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TL;DR:

  • Shirley Manson of Garbage discovered one of Paul Mccartney’s songs while drinking alcohol.
  • Manson said the song reminds her of her teenage years but she doesn’t know what it means.
  • Paul said the song was inspired by “alternative thinking.”
Shirley Manson of Garbage with a microphone
Shirley Manson of Garbage | Niels Van Iperen / Contributor

Some classic rock songs have lyrics that are hard to decipher. For example, Shirley Manson doesn’t understand the meaning of one of Paul McCartney’s songs. Paul said “alternative thinking” inspired the track.

Shirley Manson of Garbage says 1 Paul McCartney song reminds her of drinking alcohol was she was a teenager

During a 2022 interview with Stereogum, Manson discussed her favorite Paul song. “It was Scotland in the ’80s and four of us schoolgirls were huddled around a record player, pouring over one of our dad’s record collections,” she recalled. “We were all short skirts and long legs thrust into tucker boots, smoking Winston cigarettes and drinking weird mixtures of sneakily appropriated alcohol from our parents’ drink cabinets.”

That was the night Manson first heard “Venus and Mars.” “I’ve never really figured out what the lyrics mean,” she said. “I don’t care. I just like how the words sound together and the gorgeous, wistful melody.” Manson said she thinks of “teenage dreams” whenever she hears “Venus and Mars.”

Paul McCartney explained some of the lyrics of ‘Venus and Mars’

In his 2021 book The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present, Paul discussed the inspiration behind “Venus and Mars.” “It was written in 1974, and in those days — and to some degree today — a lot of people who were into concerts were also into alternate thinking,” he said. “They’d want to know what your sign was, and they’d place some relevance on that.

“I was never like that. As far as I was concerned, Venus and Mars were just two random planets,” he said. “But when we released the record, I realized they’re also characters — people as well as planets.” Paul said he doesn’t perform the song very often.

Related

Paul McCartney Didn’t Realize 1 Beatles Song Could’ve Been About John Lennon’s Mother Until Way After the Fact

How the song performed on the pop charts in the United States and the United Kingdom

“Venus and Mars” was released as a melody with Wings’ “Rock Show.” “Venus and Mars/Rock Show” reached No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for nine weeks. The songs’ parent album, Venus and Mars, topped the Billboard 200 for a week, staying on the chart for 79 weeks in total.

According to The Official Charts Company, “Venus and Mars/Rock Show” did not chart in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, the album Venus and Mars topped the U.K. chart for two weeks, remaining on the chart for a total of 29 weeks.

“Venus and Mars” was inspired by “alternative thinking” — not that Manson cares.

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