The Random iTunes Fairy is inadvertently jumping the gun here, unaware that I’m planning a theme week on Sinead O’Connor. This track wasn’t in the lineup, though, so no harm, no foul.
‘Just Call Me Joe’ is the final track of O’Connor’s impressive 1987 debut album, The Lion and the Cobra. For those (like me) whose first exposure to the bald songstress was through the quiet elegance of ‘Nothing Compares 2 U,’ this album was eye-opening.
O’Connor’s full range of emotions is on display in The Lion and the Cobra. Anger, fear, lust, you name it. And what a voice. She later worked pretty hard to sabotage her career but her undeniable talent always shone through.
Into the city, slander all eyes
We found a great love as we fell inside
They could not touch us as we’d go by
I’ve seen you the first time in Trogny’s bar
But I’ll see you later, we’ll talk of black
We’ll meet up for sure, oh will we not?
Away from all of the friends that you’ve got
Oh no, oh no
I said don’t call me sir
Just call me Joe
Don’t call me lady
Just call me Joe
Don’t call me mister
Oh, just call me Joe
Don’t call me sweetheart
Just call me Joe
You wear the best clothes that I’ve ever seen
I’ve seen your light and your poetry
And it’s the best thing that there’s ever been
You’re both the beauty and the beast
That’s how it is and that’s how it end
Into another city where you live far away
That’s how it is and that’s how it end
You’ve seen my face but you’ve never heard my name
Oh no, oh oh
I said don’t call me sir
Oh, just call me Joe
Don’t call me lady
Just call me Joe
Don’t call me mister
Just call me Joe
Don’t call me sweetheart
Just call me Joe
A whole theme week on Sinead? Interesting.
My first exposure to Sinead was “Mandinka,” which was a big hit when I was in college. I don’t recall owning the album, however, and ultimately became far more familiar with, and owned, her next hit record, “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” containing “Nothing Compares to U”
I love her voice