What's the Matter Here

About What's the Matter Here

"What's The Matter Here?" was the third single released from 10,000 Maniacs' 1987 album In My Tribe, following Peace Train and Like the Weather. A live version with lead vocalist Mary Ramsey was also included on their 2016 album Playing Favorites. The song continued the band's slow integration into the mainstream of American commercial radio; it was a number 9 hit on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in 1988 and reached the Billboard Hot 100 as well (the second single by the band to reach the latter chart, after "Like the Weather"). The song, as the rest of the album, was produced by Peter Asher (half of the duo Peter & Gordon, and producer of Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor). The song was written by Natalie Merchant and Robert Buck. In the song, singer Natalie Merchant narrates the role of a woman who notices that her neighbors are abusing their young son, and struggles to balance her desire to speak up for the child with her feeling that she must not interfere in the family's affairs: "I'm tired of the excuses everybody uses/He's your kid, do as you see fit/But get this through that I don't approve of what you do to your own flesh and blood ... I want to say, "What's the matter here?"/But I don't dare say..." more »

Year:

1987

4:51

47 Views

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#1

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That young boy without a name I'd know his face 
In this city the kid's my favorite 
I've seen him I see him every day 
Seen him run outside looking for a place to hide from his father
The kid half naked and said to myself "Oh, what's the matter here?" 
I'm tired of the excuses everybody uses, he's their kid I stay out of it
But who gave you the right to do this? 

We live on Morgan Street
Just ten feet between and his mother, I never see her
But her screams and cussing, I hear them every day 
Threats like: "If you don't mind I will beat on your behind" 
"Slap you, slap you silly" 
Made me say, "Oh, what's the matter here?" 
I'm tired of the excuses everybody uses, he's your kid, do as you see fit
But get this through that I don't approve of what you did to you own flesh and blood 

"If you don't sit on this chair straight 
I'll take this belt from around my waist and don't think that I won't use it!" 

Answer me and take your time
What could be the awful crime he could do at such young an age? 
If I'm the only witness to your madness offer me some words to balance out what I see and what I hear 
All these cold and rude things that you do I suppose you do because he belongs to you 
And instead of love, the feel of warmth you've given him these cuts and sores won't heal with time or age 

And I want to say, I want to say "What's the matter here?" 
But I don't dare say "What's the matter here?" 
But I don't dare say

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10,000 Maniacs

10,000 Maniacs is a United States-based alternative rock band, which formed in 1981 and continues to be active with various line-ups. more »

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