Mr. PC
(Rick Springfield/Matt Bissonette)
They're selling me the truth but I can see your lips move
Fingers behind your back you think you can't lose
Give us all a sound bite wrap it up and plug it in
Telling me the meaning of what is this.

So, Come on, come on, come on moveon.org
Take me to a place that I've never been before
Give me the bad news, about the trees
Give me the good news, talk to me

On and on and on and on you go
Tell me Mr. PC
Round, and round and round and round you go
Preach it   PC
He's got a brilliant way off saying nothing at all

Ahhh, Privy Information holding out the gold key
Give me the creeps the Saudi's gonna go free
Giving us a sign that everything's ok
Divvy up the pork and pocket all the proceeds
Come on, come on, come on w're the poor fools
Buiding up the house of the ACLU
Ahhh, Give me a doctor for my disease
Give me what I need, talk to me

On and on and on and on you go
Tell me Mr. PC
Round and round and round and round you go
Preach it Mr. PC
Up and down and all around you go
Play it PC
He's got a billion ways of saying nothing at all

And I know where to find you
Swinging from your branches
With your super careful phrases
Never taking chances

On and on and on and on you go
Tell me Mr PC
Round and round and round and round you go
Preach it Mr. PC
Up and down and all around you go
Play it  PC
You got a brilliant? way of saying nothing at all

So on and on and on and on you go
Sell out Mr. PC
round and round and round and round you go
Reach out Mr PC
Up and down and all round you go
You're the Man, PC
You got a billion way of saying nothing at all


Song Facts: This can be found on Venus in Overdrive.

Rick says: Mr PC obviously stands for Politically Correct. I've certainly had my fill of the garbage politicians speak. The whole middle section is me doing a rant about, something about if you buy the record you'll be instantly healed and wealthy.  You know, its kind of the thing that politicians promise.  They promise us that they can fix things - Amazon.com promo video.

More from US

Usually I wouldn’t care for such an upbeat, fast and intense song, but for some reason, I really love this one. Again, complicated and hard to catch the lyrics and very hard to sing to. I won’t even attempt it. The chorus is about all I can get and that is it.

Upbeat and happy, it keeps me listening. I also like the fact that it slows down dramatically at one point and then winds back up again. Overall, I think it rocks. - Amy L

According to US

I have grown to really love this song over the past year! The first time I heard it, honestly, the sound itself didn’t really grab me, not at first. If anything, it kind of “threw me.” I think the “on and on and on and on it goes” bit was kind of weird to me in the beginning. On the other hand, the lyrics caught my attention right away! I was both surprised and happy to hear Rick and Matt had written a “political” song, kind of a ‘statement’ on how they feel about all the crap that goes on in politics (which in turn affects us and our earth.) I know Rick says he generally steers clear of this type thing, but I personally don’t see a problem with saying what’s on your mind in your music. I know that politics and celebrities sometimes cause waves in our society and there are strong differing views on whether stars should speak up or keep quiet about their personal views. I personally don’t have an issue with celebs expressing how they feel. It’s just not a “big deal” to me either way. They are taxpayers and citizens just like we are. Should they stuff their beliefs and ideas just because they are Hollywood Stars? The rest of us voice our opinions (or most of us), so why shouldn’t they? What we choose to believe or follow is totally up to *us* as an individual. Hopefully we can learn to work together on the issues rather than tearing each other down.

I hear a bit of influence from Matt’s band, the Squirts, in this song. Is it the beat? I’m not sure, but I do know that it’s really grown on me and I find myself singing along and jamming to the music. I am SO glad the guys added this song to their set list!! I’ve seen it a few times at Rick’s shows and it’s a killer rocking song performed live! They added Mr. PC as the opening song and it’s both cool and odd mixed into one, as the song starts out very abruptly with no intro music. “Selling me the truth but I can see your lips move. Fingers behind your back you say you can’t lose.” So what happens is, there is no build-up that Rick is about to enter stage left or anything. He is just suddenly THERE when the lights come up. But wait, doesn’t Rodger get a drum solo with this song at the start and then Rick appears? 

I actually did not realize when I heard this song and the lyric, “So, come on, come on, come on, moveon.org” that “moveon” is an actual site, until I looked it up and saw that it’s a political website! (Obviously I’m not THAT political! I do keep up to a point, but I wasn’t aware of that site. I suspect I should be more involved in my country‘s politics, but I find that my head is more wrapped around music!) I really like the sarcasm in this verse though, as after the “moveon.org” we have---“Take me to a place that I’ve never been before. Give me the bad news about the trees. Give me the good news talk to me.” My mind wants to tie the first 2 thoughts together, so I’m hearing a bit of sarcasm. The “bad news about the trees” is a “place” we’ve been for a very LONG time, something we have known about but have yet to do much about it. So there is nothing new they could tell us there…at this point anyway. It’s more like sugar-coating, or talking in circles. There’s always hope though…

I love the driving guitar beats jamming in the background behind Rick’s voice, almost on the edge of anger, in the verses. Probably one of my favorite lyrics in this song would be---“Gimme the creeps the Saudi’s gonna go free.” I also like the “ahhh’s” he does in the second verse and the way he kind of stretches out certain words for effect. ;-)

Other favorite lines that I couldn’t agree with more is when he says, “You got a brilliant way of saying nothing at all,” and also “a billion ways of saying nothing at all.” Ah yes, politicians are PROS at avoiding the question. It takes practice to circle the topic and make it sound like you actually said ‘something.’ 

This is a really hard song to sing along to, kind of like “My Depression.” It’s so FAST. I give him props for doing it so well in concert! I often stumble up on the words trying to keep up. My 15-year old daughter and my husband love this song…it’s a favorite of theirs from VIO. I thought it was cute when she asked me what this line meant, “And I know where to find you. Swinging from your branches.” Well, that was an interesting conversation, explaining to her that he was referencing how politicians sometimes act like “monkeys!” “With your super careful phrases, never taking chances.” Like a puppet on a string perhaps? 

The “President” or “politician” voice in the break is a great addition for this song, I think. Rick and the guys came up with some cool sound clips for the Venus CD, as they seem to be present in many of the songs. Even back in the 80’s on a few of Rick’s albums, there were “odd” sound clips thrown in here and there, either in the middle, intro or ending of the songs. 

Mr. PC is on the “plus side” in my book. It has a catchy hook both lyrically and musically (which we know Rick is a sucker for, and apparently so are we!), and I think it gets some feelings out in the lyrics without making too huge of a political statement.  - 
Kelley Pearson