Don't Bother Me

Album: Help Us Stranger (2019)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "Don't Bother Me" finds Jack White raging at someone he considers to be a jerk.

    Your hidden agenda
    (Don't bother me, bother me)
    You ruthless rule bender
    (Don't bother me, bother me)
    Your surface duplicity
    (Don't bother me, bother me)
    It's all nothing new to me
    (Don't bother me, bother me)


    White told the story behind the song in a video: "This song is really aggressive. We had written the music and then performed it as a band together and it was so powerful, so heavy-duty, we almost didn't know what the vocal could possibly be. I just went out there and scribbled down a few things and just tried to invent a character. It was really just getting a catharsis out of this screaming and yelling about. It's almost accusatory and vengeful really and so it turned into a really beautiful track in the end. It's got some good balance to it."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New York

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New YorkSong Writing

Can you be married in one country but not another? Only if you're part of a gay couple. One of the first famous singers to come out as a lesbian, Janis wrote a song about it.

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians?

What Musicians Are Related to Other Musicians?Song Writing

A big list of musical marriages and family relations ranging from the simple to the truly dysfunctional.

Jonathan Cain of Journey

Jonathan Cain of JourneySongwriter Interviews

Cain talks about the divine inspirations for "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Faithfully."

U2 Lyrics

U2 LyricsMusic Quiz

How well do you know the lyrics of U2?

JJ Burnel of The Stranglers

JJ Burnel of The StranglersSongwriter Interviews

JJ talks about The Stranglers' signature sound - keyboard and bass - which isn't your typical strain of punk rock.

Bill Withers

Bill WithersSongwriter Interviews

Soul music legend Bill Withers on how life experience and the company you keep leads to classic songs like "Lean On Me."