Song of the Week: Goody Two Shoes

Adam Ant, formerly of the Ants  . . . And the Ants. Whatever. By the time I had clued in, he had left the Ants behind

Let’s get this out of the way—appropriation. Yup, no doubt about it. He shouldn’t have latched on to the Native American vibe the way he did. I mean, it wasn’t Grey Owl, but it was an Englishman using another culture as an affectation. It was wrong.

Here’s where I’m not certain—and I am ready to be taught different. His use of some stereotypical Native American musical tropes was at least part of what made his songs distinctive. It made his sound in the Kings of the Wild Frontier-days unique. And isn’t borrowing musical motifs part of advancing music? I mean, the Beatles did it as well—different musical culture. I honestly don’t know. I do know I like the result.

I stumbled upon Adam when he was Ant as opposed to And The Ants—research suggests it was probably early in 1983—but it was Kings of the Wild Frontier that hooked me. “Goody Two Shoes” interested me, and so I went looking at the local music store—we lived really close to the mall, and it had a record store in it (this was the 1980s!). I can’t explain why I chose Kings of the Wild Frontier rather than Friend or Foe—the album with “Goody Two Shoes” on it. Maybe it was to cover, with the 18^th century cosplay on it. Whatever the reason, it was because of Kings that I ending getting Dirk Wears White Socks, Prince Charming, and Friend or Foe.

For me, it was diminishing returns. Kings was something special. The others were good—Dirk was very different but good in its own way—but in my ears they were all kind of carbon copies of Kings. That was the Platonic ideal of an Adam (and the) Ant(s) album.

And it was really my first “alternative” album purchase—even before Bowie! For extra points, the album was a cassette, . . . and I played it on a cheap rip-off walkman, not an actual Sony.

So, while “Goody Two Shoes” isn’t my favourite Antmusic—that’s probably “Dog Eat Dog”—it’s the song that introduced me to Adam (with or without the Ants). And that’s a good thing.