• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Crushing Krisis

Comic Books, Drag Race, & Life in New Zealand

  • DC Guides
    • DC Events
    • DC New 52
    • DC Rebirth
    • Batman Guide
    • The Sandman Universe
  • Marvel Guides
    • Marvel Events
    • Captain America Guide
    • Iron Man Guide
    • Spider-Man Guide (1963-2018)
    • Spider-Man Guide (2018-Present)
    • Thor Guide
    • X-Men Reading Order
  • Indie & Licensed Comics
    • Spawn
    • Star Wars Guide
      • Expanded Universe Comics (2015 – present)
      • Legends Comics (1977 – 2014)
    • Valiant Guides
  • Drag
    • Canada’s Drag Race
    • Drag Race Belgique
    • Drag Race Down Under
    • Drag Race Sverige (Sweden)
    • Drag Race France
    • Drag Race Philippines
    • Dragula
    • RuPaul’s Drag Race
    • RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars
  • Contact!
You are here: Home / consume / Song of the Day / Song of the Day: “Happy Birthday, Johnny” – St. Vincent

Song of the Day: “Happy Birthday, Johnny” – St. Vincent

November 6, 2017 by krisis

When was the last time a song made you cry?

I cry at a lot of music and not just at the sad parts. I cry at awesome crescendos. One time I cried over Weezer’s Hash Pipe.

I cannot tell you the last time I cried over a song one of the first few times I heard it before hearing St. Vincent’s “Dear Johnny” from her new LP Masseduction this past week.

I’m not sure what’s so crushing about it. It’s not overtly sad. It’s not, for example, Janet Jackson’s “Again” or something. Yet, there I sat in my bed, openly weeping as it played on a loop, until finally I broke the spell by getting up to figure it out on piano.

I wanted to play it on piano so I could dissect the sadness of the song. I wanted to understand its power over me. I even sent it to Gina, my sister in musical DNA, hoping she might be able to explain it to me.

This is not Annie Clarke’s first reference to Johnny, who has been a recurring character in her music. I wasn’t responding to some overarching story of his, although the tale in this song is rather sad. Not sad enough to make me cry on command, though.

St. Vincent

Remember one Christmas I gave you Jim Carroll
Intended it as a cautionary tale
You said you saw yourself inside there
Dog-eared it like a how-to manual

The secrets of the song unfurled themselves for me as I inched my way through it by ear on piano. The piano figure in the verse opens up an increasing delta between the vocal melody and the supporting arrangement. The melody stays in the same range of a few notes, twinkling over and over like a star or an SOS while the piano figure gradually descends, breaking out of the key signature in its first step, introducing a new bass note on every chord.

Remember one summer we walked in Times Square
I showed you the zombies with hundred-inch stares
You took a Bic, set your hotel on fire
We took the blame, took the bags to the train

It’s a common melodic device, but here it is more than that. The widening gulf between the melody and the bass notes mirrors the drifting apart of St. Vincent and her erstwhile Johnny. She used to bring him gifts and now he’s cursing at her image on television screens. Does she still feel the same love for him? She claims she does. She’s still wishing him happy birthday, after all.

Happy Birthday, Johnny
Wherever you are
Happy Birthday, Johnny
Wherever you are

Yet in each chorus there is a slight sourness beneath her wistful “wherever you are,” a little aural wince in the form of a passing diminished chord – again, breaking the key signature of the song. The passing chord isn’t necessary. All it does is add specificity to the stepwise ascent and an extra oomph of resolve to the next chord.

You could describe the chorus – and in fact, the entire song – in the same way. Annie isn’t wishing her dear Johnny a happy birthday just because. It’s not for his benefit. It’s a forced, extra little step she’s inserting to try to find her own resolve with her memory of a friend who is no longer the same person he was to her before.

(Maybe it is she who has changed?)

These little touches give this quiet, unassuming song a heft far beyond its words and music. When it lilts into the final refrain, the slightly tweaked lyrics hit like a sucker punch:

Annie, how could you do this to me?
Of course, I blame me
When you get free, Johnny
I hope you find peace

She’s laying Johnny’s ghost to rest in her life, but she cannot grant him that same serenity in his own. He’s lost to her, his face rapidly receding into the memory of one of the biggest stars in rock today.She’ll still sing this hymn, though. And maybe sometimes, when she is playing in New York City, she will scan across the crowd and imagine for a moment she sees his face.

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: melody, St. Vincent

Previous Post: « Crushing Comics, S01E06 – Shang-Chi, Master of Kung Fu Omnibus, Vol. 3
Next Post: Crushing Comics, S01E07 – Silver Age X-Men Omnibus, Vol. 2 »

Primary Sidebar


Support Crushing Krisis on Patreon
Support CK
on Patreon


Follow me on BlueSky Follow me on Twitter Contact me Watch me on Youtube Subscribe to the CK RSS Feed

About CK

About Crushing Krisis
About My Music
About Your Author
Blog Archive
Comics Blogs Only
Contact Krisis
Terms & Conditions

Crushing Comics

Marvel Comics

Marvel Events Guide

Spider-Man Guide

DC Comics

  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Avengers Omnibus MappingTIME TO VOTE – 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    It's time to vote in the 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll! […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Marvels Anthology Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel Anthology Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel Magazine & Anthology omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 My Love Silver Age Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Non-Superhero Silver Age Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel Non-Superhero Silver Age omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Alf Marvel License Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel License Omnibus (+ Indiana Jones), Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel's License Omnibus mapping for non-Marvel IP books that don't exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 X-Files FOX Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel 20th Century FOX Omnibus (+ Indiana Jones), Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    20th Century FOX omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Darth Vader Star Wars Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel Star Wars Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Star Wars omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Image Comics April 30 2025 New ReleasesNew Comics & Collected Editions Releases: Image Comics – April 30 2025
    This week in Image Comics: Copra dies, Wes Craig draws a silent Duke, DWJ's Transformers gets deluxed, Feral wraps its first year, a new fantasy from Curt Pires, conflict finds the Rocketfellers, life after a death in We're Taking Everyone Down with Us, and more! […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Marvel Imprints Alternate Realities Demon Days Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel Imprint & Alternate Reality Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel Imprint & Alternate Reality omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Marvel UK Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel UK Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel UK omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Ultimate Marvel Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Ultimate Marvel Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Ultimate Marvel omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist from its debut to the present day - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Fear Itself Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel Event Omnibus, Mapped | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel Event omnibus mapping for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • DC Comics April 30 2025 New ReleasesNew Comics & Collected Editions Releases: DC Comics – April 30 2025
    This week in DC Comics: Ewing does Detective, Grodd's reign continues in Waid's League, All-In Special hits paperback, Power Company recharges, a Silver Lantern omnibus, and more! […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Namor Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel Solo Hero Omnibus from N to Z, Mapped – Namor, Scarlet Witch, Thanos & more! | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel Solo Heroes omnibus mapping from N to Z for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]
  • Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 2025 Hawkeye Omnibus MappingEvery Missing Marvel Solo Hero Omnibus from H to M, Mapped – Hawkeye, Hercules, Ms. Marvel, & more! | 13th Annual Tigereyes Most-Wanted Marvel Omnibus Poll
    Marvel Solo Heroes omnibus mapping from H to M for books that don't yet exist - all options on the Tigereyes Most Wanted Marvel Omnibus 13th Annual Secret Ballot […]

Content Copyright ©2000-2023 Krisis Productions

Crushing Krisis participates in affiliate programs including (but not limited to): Amazon Services LLC Associates Program (in the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain), eBay Partner Network, and iTunes Affiliate Program. If you make a qualifying purchase through an affiliate link I may receive a commission.