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    Outing Gay Songs: 20 Tunes With Homosexual Subtexts

    • Posted   by Sarah Liss
    • Comments (34)
    Email This
    For many fabulous folks around the globe, June is Pride Month, when queers of all stripes celebrate being out and proud. But despite the diversity, Pride parades frequently resort to the same played-out gay anthems. Some musicians create equally powerful songs by wrapping their queer-positive messages in a more nuanced, er, package. So we've gone through the closets of music history to put together a collection of tunes that illustrate the many shades of the LGBTQ rainbow.
    'Losing My Religion,' R.E.M.
    When R.E.M. released this 1991 single, oddball frontman Michael Stipe was still coy about his sexual orientation. Though he would declare himself an "equal opportunity lech" in '94, this plaintive tale of confession and confusion, which couches sexuality in the terms of belief systems, suggests his relationship with queerness was more fraught.
    Rainbow Connection: 4/5 – Bonus point for the double-entendre of "The slip that brought me to my knees failed."
    'Losing My Religion' Lyrics
    Kevin Winter, Getty Images
    'You've Got to Hide Your Love Away,' The Beatles
    Pain and rejection are familiar to any poor sod who's ever given his heart to a callous lover. But according to many Beatles obsessives, this Dylanesque 1965 tune can also be interpreted as a tribute to the Fab Four's manager, Brian Epstein, who lived a double life as a closeted gay man.
    Rainbow Connection: 3/5 – Epstein also encouraged John Lennon to keep his marriage in the closet, so the theme of manager-inspired secrecy goes both ways.
    'You've Got to Hide Your Love Away' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'Raspberry Swirl,' Tori Amos
    From 'Rubyfruit Jungle' to 'The Color Purple,' fictional sapphism teems with heinous euphemisms for female genitalia. Tori Amos takes a page from her literary sisters in 'Raspberry Swirl,' in which she schools her BFF's inept BF in how to properly please a lady.
    Rainbow Connection: 2.5/5 – Amos was inspired by a platonic love for a female friend that made her fantasize about taking it further. But despite lines like "Everybody knows I'm her man," it's merely bi-curious.
    'Raspberry Swirl' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'I'm in Love With My Car,' Queen
    With lascivious lines about manhandling "your grease gun," "pistons a-pumpin'" and "crusin' in overdrive," the 1975 Queen B-side comes off as a muscular ode to manly action – especially when the singer asserts he'll forsake his girl for his "boy racer rollbar."
    Rainbow Connection: 2/5 – Though this song might seem tailor-made for Freddie Mercury, straight-as-an-arrow drummer Roger Taylor took lead vocals, which dulled its priapic edge somewhat.
    'I'm in Love With My Car' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'Michael,' Franz Ferdinand
    Ah, adolescence: a time for experimentation. And for the male protagonist in this 2004 Franz Ferdinand single, young adulthood was a time to grind against a leather-hipped Adonis in the steamy underworld of a dimly lit club.
    Rainbow Connection: 4/5 – The description of this encounter (the stubble, the sticky lips) leave little to the imagination. But it's the words of proud ownership – "This is what I am/I am a man!" – that makes the tune worthy.
    'Michael' Lyrics
    Frank Micelotta, Getty Images
    'Living After Midnight,' Judas Priest
    Shared leather fetish aside, it's tough being an out gay man in the hypermacho world of heavy metal. Though Rob Halford is more explicit about his sexual proclivities elsewhere in the Priest canon (See 'Raw Deal'), 'Living After Midnight' neatly maps out the double life of a metal queer: "Living after midnight, rockin' to the dawn/Lovin' till the morning, then I'm gone."
    Rainbow Connection: 4.5/5 – A rare glimpse into a subculture that's rarely represented in song.
    'Living After Midnight' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'In the Navy,' The Village People
    While it may not be the costumed act's most famous man-on-manthem, 'In the Navy' is even gayer than 'YMCA.' Would-be recruits who "like adventure" are encouraged to join their fellow man to "find pleasure" as this bracing call to action dresses up its homosexual agenda in a crisp military uniform.
    Rainbow Connection: 5/5 – "They're signing up new seamen fast"? The jury rests.
    'In the Navy' Lyrics
    Chris Walter, WireImage
    'See My Friends,' The Kinks
    This Kinks tune finds the singer contemplating crossing the "river" to cavort with a gaggle of misfits on the shore after he's rejected by his girlfriend and has "no one else to love." Ray Davies claimed the lyrics stemmed from his experiences questioning his own sexuality as a youth.
    Rainbow Connection: 4/5 – Davies' subtle portrait of a troubled, unsure kid is most likely the first bisexual Top 10 hit.
    'See My Friends' Lyrics
    Hulton Archive / Getty Images
    'Looking for Love (in the Hall of Mirrors),' The 6ths
    Stephin Merritt has claimed many of the songs in his extensive catalogue are about going to gay bars. This ditty, by the Magnetic Fields auteur's side project, is a straightforward illustration of that theme, and it nods to his theory that gay bars are often located near railroad tracks.
    Rainbow Connection: 5/5 – The "Hall of Mirrors" is the name of a fictional gay club in Merritt's mind.
    Tim Mosenfelder, Getty Images
    'Go West,' Pet Shop Boys
    Conquering the Wild West is an integral chapter in the American origin story, but this uplifting anthem added a new layer to the Westward Ho! – or "Westward, ho!" – saga. San Francisco's neighbourhood the Catsro has long been a mecca for gays who want to flee more repressive climates, and 'Go West' serves as a perfect soundtrack for that exodus to the coast.
    Rainbow Connection: 5/5 – The Village People's version was pretty darn glittery to begin with, but the Pet Shop Boys provided a particularly fabulous jolt of camp.
    'Go West' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'Smalltown Boy,' Bronski Beat
    Being a queer teenager in the early '80s was no picnic anywhere, but being a visibly gay boy in a tiny backwater hamlet where any kind of otherness is suspect? In this 1984 hit, the Bronskis deftly led listeners through one sensitive outcast's journey, turning their catchy pop song into a quiet activist statement.
    Rainbow Connection: 5/5 – From the album 'Age of Consent,' the notes of which include a chart outlining the various legal ages for homosexual acts worldwide.
    'Smalltown Boy' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'Fast Car,' Tracy Chapman
    This plaintive unplugged response to 's 'Born to Run' is about getting a set of wheels and getting the hell out of Dodge. The twist here, though, is that Chapman (who has had same-sex relationships in her real life) may crave escape, but that yearning is also connected to a desire for "belonging" and some version of a happy ending.
    Rainbow Connection: 3.5/5 – The singer initially finds acceptance in the arms of her partner but realizes that a normative fantasy life doesn't solve their problems.
    'Fast Car' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'Walk on the Wild Side,' Lou Reed
    This tune is the de facto theme song for the grimy, arty subculture of '60s era New York. Like most of Reed's songs from this period, 'Walk on the Wild Side' introduces a cabal of beautiful losers, from druggies to drag queens.
    Rainbow Connection: 4/5 – Lesser songwriters might approach these subjects from a perspective of pity or sick fascination; Reed's gift lies in his ability to bring his cast of queens and queers to life as rich, complex characters.
    'Walk on the Wild Side' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
    'Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover,' Sophie B. Hawkins
    The openly bisexual Hawkins scored a Top 5 hit in 1993 with this steamy little tune. Though she remains cryptic about the gender of the party she's pining for, Hawkins ends with a satisfying bang, fantasizing about making love to an unnamed "her" (though not, to be clear, the person to whom the song is addressed) by the ocean.
    Rainbow Connection: 4/5 – A sexually charged, Sapphic-themed tune that managed to become a mainstream hit.
    'Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover' Lyrics
    Time Life Pictures / Getty Image
    'A Little Respect,' Erasure
    Erasure's 1988 single functions as a gay anthem on two different levels. "'A Little Respect' is what LGBT groups demand in the face of intolerance and discrimination. But when Andy Bell wonders, "What religion or reason/Could drive a man to forsake his lover?" he's also slyly turning a spotlight on the issue of internalized homophobia within the queer community.
    Rainbow Connection: 4.5/5 – Can't do much better than a danceable tune that marries the personal and the political.
    'A Little Respect' Lyrics
    Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
    'She's Losing It,' Belle and Sebastian
    Perpetually fey Belle and Sebastian frontman Stuart Murdoch introduces us to a pair of girls who graduated from the school of hard knocks. Bonded by their shared frustration with the system, Chelsea and Lisa forge an alliance and decamp for a school "where the boys go with boys and the girls with girls."
    Rainbow Connection: 1/5 – Points docked for the "surviving trauma leads to lesbianism" equation.
    'She's Losing It' Lyrics
    Bruno Vincent, Getty Images
    'Real Men,' Joe Jackson
    The man behind 'Is She Really Going Out With Him?' released 'Real Men' in 1982, a Cole Porter-inspired nudge-and-wink that touched on both the gender ambiguity of the burgeoning new wave scene and the contemporaneous pre-AIDS gay subculture in New York.
    Rainbow Connection: 4.5/5 – The lyrics speak for themselves: "Don't call me faggot/Not unless you are a friend/Then if you're tall dark and handsome/You can wear the uniform and I'll play along."
    'Real Men' Lyrics
    Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
    'She Wolf,' Shakira
    The singer whose hips speak the truth may have envisioned this song as call to cast off the shackles of repressive femininity, but the (possibly unintentional) subtext stands as a celebration of letting any and all freak flags fly. Shakira ain't the only she-wolf coming out of the closet.
    Rainbow Connection: 4/5 – Fierce with a capital F.
    'She Wolf' Lyrics
    Jason Merritt, Getty Images
    'Rough Boys,' Pete Townshend
    Before he was put through the wringer for his alleged later-in-life sexual proclivities, the Who frontman paid tribute to rent boys in this track from his 1980 solo album. The tune finds a pale, weedy protagonist trembling in his Hush Puppies as he begs for a rough-and-tumble turn with a swaggering, streetwise bruiser.
    Rainbow Connection: 2/5 – The tune is given a strange twist by virtue of the fact that Townshend dedicated 'Rough Boys' to his children on the album.
    'Rough Boys' Lyrics
    Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
    'Philadelphia Freedom,' Elton John
    Back in 1975, when he released this single, John was troubled and still quite closeted. Nevertheless, 'Philadelphia Freedom,' a tribute to lesbian tennis player Billie Jean King, is a testament to the power of personal choice and the struggles LGBT folks face when they live open and honest lives.
    Rainbow Connection: 3/5 – Anything Elton John sings is dusted with a light coating of glitter – especially when he invokes the name of the City of Brotherly Love.
    'Philadelphia Freedom' Lyrics
    Redferns / Getty Images
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    Reader Comments(1 of 2)

    vote downvote upReportNeutral

    triciaat 6-09-2010

    Good list. I just love Franz Ferdinand, Belle and Sebastian, and Lou Reed. Belle and Sebastian have a lot of songs that mention being gay, like "The State I Am In" and "Seeing Other People". They have some fantastic songs.

    Reply
    vote downvote upReportLowest Ranked

    paulat 6-26-2010

    How can u like Belle and Sabastian and Franz Ferdinan they are both middle class whinging never did a days work mommys boys who had the money to get whwere they are!

    vote downvote upReportNeutral

    PONDERINGPEACEMAKERat 6-10-2010

    What about CONSTANT CRAVING BY K.D.LANG AND HERE COMES THE RAIN AGAIN BY THE EURYTHMICS? I used to live the lifestyle so I know. Still great songs

    Reply
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    Gregat 6-10-2010

    I had always heard that Talk Talk's "It's my life" was the definitive gay anthem.

    Reply
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    Shunk Wat 6-10-2010

    Not sure if it was meant to be but I often consider Mott the Hoople's All the Young Dudes penned by David Bowie should be high on that list?.....After all "Who needs TV when we got T-Rex".....Marc Bolan who performed many blatantly gay friendly tunes himself....By the way anyone ever listen to Two Nice Girls....Have some great tunes like "The Queer Song" and "Let's Go Bonding"....Gretchen Phillips might be the best openly gay singer/songwriter on the planet....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd2HiiRVd-A
    ...And who could ever forget "I Spent My Last Two Dollars on Birth Control and Beer"....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCCPAriHyCE

    Reply
    vote downvote upReportHighest Ranked

    Timat 6-10-2010

    Rock and Roll Queer Bar by Pansy Division.
    Anthem by Pansy Division.
    The Biggest Lie by Husker Du.

    As a queer man (never been gay), there are times I want to get all Stonewall on the sound system at Pride events. I swear, one more playing of 'YMCA' or 'We Are Family' and I will snap.

    Oh, and either Sly Stone's OR Joan Jett's "Everyday People". Given the increasing ugly tendency of 'my' community to divide us into 'good' and 'bad' queers, the sentiment is double-edged.

    Reply
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    Jake D.at 6-10-2010

    Losing My Religion is not about "belief systems". The term is a Southernism about losing your temper. Clearly Michael Stipe is gay and the song may have some gay undertones but if they're there it's not couched in religious language as this writer suggests.

    Reply
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    Elaine0203at 6-11-2010

    The Queen song "I'm in Love With my Car" is just about that I'm afraid. The "straight as an arrow" drummer took vocals but also wrote the song. It is all about a car I'm afraid (I really hope lol he was gorgeous in his day - still is).

    Reply
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    kathy pailleat 6-11-2010

    what about "LOLA"?

    Reply
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    JKSat 6-25-2010

    The Pet Shop Boys' version of "Go West" is more a comment on the end of Soviet Communism (a subject they have referenced in other songs as well) than a gay pride anthem. There are other songs of theirs that are more gay-themed. Having said that, "Go West" is still pretty gay.

    Reply
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    patat 6-26-2010

    Missed the very obvious Sing if your glad to be gay by Tpm Robinson

    Reply
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    Smytheat 6-26-2010

    ...and, of course, the much loved show tune 'Willies, willies, I love willies'.

    vote downvote upReportLow Ranked

    MANDII!!!at 6-26-2010

    GAY PRIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE YUU!!!! (: YAY!!!!!!! FINALLY!!!! ITS HERE PRIDE MONTH!!! ;DDDDD

    Reply
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    Johnat 6-26-2010

    Give it a rest ffs! All that 'gay pride' stuff is merely a public expression of inadequacy....can't you just get on with being ordinary members of society for once???

    vote downvote upReportNeutral

    Bradat 6-26-2010

    Why Id George and Johns photo reversed...Only Paul was left handed or are they both coming out as closet lefties

    Reply
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    Mickat 6-26-2010

    Queen's 'We Are The Champions' is Freddie Mercury's most famous gay song - 'I've paid my dues, time after time, I've done my sentence, but committed no crime' relates to the way gays were / are treated

    Reply
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    Craigat 6-26-2010

    The description of Pete Townshend's Rough Boys is a little off.

    Pete described it as being about Punks who were dressing in bondage gear & otheer similar clothing to the New York gay scene without realising it.

    I'm not sure where the protagonist quaing in his Jush Puppies idea comes from as he wants to "bite & kiss" them, not be bitten. It's pretty aggressive.

    Reply
    vote downvote upReportHigh Ranked

    JESSat 6-26-2010

    What about Rod Stewart's "Georgie" - "In these days of changing ways, so called liberated days. A story comes to mind of a friend of mine. Georgie boy was gay I guess. Nothing more or nothing less. The kindest guy I ever knew....His mother's tears fell in vain the afternoon George tried to explain that he needed love like all the rest...

    Reply
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    dougat 6-27-2010

    why dont they just sing im a poof and then everyone will get it,who cares! i certainly dont need it shoved down my throat "ha ha",.this is the atomic age , i thought we'd all got over who's gay and who insn't.

    Reply
    vote downvote upReportLowest Ranked

    Rogat 6-26-2010

    Bloody queers again ...... just an excuse for being unable to pull a decent bid (or the other way round)
    Shoving s*** uphill is not exactly a normal passtime and, to my mind, disgusting.
    Adold had the right idea with queers ......

    Reply
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