Meredith Brooks - Bitch

Back in 1997, when Meredith Brooks looked more like a surgery-free Demi Moore than the lovechild of Juliette Lewis and the cheekbone-heavy Brian Littrell of the Backstreet Boys (except older than both), she was successful. Well, for a year.

‘Bitch’ is one of the most often-quoted songs by girls on Facebook and MySpace when it’s all about them justifying why they’re nauseatingly annoying and immature, though somehow blameless for the culture they create for themselves (the line ‘I’m a mother’ often comes up, especially if they’re 15).

Nonetheless, it’s hard to blame them for reciting it. It’s a great song, though it’s suffered from wanton overplaying by the likes of Smooth and Magic. If you want to catch the song, it’s on when they do the occasional power hour and stray away from the relaxing favourites that we all love to hate, but which seem so nice on a Sunday morning when we’re nursing a hangover. In fact, ‘Bitch’ will probably be on during the Saturday night, when you’re creating said hangover.

Meredith seems to believe that blokes all love schizophrenics. To be honest, most men would want to have it “any other way” if she’s admitting to being both hell and dreamy (or accept it as inevitable – HAY AM I RITE GUYZ?). Then again, she pretty much sells it with the line “I’m a tease / I’m a goddess on my knees”. Most guys are keen to overlook faults, after all.

Needless to say, the song was heavily censored elsewhere in the world, not least for being simply called ‘Bitch’ (‘Nothing in Between’ was its working title elsewhere).

However, it nearly didn’t exist. Brooks repeatedly says that she nearly left the tune off her album Blurring the Edges because she didn’t expect it to be adored. Of course it was going to be a success, though, given that she empowered a generation of angry underage girls young enough to giggle at the swear word but sufficiently dissatisfied with life to make it their motto.

So, relive your rebellious days in style, or that time in 1997 when you heard this song and shrugged. Your call. It’s not a bad song, though.

BONUS! Aussie comedian Chris Franklin covered it, giving the opposite perspective. Called ‘Bloke’, it went to number one in the Antipodes. Better than the number six Meredith got here in the UK (though still managed number one in the US Top 40).

By Matt Gardner