How did the lyric
“Karma, karma, karma, karma, karma chameleon” make it past the first draft?
It’s one of those things that you accept without analysis; like Yellow Submarine, or Anne Robinson’s career. Then suddenly, without warning, you see it with fresh eyes - and think to yourself, “what the hell is that all about?”
(With Anne Robinson this happens almost instantly.)
I'd always assumed it was “come-a, come-a, come-a, come-a, come-a chameleon” as a kid. How wrong could I be? God, I was a dick. Karma chameleon makes much more sense.
Except it doesn’t scan well. Try singing the chorus out loud, pronouncing the word ‘karma’ correctly. It sounds about as convincing as a Christian rock song.
Karma Chameleon's genesis* intrigues me. Did they start with the title and then pad the rest out? If not, which word came first: karma or chameleon? I know that pop songs don't need to make sense, but at what point did something so abstract seem marketable?
But marketable it was. Boy George’s mystically-tinged reptilian anthem reached Number One in the UK, USA and just about every other major country on the planet. This goes to show what I know about writing hit singles.
Still: bloody catchy, wasn’t it?
It’s one of those things that you accept without analysis; like Yellow Submarine, or Anne Robinson’s career. Then suddenly, without warning, you see it with fresh eyes - and think to yourself, “what the hell is that all about?”
(With Anne Robinson this happens almost instantly.)
I'd always assumed it was “come-a, come-a, come-a, come-a, come-a chameleon” as a kid. How wrong could I be? God, I was a dick. Karma chameleon makes much more sense.
Except it doesn’t scan well. Try singing the chorus out loud, pronouncing the word ‘karma’ correctly. It sounds about as convincing as a Christian rock song.
Karma Chameleon's genesis* intrigues me. Did they start with the title and then pad the rest out? If not, which word came first: karma or chameleon? I know that pop songs don't need to make sense, but at what point did something so abstract seem marketable?
But marketable it was. Boy George’s mystically-tinged reptilian anthem reached Number One in the UK, USA and just about every other major country on the planet. This goes to show what I know about writing hit singles.
Still: bloody catchy, wasn’t it?
*Not Genesis. Boy George.