Marianne Faithful - Broken English down Gropecunt Lane

Broken English is a truly remarkable album that deserves its place in the annuals of English history somewhere alongside Gropecunt Lane.

The first artist to use “cunt” with its more precise, anatomical meaning in mind was also the first woman on record to utter it in a pop song: the incomparable Marianne Faithfull, on her 1979 comeback masterpiece Broken English. The former ’60s folk darling and Rolling Stones associate had spent two years homeless in London, battling drug addiction; fusing punk, new wave, and reggae,  Broken English was a frayed-nerve statement from a woman who had been through hell and back. Adapted from a Heathcote Williams poem, its final track,  “Why D’Ya Do It?” tells the tale of a woman confronting her unfaithful lover: “Why d’ya do it, she screamed, after all we’ve said/ Every time I see your dick I see her cunt in my bed.” 

Faithfull wields the C-word purposefully. The rage and emotional rawness of her delivery perfectly echoes the blunt force of the line, and “Why D’Ya Do It?” remains one of the most powerful songs Faithfull has ever recorded. But not all of her fans got to hear it: The workers at the Australian EMI plant where the record was pressed were so offended by the song’s lyrical content that they staged a walkout, resulting in smooth vinyl inserts being pressed in place of the “Why D’Ya Do It?” track. The proper version of  Broken English wasn’t released in Australia until 1988. Even in a country where using “cunt” as a synonym for “mate” is relatively commonplace, the response to “Why D’Ya Do It” shows that using the word in a more sexualized context is apparently still likely to ruffle some feathers. A Fascinating History of the "C Word"

Now I'll shut up and let the music do the talking.

Download Baron von Luxxury's mix or three of them.

When I stole a twig from our little nest

And gave it to a bird with nothing in her beak,

I had my balls and my brains put into a vice

And twisted around for a whole fucking week.

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you let that trash get a hold of your cock, 

get stoned on my hash?

Why'd ya do it she said, why'd you let her suck your cock ?

Oh, do me a favour, don't put me in the dark.

Why'd ya do it, she said, they're mine all your jewels,

You just tied me to the mast of the ship of fools.

Why'd ya do it, she said, when you know it makes me sore,'

Cause she had cobwebs up her fanny and I believe in giving to the poor.

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you spit on my snatch?

Are we out of love now, is this just a bad patch?

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you do what you did ?

You drove my ego to a really bad skid.

Why'd you do it, she said, ain't nothing to laugh,

You just tore all our kisses right in half!

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd ya do what you did,

Betray my little oyster for such a low bitch.

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you do what you did ?

You drove my ego to a really bad skid.

Why'd ya do it, she screamed, after all we've said

Every time I see your dick I see her cunt in my bed.

The whole room was swirling,

Her lips were still curling.

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you do what you did

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you do what you did

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd ya do it, she said,

Why'd you do what you did?

Oh, big grey mother, I love you forever

With your barbed wire pussy and your good and bad weather.

Why'd ya do it, she said, why'd you do what you did ...Ah, I feel better now.

Lyrics