Music Review: Sheena Easton "Strut"
Sheena Easton
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Strut
Album: A Private Heaven
Year: 1984
Sheena Easton refuses to degrade herself for a tryst in the bold "Strut."
A swanky beat opens the single, setting a couth tone. In the first verse, Easton is bored at the club. As she sips on her drink, a man sits next to her. He flirts, asking her why she has the long face. He says he knows a way to turn that frown upside down. He compliments her beauty, telling she is as lovely as Helen of Troy. Men show their love for such women by killing each other to prove they are worthy of her.
Further in the verse, they've gotten a hotel room. He tells her to take off her dress. He asks her to put her bra straps on her shoulders. He says that she looks exactly like Helen of Troy. Then, he tells her to be a passive lover.
In the chorus, she says she will not be his own personal porn star for the evening. She tells that she's not a dumb bimbo. She says he only cares about satsifying himself, not her. She threatens to leave.
In the second verse, she says that she's not comfortable having sex with him. With him, she feels like a prostitute. His leather and lace fetish suggests to her that he's into S & M, which isn't her thing. He tells her not to worry about it. Besides, he's already stiffened and far turned on to stop. He asks her to lay next to him and touch him. Sex is something she is great at and she shouldn't reject it.
The chorus is sung again.
In the bridge, she says she won't be a plaything for him to use and then forget.
An instrumental of the chorus follows.
The chorus is sung three times to end the single.
Easton thinks it's going to be another ordinary sexual encounter. However, she soon finds herself in a dangerous situation. The man who picked her up is a misogynist who has a virgin/whore complex. He wants total control of her. He tells her that the only thing she is good for is sex. However, he expects women to be wear sexy clothing and perform stripteases for him. But they have to be demure lambs once he has them in his bed. She fears that he may be into kinkier things and could possibly rape her.
The commanding beat is attention-getting and cocksure. Easton's voice slinks along with the beat. In the verses, she is wispy and tentative, as she thinks how she to leave him without him stalking her. While in the chorus, she is explosive and aggressive.
"Strut" can be called many unpleasant adjectives. Lewd. Pornographic. Racy. However, it proves to be more than just about sex. But there is some social commentary to it, given Easton's assertiveness and feminist stance.
Album: A Private Heaven
Year: 1984
Sheena Easton refuses to degrade herself for a tryst in the bold "Strut."
A swanky beat opens the single, setting a couth tone. In the first verse, Easton is bored at the club. As she sips on her drink, a man sits next to her. He flirts, asking her why she has the long face. He says he knows a way to turn that frown upside down. He compliments her beauty, telling she is as lovely as Helen of Troy. Men show their love for such women by killing each other to prove they are worthy of her.
"He said, baby, what's wrong with you/Why don't you use your imagination/(Oh-no, oh-no)/
Nations go to war/Over women like you/It's just a form of appreciation."
Further in the verse, they've gotten a hotel room. He tells her to take off her dress. He asks her to put her bra straps on her shoulders. He says that she looks exactly like Helen of Troy. Then, he tells her to be a passive lover.
"Come on over here/Lay your clothes on the chair/Now let the lace fall across your shoulder/(Oh-no, oh-no)/Standing in the half light/You're almost like her/So take it slow like your daddy told you."
In the chorus, she says she will not be his own personal porn star for the evening. She tells that she's not a dumb bimbo. She says he only cares about satsifying himself, not her. She threatens to leave.
"Strut, pout, put it out/That's what you want from women/Come on baby, what'cha taking me for/Strut, pout, cut it out/All taking and no giving/Watch me baby, while I walk out the door."
In the second verse, she says that she's not comfortable having sex with him. With him, she feels like a prostitute. His leather and lace fetish suggests to her that he's into S & M, which isn't her thing. He tells her not to worry about it. Besides, he's already stiffened and far turned on to stop. He asks her to lay next to him and touch him. Sex is something she is great at and she shouldn't reject it.
"I said, honey, I don't like this game/You make me feel like a girl for hire/(Oh-no, oh-no)/All this fascination with leather and lace/Is just the smoke from another fire/He said, honey, don't stop a speeding train/Before it reaches its destination/(Oh-no, oh-no)/Lie down here beside me/Oh, have some fun too/Don't turn away from your true vocation."
The chorus is sung again.
In the bridge, she says she won't be a plaything for him to use and then forget.
"I won't be your baby doll, be your baby doll/I won't be your baby doll, be your baby doll."
An instrumental of the chorus follows.
The chorus is sung three times to end the single.
Easton thinks it's going to be another ordinary sexual encounter. However, she soon finds herself in a dangerous situation. The man who picked her up is a misogynist who has a virgin/whore complex. He wants total control of her. He tells her that the only thing she is good for is sex. However, he expects women to be wear sexy clothing and perform stripteases for him. But they have to be demure lambs once he has them in his bed. She fears that he may be into kinkier things and could possibly rape her.
The commanding beat is attention-getting and cocksure. Easton's voice slinks along with the beat. In the verses, she is wispy and tentative, as she thinks how she to leave him without him stalking her. While in the chorus, she is explosive and aggressive.
"Strut" can be called many unpleasant adjectives. Lewd. Pornographic. Racy. However, it proves to be more than just about sex. But there is some social commentary to it, given Easton's assertiveness and feminist stance.