Her neighborhood was predominantly populated by African Americans and she was one of very few whites in her school.[2]
Notable Performance
On October 23, 2011, Ian performed the song with Ryan Adams and Neil Finn on BBC Four's Series 2 Episode 4 of the series, Songwriters' Circle. She stated that she conceived the song when she was 12, wrote it at 13, published it at 14, became known at 15, and was a has-been at 16. The song was released in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s in the United States. Ian went on to say that a radio station in the 1960s was burned to the ground for playing it and a writer at the Boston Herald was fired for writing about it.[3]
Reference
- ↑ Society’s Child. Wikipedia. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
- ↑ Carl Wiser. "Janis Ian interview". 14 March 2003. Songfacts. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
- ↑ Marcus Teague. "Ryan Adams and Neil Finn fall out during TV taping". 26 October 2011. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved February 5, 2021.