For My Sunday Song #407, we get to Harrison’s next pick with “Excuse Me Mr.” by No Doubt. The song was the fourth single of their massively successful album ‘Tragic Kingdom’. The album that broke the band in to the big time. The single was released on August 21, 1996 and reached #17 on the U.S. Alternative Charts and #11 in New Zealand. The album itself, with the help of this song on the other singles, went to #1 on the charts and has sold over 16,000,000 copies worldwide with close to 10,000,000 of those in the U.S. alone. A rather successful album and song which was written by Gwen Stefani and Tom Dumont.

The song appears to be about a man that the girl is interested in, however, he doesn’t seem to give here the time of day. The old story of two people that have known each other for years where one likes the other, but those feelings are not reciprocated. Unrequited love. She keeps waiting, but he isn’t ever going to come around. 

The song starts off as pure Ska and Gwen spits out those lyrics fast and frenetic with her signature high pitched little squeal that she has. So much confidence in her delivery. The song is upbeat and at a crazy speed with a barrage of drum hits from the wild Adrian Young, a slamming bass by the master Tony Kanal. Midway through the song, the music changes to more like a Dixieland big band sound with an almost circus quality which I think is to represent the lunacy of the girl waiting around for this guy to like her. A brilliant little twist to the song. The sounds of this song is what No Doubt was at heart rather than the pop sound that would come later.

Give the song a listen and let me know what you think. Although I always liked the more pop side of No Doubt, there is no denying the Ska side of the band is a blast. Thanks to Harrison Kopp for all the choices for this 10 song set. Go check him out on Grab a Stack of Rock as co-host and on his Instagram page where he has a ton of Lego artwork.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=it1aZBPuH4w%3Fsi%3D0sLfBz9OPSazRIAn

“Excuse Me Mr”

Oh, I’m like a beggar with no luck
I’m holding signs up on your street corner stops
Like most, you try not to see me
Stare straight ahead, ignore the responsibility

Excuse me (Excuse me, mister)
Well I’ve been waiting in line
And I’d like to buy some of your time
I’m very anxious, eager, willing
What’s your billing? (Anxious, eager, willing)

So please excuse me, mister
You’ve got things all wrong
You make it feel like a crime
So don’t confuse me, mister
I’ve known you too long
All I need is a little of your time

Oh, for most, love comes for free
They don’t pay the high cost of mental custody
I’ll pay bail for a guarantee
Make space for me in the time yet to be

Excuse me (Excuse me, mister)
Well I’ve been waiting in line
And I’d like to buy some of your time
And I’ve been saving up my life
What’s your price? (Saving up my life)

So please excuse me, mister
You’ve got things all wrong
You make it feel like a crime
So don’t confuse me, mister
I’ve known you way too long, boy
All I need is a little of your time

What should I do? I’m about to crack
And there’s a force that comes over me
It’s almost as if I’m tied to the tracks
I’m waiting for him to rescue me
The funny thing is, he’s not going to come
He’s not going to find me
This is a matter of fact, the desire you lack
This is the way I guess it has to be
A little of your time
I need a little of your time
Please, a little of your time, yeah

So please excuse me, mister
You’ve got things all wrong
You make it feel like a crime
So don’t confuse me, mister
I’ve known you way too long, boy
All I need is a little of your time

Ooh, I’m in line to buy time
I’m in line to buy time
I’m in line to—
I’m in line to—
Excuse me
Well I’ve been waiting in line
Excuse me
Excuse me, mister

Writer(s): Gwen Stefani, Thomas Dumont