Bitch (Meredith Brooks song)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Bitch" is a song that was released by Meredith Brooks in 1997 on her album Blurring the Edges.
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Premise
The song has a drum machine rhythm with a guitar accompaniment and riffs that emphasize the word "bitch" throughout the chorus.
The lyrics deal with the viewpoint and feelings of somebody deemed a bitch, the chorus proudly enumerating the various contradictory facets of women e.g. "I'm your hell, I'm your dream."
History
The song was cowritten by Brooks and Shelly Peiken. Initially, some radio stations preferred not to mention the name of the song and would instead refer to it as "a song by Meredith Brooks". However, with the climbing popularity of the song, its name became more commonplace to announce on the air. When the song first hit the airwaves, most call-in listeners believed the song was by Alanis Morissette due to the similar sound and Morissette's success in rock music at the time. To this day, people still think the song is one of Morissette's. Later on, different remixes of the song became popular in dance clubs.
Brooks has stated in interviews that "Bitch" was almost omitted from the album, reportedly because of the song's strong language (containing the word 'Bitch'), which could have prevented it from becoming a radio hit. However a friend loaned her the money to help record the song and encouraged her to do so.
Success
The song steadily rose on the Billboard Charts, eventually peaking at #2, and became an international success, being a hit in countries such as the UK and New Zealand. It ranked #79 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s.
Despite numerous attempts, Brooks hasn't managed to repeat the popularity and commercial success of "Bitch", and is therefore commonly seen as a one-hit wonder.
Music Video
A music video was released to promote the single. It features Brooks on guitar with a flower background swirling behind her. As the song plays, different feminine objects float by showing the softer side of womanhood, such as dolls, babies, and dresses—this visually shows a juxtaposition to the common connotations of a bitch.
Parodies
Australian comedian Chris Franklin wrote a parody titled "Bloke", which portrayed a stereotypical Australian man describing his way of life. Franklin's heavy Australian accent became a distinguishing feature, and the song eventually made it to #1 on the ARIA charts in 2000 whilst continuing to enjoy enormous popularity within Australia.
American comedian Mark Eddie composed a parody titled "Dick", which appears on his indie release "Rock N Roll Cuts Part 2". The song features typical stereotypical behavior and attitude of "white trash" males with some exceptions; as indicated by the line "I'm a loser, I'm a creep; I sleep around with sheep".
