Gotta Keep 'em Separated

viscousmemories · #1 01-22-2010, 02:22 PM

Come Out and Play by The Offspring has a really catchy tune, but has always made me vaguely uncomfortable because the only lyrics I could understand "gotta keep 'em separated", "violence and hate", "tie their own rope, tie their own rope" brought to mind images of racism, lynchings and a plea for segregation. However I never really cared enough to look up the lyrics, so I just never weighed in on the band during a conversation about music.

Anyway this has been going on for years, so when I heard the song at the gym yesterday I finally decided to look up the lyrics online. Now it seems pretty clear that they're talking about gang violence in schools (something that was just starting to become a big problem in SoCal when the song came out). Still, seems like an awkward choice of words to express those thoughts.

Quote:

You gotta keep'm separated

They're like the latest fashion
They're like a spreading disease
The kids are strappin' on their way to the classroom
Getting weapons with the greatest of ease
The gangs stake out campus locale
And if they catch you slippin' then it's all over pal
If one guy's colors and the other's don't mix
They're gonna bash it up
Bash it up x3

Hey, man you talkin' back to me
Take him out

You gotta keep'em separated
Hey, man you disrespecting me
take him out

You gotta keep'em separated
Hey, they don't pay no mind
If you're under 18 you won't be doing any time
Hey, come out and play

By the time you hear the siren
It's already too late
One goes to the morgue and the other jail
One guy's wasted and the other's a waste
It goes down the same as the thousand before
No one's getting smarter
No one's learning the score
Your never ending spree of death and violence and hate
Is gonna tie your own rope
Tie your own rope
Tie your own

Hey, man you disrespecting me
take him out

You gotta keeep'em separated
Hey, man you talkin' back to me
take him out

You gotta keep'em separated
Hey, don't pay no mind
If you're under 18 you won't be doing any time
Hey, come out and play

It goes down the same as the thousand before
No one's getting smarter
No one's learning the score
Your never ending spree of death and violence and hate
Is gonna tie your own rope
Tie your own rope
Tie your own

Hey, man you talkin' back to me
take him out

You gotta keep'em separated
Hey, man you disrespecting me
take him out

You gotta keeep'em separated
Hey, don't pay no mind
If your under 18 you won't be doing any time
Hey, come out and play

Ensign Steve · #2 01-22-2010, 02:33 PM

The Offspring are a bunch of do-gooders whose lyrics are all like "gangs are bad, don't kill people, pot makes you stupid," etc. They're also pretty talented musicians, IMO.

LadyShea · #3 01-22-2010, 02:46 PM

You never knew it was an anti-gang song?

Quote:

If one guy's colors and the other's don't mix
They're gonna bash it up

They used to (maybe still do) have to segregate gangs in the jails to prevent fights. I assumed that was the "keep em separated" part.

Didn't you see Colors?

beyelzu · #4 01-22-2010, 04:53 PM

One day tooling around atlanta in my toyota celica, I was listening to the radio 99x, a guy called up and dedicated this song to a friend who was about to get married and his bride.

The dj was all like, um, keep them separated really?

and the stoner was like come out and play.

Was that person you vm?

Caligulette · #5 01-22-2010, 05:07 PM

I would never have guessed that this was a song about gangs. The only indication (and I am not making this part up) is that instead of getting stuck in my head like a normal song, it somehow morphs into Lowrider. Which is also an L.A. based song. Where they have gangs.

Waluigi · #6 01-22-2010, 05:12 PM

I thought it was advocating underage sexual intercourse.

I heard the lyric as "If you're under 18 we can do it any time".

Nullifidian · #7 01-22-2010, 06:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beyelzu

One day tooling around atlanta in my toyota celica, I was listening to the radio 99x, a guy called up and dedicated this song to a friend who was about to get married and his bride.

The dj was all like, um, keep them separated really?

and the stoner was like come out and play.

Was that person you vm?

It could have been worse: he could have dedicated the song "Self-Esteem" to the groom and his bride.

Self-Esteem - The Offspring

Quote:

When she's saying that she wants only me
Then I wonder why she sleeps with my friends
When she's saying that I'm like a disease
Then I wonder how much more I can spend
Well I guess I should speak up for myself
But I really think its better this way
The more you suffer
The more it shows you really care
Right? yeah yeah yeah

Now I'll relate this little bit
That happens more than I'd like to admit
Late at night she knocks on my door
She's drunk again and looking to score

Now I know I should say no
But it's kind of hard when shes ready to go
I may be dumb
But I'm not a dweeb
I'm just a sucker with no self esteem

MortalWombat · #8 01-22-2010, 07:14 PM

As a side note, the lead singer of the Offspring, Dexter Holland, has a Masters degree in Molecular Biology and was as Ph.D. candidate in Molecular Biology from USC. I was in grad school in Cell and Molecular Biology at the time when they got big in the early 90s, and thought it was kind of cool.

Lauri D · #9 01-22-2010, 09:45 PM

Huh. I never really dissected the lyrics, despite loving the song, so you have done my job for me! I love it when that happens!

My favorite part was always "if you're under eighteen you won't been doing any time... hey, hey, come out and play!"

Which is technically not true. They can try you as an adult after, I think, the age of 15. Immaterial.

Now I got another song to add to my iTunes list!

Janet · #10 01-23-2010, 09:09 PM

I always knew it was about gangs, but I preferred one of my friends' take on it. He called it the Italian eyebrow song. Now it's the only thing I can think of when I hear "gotta keep 'em separated". :giggle:

Cliche Guevara · #11 01-23-2010, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Waluigi

I thought it was advocating underage sexual intercourse.

I heard the lyric as "If you're under 18 we can do it any time".

That's what I always thought, too.

Gonzo · #12 01-24-2010, 07:52 PM

I am wearing an Offspring shirt right now.

I always thought it was about gang violence. Richard Cheese did a better version.
This is him:

YouTube- Richard Cheese Performing Baby Got Back...

They were the first band I really got into when I was a kid before my music taste widely expanded, so I've always felt they've deserved my respect. I saw them at Warp Tour in 2005 and that was pretty cool. When My Chemical Romance took stage I went and had a corn dog instead. Anyway, Offspring is really hit or miss. Their newest album "Rise and Fall" had a few good singles but the majority of it was whiney and annoying. I dig the fast paced stuff. I'm surprised no one has made mention of:

YouTube- The Offspring - Original Prankster