This song is about the loneliness of youth, feeling left out, not measuring up to those around you, with little to hope for the future. It was written by a woman reflecting her own struggles. But, I think even men can relate to the wounded emptiness that that time in our lives can leave upon us. For some, well into adulthood....
"But, I think even men can relate to the wounded emptiness that that time in our lives can leave upon us." You bet we can. This song brought me close to tears because I can relate to it so much as a person who grew up lonely and feeling like there was something wrong with me.
Im a male an god knows my wounds of adolescence have never healed its made me feel ugly all my life ashamed of myself and envious of those who appear to have it all come so easy to them im 39 if it didn't leave me yet I guess it allways will be with me ti feel insecure and have extreme low self esteem 💔💔💔💔💔💘💘💘💘😢😢😢
I can really relate to this, because I felt that way through most of my teens and even into my early 20's..Now, at 60, when I look at old photos of myself, I realize how wrong I was. I wasn't fat, I wasn't homely, I was NONE of those things! I wish I had known it then. Life would have been easier and I could have been a lot happier, had I known the real truth. Girls are so often expected to conform to some external standard of beauty that is totally unrealistic. And they are taught to rely on their looks rather than deeper and more substantial qualities. Beauty doesn't last....but character and decency do. And those inner qualities are what make you truly beautiful.....even into old age.
Don't hate the words to this song Englishjumper! EMBRACE THEM! Look at the " glass" half full! You're loved, you living your best life right now and most of all you're TOTALLY BLESSED! ( ESPECIALLY if you're reading this note right now). It's a beautiful song but the intent of the song is in your " rear view mirror" now!
+Aslan Jason Try Tinder for the ultimate in vacuous, soul destroying, pointlessness. Anything is preferable to that, far, far rather be at home inventing lovers on the phone!
I feel as if this song was written for me, about me, and to me. It's good to know that someone else understands the humiliation and sadness of not being "the pretty one" or "popular one", but also sad to know that other folk have suffered the way that I suffered.
In my experience, the so called popular or pretty ones are often self absorbed and sometimes even cruel people. I'm sure you have a heart of gold. I'm sorry for your pain. 💐
Its what on the inside that counts...not all the pretty girls have a great life ...men use them ...it what you are on the inside...I always said to my sons dont worry about what girls look like find out what they are like on the inside ..thats whats important
17 year old boys can relate to this song too. I know I could back in the day. Sometimes high school was not such a nice place for the athletically challenged kids that didn't fit into a clique.
That was me, the school gamesmaster had his favourites. I had painful insecurities. The best thing though was I married the beautiful girl in the song.💋
The older I got as a guy the more I realized that the girl this song spoke about is the girl I wanted. You treasure her and treat her like gold and she will make you her world.
This song still gets to me......I can relate...I was the clumsy out of the click guy in high school who made good grades and spent most of his weekends at home playing board games with my out of the click friends....I was the ugly duckling and yes I grew into a swan....Next week is my high school reunion and I will be there with my beautiful wife and my 3 handsome sons....People that wouldn't give me the time of day in high school will talk to me and act like we were best friends but I can see it in there eyes that they know the way things were.....I know it had to be a harsh reality for them when they realized how irrelevant high school was.
How did the reunion go? I find that those of us who go through hardship young seem to find life easy and the ones who thought school was everything rarely get beyond that. I am happy for you.
When I was 17 I wasnt an ugly duckling and I didnt invent lovers on the phone....but now that Im much older the message I received all these years later, from this song, is how much I wish I had taken the time to be kinder and more thoughtful to those girls who, at 17, were silently suffering for not being chosen.
What would you have done? Invited them to parties? gone out for coffee? explained gently to them why you didn't have to invent lovers on the phone and they did?
Such a beautiful but very sad song about being socially ousted in high school. About who you often were who others said you were, and how they judged you. This song may even represent more than that. The mixed and confused emotions of a troubled teen going through turbulent times. Jack
***** I was the reject too. It's so sad to live that way. I was not ugly. Not at all. I was just told that. Yeah the year I got out of school Carrie came out.
+Denise Roberts Same with me. I felt like I was hideous, and I was openly mocked by the"cool girls". I didn't date until my senior year and then someone already out of school, because it was too hard to fit in. I felt this was my theme. I was the one always available to babysit at the last minute any weekend. I was so thrilled to have sons, as I was terrified of having a daughter turn out to be a social outcast.
It's not only or just about being "ousted" but more feeling out of place or displaced or simply invisible. The beauty and attraction and eternal relevance of this song is that most of us will go through a time or times in our life when good parts of life just seem a bit beyond our grasp, or when you feel "outside, looking in" ... break ups, divorce, bad marriages or relationships, family deaths or family discord, etc. At some time, we "all learn the truth" .. that life seems somewhat better for others than ourselves (even when that is an illusion) and we fantasize about a different "better" life when we are more beautiful, more powerful, wealthier, desired or having friends that really care, family that truly love you, etc. That life isn't stressful but is more sunshine and wildflowers than an extended winter.
Even as a boy, this song completely describes my childhood. I was the chubby, shy, ugly (so other kids told me - to my face)awkward kid. I always felt that even though I was invited to all the parties, it was because the parents invited everyone in the class, rather than that I was wanted, when choosing sides for sports, it was always me and a girl, Sandra ( I remember her to this day 40 years later) that were the last two to be chosen - and she was in the "special" class!! Now, at 48, those deep rooted insecurities, that became so ingrained as a young child and teenager, that even though I know I am not that 6 year old, or that 18 year old, at school anymore, still wreak havoc at times. If only, we could teach children the extent to which their words caused unbelievable heartache and harm. So,here's to all the other misfits out there! love and light
Jack Platt It is interesting that one of those awkward nerdy misfits was MARK CUBAN!! I wonder how those experiences affect that person today. Mark alluded to it humorously in one interview but never really expounded on it further. .. bet his high school reunions are interesting to say the least!!
I can't say I was ugly at 17, but I was poor, and where I came from, (small town) they were one in the same. No prom dates, sometimes walking almost 1/2 mile to be picked up for a date at the gas station so those who didn't know where I lived wouldn't see my house. Can can be cruel for a number of reasons. Thank goodness for girlfriends, not the popular ones, of course, that kept me from being alone and God Bless Janis Ian for bringing this truth to light. I was 16 when this song came out and it has resonated with me my whole life.
I am English. I have not a clue about this. You would need to pay for a date in high school? I went to an all-girls school and now I think Thank God! Yes, there was a little kissing boys in cars after discos at the FE college or the llocal schools but nothing else.I went to college, assuming I would be married by year 3. I was not. All the savvy, sexy girls got their man by the end of year 1. I worked in the college bar, and elsewhere in year 2 and by year 3 was studying for finals and hanging out with a mixed sex group of people whom I guess the modern world would call losers.What I will say is I did not have that post-finals, summer wedding I so envisaged and wanted but what I did have was good times, bad times, lonely times, amazing times, friends and places and holidays and homes, and towns, and jobs and experiences that I would not have had if I had had that big- post-finals wedding.
Your comment should be printed on T-shirts! This song continues to sing on behalf of almost every angst-ridden 17 year old female on the planet! The lyrics are beautifully crafted, and even all these years later listening to it again, reflecting upon the 17 year old me who'd heard it playing out of every transister radio, the poignancy is not diminished. But that was then and this is now. Yet 40 years on young girls continue to be let down by a society which brainwashes them into thinking that they can only be defined by having a boyfriend (any loser'll do) and a baby (to trap said loser)! Or, for those at least with sufficient intellect to think ahead, a 'life plan' to be married by 'year 3', kids by year 5, all so predictably (yawn) mapped out! Both avenues only ever leading to living miserably ever after, all hopes and dreams abandoned, all potential quashed, old before their time. Except for that rare exception, a one in a million, who gets really really lucky, and 'Mr Right Now' actually turns out to be 'Mr Right' after all! We females do know all this deep down, even the 'savvy, sexy ones', who, by definition, have it easier than the rest, more opportunities, more choices. At least that is, until the looks they've relied on begin to fade. Then they find it's their turn to be at home 'inventing lovers on the phone'... Sad to say, most females will still choose to throw their lives away, rather than think there's a big world out there to try and make a difference in.
una mckillen Paying for a date is an expression. Meaning I was not the savvy, sexy girl. I ran into a high school friend the other day and he said to me "you look much prettier now than you did in high school. What happened?" I just laughed and said idk maybe you grew up.
I bet deep down even the 'savvy sexy ones' had their own issues to deal with if the truth be known! One certain truth is, the majority of us were neither savvy or sexy, or if we were, not enough to meet with our own approval, which really is all that counts! We'll hold ourselves back forever as long as we tell ourselves we're not good enough, which is why the words of this song go way beyond our youth - those old demons stalk us for the rest of our lives one way or another! You are fortunate for being prettier now, though I wonder if that observation by your old school friend, followed by the 'What happened?', was an attempt at a put down??? Was she so green with envy I wonder, that a compliment was so difficult, unable to resist tagging on a barbed remark? Good for you, laughing and chucking it right back! Personally I save my bitch remarks for when they are deserved, and I'm not shy to compliment complete strangers who cross my path, makes them feel good, and makes me feel good for spreading a bit of something nice.
I came here because the Simsons Episode 18 season 21 had this as the Outre song...I was a teen in the 70's so I remember it from that era but it was long forgotten...What a masterpiece of wordsmithing. Reminds me of Carly...I hope Janis is having a beautiful and fulfilling life and is surrounded by the love she craved when 17. : )
H1delta Yeah, I suck with tenses sometimes...Philly Vernacular : )...I know she is still with us, She still tours! I checked her website before I watched this video just to see how she was doing...I will edit it...: ) Namaste!
I beleive someone watch too much Walt Disney´s CRAP. It is a shame that you request a "prince" and you will find a machoman... a vomit from him selves.
godbluffvdgg I hope you didn't take it as insult. I make my share of errors. Too many, actually. While I'm not one those she's singing about, I sympathize and empathize with them. Youth is not only wasted on the young, more often than not, it is also cruel to the young. Peace...
I was treated that way in school. We were poor an outcast. I was not ugly but people made you feel that way. I love this song. Shame on anyone that are so mean!
beermonger1 Yep. Heard this for the first time in years on XM yesterday. I found myself fighting back tears, the song still has the same effect on me that it did 40 years ago.
I am a guy, but I felt exactly the same. Such strong lyrics. I like her strong, authentic voice. Very different from today's female singers with fake voices and fried vocals. This is the female heart that has quality.
So sad. I did, too, in a different way. Love was meant for guys who had a future. Didn't seem like I did, then. Years later, my novel published by Random House... etc. I always claimed this song for me, despite "gender." Believe me, this goes both ways. But you have to pick up and go, anyway...
longing to belong and learning how to feel comfortable with yourself is certainly cross gender(s) ... almost everyone feels alienated or displaced at some time .. even the "beauty queens" had their own insecurities ... if your self worth and success is tied up in your looks, just think how much panic and insecurity that will engender .. that is why this song is so resonant .. fantastic lyrics, great chord progression, a hint of a latin swaying ... it is interesting that the song (at least for me) seems to evoke reminiscence and a haunting poignancy more than dark bitterness .. sort of a mood of reflection examining pain from both inside and yet outside with less personalization. The rhythm also softens the pain because it is a warmer latin rhythm as if you are feeling a warm breeze rather than biting cold.
One of the most haunting and poignant songs about how hard life is for most during the transition from teen to young adult. Probably most felt somehow outside, looking in, at some point(s) in their lives and I've never heard a song that better encapsulated the hurt, longing to belong, and mild despair even while those whose lives looked immeasurably better also blew up. This has to be in the Top 100 of all time.
When I was 17 I did think that love was meant for beauty queens..but eventually we find someone who sees the "beauty queen" in us. Thank God for those that look through the eyes of love!
I'm 16 and have been overweight since i was 10 years old. I get a lot of crap, and try to hde t by being upbeat, outgoing, and seeming confident. If only people knew, I struggle every waking minute. Never a boyfriend, never a first kiss. Im one of the most insecure beings known to man, yet people dont see it.
Honey, do whatever it takes to lose the weight. Be smart, funny and join every activity you have any interest in. Graduate, screw college for a few years and travel the world. It's ALL ahead waiting for you. I speak as a former size 22 who is a one:-) the weight and lack of confidence destroyed me until my 40's. I was able to have 8 years of truly living. Imagine how far I could have gone if I'd just taken action! Don't end up like me. I peaked decades to late to be ME. God, I pray you listen to this stranger who was you. Another thing, don't settle. Find the good dorky loyal man who will worship you. He'll make a fortune and the " bad boys" end up being minimum wage losers who blame you for their failures. Don't put it off, procrastination and fear will suck your youth and possibilities away. YOU CAN SUCCEED!!:-):-):-):-)
Genovie Ledbetter I know this was seven months after the comment had been made, and I could act as if I knew how you felt because of my own insecurity and similarities, but I won't pretend I've been through what you have. A lot of us feel this way, and the sad part is a lot of us don't realize we at least have each other. Those people that are rude and hateful don't deserve the air they breathe. If you ever feel the need to talk to anybody, about anything, just ask.
Genovie Ledbetter Dear one....all I can say is ride it out...and love yourself...your the only you that was ever made...unique and spectacular...school will go by...you will become who you want to become...those who have it easy don't appreciate it...those who depend on their looks to get by...they are in for a rude awakening...looks fade..you need something else to fall bask on
We mask our sadness and loneliness so well, there are very few who see the real you. You are still young, a baby, you have your life ahead of you. Make a conscious effort to lose the weight ( I know how impossible it seems, food is so very comforting!) don't give a **** about what others think of you, it's none of your business. I waited until I was nearly 40 before I summoned up the confidence to make a change. I used to go to gym at 3 a.m. because the gym was deserted and nobody would see this "fatty" looking like an idiot on the treadmill, pushing weights etc. I didn't go to my high school 20th reunion, because I was still so scared of what those people, who I hadn't seen in 20 years would say, and how they would look at me and snigger. In September, it is our 30th reunion - I am definitely going!! I have transformed myself, I am thin, with a great body and a beautiful boyfriend. I am no longer that fat ugly child that I was. Genovie, don't waste the next 30 years of your life, like I did. Don't listen to them.
Haven't heard this song in 40 years. But woke up today with pieces of it stealing in and out out my mind. Did a search for 'sad whispery '60s song sung by woman'. And here it is. [Research; released in '75 and performed on the very first Saturday Night Live.]
This is a song that sums up a lot of things in my life, and what was worse I had a sister 1 year ahead of me, she never had acne, she was a varsity cheerleader, boys calling all the time and popularity, and I kept hearing things like "you are her sister?" and "I would never have guessed that!"
I remember when Janis Ian recorded "Societies Child", and no radio stations would play it. Then suddenly a movement started with the Hippies, and became like a their rebelious Him. The year was 1967. I loved the song and still have the LP. Ar seventeen was another one of her hits. Janis Ian was different and great singer/songwriter. God bless her whereever she may be.
It's funny I used to listen to this when I was 17 and at the time I thought this was going to be my life forever, being "the ugly duckling girl" while love was meant for "one more beautiful". Now I'm 20 and I don't think that's what Janis Ian was saying at all. I think she's saying that it feels that way when you're 17 and insecure, but years later you're going to look back in wonder at some of the fears and hang ups you had at that age. I just want to say to any young people out there who feel this way: It does get better, I promise you.
You deserve a reward for putting that comment up for all the people who need to hear/read it. People telling me things would get better was so comforting when I was in high school.
This is a beautiful song and not depressing at all. It only tells it like it is for most teenage girls. In any generation there is only a limited number of gorgeous girls who receive all those early adult-hood prizes. The clue is in "Ugly duckling girls like me." It is a cliché but the high school football hero and the homecoming queen do not very often go on to great things. The brains, nerds and geeks often do. Janis Ian knew she was a beautiful swan. The pain is real though and beautifully expressed even if the context is small town America - could be any suburb or market town in England too.
Before this video I watched Janis sing the live track. She told a short story about why she made the song and what it was about. It was only then I paid attention to this song. I've been listening to this song since the 70's and I just found out what it was about. Fashionably late.
"At Seventeen"( Janis Ian) along with "Breaking Up its Hard to Do (slower version) " (Neil Sedaka) were two very romantic and very poignant songs. They were hits and were played on the radio for many many weeks in the summer of 1975. it reminds of my very young existence back then..
I sit here alone staring into the flames that burn in my fireplace, still dealing with the demons and wounds that scar me from what everyone says "were the best years" for me they were hell. Awkward, ugly and no social skills what so ever left me a hollow, dried out husk of a person that cannot trust. I have become good at hiding it all, yet every day is a battle just to get out of bed and go to work without drinking. I know it's not the answer, I just want the pain to end.
Hiroshi Fukuda In 1975 there were quiet,lonely and peaceful music there.Joe Cocker sang "You Are So Beautiful,"Minnie Riperton did "Loving You"and Janis also did this.
no matter what you look like there is someone for you..it may not happen right away but if you keep your mind and heart open it will happen..everyone goes thru heatache..sometimes..
At Seventeen, played by Janis Ian. Janis Ian plays on Mean Girls, they made a musical. The girl who plays Janis Ian in the musical also plays in another musical called Heathers. In that musical she sang a song called “Seventeen”. Just though of this when I say the title
this song came out in my high school days, heard it, love it and still remains with me until these days and my days to come to remind me of my youth, of what was me then and what is me today. thanks janis................
CarcallRoboT CarcallCats Nope, saw her recently on an original season of SNL, I had totally forgotten this song. One of those that don't get airplay anymore, but it should.
This song is about the loneliness of youth, feeling left out, not measuring up to those around you, with little to hope for the future. It was written by a woman reflecting her own struggles. But, I think even men can relate to the wounded emptiness that that time in our lives can leave upon us. For some, well into adulthood....
"But, I think even men can relate to the wounded emptiness that that time in our lives can leave upon us."
You bet we can. This song brought me close to tears because I can relate to it so much as a person who grew up lonely and feeling like there was something wrong with me.
Indeed we can.
Series Of Numbers Heard it on the radio yesterday and found myself fighting back tears.
and how!
Im a male an god knows my wounds of adolescence have never healed its made me feel ugly all my life ashamed of myself and envious of those who appear to have it all come so easy to them im 39 if it didn't leave me yet I guess it allways will be with me ti feel insecure and have extreme low self esteem 💔💔💔💔💔💘💘💘💘😢😢😢
I can really relate to this, because I felt that way through most of my teens and even into my early 20's..Now, at 60, when I look at old photos of myself, I realize how wrong I was. I wasn't fat, I wasn't homely, I was NONE of those things! I wish I had known it then. Life would have been easier and I could have been a lot happier, had I known the real truth. Girls are so often expected to conform to some external standard of beauty that is totally unrealistic. And they are taught to rely on their looks rather than deeper and more substantial qualities. Beauty doesn't last....but character and decency do. And those inner qualities are what make you truly beautiful.....even into old age.
That's exactly how I'm feeling.
Janet Ritchie It's good to hear this from people who have had many experiences before. Thank you so much, you inspired me :)
I think most kids feel that way. I sure did, I look back and see me in a different way now.
Wasn't just girls, but also guys. And I've found the same.
Beautifully put!
I hate how i relate to every word of this song.
ikr
Don't hate the words to this song Englishjumper! EMBRACE THEM! Look at the " glass" half full! You're loved, you living your best life right now and most of all you're TOTALLY BLESSED! ( ESPECIALLY if you're reading this note right now). It's a beautiful song but the intent of the song is in your " rear view mirror" now!
It's gonna get better. Trust me.
40 years later and I'm still this girl
Let's invent lovers on youtube? *wink*
Aslan Jason (*_~)
+Aslan Jason Try Tinder for the ultimate in vacuous, soul destroying, pointlessness. Anything is preferable to that, far, far rather be at home inventing lovers on the phone!
I feel as if this song was written for me, about me, and to me. It's good to know that someone else understands the humiliation and sadness of not being "the pretty one" or "popular one", but also sad to know that other folk have suffered the way that I suffered.
You're not alone.
Thank you for that!
Most people are lonely, to be honest. We learn to make ourselves happy sooner or later, but the pain is hard to deal with.
In my experience, the so called popular or pretty ones are often self absorbed and sometimes even cruel people. I'm sure you have a heart of gold. I'm sorry for your pain. 💐
Its what on the inside that counts...not all the pretty girls have a great life ...men use them ...it what you are on the inside...I always said to my sons dont worry about what girls look like find out what they are like on the inside ..thats whats important
One of the most powerfully truthful songs ever written.
The lyrics, chord progression, and instrumentation is the reason this song won a Grammy. Outstanding!
It won for the message it sent. The music is nothing, the lyrics are the beauty of this song.
Um...it hit the nail on the head.
It did?? I didn't know that
It is also the way she sings the song. It's bound up in intimacy.
17 year old boys can relate to this song too. I know I could back in the day. Sometimes high school was not such a nice place for the athletically challenged kids that didn't fit into a clique.
That was me, the school gamesmaster had his favourites. I had painful insecurities. The best thing though was I married the beautiful girl in the song.💋
52 year old boys too :-/
@@cmylchreest4175 Don't you mean you were married to the most beautiful girl in the song?? That's GREAT!!
The older I got as a guy the more I realized that the girl this song spoke about is the girl I wanted. You treasure her and treat her like gold and she will make you her world.
Exactly!
Who's there from the end of the fuXXing world? ❤
Nafera TV me♡
Mee
MEEE
1 for the gang !!
ג'יימס bitch i like my accent
Holy shit, I am seriously sobbing now. God damn, this song. These poor girls who identify with this song, you deserve love. You deserve love!
This song still gets to me......I can relate...I was the clumsy out of the click guy in high school who made good grades and spent most of his weekends at home playing board games with my out of the click friends....I was the ugly duckling and yes I grew into a swan....Next week is my high school reunion and I will be there with my beautiful wife and my 3 handsome sons....People that wouldn't give me the time of day in high school will talk to me and act like we were best friends but I can see it in there eyes that they know the way things were.....I know it had to be a harsh reality for them when they realized how irrelevant high school was.
+richkide You had friends?
+Montgomery Denzer I didn't my friend was music and art
When you're a guy you'll always have friends in your left and right hands!
Quentin Kaasa My left is too clumsy
How did the reunion go? I find that those of us who go through hardship young seem to find life easy and the ones who thought school was everything rarely get beyond that. I am happy for you.
A strikingly beautiful and telling song, straight from the heart :)
At seventeen I just stopped caring and flipped off anyone who mocked my features.
what gave you that wisdom at that age?
Karuminu2 Myself I just said you are going to hear from me.
the one who mocks my features is me
LOL
When I was 17 I wasnt an ugly duckling and I didnt invent lovers on the phone....but now that Im much older the message I received all these years later, from this song, is how much I wish I had taken the time to be kinder and more thoughtful to those girls who, at 17, were silently suffering for not being chosen.
What would you have done? Invited them to parties? gone out for coffee? explained gently to them why you didn't have to invent lovers on the phone and they did?
so now you're like the girl at 17, phone doesn't ring. Age has taken it's toll
Hardly my dear. Im nothing like the girl at 17. What a childish thing to say.
Nope..didnt drink coffee.
What an obnoxious, self-indulgent thing to say. Piss off.
Such a beautiful but very sad song about being socially ousted in high school. About who you often were who others said you were, and how they judged you. This song may even represent more than that. The mixed and confused emotions of a troubled teen going through turbulent times.
Jack
***** I was the reject too. It's so sad to live that way. I was not ugly. Not at all. I was just told that. Yeah the year I got out of school Carrie came out.
+Denise Roberts Same with me. I felt like I was hideous, and I was openly mocked by the"cool girls". I didn't date until my senior year and then someone already out of school, because it was too hard to fit in. I felt this was my theme. I was the one always available to babysit at the last minute any weekend. I was so thrilled to have sons, as I was terrified of having a daughter turn out to be a social outcast.
It's not only or just about being "ousted" but more feeling out of place or displaced or simply invisible. The beauty and attraction and eternal relevance of this song is that most of us will go through a time or times in our life when good parts of life just seem a bit beyond our grasp, or when you feel "outside, looking in" ... break ups, divorce, bad marriages or relationships, family deaths or family discord, etc. At some time, we "all learn the truth" .. that life seems somewhat better for others than ourselves (even when that is an illusion) and we fantasize about a different "better" life when we are more beautiful, more powerful, wealthier, desired or having friends that really care, family that truly love you, etc. That life isn't stressful but is more sunshine and wildflowers than an extended winter.
Even as a boy, this song completely describes my childhood. I was the chubby, shy, ugly (so other kids told me - to my face)awkward kid. I always felt that even though I was invited to all the parties, it was because the parents invited everyone in the class, rather than that I was wanted, when choosing sides for sports, it was always me and a girl, Sandra ( I remember her to this day 40 years later) that were the last two to be chosen - and she was in the "special" class!!
Now, at 48, those deep rooted insecurities, that became so ingrained as a young child and teenager, that even though I know I am not that 6 year old, or that 18 year old, at school anymore, still wreak havoc at times.
If only, we could teach children the extent to which their words caused unbelievable heartache and harm.
So,here's to all the other misfits out there!
love and light
Jack Platt It is interesting that one of those awkward nerdy misfits was MARK CUBAN!! I wonder how those experiences affect that person today. Mark alluded to it humorously in one interview but never really expounded on it further. .. bet his high school reunions are interesting to say the least!!
Came from "The End of The F***king World"!
Me too ❤
Same
witch episode
Oh my God me 🙋
Extremely powerful song & lyrics that just scream to some of us - yeah that's exactly how we feel. Thank you Janis for capturing it so beautifully.
A sad but beautifully written song. Bravo Janis!
I can't say I was ugly at 17, but I was poor, and where I came from, (small town) they were one in the same. No prom dates, sometimes walking almost 1/2 mile to be picked up for a date at the gas station so those who didn't know where I lived wouldn't see my house. Can can be cruel for a number of reasons. Thank goodness for girlfriends, not the popular ones, of course, that kept me from being alone and God Bless Janis Ian for bringing this truth to light. I was 16 when this song came out and it has resonated with me my whole life.
oops....proofread BEFORE hitting send! "Life can be cruel..."
Wish I grew up where you did......We could've danced all prom long......
this was me at seventeen...Janis summed it up perfectly ~
A sad fact of our "celebrity" society
A lot of lonely people out there.
Time we started to see the beauty on the inside.
Me too
She did
This is me at 21. I always thought It would change, but It never did.
I'm 17 today and I still identify with this song
I am 70 & I identify w/ this song,,,alone again NATURALLy😨
It’s ok life will get better
I couldn't pay for a date in high school or college. This song brings it all back and sums up those feelings of inadequacy...
I am English. I have not a clue about this. You would need to pay for a date in high school? I went to an all-girls school and now I think Thank God! Yes, there was a little kissing boys in cars after discos at the FE college or the llocal schools but nothing else.I went to college, assuming I would be married by year 3. I was not. All the savvy, sexy girls got their man by the end of year 1. I worked in the college bar, and elsewhere in year 2 and by year 3 was studying for finals and hanging out with a mixed sex group of people whom I guess the modern world would call losers.What I will say is I did not have that post-finals, summer wedding I so envisaged and wanted but what I did have was good times, bad times, lonely times, amazing times, friends and places and holidays and homes, and towns, and jobs and experiences that I would not have had if I had had that big- post-finals wedding.
Your comment should be printed on T-shirts! This song continues to sing on behalf of almost every angst-ridden 17 year old female on the planet! The lyrics are beautifully crafted, and even all these years later listening to it again, reflecting upon the 17 year old me who'd heard it playing out of every transister radio, the poignancy is not diminished.
But that was then and this is now. Yet 40 years on young girls continue to be let down by a society which brainwashes them into thinking that they can only be defined by having a boyfriend (any loser'll do) and a baby (to trap said loser)! Or, for those at least with sufficient intellect to think ahead, a 'life plan' to be married by 'year 3', kids by year 5, all so predictably (yawn) mapped out! Both avenues only ever leading to living miserably ever after, all hopes and dreams abandoned, all potential quashed, old before their time. Except for that rare exception, a one in a million, who gets really really lucky, and 'Mr Right Now' actually turns out to be 'Mr Right' after all!
We females do know all this deep down, even the 'savvy, sexy ones', who, by definition, have it easier than the rest, more opportunities, more choices. At least that is, until the looks they've relied on begin to fade. Then they find it's their turn to be at home 'inventing lovers on the phone'...
Sad to say, most females will still choose to throw their lives away, rather than think there's a big world out there to try and make a difference in.
una mckillen Paying for a date is an expression. Meaning I was not the savvy, sexy girl. I ran into a high school friend the other day and he said to me "you look much prettier now than you did in high school. What happened?" I just laughed and said idk maybe you grew up.
I bet deep down even the 'savvy sexy ones' had their own issues to deal with if the truth be known! One certain truth is, the majority of us were neither savvy or sexy, or if we were, not enough to meet with our own approval, which really is all that counts! We'll hold ourselves back forever as long as we tell ourselves we're not good enough, which is why the words of this song go way beyond our youth - those old demons stalk us for the rest of our lives one way or another!
You are fortunate for being prettier now, though I wonder if that observation by your old school friend, followed by the 'What happened?', was an attempt at a put down??? Was she so green with envy I wonder, that a compliment was so difficult, unable to resist tagging on a barbed remark? Good for you, laughing and chucking it right back! Personally I save my bitch remarks for when they are deserved, and I'm not shy to compliment complete strangers who cross my path, makes them feel good, and makes me feel good for spreading a bit of something nice.
"To those of us who
knew the pain
of Valentine's
that never came
And those whose
name were never called
When choosing sides for basketball.."
I came here because the Simsons Episode 18 season 21 had this as the Outre song...I was a teen in the 70's so I remember it from that era but it was long forgotten...What a masterpiece of wordsmithing. Reminds me of Carly...I hope Janis is having a beautiful and fulfilling life and is surrounded by the love she craved when 17. : )
You make it sound like she's no longer with us. She's very much alive and is living a beautiful and fulfilling life.
H1delta Yeah, I suck with tenses sometimes...Philly Vernacular : )...I know she is still with us, She still tours! I checked her website before I watched this video just to see how she was doing...I will edit it...: ) Namaste!
I beleive someone watch too much Walt Disney´s CRAP. It is a shame that you request a "prince" and you will find a machoman... a vomit from him selves.
godbluffvdgg I hope you didn't take it as insult. I make my share of errors. Too many, actually. While I'm not one those she's singing about, I sympathize and empathize with them. Youth is not only wasted on the young, more often than not, it is also cruel to the young. Peace...
none at all, and uuuuuuups, I thought you wrote it by the deep meaning of the song (not just letters). Have a nice day!!!!
I was treated that way in school. We were poor an outcast. I was not ugly but people made you feel that way.
I love this song.
Shame on anyone that are so mean!
Exquisite ,Sad and Profound - still speaks of truth....Janis - to have created this makes your entire existence.....so so beautiful.
48 people are still lacking in social graces. If this song doesn't bring you close to tears ... You just don't have a heart.
beermonger1 Yep. Heard this for the first time in years on XM yesterday. I found myself fighting back tears, the song still has the same effect on me that it did 40 years ago.
This song was used in the film Absolutely Fabulous. I'd never heard it before. It's beautiful. :-)
One of the most famous song of all time! shame they dont make such beautiful music anymore....
I am a guy, but I felt exactly the same. Such strong lyrics.
I like her strong, authentic voice. Very different from today's female singers with fake voices and fried vocals.
This is the female heart that has quality.
So sad. I did, too, in a different way. Love was meant for guys who had a future. Didn't seem like I did, then. Years later, my novel published by Random House... etc. I always claimed this song for me, despite "gender." Believe me, this goes both ways. But you have to pick up and go, anyway...
longing to belong and learning how to feel comfortable with yourself is certainly cross gender(s) ... almost everyone feels alienated or displaced at some time .. even the "beauty queens" had their own insecurities ... if your self worth and success is tied up in your looks, just think how much panic and insecurity that will engender .. that is why this song is so resonant .. fantastic lyrics, great chord progression, a hint of a latin swaying ... it is interesting that the song (at least for me) seems to evoke reminiscence and a haunting poignancy more than dark bitterness .. sort of a mood of reflection examining pain from both inside and yet outside with less personalization. The rhythm also softens the pain because it is a warmer latin rhythm as if you are feeling a warm breeze rather than biting cold.
One of the most haunting and poignant songs about how hard life is for most during the transition from teen to young adult. Probably most felt somehow outside, looking in, at some point(s) in their lives and I've never heard a song that better encapsulated the hurt, longing to belong, and mild despair even while those whose lives looked immeasurably better also blew up. This has to be in the Top 100 of all time.
The lyrics just blow me away. What a great song, great voice, and now it's time to start crying in my beer.
Turning 17 tomorrow and savoring these last sweet days of being 16! :)
Savour them well, and the following years, because they will pass by in a heartbeat. Trust your birthday was all you hoped?
Beautiful song.
A very poynient and beautiful song.
Superbly performed.
When I was 17 I did think that love was meant for beauty queens..but eventually we find someone who sees the "beauty queen" in us. Thank God for those that look through the eyes of love!
Just heard this song on the very first episode of SNL, had to come hear it again. Beautiful song, beautiful voice.
I'm 16 and have been overweight since i was 10 years old. I get a lot of crap, and try to hde t by being upbeat, outgoing, and seeming confident. If only people knew, I struggle every waking minute. Never a boyfriend, never a first kiss. Im one of the most insecure beings known to man, yet people dont see it.
Honey, do whatever it takes to lose the weight. Be smart, funny and join every activity you have any interest in. Graduate, screw college for a few years and travel the world. It's ALL ahead waiting for you. I speak as a former size 22 who is a one:-) the weight and lack of confidence destroyed me until my 40's. I was able to have 8 years of truly living. Imagine how far I could have gone if I'd just taken action! Don't end up like me. I peaked decades to late to be ME. God, I pray you listen to this stranger who was you. Another thing, don't settle. Find the good dorky loyal man who will worship you. He'll make a fortune and the " bad boys" end up being minimum wage losers who blame you for their failures. Don't put it off, procrastination and fear will suck your youth and possibilities away. YOU CAN SUCCEED!!:-):-):-):-)
Genovie Ledbetter I know this was seven months after the comment had been made, and I could act as if I knew how you felt because of my own insecurity and similarities, but I won't pretend I've been through what you have. A lot of us feel this way, and the sad part is a lot of us don't realize we at least have each other. Those people that are rude and hateful don't deserve the air they breathe. If you ever feel the need to talk to anybody, about anything, just ask.
Genovie Ledbetter Dear one....all I can say is ride it out...and love yourself...your the only you that was ever made...unique and spectacular...school will go by...you will become who you want to become...those who have it easy don't appreciate it...those who depend on their looks to get by...they are in for a rude awakening...looks fade..you need something else to fall bask on
We mask our sadness and loneliness so well, there are very few who see the real you. You are still young, a baby, you have your life ahead of you. Make a conscious effort to lose the weight ( I know how impossible it seems, food is so very comforting!) don't give a **** about what others think of you, it's none of your business.
I waited until I was nearly 40 before I summoned up the confidence to make a change.
I used to go to gym at 3 a.m. because the gym was deserted and nobody would see this "fatty" looking like an idiot on the treadmill, pushing weights etc.
I didn't go to my high school 20th reunion, because I was still so scared of what those people, who I hadn't seen in 20 years would say, and how they would look at me and snigger.
In September, it is our 30th reunion - I am definitely going!! I have transformed myself, I am thin, with a great body and a beautiful boyfriend. I am no longer that fat ugly child that I was.
Genovie, don't waste the next 30 years of your life, like I did. Don't listen to them.
You have millions of peers with the same issues.
Haven't heard this song in 40 years. But woke up today with pieces of it stealing in and out out my mind.
Did a search for 'sad whispery '60s song sung by woman'. And here it is.
[Research; released in '75 and performed on the very first Saturday Night Live.]
when i finally found this song....i was like, "YES!". One of those treasures u rediscover.
FANTASTIC, FANTASTIC,FANTASTIC. What a beautiful piece,I LOVE IT.
This still me at 19, I'll come back at 20 if I still relate to this song.
I feel so ugly
Beautifully done well written lyrics - Innocence of being young....
Thank you Janis for this beautiful song........ I remember....... At seventeen......
The purity of her voice is wonderful.
it's a beautiful masterpiece
Brought here by Netflix’s ‘end of the f****ng world’
What a beautiful song
Thank you. It brings back good memories.
This is a song that sums up a lot of things in my life, and what was worse I had a sister 1 year ahead of me, she never had acne, she was a varsity cheerleader, boys calling all the time and popularity, and I kept hearing things like "you are her sister?" and "I would never have guessed that!"
This has kept me company through many a dark and lonely night
I remember when Janis Ian recorded "Societies Child", and no radio stations would play it. Then suddenly a movement started with the Hippies, and became like a their rebelious Him. The year was 1967. I loved the song and still have the LP. Ar seventeen was another one of her hits. Janis Ian was different and great singer/songwriter. God bless her whereever she may be.
Janis today has been replying to comments on 'Wings of Pegasus Janis Ian' which is an analysis of this song. She has replied to lots of comments.
Even the most pretty girls had/ have insecurities at 17... Wonderful song - thanks for sharing and for the nicely done lyrics.
It's funny I used to listen to this when I was 17 and at the time I thought this was going to be my life forever, being "the ugly duckling girl" while love was meant for "one more beautiful". Now I'm 20 and I don't think that's what Janis Ian was saying at all. I think she's saying that it feels that way when you're 17 and insecure, but years later you're going to look back in wonder at some of the fears and hang ups you had at that age.
I just want to say to any young people out there who feel this way: It does get better, I promise you.
You deserve a reward for putting that comment up for all the people who need to hear/read it. People telling me things would get better was so comforting when I was in high school.
For males, it does get a bit better. But most of us carry most of the pain through our sixties
I was a 17 yr old to and I agree. It does get better, people. Just hang on! : D
‘The End of the Fucking World!!’
Wow! Devastating, even at 81.
I related so much to this song when I was sixteen. Janis Ian really says the truth.
Netflix' "The End of the Fucking World" got me here :) Love that song!
Purr
This is a beautiful song and not depressing at all. It only tells it like it is for most teenage girls. In any generation there is only a limited number of gorgeous girls who receive all those early adult-hood prizes. The clue is in "Ugly duckling girls like me." It is a cliché but the high school football hero and the homecoming queen do not very often go on to great things. The brains, nerds and geeks often do. Janis Ian knew she was a beautiful swan. The pain is real though and beautifully expressed even if the context is small town America - could be any suburb or market town in England too.
This song always makes me think of myself at 17! Holds memories indeed.
Somber yet beautiful.
Before this video I watched Janis sing the live track. She told a short story about why she made the song and what it was about. It was only then I paid attention to this song. I've been listening to this song since the 70's and I just found out what it was about. Fashionably late.
if you ever get the chance to see Janis Ian live. GO. She's an incredible performer.
A beautiful song.........and just about summed me up back in the day.....Kx
"At Seventeen"( Janis Ian) along with "Breaking Up its Hard to Do (slower version) "
(Neil Sedaka) were two very romantic and very poignant songs. They were hits and were played on the radio for many many weeks in the summer of 1975. it reminds of my very young existence back then..
Beautiful!
lol I love that picture
Agree...just beautiful.....
Happens to guys as well. Take it easy.
I live it and I'm 58! And nobody cares
Same age, I live it, too. Have my whole life.
I sit here alone staring into the flames that burn in my fireplace, still dealing with the demons and wounds that scar me from what everyone says "were the best years" for me they were hell. Awkward, ugly and no social skills what so ever left me a hollow, dried out husk of a person that cannot trust. I have become good at hiding it all, yet every day is a battle just to get out of bed and go to work without drinking. I know it's not the answer, I just want the pain to end.
AT SEVENTEEN bella melodia muchos recuerdos del pasado-----gracias...
Hiroshi Fukuda
In 1975 there were quiet,lonely and peaceful music there.Joe Cocker sang "You Are So Beautiful,"Minnie Riperton did "Loving You"and Janis also did this.
I know the feels of this song, since I'm pretty much the shy kid with a number of true friends I can count on one hand.
I can so identify with this song when I was seventeen She sings from the heart and soul on this.
Beautiful song... Janis is an amazing singer and the lyrics are utterly beautiful, yet so sad...
Even at 23 the woes of a teenage girl still rings truth. Yet the struggles of early adulthood amplifies the woes too.
the Simpsons brought me here. now it's my favorite song.
Crystal Esquivel Same! lol
Crystal Esquivel omg same!
Do omg same!
Crystal Esquivel SAME, THIS IS CREEPY
Absolutely Fabulous the Movie. Saffy singing in the drag queen bar
no matter what you look like there is someone for you..it may not happen right away but if you keep your mind and heart open it will happen..everyone goes thru heatache..sometimes..
Awesome! Great lyrics. Undeniable truths.
The nerds: "I learned the truth at 17..."
The jocks: "When I was 17... It was a very good year..." (Sinatra)
I like this song, I would like to see a male version of this
Thank you for posting. This remains one of the best songs ever written!
I was 17 when this song was popular . I'm 60 now. Don't we wish that we knew then what we know now ?
This is now my new favorite song.
im here because of teotfw
finn's baby yas
finn's baby me too
finn's baby me too. 😁
Salut Oana
A time when song where music. Pleasant to hear. Lyrics with messages 😊❤🙏
AWESOME! She has Talent! Her words make perfect sense. I love this SONG!
While the music is great, the poetry of the lyrics is absolutely beautiful.
At Seventeen, played by Janis Ian. Janis Ian plays on Mean Girls, they made a musical. The girl who plays Janis Ian in the musical also plays in another musical called Heathers. In that musical she sang a song called “Seventeen”. Just though of this when I say the title
this song came out in my high school days, heard it, love it and still remains with me until these days and my days to come to remind me of my youth, of what was me then and what is me today. thanks janis................
Thank you. This song really feels like high school.
I like how this songs in mean girls, and one of the girls is named Janis Ian
THATS WHY IM HERE
Just thinking that!
Mean Girls was produced by SNL alumni. Janis performed this song on the very first episode of SNL in the '70s.
anyone here because of the simpsons?
Haha yeah
CarcallRoboT CarcallCats Nope, saw her recently on an original season of SNL, I had totally forgotten this song. One of those that don't get airplay anymore, but it should.
me
hell yeah!
+CarcallCats CarcallRoboT yeah :D
Takes me back to my childhood.
holy mother story of my teens for sure! thank you j.
I turned 17 yesterday wish me luck y‘all
Good luck
👍👍👍
'End of the fucking world' brought me here
very beautiful, yet haunting song, a reality for us all. we all went through some kind of uncomfortable phase growing up.
Great song and great performance!!
came here because I heard it on the simpsons
Me too
Me too!
SAMEE HAHAH
It was in 2 episodes one in season 8 and the other i think it's 22 or 21
I think they have covered almost everything by now. Amazing program. So brilliant.
More like "at 13"