It's Probably Me

[Question]: The song It's Probably Me originally appeared on the Lethal Weapon 3 Soundtrack. Which version came first?

[Sting]: This version was second. I wanted this record to be very much a, uh, a, a, record, if you like, of my work over six months. Or seven months. And I wrote this song during this period. I actually wrote it for Eric. Him and Michael Kamen were doing the soundtrack and they phoned up and said, "You know, maybe you could write a theme song." And, um, they played me the theme that they'd used in the previous two movies. So I adapted the changes in that and wrote a melody and a, and some lyrics. The hard thing was, you know, what do you write about? And they said, "Well, it's a "buddy" movie. We want a "buddy" song." So, having, having seen LETHAL WEAPON, I thought, well, they're kind of buddies who can't really express, you know, they can't really say, "I love you." It's that male thing. So there's a kind, there's going to be a kind of reticence. Uh, uh, I was sort of searching my mind for a sort of phrase that would, would give the impression of reticence and yet deep love. And so, so, it's the idea of "it's probably me. (laughs) You know? If there's someone out there who's gonna, you know, save your life or who you can count on. It's probably me. And, and the word, "probably," kind of clenched it for me. So, I sent it back to Warner Brothers and Michael Kamen went, "Oh, we love it! It's great! Why don't you sing it?" I said, "Nah! I'm washing me hair this weekend," y'know? And they said, "Oh, come on!" So, I, I came over to New York and sang it. And Eric played - played a beautiful guitar solo. So, then I decided that I'd like to do it with the band in a different way. And I think, um, it was just different. I don't think it was better or worse. I think that what we arrived at is a slightly more nocturnal sound. And I think it's important too, that the skeleton of a song is, is what you build on. And the record is only a blueprint. And so, uh, you can change and adapt. Change keys, change, change the structure, change the feel, change the vibe. Just breathe new life into it every time you do it, otherwise, it's, you know, you set it in stone and it's dead.

How come everyone thinks this lyrics is referring to 2 people or friendship ??,

I guess sting is talking about only one person or some loner, no one else, he is lonely and taking care of himself.

I hate to say it I hate to say it, but it's probably me

What a cool song. It makes me thing of one of my best friends. We get in fights all the time. We're very different guys, but with strong bonds. I hope Bryan and I will be friends for a lifetime.

Heard this song for the first time when I saw Lethal Weapon 3. It's a different version than the one on the album. Regardless, this is a fantastic song. It shows the power of one true friend/romance. Peace

This is about a loner, who's only friend is himself. Sting, you are a genius!

Sting and Eric Clapton (who really are friends) wrote this song together for Lethal Weapon 3. Sting said he liked the idea of writing a song about buddies for a change instead of a romantic song. He's since done it again in "My Funny Friend and Me."

mmm I'm thinking you could be right, sixguntz. Maybe it´s a song about a solitary guy who speaks of himself. Anyway I like to see it as one of the best songs about true friendship.

[Sting]: It's Probably Me (1992) is co-written by Eric Clapton and Michael Kamen. They'd done a bit of music and they asked me to turn it into the theme tune to 'Lethal Weapon 5' or whatever it was (it was 'Lethal Weapon 3'). I wondered what the hell I could write that would suit 'Lethal Weapon' and I finally chose the buddy movie theme. I figured that the Mel Gibson and Danny Glover characters were big macho guys who'd have some reticence about expressing their love for each other, so they'd say, if you need someone to stop you getting killed, it'll probably be me. I think Eric was quite bemused to see what I'd done to his music.

reminds me of the friendship with my best friend, im 21 and am in college now and he's in the navy and probably deploying to iraq sometime after new years. thing though is that we've been since like we were four or five years old - through and through kind of sh*t - and despite us being on separate sides of the country right now and pretty soon different continents i know that the lyrics to this song speak of exactly what's between the two of us and that something, no matter what happens, will never die

I know this song probably wasn't written with such a specific idea in mind, but the lyrics make a lot of sense if you think of it as Murtaugh from LW1 ruminating on his somewhat unlikely friendship with Riggs.

Murtaugh knows that he is Riggs' only friend, and despite being a grounded family man with lots to live for, he admits reluctantly that he would be willing to risk his life for his partner.