The Goo Goo Dolls’ Naked is a song that speaks to the heart. So many people have had so many interpretations for this anthem that no one’s willing to come forward to say it definitely means anything. For my Freedom Friday post I’d like to tell you what I think of this song and of what it means to me.
Recorded in 1995, Naked by The Goo Goo Dolls has raised questions among musical aficionados everywhere. Some have attributed this song to the band’s struggles with stardom within the music scene. Some have said this song is more about loneliness. To whom shall we lend credence?
When I first heard the song, it made me stop and listen. Something about it gripped my imagination and stirred my conscience. I suppose we all have something that moves us. An event. A photograph. This song, however, gave me pause, and I don’t think I would have looked beyond the meaning of the lyrics if it wasn’t for the Stairway to Heaven tribute guitar solo three-quarters the way through.
Now, I know you may be unfamiliar with the song, so I decided to reprint the lyrics here for your reading pleasure.
Naked
Yeah I’m fadin’ and I call out
No one hears me
Never been, never felt, never thought I’d say a wordWeighed down
Safe nowYou’re naked inside your fear
You can’t take back all those years
And shots in the dark from empty guns
Are never heard by anyone
Never heard by anyoneYeah I’m hiding in the fallout
Now I’m wasted
They don’t need me, don’t want me, don’t hear a word I sayWeighed down
Safe nowYou’re naked inside your fear
You can’t take back all those years
And shots in the dark from empty guns
Are never heard by anyone
Never heard by anyoneInside your head
No one’s there
And I don’t think I’ll ever be
And I don’t careYou’re naked inside your fear
You can’t take back all those years
And shots in the dark from empty guns
Are never heard by anyone
Never heard by anyone
By anyone
By anyone
The verse that absolutely shines for me is “you’re naked inside your fear.” I thought about this a lot. I think what it means is in our most vulnerable state—naked—fear is what dictates our behavior. This could mean physical or non-physical nakedness. Fear is a powerful component to our willingness to either live a life befitting of joy or walk around like zombies, never experiencing life’s true happiness.
Additionally, true joy, joy without fear, is being naked to the world having love in our hearts and in our minds. It’s not being afraid of injury by anyone while we accomplish the mission to love others as ourselves. Not to sound too preachy but to me, if we love others as ourselves, we’ve done all we could do to live a life worth living.
Have you ever heard of the song Naked? What do you think the underlying message is?
I appreciate your insight and analysis (and the message). Thanks for your positivity. 🙂
Fear robs you of blessings and happiness. I have a friend that personifies this concept and he is miserable everyday. You can’t lead a productive and fruitful life if fear rules the day!
wow!!! loved the post
I’m familiar with Goo Goo Dolls but not this song. I think for me, I would have loved to see this song stripped down and performed in an acoustic setting. The lyrics are so powerful that it didn’t need all that extra sound behind it. I’ve seen the Behind the Scenes on VH1 with the Goo Goo Dolls and the lead singer John Rzeznik years ago. Rzenik definitely fought a lot of demons during his life. During the interview he talked about leaving the TV on at night when he was sleeping because it made him feel like he wasn’t alone. For some reason, that part of the interview stood out the most for me. I could identify with feeling lonely. The underlying message for me is about being alone and feeling like no one hears or cares. As usual Jack, you make a sister think sometimes. 🙂
I can see where you’re coming from with the loneliness factor. It has that feel to it and the song definitely oozes angst. I wanted to approach it from a different angle though. I guess that’s why it took me fifteen minutes to write this post, but a whole hour to get the wording right in the last two paragraphs. I didn’t want it to sound too preachy, but I also didn’t want to water it down.
Thank you always, Lakeshia, for your phenomenal support. I count you as a genuine fan of my work!
You are so very welcome Jack!!!