"The Maid Needs a Maid" by Emily Haines

"The Maid Needs a Maid" by Emily Haines

Here's an interesting twist on Neil Young's "A Man Needs a Maid" -- Emily Haines' "The Maid Needs a Maid".

To say that Haines has re-interpreted the Young classic is a bit of an understatement. Undoubtedly, Young's version of "A Man Needs a Maid" has caused quite a bit of disagreement over the years.

Certainly, feminists in the '70's were quite taken aback from the literal title. However, over the years, a closer listen to the song's lyrics lead one to realize the song is more of a cry for help than a putdown of women.

So along comes Emily Haines' interpretation which is examined in great detail on Crawdaddy by Jocelyn Hoppa:

"Thirty-four years after Young’s song, Emily Haines puts “A Maid Needs a Maid” on her debut solo album Knives Don’t Have Your Back. Obviously, the title is a direct riposte to Young’s song. Similar lyrics like “Sewing up the fold ’cause I’ve been laid up / Would you put on the fire for me, draw the bath, and remind me to eat?” prove the correlation between the two songs. Set to a sparse piano that begets a cinematic, detached mood, the song is a nod to modern times (the usage of “bros before hos”) with an underscored desperate housewives theme—a place where, regardless of the strides made towards gender equality, men still dominate women, and women are still victims of themselves as well as men."

More analysis of Haines interpretation on Crawdaddy. (Thanks Michael!)

Also, see why Neil Young sang about needing a maid in the first place.

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