Katy Perry “The One that got Away”

Katy Perry “The One that got Away”

This week, I wanted to do a follow up on last week’s feature “Katy Perry’s Musical Influences”.  As everyone knows, music influences language and culture.  Katy’s songs are chart toppers and therefore ‘talk to’ a very large North American and International audience. When people like a song they listen to it over and over.  The words and expressions become more popular with mainstream culture.  So, let’s take a look at Katy Perry’s lyrics to her musical hit  “The One That Got Away!”

 

Part One

Now to make it a bit more fun, listen to the video and try to fill in the blanks with the missing word(s).  After that, try the North American pop culture quiz related to this song.

Lyrics - The One That Got Away 

Summer after high school when we first met

We ¹__________in your Mustang to Radio head

And on my 18th birthday we got that chain tattoos

Used to steal your parents' liquor and climb to the roof

Talk about our future like we ²__________

Never plan that one day I'd be losing you

And in another life I would be your girl

We keep all our promises, be us against the world

And in other life I would make you stay

So I don't have to say you were ³________

⁴________

I was dreaming you were my Johnny Cash

Never one, we got the other, we made a pact

Sometimes when I miss you, I put those records on, whoa

Someone said you had your ⁵________removed

Saw you downtown singing the blues

It's time ⁶________, I'm longer your ⁷________

And in another life I would be your girl

We keep all our promises, be us against the world

And in another life, I would make you stay

So I don't have to say you were the one that got away

The one that got away

The one, the one, the one

The one that got away

All these money can't buy me a time machine, no

Can't replace you with a million rings, no

⁸________, whoa

'Cause now I ⁹________

In another life I would be your girl

We keep all our promises, be us against the world

And in another life, I would make you stay

So I don't have to say you were the one that got away

The one that got away

The one, the one, the one, the one

And in another life I would make you stay

So I don't have to say you were the one that got away

The one that got away

(Repeat)

Answers + Meaning

1. make out : to make out with someone - to kiss and touch in a sexual way.

2. had a clue : to not have a clue (usually used with a negative) - to have no knowledge of or no information about something. Ex. I don’t have a clue where we are. We are really lost.   In the song the lyric says “Talk about our future like we had a clue”.  Katy Perry infers a negative or opposite meaning to this sentence through intonation.  She is being a bit sarcastic with herself.

3. the one that got away :  the one - a former lover  that got away – the relationship broke up and the other person left the relationship.  The person currently feels regret because they might let their soul mate or ideal match leave their life.  The speaker realizes these feelings now but didn’t in the past. 

4. the one that got away : same as number 3

5. tattoo : a tattoo - a permanent image, pattern or word on the skin which is created by using needles to put colors under the skin.

6.  to face the music - to receive punishment; to accept the unpleasant results of one's actions.

7. muse : a muse - a source of inspiration; the goddess or the power regarded as inspiring a poet, artist, thinker, or the like.

8. I should've told you what you meant to me (direct meaning)

9. pay the price : to pay the price - to suffer the consequences for doing something or risking something.

 

Pop Culture Quiz

 1. What’s a Mustang in this song?

1. a horse
2. a car
3. a condiment

2. Which genre best describes Radio Head?

1. Heavy Metal
2. Classical
3. Alternative Rock

3.  What does a chain tattoo symbolize in this song?

1. love
2. hate
3. oppression

4. Who was Johnny Cash?

1. a musician
2. a politician
3. a model

5.  Who was June?

1. The name of a month
2. The name of a bug
3. The name of Johnny Cash’s second wife

Answers

1. b. a car

2. c. Alternative Rock

3. a. love

4. a. a musician

5. c. The name of Johnny Cash’s second wife

Part Two

Here are a few comprehension questions.

1. When did the girl and guy meet?

2.  Why did the guy get away?

3.  What does her ex-boyfriend do for a living?

4.  Who is singing at the end of the song (after Katy Perry)?

5. What is the name of the excerpt of the song being played at the end of the video?

Answers

1. “Summer after high school”

2. She didn’t tell him her deepest feeling about him.  She didn’t tell him how important he was to her. - “I should've told you what you meant to me”

3. He is a singer. - “Saw you downtown singing the blues”

4. Johnny Cash

5. You are my Sunshine

 See you next week and in the meantime here is an old time video 

of

And of course!

 

ALEX

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Katy Perry’s Musical Influences

Katy Perry

Interviewer’s Question:  I’m sure people ask you all the time if you were influenced by Madonna, but what kind of music did you listen to when you were younger?

Katy Perry”s Answer: My mom would let me listen to, like, Billie Holiday and Etta James and really classic stuff like that. My mom speaks fluent French, so she was also really into Édith Piaf, which she turned me on to—although, I guess she didn’t really look into the lyrics. [laughs].  But as I started to hear different kinds of music, my world got bigger. I got a record by Queen, which was so influential for me. I got all the Beatles’ records, like the “white” album [1968], which was really important to me along with Pet Sounds [1966] by the Beach Boys. Those two records were the only things I listened to for probably two years straight. Then I discovered Patty Griffin, Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Jonatha Brooke—a little bit of the Lilith Fair–esque stuff. And then I got into more electronic music. But I’m just open to everything these days.

Katy Perry’s Speaking Style

As you can see from above, like many of the celebrity interviews, Katy uses casual, natural English to connect with the Listener.  Katy gives the listener a glimpse from her early years to present day.  Her speaking style is ‘rich’ with examples and very clear.  There are examples of musicians, albums, and styles throughout her answer.  Moreover, at first, she describes her mother’s influence on her music ‘tastes’.  Next as the young woman named Katy Perry develops into young adulthood, her musical world expands. 

And like the musical juggernaut she is, her musical influences expanded exponentially.  

Present day, we see a professional woman of music that is well versed in various musical styles and genres. 

Key Phrases for Talking about Music

• My mom would let me listen to, like (like = for example), Billie Holiday and Etta James and really classic stuff like that.  I started to hear different kinds of music, my world got bigger.

• I got a record by Queen, which was so influential for me. I got all the Beatles’ records, like the “white” album [1968], which was really important to me along with Pet Sounds [1966] by the Beach Boys.

• Then I discovered Patty Griffin, Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Jonatha Brooke—a little bit of the Lilith Fair–'esque' stuff. And then I got into more electronic music. But I’m just open to everything these days.

Vocabulary note 

'esque' =
suffix forming adjectives, meaning: indicating a specified character, manner, style, or resemblance, like, similar to.

Example Style 1

My dad would let me listen to, like (like = for example), Al Jolson and Perry Como and really classic stuff like that.  I started to hear different kinds of music, my world got bigger.

I got a record by Aerosmith, which was so influential for me. I got all the Supertramp  records, like the “Breakfast in America” album [1979], which was really important to me along with Close to You [1970] by the Carpenters.

Then I discovered Nora Jones, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie—a little bit of the Latin–esque stuff. And then I got into more electronic music. But I’m just open to everything these days.

Next Week! Natural and Popular English Expressions from Katy Perry’s Musical Hit “ The One That Got Away!”

Until then, Check out the video "The One That Got Away" and try to answer the following question:

Why did the guy get away?

BONUS!  CHECK OUT some of Katy Perry’s early musical influences.  This LADY knows her MUSIC!

ALEX

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