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havenots:

LOUISVILLE SLUGGER

So, Steve asked me to write a little something for the ol’ blog explaining what this song is about.  The cheap, quick, and easy answer is that it’s about dealing on some dude with a baseball bat cos he beat up his girl, but in reality it’s about NOT dealing on a dude with a baseball bat.  I’m sure most of us have known (or will know, at some point in our lives) a girl who’s gotten mixed up with the wrong guy (or vice versa, or a guy who’s gotten mixed up with the wrong guy, or a girl who’s gotten mixed up with the wrong girl, whatever), and sometimes that guy is REALLY the wrong guy, and pulls some really fucked up shit, and it seems like the right thing to do to is go beat the ever-loving shit outta that guy.  BUT, the reality of most domestic abuse situations is that taking actions like that is only gonna perpetuate the cycle, and, ultimately, it’s not your decision to make.  So despite the fact that every bone in your body is telling you to go beat the guy to a bloody pulp, taking a step back and trying  to be supportive is a better first move. Trying to talk your friend into breaking off the relationship, reporting the abuse, and seeking counselling is a good place to start.  Social services aren’t perfect, and they’re understaffed and losing more funding every day, but at least they’re trying.  So before you grab that bat, or tire iron, or whatever, stop and think for a minute about the ramifications of your actions.  I despise the tyranny of the strong over the weak, and I’m all about advocating violence towards men that beat women, but only after all other options have been examined and exhausted.  So yeah, I guess that’s what this one is about.

Cheers, Jon&HN

LYRICS:

Tomorrow she’ll put make-up on the bruises, tomorrow she’ll be making up excuses, but I’ve known you since we were three, what makes you think you can lie to me, and I’m trying to respect your privacy, despite the fact that it’s killing me…

You say you love him but I don’t know why, he beats you up, he don’t provide, so you’re stuck working doubles down at the local dive, dodging dirty hands for a petty wage but you bottle up the rage cos you gotta survive…

I got a Louisville Slugger in the back of my ride, make the call and I’ll be there by your side, hey girl you don’t have to take that shit from anybody…

That sticky summer night in his backseat, he made you bleed, planted his seed, now you’ve got not one but two more mouths to feed, I know you wanted your kid to have a dad but name is not the same as deed…

I know you know there’s more to life than this, taking the blame, the pain, whenever he gets pissed, nothing stronger than a mother’s love for her only kid, except for maybe her battered bones, bruised by blows from his father’s fists…

I got a Louisville Slugger in the back of my ride, make the call and I’ll be there by your side, hey girl you don’t have to take that shit from anybody, got a Louisville Slugger in the back of my ride, say the word and I’ll make him fucking cry, you are my friend I will defend until the end…

What happened to the girl that I once knew, I remember way back when, when nobody could tell you what to do, now you just sit there and let ‘em turn the screws, hey girl I’ve said my piece, the rest is up to you…

I got a Louisville Slugger in the back of my ride, hey girl you gotta decide if this is how you wanna live your life, trapped like a rat in a bad situation, frozen by feelings of fear and frustration, Louisville Slugger in the back of my ride, it’s yours for the taking, your rage more than justified, seeing red, black and blue, and you know that it’s true, yeah you know he won’t stop til you’re through.

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