It was a moonlit night in old Mexico
I walked alone, between some old adobe haciendas.
Suddenly, I heard the plaintive cry of a young Mexican girl….
La-la-la! La-la-la-la-la-la-la-laaa! etc.
You better come home, Speedy Gonzales
Away from Tannery Row
Stop all of your drinkin’
With that floozie named Flo
Come on home to your adobe
And slap some mud on the wall
The roof is leakin’ like a strainer
There’s loads of roaches in the hall
La-la-la-la!
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales)
Why don’t you come home?
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales)
How come you leave me all alone?
Hey, Rosito, I hafta go shopping downtown for my “mudder”
She needs some tortillas and chili “paypers”
Your doggy’s gonna have a puppy
And we’re runnin’ outta coke
No enchiladas in the icebox
And the television’s broke
I saw some lipstick on your sweatshirt
I smelled some perfume in your ear
Well, if you’re gonna keep on messin’
Don’t bring your business back-a-here
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales)
Why don’t you come home?
Speedy Gonzales (Speedy Gonzales)
How come you leave me all alone?
Hey, Rosita come quick! Down at the cantina
They’re giving green stamps with tequila!!
This posting seems to emote several responses in my mind. What is meant by “acceptable discourse?”
Is it, (1) Today’s gatekeepers dictating “polite” discourse would not allow stereotyped comments about another culture [Certainly this can’t be true, witness the almost universal stereotypes of the entire Muslim world and all Muslims in it!], or (2) Today’s gatekeepers of polite discourse would not allow so much sexual innuendo [This seems unlikely too as in all sorts of lyrics these day. Recent Washington Post article about country music songs: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/10/06/jason-aldean-florida-georgia-line-and-the-evolution-of-sex-songs-in-country-music/ ] or (3) Some combination of inane innuendo of cultural stereotype and sexual proclivity. Just sayin.
I agree that Muslims in general can be targeted for a certain kind of mockery or hostility, too. As I wrote, “There are still plenty of acceptable cultural targets of mockery”. This is probably because of the certain ethnic loyalties of certain people in certain entertainment-related and media-oriented places in the USA.
As for this song in particular, today it would be much more likely a Hispanic poking fun at a White American than vice versa. In other words, fifty years later, the roles of singer and target of satire (if that is how we can understand the “Speedy Gonzalez” song) would be reversed.
Mitt Romney was mocked endlessly for being, essentially, a Normal White American — how boring! how unappealing! Imagine if Eisenhower were running for president today.
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