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Under my thumb
The girl who once had me down
Under my thumb
The girl who once pushed me around
It's down to me
The difference in the clothes she wears
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Ain't it the truth babe?
Under my thumb
The squirmin' dog who's just had her day
Under my thumb
A girl who has just changed her ways
It's down to me, yes it is
The way she does just what she's told
Down to me, the change has come
She's under my thumb
Ah, ah, say it's alright
Under my thumb
A Siamese cat of a girl
Under my thumb
She's the sweetest, hmmm, pet in the world
It's down to me
The way she talks when she's spoken to
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Ah, take it easy babe
Yeah
It's down to me, oh yeah
The way she talks when she's spoken to
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Yeah, it feels alright
Under my thumb
Her eyes are just kept to herself
Under my thumb, well I
I can still look at someone else
It's down to me, oh that's what I said
The way she talks when she's spoken to
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Say, it's alright.
Say it's all
Say it's all
Take it easy babe
Take it easy babe
Feels alright
Take it, take it easy babe.
The girl who once had me down
Under my thumb
The girl who once pushed me around
It's down to me
The difference in the clothes she wears
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Ain't it the truth babe?
Under my thumb
The squirmin' dog who's just had her day
Under my thumb
A girl who has just changed her ways
It's down to me, yes it is
The way she does just what she's told
Down to me, the change has come
She's under my thumb
Ah, ah, say it's alright
Under my thumb
A Siamese cat of a girl
Under my thumb
She's the sweetest, hmmm, pet in the world
It's down to me
The way she talks when she's spoken to
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Ah, take it easy babe
Yeah
It's down to me, oh yeah
The way she talks when she's spoken to
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Yeah, it feels alright
Under my thumb
Her eyes are just kept to herself
Under my thumb, well I
I can still look at someone else
It's down to me, oh that's what I said
The way she talks when she's spoken to
Down to me, the change has come,
She's under my thumb
Say, it's alright.
Say it's all
Say it's all
Take it easy babe
Take it easy babe
Feels alright
Take it, take it easy babe.
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What many people fail to read in these lyrics is the lyrics at the beginning of the song which are:
"Under my thumb
The girl who once had me down
Under my thumb
The girl who once pushed me around."
I am a male who is an advocate for abused women either physically, mentally, or both. There is never a time when any type of abuse is acceptable. Mick Jagger said in a 1998 interview that this song was written as a joke in response to a female that he dated at one time that as the beginning of the song states "Once had him down, once pushed him around" so he wrote the song as if the shoe was on the other foot but it was a joke and it never happened.
People that take this song to serious don't realize the fact's for one and two, are looking for something to bash anyone about regarding anti-feminism lyrics, etc. You could do that with just about any song by any band, by a male singer or a female singer. It's all in what you want to take from a song and how far you want to take it. Are they role models? No, and I don't think the Stones ever pretended to be.
What I find ironic is when a male writes a song like this it is viewed as a song that condones abuse, etc. When a woman writes a song like this most times she is held in high regards for finally breaking free from the cycle of abuse and so on. As I mentioned I am a male and I was in an abusive relationship for nearly 7 years both physical and mental but I was the one who was abused. So that goes both ways but of course woman are the ones abused more often than men, but when a man admits he's been abused he takes a lot of flack from friends, etc. and little support is available for him.
My point is if you don't like a song you don't have to listen to it. Make sure you know what it's about and why it was written. And enjoy music, it's a great escape.
About the last part of your comment.
You'd think that the girl would be insulted and embarassed, not complimented, because it's not just him sitting back and laughing at her, it's him telling millions of people how he's taking advantage of you, and you're just going along with it.
This blues-rock, xylophone-accompanied ditty is absolutely perfect. Mick Jagger's delivery is so unapologetic. Really a great example of why the Stones are of the most respected rockers ever.
Classic!
I personally dislike this song so much that I've recorded other music over it both places it appears in my Stones tapes.
boy likes girl, but she rejects him. once he stops, she suddenly realizes that she likes him back. so now he feels he can do what he likes with her, cause now she'll do anything for him.
um, yeah...it's about control.
song rocks, weird message.