Caroline, No – Dissected
As some of you may know, the Beach Boys’ 1966 album Pet Sounds is my favorite album of all time. It is an absolute masterpiece, straight through. The end track, “Caroline, No” is especially poignant. Written by Brian Wilson and Tony Asher, it features lyrics calling out to an old love who has become lost and sad after the end of their romance. From an earnest perspective, this song is a heart-breaker. Here are the lyrics.
Where did your long hair go?
Where is the girl I used to know?
How could you lose that happy glow?
Oh, Caroline no.
Who took that look away?
I remember how you used to say
you’d never change, but that’s not true.
Oh, Caroline you
break my heart.
I want to go and cry.
It’s so sad to watch a sweet thing die.
Oh, Caroline why?
Could I ever find in you again
things that made me love you so much then?
Could we ever bring ‘em back once they have gone?
Oh, Caroline no.
But try reading the lyrics again from a more feminist perspective. What is the singer really saying? He broke up with Caroline (or she broke up with him). She’s changed, and he’s unhappy about it. Yet should not Caroline be allowed to cut her hair, to be sad that her romance ended? She’s changed, but the singer can’t seem to get over himself, saying that Caroline breaks his heart. But he doesn’t want to find ways to love her anew; instead he wants to find the things that made him love her back when they were still together.
Poor Caroline. She gets out of a relationship with this loser of a guy, gets a haircut, and lets herself bemoan lost romance for a while. Then, the guy keeps calling, telling her that she’s changed for the worse, that she seems like she is dying, just because she isn’t dating him anymore. Even worse, if she listens to all of Pet Sounds, she can see that the singer is definitely depressed. She stuck through tough times with him, but in the end it didn’t work out. So how is that her fault?
Anyway, I still love this album and “Caroline, No” is an exceptional song. But reading the lyrics from a different perspective can definitely bring out a new side of the song.
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