In his pink party dress
You never would guess
He benches 335
Has Calie gone country? I think not! I like some of the old country rock stuff (Neil Young, The Eagles, etc.), but I'm not a big country fan.
Once in a while, however, if I hear a country song with a good tune and good lyrics, I may even decide I like it.
With Bobbi With An I, I'm just not sure if I like it or not. I do like the tune and I do like the lyrics. Not sure about the video. Rebecca, Jennifer and I were talking about this over coffee and the discussion centered around the video. This is clearly a song about crossdressing and if you take a close look at the lyrics, I would say that the song is good for the transgender community, especially since much of the American country music audience is rather conservative. The video, however, mocks crossdressing, in our opinion, presenting more of a stereotypical view of the TG community. Maybe we're wrong. Bobbi clearly does not pass, but that is probably the case with many of us, no? Please leave a comment and let everyone know what you think.
Bobby was a linebacker and is now a tow truck driver who won't take shit from anyone. He also lives a secret life as a crossdresser (transvestite for everyone else in the world, American's excluded). I must say that I do know a few Bobbi's, so the concept is not out of line.
When I said I liked the lyrics, this is the line that caught my eye:
“we live and let live, that’s how it is/nobody gives a second thought these days.”
Nice, eh? In your dreams?
As I write this, Bobbi With An I is the current single for Phil Vassar, released in 2009. I believe it will be on an album with the same name.
So who is Phil Vassar? Per Wikipedia"
Phil Vassar (born May 28, 1964, in Lynchburg, Virginia) is an American country music artist. Vassar made his debut on the country music scene in the late 1990s, co-writing singles for several country artists, including Tim McGraw ("For a Little While", "My Next Thirty Years"), Jo Dee Messina ("Bye, Bye", "I'm Alright"), Collin Raye ("Little Red Rodeo"), and Alan Jackson ("Right on the Money"). In 1999, he was named by ASCAP as Country Songwriter of the Year.
Later that same year, Vassar was signed to Arista Nashville as a recording artist. His debut album, Phil Vassar, was released in early 2000; it produced five hit singles on the U.S. Billboard country singles charts and was certified gold in the United States. He followed it in 2002 with American Child, Shaken Not Stirred in 2004, and finally Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 in 2006 before Vassar left the label for Universal South Records. His first album for that label, Prayer of a Common Man, was released in early 2008. He has charted eighteen singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including two Number Ones: 2000's "Just Another Day in Paradise" and 2004's "In a Real Love".
You can read a review of the song on The Bilerco Project for another TG opinion. I found it via a Google search but will not read it until I have posted this. Don't want to be influenced but I can't wait to read what this blogger has to say about it.
For a mainstream country music review of the song, go here.
The lyrics:
Wooo
Yeah baby
That's right now
C'mon
Here we go!
Alright now
I I I I I...
I I I I I...
Well Bobbi's been a friend since I can't remember when
We all went together to school
A linebacker, a quarterback sacker
Yeahhh Bobbi he's as strong as a mule
So imagine our shock
'Bout ten o'clock down at the Whistle Stop one weekend
Yeah the whole place stopped
You coulda heard a chin drop
The minute he walked in
Cuz it was Bobbi with an I
{Chorus}
He isn't just one of the guys
In his pink party dress
You never would guess
He benches 335
You better watch how much you drink
He might look better than you think
If it's the big-boned girl with a platinum curl
Hey then don't be surprised
Yeah that's just Bobbi with an
I I I I I...
I I I I I...
Now Monday mornin' he'll be be drivin' that tow truck
And he ain't takin' no lip
He's been known to knock a few teeth out
If you ask him for a beauty tip
So we live and let live
That's how it is nobody gives a second thought these days
But if somebody hollers
"Hey there's a chick in the men's room!"
We just smile and say
No that's just Bobbi with an I
{Chorus}
He isn't just one of the guys
In his pink party dress
You never would guess
He benches 335
You better watch how much you drink
He might look better than you think
If it's the big-boned girl with a platinum curl
Hey then don't be surprised
Yeah that's just Bobbi with an
Hey (Hey) Who's that girl (Who's that girl) with those shapely sexy thighs?
That's just Bobbi with an I
{Chorus}
He isn't just one of the guys
In his pink party dress
You never would guess
He benches 335
You better watch how much you drink
He might look better than you think
If it's the big-boned girl with a platinum curl
Hey then don't be surprised
Yeah that's just Bobbi with an
I I I I I...
I I I I I...
Lyrics from lyricsmode.com
I am not a follower of country music either, and I saw this video a few weeks ago. I like the song, and especially that line, “we live and let live, that’s how it is/nobody gives a second thought these days.” I thought the video was funny.
ReplyDeleteBut it left me feeling strangely disturbed. It knocked my confidence down a notch, even though it obviously had nothing to do with me. This is more my problem than a problem with a video, I think.
Yes, it is about crossdressing, and crossdressing is under the transgender rainbow. And I am going through some reconfiguring in my own thinking of what I am. I thought I shared something with crossdressers, just a tad more extreme. But I really don't like wearing dresses. I want to fit in as a normal middle-aged woman.
But I worry about being "big-boned". So much of the song is about how masculine Bobbi really is - and don't mistake him for being feminine or he'll deck you. He is not me, but I worry that I am more like Bobbi than I'd like to think. Totally irrational. I probably can't bench 35, let alone 335. I hated football. I will give you a beauty tip if pressed. I am not like Bobbi - but.....
I think what disturbed me is the theme of "nobody cares, we live and let live, have fun, as long as you know you're just a man in a dress". Phil Vassar seems like a decent guy, and may even be trans supportive. But that underlying theme is disturbing - it is probably a good video for me to have seen at this point in my development.
I personally love Phil Vassar's work. He's a songwriter first, and has written some of the best love songs out there (imo). This song, however, is not about crossdressing. It's a song based on a friend of his, who used crossdressing as a tool to pick up chicks. Sure, nobody blinks an eye at the bar anymore, as the joke has gotten old, and yet still works for Bobbie - but you won't see him out and about on the town. It's not about feminine expression for him - it's about that "wow" factor that gets the girl's attention. It's a disgusting use of gender-bending to get laid. Personally, this song has tainted my opinion of Phil...
ReplyDeleteWait, cross-dressing because it's sexy is disgusting now? : (
ReplyDelete