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The Guess Who — American Woman
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bachbeet
Posted: Mar 22, 2013 - 23:13
 
I always liked this one.  Like oldsaxon, I also liked undun, these eyes, etc.

coloradojohn
(A Mile High and then some, Cherry Creek, Denver)
Posted: Mar 22, 2013 - 23:10
 
Lordy, YES!  Summit County, CO, Summer and Winter of '84...but also amazingly ripping were When You Touch Me, Undun, and No Sugar Tonight/ New Mother Nature Suite...
and this, still as radical and bad-assed a song now as ever...Jam it!

zepher
Posted: Feb 19, 2013 - 12:58
 
Killer Tune.  Here's another version w/ a cameo.  Guess who? 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8cHE6Q93FY



skyguy
(CO)
Posted: Feb 19, 2013 - 12:53
 
Had the 45-right next to my Grand Funk Railroad.

hbs47
(SE England)
Posted: Jan 19, 2013 - 05:07
 
I expect Canada has smaller death count from guns than America. Nothing to be jealous about there eh ?

Great song BTW.

Never gets lame asking people to guess who is playing this. 

I kind of like Canadian acts, Neil Young, RUSH, Leonard Cohen,The Band,Cowboy Junkies, Daniel Lanois and William Shatner.

gypsyman
(just passing through....)
Posted: Jan 19, 2013 - 05:05
 
 Carrizito wrote:
Ah give me a break....this belongs in the dust bin
 
For realio?

Carrizito
(Albuquerque, NM)
Posted: Dec 18, 2012 - 20:41
 
Ah give me a break....this belongs in the dust bin

oldsaxon
(Wales via Vancouver, BC.)
Posted: Oct 17, 2012 - 03:28
 
 Kokoloco53 wrote:
All right, that does it. I'm from the era, and The Guess Who has always been a favorite, and their anthem song American Woman is truly a classic, but I also like the jazz favorite, Undun, These Eyes and Laughing. But I understand that the yournger listeners could be critical, I just didn't think they would have created such an uproar politcally regarding Canada, our brothers from the north of the Amercian continent. Are we not all Americans, from the north pole to the southern streches of Argentina? Amerigo Vespucci was one of the first explorers of the Americas and is where our name comes from. C'mon, lighten up, enjoy the day, dig it.
 
I had a laugh. I seriously hope it was supposed to be funny.

cosmiclint
(Vancouver BC)
Posted: Sep 15, 2012 - 14:20
 
 Kokoloco53 wrote:
Are we not all Americans, from the north pole to the southern streches of Argentina? Amerigo Vespucci was one of the first explorers of the Americas and is where our name comes from. C'mon, lighten up, enjoy the day, dig it.
 
Amen, my American brother :)

rdo
(DC)
Posted: Jul 14, 2012 - 16:20
 
 fredriley wrote:

The 'military-industrial complex' was identified by a US Pres, Eisenhower no less, way back in 1961. All that's changed since then is the size and influence of this system. Only yesterday Pres Obama, flanked by various bemedalled top brass and pointy-heads, announced military spending cuts and 'realignment of forces' (see BBC story) - it'll be interesting to see if the complex defeats that proposal.

Not that it's got anything to do with this song, mind - it just came to mind when I saw your post, so I thought I'd throw in my 2 cent's worth (Euro cents, naturally).

 

True, Ike coined the term.   I'd slash that damn budget in half. Supposed to be for defense. Our defense.  I'd slash all government in half, though, so I don't think you and I are speaking the same language.  I do find it amusing though to hear Europeans complaining about subsidies going out of the US and abroad, smack dab into their coffers.  These bases are subsidies, you know, to the host country.  It's you guys sucking Uncle Sam's big ole Yankee teat.  Please, ask us to leave, kick us out.  I beg you! Good luck on your governments allowing that.

smackiepipe
(Western North Carolina)
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 13:11
 
Rometuma's consistant, that's for sure. I always chuckle and find it endearing in a Forrest Gump kinda way. I have no problem with him. He likes what he likes, and nothing else floats within his bubble.

Monkeysdad wrote:

Classic indeed...one that didn't need a re-do by Lenny Kravitz whatsoever!
 
Agreed!

BikeCoachDave
(Columbia, Ky.)
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 12:57
 
 romeotuma wrote:


Everybody in my hotel room loves this song...

 
 
Romeotuma, have you ever met a song you didnt rate a 10? Isnt there another forum online somewhere you might post your countless political articles and your silly 'everybody in my hotel room....' comment that is sprinkled some 3K times on RP?

yellowfish
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 12:56
 
Apparently, this song was mostly improvised (the lyrics that is) as the band was just in this groove and Burton stepped to the mike and started with that classic line. Would never have made it to vinyl had not there been someone in the studio with a tape recorder...one of the first of the kind..

RainTarp
(Boston)
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 12:56
 
Sounds like that kid on American Idol right now, Philip Philips.  {#Beat}

Monkeysdad
(Simi Valley, CA)
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 12:55
 

Classic indeed...one that didn't need a re-do by Lenny Kravitz whatsoever!

dw
(PHill, CA)
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 12:52
 
Classic....guess you had to be there!
 

(former member)
(hotel in Las Vegas)
Posted: Mar 09, 2012 - 21:00
 


Everybody in my hotel room loves this song...

 

Kokoloco53
(Safford, AZ)
Posted: Jan 06, 2012 - 09:12
 
All right, that does it. I'm from the era, and The Guess Who has always been a favorite, and their anthem song American Woman is truly a classic, but I also like the jazz favorite, Undun, These Eyes and Laughing. But I understand that the yournger listeners could be critical, I just didn't think they would have created such an uproar politcally regarding Canada, our brothers from the north of the Amercian continent. Are we not all Americans, from the north pole to the southern streches of Argentina? Amerigo Vespucci was one of the first explorers of the Americas and is where our name comes from. C'mon, lighten up, enjoy the day, dig it.

fredriley
(Nottingham, UK)
Posted: Jan 06, 2012 - 09:03
 
 kcar wrote:

We'll have to disagree about the influence of the American military on American government officials. I'm not talking about deployments—and neither were you with your ship and plane numbers. I'm talking about military budgets and weapons systems. It is insanely hard to kill a weapons project because contractors and lobbyists pressure Congress and the White House to keep boondoggles alive. Contractors also spread work and jobs on a project over many states to maximize federal government support and prevent cuts. 

As a recent Wired article put it: "While a relative handful of troops fight and die "downrange" in war zones, a massive bureaucracy develops strategies, spends money, and—most especially—builds weapons, all in the name of theoretical, decades-hence showdowns. It's a $500 billion perpetual motion machine."

Bush I, Clinton, Bush II and Obama have all fought to control our military budgets and taken heat for it. American military expenditures in 2010 were about 6 times larger than those of China which has the world's 2nd-largest military. Whom are we competing with now? 

"The only ones you find talking about 'drawbacks to having the world's largest military' are those who want to spend that money on their own enthusiasms."
 
The 'military-industrial complex' was identified by a US Pres, Eisenhower no less, way back in 1961. All that's changed since then is the size and influence of this system. Only yesterday Pres Obama, flanked by various bemedalled top brass and pointy-heads, announced military spending cuts and 'realignment of forces' (see BBC story) - it'll be interesting to see if the complex defeats that proposal.

Not that it's got anything to do with this song, mind - it just came to mind when I saw your post, so I thought I'd throw in my 2 cent's worth (Euro cents, naturally).


Lrobby99
(Wisconsin, USA)
Posted: Jan 06, 2012 - 08:58
 
I was just a kid and I thought this was horrible then. Earns a Sucko-Barfo.

and for the record consider Canadians pretty smart.

kcar
Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 22:57
 
 aelfheld wrote:

First off, I'm not 'snarking' about the Canadian military - the loss of its once vaunted military is a bad thing for Canada.

If you think the military tail wags the American dog, then you've been watching entirely too many silly movies and not bothering to pay attention to actual military deployments.  The only ones you find talking about 'drawbacks to having the world's largest military' are those who want to spend that money on their own enthusiasms.

As for the bit about Canadians being 'jealous', that was a throw-away line about a song irritating ab initio.
 

Actually, your original post is pretty snarky. And too long to make the "jealous" and "resentful" summation a mere throwaway line. 

Btw, a stable and prosperous democracy like Canada does not lose its military like a set of car keys. If elected Canadian governments reduced or merely maintained a level of military capability, they did so as an expression of voters' wishes. I'm not sure how its present military strength "is a bad thing for Canada." Are the Inuits on the warpath? 

We'll have to disagree about the influence of the American military on American government officials. I'm not talking about deployments—and neither were you with your ship and plane numbers. I'm talking about military budgets and weapons systems. It is insanely hard to kill a weapons project because contractors and lobbyists pressure Congress and the White House to keep boondoggles alive. Contractors also spread work and jobs on a project over many states to maximize federal government support and prevent cuts. 

As a recent Wired article put it: "While a relative handful of troops fight and die "downrange" in war zones, a massive bureaucracy develops strategies, spends money, and—most especially—builds weapons, all in the name of theoretical, decades-hence showdowns. It's a $500 billion perpetual motion machine."

Bush I, Clinton, Bush II and Obama have all fought to control our military budgets and taken heat for it. American military expenditures in 2010 were about 6 times larger than those of China which has the world's 2nd-largest military. Whom are we competing with now? 

"The only ones you find talking about 'drawbacks to having the world's largest military' are those who want to spend that money on their own enthusiasms."

Dick Cheney, is that you? 




aelfheld
Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 15:26
 
 kcar wrote:
My bad—read your post too quickly. But I'm still a bit confused as to why you think that Canadians should be jealous or resentful about the relative size of their armed forces. Most Americans these days will tell you that there are  plenty of drawbacks to having the world's largest military. Too often the tail wags the dog. 

Btw—how did you jump from a song about American women to snarking about the Canadian military? 
 
First off, I'm not 'snarking' about the Canadian military - the loss of its once vaunted military is a bad thing for Canada.

If you think the military tail wags the American dog, then you've been watching entirely too many silly movies and not bothering to pay attention to actual military deployments.  The only ones you find talking about 'drawbacks to having the world's largest military' are those who want to spend that money on their own enthusiasms.

As for the bit about Canadians being 'jealous', that was a throw-away line about a song irritating ab initio.


kcar
Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 14:07
 
 aelfheld wrote:

Neither resentful nor jealous.

I'm not Canadian.

{#Cheesygrin}
 
My bad—read your post too quickly. But I'm still a bit confused as to why you think that Canadians should be jealous or resentful about the relative size of their armed forces. Most Americans these days will tell you that there are plenty of drawbacks to having the world's largest military. Too often the tail wags the dog. 

Btw—how did you jump from a song about American women to snarking about the Canadian military? 

apd
(Toronto, On)
Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 13:57
 
prefer Lenny's version.

aelfheld
Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 13:48
 
 kcar wrote:
My friend, if you checked out the percentage of the US federal budget going to the military (as "defense") and explored the modern-day instances of the American "military-industrial complex" that Eisenhower warned about, then you'd be neither resentful nor jealous. 
 
Neither resentful nor jealous.

I'm not Canadian.

{#Cheesygrin}



cohifi
(Denver)
Posted: Nov 03, 2011 - 22:48
 
not sure it should have 6.8 score, either

xtalman
(What dimension?)
Posted: Oct 03, 2011 - 09:05
 
 Ahnyer_Keester wrote:
This should be followed by something, anything by BTO.
 
Nothing in the list of available tunes, would be sweet though.


mchernaik
Posted: Oct 03, 2011 - 09:04
 
 jenseda wrote:
Give me the Guess Who.  They have the courage to be drunken buffoons.
 
The greatest piece of gobbledy-gook...


kcar
Posted: May 30, 2011 - 12:53
 
 aelfheld wrote:

Canada once had the 3rd largest navy in the world: now, well you've fewer ships than the Philippines.

Canada's troops were once considered so tough they were assigned one of the worst beaches at Normandy: now, well you've got maybe a 1,000 more troops than Saudi Arabia.

Canada once had a decent air force: now, you've got 30 more aircraft than Mexico.

In every category Canada, which once boxed well outside of its weight, is hardly more capable than any third-rank country dependent on others for their defense.

So, yeah, jealous.  Resentful, too.
 

My friend, if you checked out the percentage of the US federal budget going to the military (as "defense") and explored the modern-day instances of the American "military-industrial complex" that Eisenhower warned about, then you'd be neither resentful nor jealous. 

 

Ahnyer_Keester
(Chicago Il)
Posted: May 30, 2011 - 12:48
 
This should be followed by something, anything by BTO.

aelfheld
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:21
 
 pdemeester wrote:
Ya, that's right . . . we're jealous. {#Wink}
 
Canada once had the 3rd largest navy in the world: now, well you've fewer ships than the Philippines.

Canada's troops were once considered so tough they were assigned one of the worst beaches at Normandy: now, well you've got maybe a 1,000 more troops than Saudi Arabia.

Canada once had a decent air force: now, you've got 30 more aircraft than Mexico.

In every category Canada, which once boxed well outside of its weight, is hardly more capable than any third-rank country dependent on others for their defense.

So, yeah, jealous.  Resentful, too.



fingerpin
(oHIo)
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:07
 
 capandjudy wrote:

... A friend of mine saw Led Zeppelin around 1970 and said that they closed out the evening with this song. 
 
That's hawt! {#Yes}


Lakeview
(Great White North)
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:04
 
 marcucho wrote:
 
Well said!

Lakeview
(Great White North)
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:03
 
 aelfheld wrote:

It's a bunch of Canadians.  They're jealous.
 
Ya, that's right . . . we're jealous. {#Wink}

Ahnyer_Keester
(Chicago Il)
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:03
 
 michaelc wrote:
Cool in 68.
 Lame in 2010
 

If you're referring to the lame remake, I agree. The original is still the best and still cool.

acolt
(Pittsburgh, PA)
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:03
 
Okay, yes, it's repetitive, but it's just so much fun to listen to and shout along with. Sometimes, simple is awesome.

gesmith54
(Seatlle, Wa)
Posted: Mar 28, 2011 - 09:03
 
The rating on this song has more to do with memories of those times ...

(former member)
Posted: Jan 24, 2011 - 15:46
 
 dmax wrote:
Musically, it's boring. Same repetitive chords.
Throw Burton's abrasive vocals in there (mostly improvised, I believe)
add Bachman's Fripp-tone lead

Rockin' !
 
I agree with this completely.


michaelc
(Walnut Creek, CA)
Posted: Jan 24, 2011 - 15:45
 
Cool in 68.
 Lame in 2010

aelfheld
Posted: Dec 24, 2010 - 07:04
 
 jenseda wrote:
Give me the Guess Who.  They have the courage to be drunken buffoons.
 
You're more than welcome to them.


socalhol
(Seattle)
Posted: Nov 22, 2010 - 14:18
 
Love this song — especially nice to hear the intro, that part is new to me — I don't believe commercial radio ever plays that intro part?

jenseda
(Small Town Southwest)
Posted: Nov 22, 2010 - 14:17
 
Give me the Guess Who.  They have the courage to be drunken buffoons.

lemmoth
(NYC)
Posted: Nov 22, 2010 - 14:12
 
 macadavy wrote:

According to the 'Song Info' link above, the last three lines are:

"Goodbye, American woman
Goodbye, American chick
Goodbye, American broad ..."

But I like romeotuna's version better, too!

 
Alway's thought it was Goodbye, American bitch


martinc
(Ottawa Canada)
Posted: Jul 18, 2010 - 06:08
 
Back in the day I must have seen the Guess Who 50 times, from when they played here to 100 people to arena shows. They were great live and could jam away to any song they did. I remember them doing a bang up job of Dear Mr. Fantasy one night. They got lots of airplay on this song and it still gets a reaction from listeners. I rate it high as I am glad to see them in the mix but there are lots of other Guess Who deep tracks that could get played. This guitar riff is up there with smoke on the water as first riffs learnt by new guitar players! (Of my vintage at least.)

HazzeSwede
(Vinyl Land)
Posted: Jul 18, 2010 - 06:06
 
That Harry Potter dude..play's in so many bands !{#Rolleyes}


fingerpin
(OhiO)
Posted: Jun 16, 2010 - 09:14
 
 tipper wrote:
Are american women really that bad?
 
I always thought it was intended to be a metaphor for America in general; I think it is this verse specifically that formed this opinion for me...

American Woman, said get away ...
I don't need your war machines
I don't need your ghetto scenes

{#Ask}



aelfheld
Posted: Jun 16, 2010 - 09:11
 
 tipper wrote:
Are american women really that bad?
 
It's a bunch of Canadians.  They're jealous.


DigitalJer
(Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)
Posted: Jun 16, 2010 - 09:11
 
 tipper wrote:
Are american women really that bad?
 
hehe :)  The women are fine!  The song is more about America herself, questioning some of her motives and actions.

aelfheld
Posted: Jun 16, 2010 - 09:10
 
I disliked this song when it came out and I've found that time has done nothing to lessen my despite.

Peace_tode
(Atlanta)
Posted: May 15, 2010 - 14:33
 
Interesting mix. Drums completely in one channel. I have to admit this was one of my favorite songs along with No Sugar Tonight when I was 9 yrs old.