Disappointing how little respect this song gets. People reacting to the old pop play it got, and because they take it at face value. Don't take any FoW songs at face value! This is not a "your mom's hot" song; it's a "I've got problems" song.
It begins like a mantra, obsessively: "Stacy's mom has got it goin' on", over and over.
In the first verse, the narrator starts off innocuously enough, but his intent (as he soon clumsily betrays) is manipulation. He is forward with Stacy in an attempt to get over to her house, "smoothly" inserting his real intent ("Did your mom get back from her business trip?") before dropping the first, uh, uncomfortable moment: "Is she there or is she trying to give me the slip?" The mom is on a business trip; there's no reason to believe she would be trying to "give the slip" to her teenage beau. (And even if she were, the narrator seems to have no problem disrespect that wish.)
The pre-chorus "I'm not the little boy I used to be" indicates some background: the narrator likely has a long-term history with Stacy and her family, from when he was a "little boy". Sounds like he's developed some sort of attachment from afar. He uses the childish self-assertion of maturity to assure that he's "grown-up" enough to be a suitable mate for Stacy's mom, even in the face of adversity. (Seeing "adversity" in every aspect of life strikes me, personally, as a very "teenage" and immature mindset. "I know it might be wrong but" would win no points for me.)
The next verse is really the narrator making a case for why Stacy's mom, in his mind, is mutually returning his interest. He's out there, mowing the lawn, the mom comes out (in admittedly compromising attire) and suddenly he's on cloud 9 because she seems to be really studying him. Then she says, "You missed a spot over there." For any normal person, this would be the realization that they're being silly. She wasn't "staring" at him. She was noticing a patch of grass that he missed and bringing it to his attention. And still, this is the "reason" why he can "tell she liked [him]".
Finally we get to the big, albeit subtle, reveal: "I know that you think it's just a fantasy / but since your dad walked out your mom could use a guy like me". There we have it! The event! His half-assed acknowledgement that this must appear to other people as a fantasy, but in actuality, he intends to fill the role left empty by the absence of Stacy's father.
This happened early, it would seem, and likely the impetus for the narrator's obsessive attachment to Stacy's family. He's clearly had an adoring relationship with her family since he was a boy, and I submit that, in the wake of the father's retreat -- he constructed a sexualized, fantasy scenario wherein he saves the family (the mom, specifically) from this betrayal.
That final reveal builds in a discordant crescendo and ... then silence. It drops flat. The narrator is too far lost in his reverie, however, and, the secret out, he explodes into the final chorus of declarations of his intent; manic, obsessive declaration of his love; and unanswered assertions that, sorry Stacy, even though (as he seems to indicate) you love me, I'm tied inextricably to your mother.
The narrator is nuts. He's living in a potentially dangerous, neurotic, fantasy world. This song, like the rest of the album, exists within this veil of suburban mundanity and, as such, sounds light-hearted and harmless. The whole thing is much darker than it seems, and you're stunting your appreciation of this art if you don't read between the lines!
Disappointing how little respect this song gets. People reacting to the old pop play it got, and because they take it at face value. Don't take any FoW songs at face value! This is not a "your mom's hot" song; it's a "I've got problems" song.
It begins like a mantra, obsessively: "Stacy's mom has got it goin' on", over and over.
In the first verse, the narrator starts off innocuously enough, but his intent (as he soon clumsily betrays) is manipulation. He is forward with Stacy in an attempt to get over to her house, "smoothly" inserting his real intent ("Did your mom get back from her business trip?") before dropping the first, uh, uncomfortable moment: "Is she there or is she trying to give me the slip?" The mom is on a business trip; there's no reason to believe she would be trying to "give the slip" to her teenage beau. (And even if she were, the narrator seems to have no problem disrespect that wish.)
The pre-chorus "I'm not the little boy I used to be" indicates some background: the narrator likely has a long-term history with Stacy and her family, from when he was a "little boy". Sounds like he's developed some sort of attachment from afar. He uses the childish self-assertion of maturity to assure that he's "grown-up" enough to be a suitable mate for Stacy's mom, even in the face of adversity. (Seeing "adversity" in every aspect of life strikes me, personally, as a very "teenage" and immature mindset. "I know it might be wrong but" would win no points for me.)
The next verse is really the narrator making a case for why Stacy's mom, in his mind, is mutually returning his interest. He's out there, mowing the lawn, the mom comes out (in admittedly compromising attire) and suddenly he's on cloud 9 because she seems to be really studying him. Then she says, "You missed a spot over there." For any normal person, this would be the realization that they're being silly. She wasn't "staring" at him. She was noticing a patch of grass that he missed and bringing it to his attention. And still, this is the "reason" why he can "tell she liked [him]".
Finally we get to the big, albeit subtle, reveal: "I know that you think it's just a fantasy / but since your dad walked out your mom could use a guy like me". There we have it! The event! His half-assed acknowledgement that this must appear to other people as a fantasy, but in actuality, he intends to fill the role left empty by the absence of Stacy's father.
This happened early, it would seem, and likely the impetus for the narrator's obsessive attachment to Stacy's family. He's clearly had an adoring relationship with her family since he was a boy, and I submit that, in the wake of the father's retreat -- he constructed a sexualized, fantasy scenario wherein he saves the family (the mom, specifically) from this betrayal.
That final reveal builds in a discordant crescendo and ... then silence. It drops flat. The narrator is too far lost in his reverie, however, and, the secret out, he explodes into the final chorus of declarations of his intent; manic, obsessive declaration of his love; and unanswered assertions that, sorry Stacy, even though (as he seems to indicate) you love me, I'm tied inextricably to your mother.
The narrator is nuts. He's living in a potentially dangerous, neurotic, fantasy world. This song, like the rest of the album, exists within this veil of suburban mundanity and, as such, sounds light-hearted and harmless. The whole thing is much darker than it seems, and you're stunting your appreciation of this art if you don't read between the lines!
Fuck my comment in the eye. Holy shit! I don't have enough thumbs up to give you.
Fuck my comment in the eye. Holy shit! I don't have enough thumbs up to give you.