Henry Rollins’ lusty poem in honour of Madonna
Black Flag played with such vicious ferocity on stage that after they finished a set, it seemed like they’d be as hot to the touch as a freshly fired fajita skillet from TGI Fridays. When Henry Rollins joined the band in 1981, they burned an illuminating trail that beckoned the last few groups staying true to punk to follow them towards a hardcore future.
Roaring as hot as a dragon’s nostril, Black Flag became a subculture so pungent that the mainstream couldn’t help but notice them. In some ways, Madonna was no different. Of course, she wasn’t a punk in a musicological sense, but her grasp on liberated performance put conservatives’ noses out of place in an equally evocative way, and she didn’t just force the mainstream to make room for her, but rather she forced it to catch-up.
This was one of the reasons Rollins fell in love with her, the other was old-fashioned lust. As he wrote in his LA Weekly column on that very subject: “She took more flak than any woman who ever hit a stage. She didn’t flinch. She stood down the world. She did it her way and continues to. She always wins and because of her, countless millions have been inspired.”
Evidence of that flak comes from none other than Joni Mitchell, who once said: “Madonna can be seen as a feminist hero because she’s exploiting her own sexuality rather than being exploited by some man. That’s an interesting idea, but what’s the difference between her and a hard hooker, you know? Who’s being exploited there? She’s revelling in herself, too,” she said, before adding: “She’s got that whore-Madonna thing built-in [laughs]. She’s like a living Barbie doll but a little bit on the blue side. There’s always been that type of female. There’s always been a market for it, but the danger is that she thinks she’s a role model. And it’s a terrible role model. It’s death to all things real.”
Alas, Mitchell has said many things, and Rollins certainly didn’t she her take on Madonna’s erotic effrontery the same way. His take is more akin that there is nothing shameful about sexiness. As he explains: “When Madonna came out with that ‘boy toy’ belt buckle, it seemed that she was submissively caving in to what was expected of a pretty girl. Wrong. It was, in fact, one of the most adroit reversals of power in modern culture. After that, her strength became immeasurable.”
He continues: “Her crotch grab was more meaningful than anyone else’s. Check your watch — she just kicked your ass three times. Thanks to these brave and innovative people and all the others who stood up for their truth and their libido, music remains a most excellent lust accelerant.”
He has shared this view on Madonna’s boldness since she came on the scene. In fact, he even penned a poem, largely about his atavistic reaction to her pervasive presence akin to Nick Cave’s The Death of Bunny Munro in short, at the behest of X singer and alround punk artist Exene Cervenka. You can check it out below.
‘Madonna’ by Henry Rollins:
“Madonna, she makes me want to drink beer
She makes me want to drive real fast and go bowling
She makes me want to shop at Sears
She makes me want to kick vegetarians
When I hear her sing, I know she’s singing to me, she wants to get nasty with me
When I see your face, when I see your eyes, when I see your lips talking to me
Telling me to ‘come on’, I get to feeling real mean
I get to feeling like I want to do a whole lot of push-ups or go to a hardware store,
And then, I have to cool down man, I have to cool down
And it’s either gonna be a cold shower or a Bruce Springsteen album”
‘Madonna’ by Henry Rollins, 1985
