When I got to the party
They gave me a forty
And I must've been thirsty
'Cause I drank it so quickly

When I got to the bedroom
There was somebody waiting
And it isn't my fault
That the barbarian raped me

When I went to get tested
I brought along my best friend
Melissa Mahoney
Who had once been molested

And she knew how to get there
She knew all the nurses
They were all really friendly
But the test came out positive

Uh-oh

I've seen better days but I don't care
I just sent a letter in the mail

When I got my abortion
I brought along my boyfriend
We got there an hour
Before the appointment

And outside the building
There were all these annoying
Fundamentalist Christians
We tried to ignore them

Oh-oh

I've had better days but I don't care
Oasis got my letter in the mail

When vacation was over
The word was all over
That I was a crack whore
Melissa had told them

And so now were not talking
Except we have tickets
To see blur in October
And I think were still going

Oh-oh

I've seen better days but I don't care
Oh I just got a letter in the mail

Oasis sent a photograph
Its autographed and everything
Melissa's gonna wet herself
I swear


Lyrics submitted by iggy1110

Oasis Lyrics as written by Amanda Palmer

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Oasis song meanings
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40 Comments

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  • +5
    General Comment

    This song portrays youth in such a honest but kinda creepy way. Serious, life changing things aren't considered important (rape, molest, pregnancy, abortions) and are just shrigged off, whilst lives revolve around gossip, stupid arguments and music.

    a great example of amanda's genius

    neverbrainon August 26, 2008   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    I love this song. I think the contrast between what the voice is actually saying and the happy upbeat music is just a tad ironic, ha. It is definitely the voice of the typical adolescent. Experiencing rape/molestation/abortion/backstabbing friends but having none of it move her in anyway because going to a concert or hearing from Oasis is more important, significant that it overshadows all else and puts it in the dark.

    I know I've had things happen to me, that really should have traumitized me maybe. But I completely disregard it.

    I think in today's society, the youth of today, as a whole we're just completely desensitized to these things...

    perfectXfiton September 12, 2008   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    I think it's a pretty obvious song- Amanda had a really bad day but Oasis got her letter so it's okay!

    Oh Amanda, you silly bitch.

    madman885on September 20, 2008   Link
  • +3
    General Comment

    I really don't think that she's mocking rape survivors here, even if they seem to be making light of their experience. That's, in fact, a common coping mechanism, focusing on something that's seemingly trivial when you've just been through something that's too big to deal with. The fact that she keeps saying, "I don't care, I don't care" sounds more like she's trying to convince herself, not that she really means it. If I'm wrong, then I've been reading all of Amanda Palmer's lyrics horribly, horribly wrong. This is something she does fairly often- sing about something in a flippant, trivial way, while really talking about something deep and painful. So I think it's a song about a high school girl trying to deal with a rape, an abortion, and the betrayal of her trust by her best friend that causes the entire school to cast her out as a crackwhore, and doing it by focusing on music and her favorite bands and telling herself that none of it really matters. That's also quite common, especially in teenagers. Lord knows I wouldn't have survived high school without a few of my favorite songs.

    random6x7on February 11, 2009   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    Bavaria's a province in southern Germany, actually.

    I really, really love Amanda Palmer, solo or with the Dolls. This is just one of many moments of brilliance.

    Signeon September 22, 2008   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    I don't think that it is slugging off trauma that makes the subject matter juvenille. Obviously the content centers around some youth trauma. But even as a 26 yr old who loves music, I really relate to the notion that after going through trauma, there are some passions (even if very small) that can make it all seem okay.

    I remember when I found out that I was HIV positive. I laid around crying, thinking I was going to die. Then I got a Garbage CD single in the mail with a b-side called "Betcha." The song was so great that it caused me to snap out of my misery and realize life isn't so bad after all.

    GarbageGuyon September 23, 2008   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    firt: i love this song, its lyrics and i love amanda!

    I worry that most of the people who read the songlyrics interpret them wrongly. Amanda doesn't want to say: "oh, look at all these stupid girls who just fuck around"...or "silly youth today"... The lyrics want to showhtat today many many girls and young women don't see or ignore the fact that still there ist much abuse, specially sexual abuse going on and that women are often treated unrespectfully and wrong. we just have no talk and debates about that, because we say, "we have equal rights" or, horrifyingly: "boys are just like this" or "men just want sex" and so on...mad maaad world!

    kathleenhannahon October 21, 2008   Link
  • +2
    General Comment

    This song reminds me a lot of me. I've never been raped, but I think she just uses that as an example of a really terrible thing that can happen to someone. She compares the plight of being raped with the excitement of getting a letter from a favorite band. Amanda actually replied to a letter I wrote her, and that's how I felt. It didn't matter what was going on at the time - knowing that Amanda Palmer read and responded to my letter was all that mattered at the time.

    I love how she dedicated this song to Sarah Palin, the moronic bitch who changed Alaska's law which now makes rape victims PAY for their own rape kits.

    atillathehunnieeon November 30, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    i just think mellissa is a bitch blank look

    toostr82bgayon August 27, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    No, no, it is "barbarian" - barvarian is like a Swiss cream dessert, but barbarian is a pejorative term for an uncivilized person.

    I love this song. So upbeat, but delivering such a hush-hush topic. I rememeber first listening to it in the car, a sliding a little when I heard the first notes thinking "WHAT?!" - my chai latte went everywhere.

    MandyBowieon September 21, 2008   Link

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