Why I Care About Some Velvet Morning

I just read on Caslon Analytics that 92.4% of all blogs are created and read by people under 30. So, here's goes yet another post that will appeal to less than 7.6% of the blogosphere.

I just wrote a post on some great psychedelic songs which reminded me of one of the strangest and enigmatic psychedelic songs ever - "Some Velvet Morning" by Lee Hazelwood. The best version remains the original duet with Nancy Sinatra (1967); subsequent cover versions by Vanilla Fudge, Kate Moss (!) and Slowdive just don't cut it.

So, what's it all about? No one really knows for sure, and that's what makes it so intriguing.

Here's the lyrics. See if you can make heads or tails of it.

Lee: Some velvet morning when I'm straight I'm gonna open up your gate
And maybe tell you 'bout Phaedra and how she gave me life and how she made it in
Some velvet morning when I'm straight
Nancy:Flowers growing on the hill, dragonflies and daffodils
Learn from us very much. Look at us but do not touch.
Phaedra is my name
Lee: Some velvet morning when I'm straight I'm gonna open up your gate
And maybe tell you 'bout Phaedra and how she gave me life and how she made it in
Some velvet morning when I'm straight
Nancy:Flowers are the things we knew. Secrets are the things we grew.
Learn from us very much. Look at us but do not touch.
Phaedra is my name....

No luck at deciphering it? Let's look at some additional information and other theories, and maybe together we can absolutely over-analyze this song.

In Greek mythology Phaedra killed herself after accusing her stepson Hippolytus of rape. However, this tragic character doesn't seem to fit with Hazelwood's depiction of Phaedra as a lusty nymph- perhaps, he's trying a new contemporary twist to the mythological lady? Reinventing Phaedra for the twentieth century maybe?

Of course, some have attempted to put a strong sexual context to the lyrics: "some velvet morning when I'm straight" (i.e. erect), "I'm gonna open your garden gate" (i.e. intercourse). Also, as the song progresses the male and female parts become more and more co-mingled. Sounds plausible.

If you read the Wikipedia entry you'll wind up more confused than when you started. One explanation is that there actually is no explanation - it's just an abstraction, a nonsensical love song. After all, we're talking about the guy who wrote the lyrics "You keep lying, when you oughta be truthin'" in "These Boots Were Made for Walking".

Maybe the bigger question is why we should care what the hell he's talking about. Well, I guess that depends on what type of person you are. There are those that enjoy The Red Badge of Courage on its own terms, as a good tale in its own right and could give a crap foreshadowing and metaphors. Then there are those (English professors, I'm talking to you) who pick apart every sentence and look for symbolism with each syllable. To them, it's great fun looking for interpretations and hidden meanings - it's a puzzle of sorts. Certain authors (James Joyce's Ulysses and Flannery O'Connor's works come instantly to mind) also take special delight in embedding layers of meaning within their text.

I confess, I fall into the latter category. I love to find meanings in songs and works of literature. The more annotation the better. So, if you're this over-analyzing type, I'm afraid you may never have a satisfactory answer to the meaning behind "Some Velvet Morning". If you're the type to just appreciate a good song and could care less who wrote it and why, then just sit back and enjoy the music video from a 1967 Nancy Sinatra TV special. The rest of us will be wondering what's the symbolism of the horse on the beach.