I can remember watching this very episode of, 'The old grey whistle test'. something that i will never forget. The powerful lyrics and her rendition of this song is so poignant.
Before there was Melissa Etheridge, there was Janis Ian. I think she came out before Melissa did. I think this is what lesbians had to deal with in The 70's. It's in the lyrics of thiis tune.
HELLO, I AM THE MOM OF THE ACCOUNT THAT I AM COMMENTING FROM....I LOVE THIS SONG,,,BECAUSE IT IS HEARTFELT AND TRUE FROM MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. MY LIFE IS STRONG BUT STILL HAS THE SHADOWS OF THE IMAGES PORTRAYED HERE...ALL THOSE WHO CAN RELATE...REMEMBER GOD LOVES YOU AND SO DO I...----SINCERELY LISA....P.S . NOW CHECK OUT MY SON'S DUBSTEP VIDEO....THE MORE MODERN STUFF THE KIDS RELATE TO FROM THE YEAR 2011 AKA THE 70'S ROBBOT DANCE! LOL! :)
Boy what memories this brings back to me, as I close in on 62! Seventeen magazine and all the images it put forth telling me what I should look like, and I surely didn't... I remember crying the first time I heard Janis sing this
Thank you for posting this live performance by Janis Ian. I remember when this song was released in the 70s, and because I was a child at the time, I did not like it. It takes life experience to relate to the pain of which Janis sings, which I didn't have at the time. Now, I appreciate her artistry, and her painful honesty.
O.o my life's story... but i dont care, i feel sorry for the people that look at people like me to feel better because i dont feel worse anymore when i look at them =DDD, shallow people are the worst.
do they write songs like that today that the young can identify with and realiize that we have dousts and question ourselves, I don't know but I hope so. Thsi song always meant so much to me, and I felt a little less strange when I heard it on the radio.
By the seventies when this song was so popular, I reflected on back in grade school I was called ugly so much that I believed it. When high school came around, the guys began to like me and I thought they were crazy. It was conditioning. To this day, no matter how many compliments I get, I do not believe it entirely. This kept me humble and not vain in my looks. The world can be cruel when you're too tall, skinny and narrow.
I was a 17 year old boy when this song came out. I was very ugly in school. I was fat, pimple faced, wore glasses, and my family was poor. I was poor, fat, ugly, white trash. But I am so thankful that life gets soooooooooooo much better after high school. Thank you Janis. We love you.
This is a great song! Words do hurt, sometimes they cut like a knife. And this can lead to even more violent behavior. Have a look at my videos about Shanda Sharer who was bullied at school over jealously that eventually lead to her death. Four teen girls abducted Shanda, tortured her than burned her alive back in 1992.
@moregoth3 I agree and yet Ive learned one thing as a person who lost all and gained love only to lose it again! remeber life is a struggle, no right or wrong just your experiences makin you who you are! And emotions cause reactions! Dont pigeon hole everyone ! Live and make a differnece for your life to be better! Bye!
As a male teen in the early 70's what Janis Ian sang about was the the same for both Male and Female, ravaged faces- i had horrific Acne and was the subject of ridicule. One of the most poignant songs ever written and will never be matched by todays drivel.
Not good enough!!!!!!!, for what and for whom, you are your own person and good enough for anyone or anything. Dont let anybody tell you otherwise...!
i think most of us had a shit time at school .but for me (and all the other unprettys) at least we can appreciate this song. i'd still swap childhoods with a cool kid though- i used to stay at home with a made up disease on valentines day. i'm so glad that the prom never caught on in england- we just had a shitty christmas disco .janis ian is fuckin gorgeous
I was actually seventeen when this song came out, and perhaps that's one reason -- aside from the haunting beauty of its lyrics and Ian's inspired singing -- that's made it a longtime favorite of mine.
i'm not here to put down another artist but i find more sincerity to what she says in this one song than taylor swifts entire album, again not that im putting down i enjoy her too but i can't help to think that this was truly honest music at its prime
Just WOW! She FEELS this song. I have seen other recordings of it, but never before have I seen this one.
She isn't just singing for the "ugly duckling" (btw: she emerged as a beautiful swan) girls. She sings for all of us on the outside for our HS days. Thank God I graduated a year early and got out of that damned hellhole.
Ms. Ian: I haven't heard this song in many years -- and it didn't ever bring tears to me until tonight.
I agree hotcha,i had a difficult childhood,riddiculed by many at school,i wasn't pretty but now i'm a swan thank's to plastic surgery and my life is different and now i'm beautiful,but i still think of those day's of ridicul and teasing,i'm strong now and confindent but always think of of those who suffer now .Don't suffer get it sorrted it will change your life!.
I was one of those beautiful girls in high school, never lacking dates, attention, or roses.
The girls of the 70's did not have the access girls now have: fake hair, fake books, makeup artists. Plastic surgery was reserved for the super wealthy, so it was not easy to hide homeliness.
Age tends to level the playing field with wrinkles and the tendency to put on weight. All my friends, whether homely, plain or beautiful eventually married and had children. High school is very superficial.
I am a fifty something guy who was saved from the hardhness of being different by a short dark hair Jewish girl in the early 70s. I found myself an instrument of busing to achieve racial balance and ened up in a midwest school that did not want me there. After one of many abuses by both the students and teachers, this little Jewish girl came up and hugged and kissed me. Years later I heard this song and I am reminded of that girl. Where ever you are, thanks Terri.
This song really appealed to me when I was young but I didn't want it to. Now that I'm older and have seen so much more of love and loss, it all rings true. Thank you, Janis.
I'm 19 and I have to say, after high school, you go to college...things are a lot better. Granted there are some of "those" girls but they're more mature.
Plus, college is a friendly intellectual place of acceptance and understanding.
i'm kind of happy for those who didn't get the shun treatment til they were 17.
from the 2nd grade til i escaped at 16. school, why do kids quit? it's a puzzle? they must be lazy. they must not be motivated to succeed. they might be antisocial.
they might be escaping the abuse.
i felt such a weight off me when i quit high school.
Being "ugly" has some beenifets... a diffrent view on life is one and some maturities that take other people much longer to learn. Also, their are some people how use solitude to find a more enlightened way of living. So one way to think of it is that if your "ugly" (a purley relative term) than you may be more enlightened than other people and as Socrates says "the unexamend life is a life not worth living." So keep living and keep examining. ^-^
I can relate to this. 17 was my last year at high school....truly alienating and depressing times. I discovered I had crush on a girl and a guy. Then they started dating, and I didn't know what to make of it. I had no real friends or a social life. Things haven't changed much and the truth I realize 6 years later is I am a bit different from the norm, and I need to embrace it. This song is truly beautiful.
I dont know why but I loved this song I never knew the lyrics but just the first 2 lines I thought it was beautiful one of the reasons why I am a producer today
There are about a dozen songs that should never be covered by anyone else. Others may sing it well but, they'll never sing it right. This is one of those songs.
Just read this: She didn't get dates with guys in high school.. so bad self esteem... Then she got married and she really wanted to become a wife and a mother but he was not nice to her -- he was abusive. Thats the kind of man some women marry if they have poor self esteem.
After that she gave up on men and became a lesbian.
First time I heard this song about 5 years ago it hit really close to home. It was a complete reminder of what I felt like in my youth. Everything she said was true. Even so I`m a guy, that`s part of what makes this song so great; how many of us it applies to and it don`t matter what race color creed or sex you are.
whew.... she is really shouting me right now. i was caught between being pretty and being ugly. mostly in my own mind. this song... mmmm. i'm 30 now and remembering 17, or worse 15. this song is agonized and beautiful. i plan to sing it in one of my future shows. powerful truths and pain.
As a male just slightly younger than 17 and feeling all this pain Miss Ian wrote and sang about....I felt someone finally had some empathy for my screwed-up feelings and pain....If you are a teenager and you feel these emotions of being ugly, an outcast, unpopular..DON"T EVER GIVE UP! I realized I was just a late bloomer and didn't really start to find and accept myself until my late 2o's . Those kids who had it made in high school.That was their peak it was never going to be any better.
@rlspencer100 hey spence i remember the first episode of saturday night live janice sang this.i was a geek at 16 and had nothing else to do on a saturday. now i'm a doctor, have had many,many women if that's important to you. i have never felt the need to go back to show my bullies i'm better than them. waste of time for me. remember young man you only stay young for a short time, learn from it . after 17 you have a life of 50 or so years!
We've all been there, it's a matter of learning & growing up with strength and grace. It is how you grow and mature as once you are a adult--it helps to know that beauty comes from within.
This song was never about any specific gender. It was about me. It was about anybody, male or female, who carry the remains of a scared and gangly teenager deep in their souls. Thanks for the video. Take it easy.
Currently 16, Junior in High School, and I loathe going to school just because I can't deal with preps anymore. I'm so shy and scared of everyone. I try to talk, and nothing ever comes out. I have only 1 friend, and she's not even THAT close. My dad always says these are supposed to be the best years of my life. Well, I'm sorry, but these are the WORSE fucking years of my life. Ever since Freshmen year, I've had multiple thoughts of suicide and self harmed myself.
@ToxicMonkies Life gets better when you grow up, don't give up hope at this age. Teenagers can be pretty mean (always have been, always will be), but eventually you will find and surround yourself with people who you can relate to. There are always people who are willing to listen, finding them is difficult but worth it, so do not give up on life just yet ;)
This was always the touching song to me to. Having been burned severally at 1 ½, I grew up feeling very much like an ugly duckling myself. Although my early years were difficult, I eventually learned that one can become beautiful in what they do as well. With some help from Shiner’s Hospital, a good hair stylist and lots of dance lessons, I now delight many with my performances and social dancing. I have found my passion and place in life, and I encourage all of you to find yours!
@hotcha10 I felt like that when I was twelve. I thought I was ugly (frizzy hair and acne), fat (I was only eight stone at the time), stupid and talentless. I'm seventeen now and life is better now than it was then. I'm more physically fit, controlled the hair and acne, realised I was smarter than I thought and became a good writer, guitarist and public speaker. If anything causes worry, ask "is there fire or blood?" If no fire or blood, it's nothing to worry about. It works for me.
@hotcha10 thanks for sharing such a lovely and heartfelt story. I'd like to see your videos of you at dances sometime. your story is really encouraging. it just goes to show how despite any obstacles, it is possible to come out a winner in this life. Bless you!
The gays need their queen again. Cher needs to record. Lady Gaga just isn't cutting it. At Seventeen was a great song to listen to when I was a teenager and on the outside.
You see ? The 20th century was the best century of all time. Screw the 2000's. Who do we have now ? Lady Gaga ? Miley Cyrus ? They're garbage. This is real singing, real talent, real heart. I'm glad I was born in the 20th century. I did not see the 70's (I saw the 80's) but I did love and still love oldies and classic songs of a better time than now.
@AmericanEvita 30years later and people are still listening to this - Who will listen to Lady Gaga in 30years - Kids get bored of her music after 30minutes - No substance cheap mass-market crap doesn't last
@furb393 Exactly. And this song makes me cry each time I hear it. There are many 50's, 60's and 70's songs that have so much emotion in them. Today's songs are garbage and none of today's songs make me cry. They just make me puke!
Thank god i thought i was only 1 looking up the song from simpsons on hulu.. Wat a deep song. Real though out lyrics, which is hard to find in this lady gaga era, I think i was born in the wrong generation ..
With your talent and wonderful vocals I take you every day and three times on Sundays to put you on a pedestal like bouquet of wild lili. You are immortal.
One of the finest, and one of my All-Time Favorite Poetic songs, ever.!!! It was the song and message of many young people, not in the popular in-crowd, of their youth. How can we not relate to this song..!! I love it.!!
@jonieheffner Cheer up Jonie. Maybe a quote from Baz Luhrman's "Sunscreen" may lighten u up? "... in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you cant grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked...You are not as fat as you imagine"
@ohhrichie When I was 17 I was lost... when I was 13 I was lost... it was years later that I realized that I have been lost for most of my child hood.
@ohhrichie At the risk of sounding like Bill Clinton "I feel your pain". I was also lost at 17. I am much older now, and wish that I had spoken to someone about the things that were bothering me. Just know that you are not alone. What helped me tremendously was reading books like the Power of Positive Thinking (Peale), and though I do not go as often as I should what I have found is that there is no place like Church to help renew the spirit. Go to any Church, and sit in on one of the services
@Karmala2 Yes not only going to church but also to recieve the Holy Spirit is what totally heals our broken spirit and gives us a hope not just to deal with this life but also to enter the gates of joy in the next life
@ohhrichie Stay with it, it will be worthwhile its only natural you feel like this at your young age. STAY THE DISTANCE BUDDY, life has loads to offer, take it and enjoy it.
OMG!.... Brings tears to my eyes. Such a true story that goes on every day! Her voice in this song is un-matched...I'm sorry for anyone that has felt this same pain.
I know exactly what she went through, i had terrible eczema when i was younger, and kids gave me hell for the way i looked. It really made me break down sometimes, and when i heard this song on the radio i always sang along, it still brings tears to my eyes... Going through all that crap really made me a stronger, better person though, and i wouldn't go back in time to change anything even if i could.
Could be the greatest sad song ever.
btannam 3 weeks ago
Wow...what a stirring performance. With simple clarity and grace she delivers a deeply touching message.
jamescwolf 4 weeks ago
me at seventeen made me cry so true
jennylionheart 1 month ago
DESDE 1976, UMAS DAS MAIS LINDAS CANÇÕES QUE JÁ OUVI
BOMBEIROCARLOS100 1 month ago
I can remember watching this very episode of, 'The old grey whistle test'. something that i will never forget. The powerful lyrics and her rendition of this song is so poignant.
imintshed 1 month ago 2
@TonyPerr
Smokey10510 1 month ago
I'm 25, and this song still seems poignant
TheKristinn86 2 months ago 2
She was really beautiful! And she had magical voice. All of her classmates could die of envy.
AstralMolary 2 months ago 6
what a great masterpeice song as good as any bob dylan classic but she can play guitar. it hit me when I was a little kid.
but look at her face its like she a lier singing ugly duckling.
kaptainbastard 2 months ago
*sigh*
pastramiinator 3 months ago
Before there was Melissa Etheridge, there was Janis Ian. I think she came out before Melissa did. I think this is what lesbians had to deal with in The 70's. It's in the lyrics of thiis tune.
kja427 3 months ago
@kja427 Janis was first, love her!!!!
MisterMedium 3 months ago
her voice it just amazing <3
and im sure LOTS of girls feel like this even though theyre gorgeous inside and out <3
JanetR8692 3 months ago
Saw her in Limerick back 30 years ago. Fantastic. Clever lyrics. Great song. A Classic.
thechurchac 4 months ago
It does not get much more beautiful, and sublime as this song and performance!
TonyPerr 4 months ago
HELLO, I AM THE MOM OF THE ACCOUNT THAT I AM COMMENTING FROM....I LOVE THIS SONG,,,BECAUSE IT IS HEARTFELT AND TRUE FROM MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. MY LIFE IS STRONG BUT STILL HAS THE SHADOWS OF THE IMAGES PORTRAYED HERE...ALL THOSE WHO CAN RELATE...REMEMBER GOD LOVES YOU AND SO DO I...----SINCERELY LISA....P.S . NOW CHECK OUT MY SON'S DUBSTEP VIDEO....THE MORE MODERN STUFF THE KIDS RELATE TO FROM THE YEAR 2011 AKA THE 70'S ROBBOT DANCE! LOL! :)
aJoshudHowar 4 months ago
beautiful.
Borreichon 4 months ago
Live @ Lloyd (RTV Rijnmond, Dutch local television)
Janis sung three songs live in our studio today:
1. Fly too high
2. The other side of the sun
3. At seventeen
ShibbySeagull 5 months ago
Boy what memories this brings back to me, as I close in on 62! Seventeen magazine and all the images it put forth telling me what I should look like, and I surely didn't... I remember crying the first time I heard Janis sing this
smacdonn 5 months ago 2
The other girls might've been tall, beautiful and whatnot, but who got the spotlight?!?!
MrLostcause1983 5 months ago 4
THIS IS TRUE ... for both GALS and GUYS !!!
CRAZYtomboy1996 5 months ago 24
@CRAZYtomboy1996 Not really. Girls tend to care a lot less about looks.
iceman3641 2 months ago
@CRAZYtomboy1996 Yo Bro!!
MultiGeraghty 1 month ago
How sad. I just love these beautiful, relatable lyrics, especially since I'm about to turn 17. This song describes exactly how I feel.
Celthun7 5 months ago 4
wonderfull! you do not need to be tall to be a great singer and that is what janis ian is. love you!
naom1e2011 5 months ago
Where did this unplugged talent go! What a great song!
ety181 7 months ago 6
Where did this unplugged talent go! What a great song
ety181 7 months ago 4
these lyrics are so touching
i just got this feeling. . . where i feel the nolstalgia for today that i should be feeling in the future. . .
but no, it's here now, this happens a lot, so bittersweet :')
tokyokisshu122 7 months ago
Thank you for posting this live performance by Janis Ian. I remember when this song was released in the 70s, and because I was a child at the time, I did not like it. It takes life experience to relate to the pain of which Janis sings, which I didn't have at the time. Now, I appreciate her artistry, and her painful honesty.
ReneaB1964 8 months ago
O.o my life's story... but i dont care, i feel sorry for the people that look at people like me to feel better because i dont feel worse anymore when i look at them =DDD, shallow people are the worst.
nandafprado 8 months ago
6 dislikes, they must be cheerleaders.
bisp25 8 months ago
@bisp25
ha ha great comment!! Yes those 6 dislikes must be cheerleaders
ZEITGEISTism 8 months ago
One of the best song ever
jbjmec3kids 8 months ago
im glad i found this song cause im seventeen and this is exactly how i feel. :/ i love oldies <3
christinafartsalot 8 months ago
do they write songs like that today that the young can identify with and realiize that we have dousts and question ourselves, I don't know but I hope so. Thsi song always meant so much to me, and I felt a little less strange when I heard it on the radio.
ricklisastewart 9 months ago 2
By the seventies when this song was so popular, I reflected on back in grade school I was called ugly so much that I believed it. When high school came around, the guys began to like me and I thought they were crazy. It was conditioning. To this day, no matter how many compliments I get, I do not believe it entirely. This kept me humble and not vain in my looks. The world can be cruel when you're too tall, skinny and narrow.
boomerang905 9 months ago
@boomerang905
Even the women who were pretty all their lives dont "believe it entirely"! LOL!
MeshugenahScientist 8 months ago
@MeshugenahScientist That's true too. I know a lot of unsure people who shouldn't be. Thanks for the response! lol
boomerang905 8 months ago
I was a 17 year old boy when this song came out. I was very ugly in school. I was fat, pimple faced, wore glasses, and my family was poor. I was poor, fat, ugly, white trash. But I am so thankful that life gets soooooooooooo much better after high school. Thank you Janis. We love you.
carolinawenierdog 9 months ago 3
me three haha
wanch28 9 months ago
Im 13 and i fucking hate High School.
guitarman7477 10 months ago 4
And the crowd goes wild!
PassingSquall 10 months ago
This is a great song! Words do hurt, sometimes they cut like a knife. And this can lead to even more violent behavior. Have a look at my videos about Shanda Sharer who was bullied at school over jealously that eventually lead to her death. Four teen girls abducted Shanda, tortured her than burned her alive back in 1992.
FullMoonVideo 10 months ago
I am crying.
Alot of truth in this song.
Looks is what people care about, if they say others they are lying.
when people look for love they look for beauty.
im ashamed of the human race. :(
moregoth3 10 months ago 2
@moregoth3 I agree and yet Ive learned one thing as a person who lost all and gained love only to lose it again! remeber life is a struggle, no right or wrong just your experiences makin you who you are! And emotions cause reactions! Dont pigeon hole everyone ! Live and make a differnece for your life to be better! Bye!
Leonlavoe1973 10 months ago
@moregoth3 So true! I think Janis was beautiful when she made this. The real beauty is in the mind!
morgandude2 10 months ago 2
@colo4life360 me too
MrJoebud420 11 months ago
As a male teen in the early 70's what Janis Ian sang about was the the same for both Male and Female, ravaged faces- i had horrific Acne and was the subject of ridicule. One of the most poignant songs ever written and will never be matched by todays drivel.
RedditchBhoy 11 months ago 4
Amazing, beautiful song. I knew the melody but could not think of the title (I found it on the Simpsons too) lol
dale1269 11 months ago 3
great song
161shiva 11 months ago
I had a hard time at school, I love this song.
lovelightlucy 1 year ago 4
I LOVE YOU JANIS THIS SONG IS SO WONDERFUL , A BETTER TIME.
hounddogdrifter 1 year ago
wow, i shed a tear hearing this. i know exactly how it feels to not be good enough
RubySnow101 1 year ago 31
@RubySnow101 ,
Not good enough!!!!!!!, for what and for whom, you are your own person and good enough for anyone or anything. Dont let anybody tell you otherwise...!
Chin up.
klipdriftpower 3 months ago in playlist all kevs favs
i think most of us had a shit time at school .but for me (and all the other unprettys) at least we can appreciate this song. i'd still swap childhoods with a cool kid though- i used to stay at home with a made up disease on valentines day. i'm so glad that the prom never caught on in england- we just had a shitty christmas disco .janis ian is fuckin gorgeous
iampunitan 1 year ago 4
As a gay boy this really made me cry.
Ekwa 1 year ago 6
I was actually seventeen when this song came out, and perhaps that's one reason -- aside from the haunting beauty of its lyrics and Ian's inspired singing -- that's made it a longtime favorite of mine.
hayesman76 1 year ago 2
Oh my god! Will ya'all get over the simpsons already???? lol!
TheGmgirl77 1 year ago
i love this singer, she sings without an effort yet you can feel the emotion
jazed371 1 year ago 2
Absolutely brilliant song - a true classic
TheBlackDuk 1 year ago 2
This is a song that most of us can relate to. I'm 28 and I'm still at "at seventeen." (Who am I kidding. I was born there.)
KyogreOfTheSea 1 year ago
i'm not here to put down another artist but i find more sincerity to what she says in this one song than taylor swifts entire album, again not that im putting down i enjoy her too but i can't help to think that this was truly honest music at its prime
pigglypoof 1 year ago 4
17 is a really hard age..
PosingAddict103 1 year ago
not sure why people would bother to unlike this. There are many other things worthy of dislike. This is a woman pouring out her soul in song.
CrustyRim1 1 year ago
Just WOW! She FEELS this song. I have seen other recordings of it, but never before have I seen this one.
She isn't just singing for the "ugly duckling" (btw: she emerged as a beautiful swan) girls. She sings for all of us on the outside for our HS days. Thank God I graduated a year early and got out of that damned hellhole.
Ms. Ian: I haven't heard this song in many years -- and it didn't ever bring tears to me until tonight.
Thank you
freedumb2003 1 year ago 2
Javier Bardem on lead guitar.
robertmorganfisher 1 year ago
I agree hotcha,i had a difficult childhood,riddiculed by many at school,i wasn't pretty but now i'm a swan thank's to plastic surgery and my life is different and now i'm beautiful,but i still think of those day's of ridicul and teasing,i'm strong now and confindent but always think of of those who suffer now .Don't suffer get it sorrted it will change your life!.
2618ism 1 year ago
I was one of those beautiful girls in high school, never lacking dates, attention, or roses.
The girls of the 70's did not have the access girls now have: fake hair, fake books, makeup artists. Plastic surgery was reserved for the super wealthy, so it was not easy to hide homeliness.
Age tends to level the playing field with wrinkles and the tendency to put on weight. All my friends, whether homely, plain or beautiful eventually married and had children. High school is very superficial.
paco11051 1 year ago
Haunting song but her delivery with her superb guitar-playing just sends this sad song over the top!
9876543217303 1 year ago
I am a fifty something guy who was saved from the hardhness of being different by a short dark hair Jewish girl in the early 70s. I found myself an instrument of busing to achieve racial balance and ened up in a midwest school that did not want me there. After one of many abuses by both the students and teachers, this little Jewish girl came up and hugged and kissed me. Years later I heard this song and I am reminded of that girl. Where ever you are, thanks Terri.
SwagKingz 1 year ago 3
@colo4life360 xD me too, the chili thing haha awsome
lamialacritas 1 year ago
Maria Annaleah brings back so many memories.
JosephDillon57 1 year ago
This song really appealed to me when I was young but I didn't want it to. Now that I'm older and have seen so much more of love and loss, it all rings true. Thank you, Janis.
papakilatube 1 year ago
I'm 19 and I have to say, after high school, you go to college...things are a lot better. Granted there are some of "those" girls but they're more mature.
Plus, college is a friendly intellectual place of acceptance and understanding.
NothingMoreBlack 1 year ago
Is there a better song than this?
papakilatube 1 year ago
i'm kind of happy for those who didn't get the shun treatment til they were 17.
from the 2nd grade til i escaped at 16. school, why do kids quit? it's a puzzle? they must be lazy. they must not be motivated to succeed. they might be antisocial.
they might be escaping the abuse.
i felt such a weight off me when i quit high school.
jen8933 1 year ago 2
God brings back so many memories.
bwoeneyedgal45 1 year ago
Amazing how many people of all ages relate to this song.
Circey5519 1 year ago
Being "ugly" has some beenifets... a diffrent view on life is one and some maturities that take other people much longer to learn. Also, their are some people how use solitude to find a more enlightened way of living. So one way to think of it is that if your "ugly" (a purley relative term) than you may be more enlightened than other people and as Socrates says "the unexamend life is a life not worth living." So keep living and keep examining. ^-^
ReaperTradeMark 1 year ago 2
I can relate to this. 17 was my last year at high school....truly alienating and depressing times. I discovered I had crush on a girl and a guy. Then they started dating, and I didn't know what to make of it. I had no real friends or a social life. Things haven't changed much and the truth I realize 6 years later is I am a bit different from the norm, and I need to embrace it. This song is truly beautiful.
yurikomuro 1 year ago 3
I dont know why but I loved this song I never knew the lyrics but just the first 2 lines I thought it was beautiful one of the reasons why I am a producer today
Shivante83 1 year ago
@sportietom nope, same here. glad of it though.
lindindin2 1 year ago
There are about a dozen songs that should never be covered by anyone else. Others may sing it well but, they'll never sing it right. This is one of those songs.
daveumpref 1 year ago 21
Stop moaning woman!
bigjimmi24 1 year ago
Just read this: She didn't get dates with guys in high school.. so bad self esteem... Then she got married and she really wanted to become a wife and a mother but he was not nice to her -- he was abusive. Thats the kind of man some women marry if they have poor self esteem.
After that she gave up on men and became a lesbian.
DURound 1 year ago
First time I heard this song about 5 years ago it hit really close to home. It was a complete reminder of what I felt like in my youth. Everything she said was true. Even so I`m a guy, that`s part of what makes this song so great; how many of us it applies to and it don`t matter what race color creed or sex you are.
DoubleVisionandco 1 year ago 5
@DoubleVisionandco
Estoy en acuerdo contigo. Do you think it's vaguely reminiscent of 'sixteen again' by Buzzcocks, or is that just me?
gerontodon 1 year ago
Aweome voice!
Repenting other lives unknown.....
enystn 1 year ago
I am to this day still a proud member of the "Those whose name were never called when choosing sides for basketball." xoxo
folknhairy 1 year ago 4
i'm 17 again...yeah!
froggynow 1 year ago
I saw her live at my university, and she thinks I look adorable in my glasses. :) She was totally flirting with me ha ha.
luwenger09 1 year ago
So brilliant and talented.
iltarion 1 year ago
3 people are beauty queens And high school girls with clear skinned smiles Who married young and then retired
Bladerunner93 1 year ago
So many memories.....Need I say more:0)
daydream70 1 year ago
Lovely performance
garyminion 1 year ago
I think she looks very Pretty!
anneryful 1 year ago
I'm a guy , but i can understand how this song could mean so much to girls who are ugly at 17.
alexaadap 1 year ago
whew.... she is really shouting me right now. i was caught between being pretty and being ugly. mostly in my own mind. this song... mmmm. i'm 30 now and remembering 17, or worse 15. this song is agonized and beautiful. i plan to sing it in one of my future shows. powerful truths and pain.
londyjamel 1 year ago 3
Cheer up Someone loves you for who you are.
gracely77 1 year ago
thank you, mst3k.
grnmtnsteve 1 year ago
this song cuts straight to the core.
aknowneemus 1 year ago
Thumbs up if you came to this song cause one of the mafia was listening to it...x]
TheVentusVanitas 1 year ago
I am seventeen and I can relate with the song.
yamada2193 1 year ago
As a male just slightly younger than 17 and feeling all this pain Miss Ian wrote and sang about....I felt someone finally had some empathy for my screwed-up feelings and pain....If you are a teenager and you feel these emotions of being ugly, an outcast, unpopular..DON"T EVER GIVE UP! I realized I was just a late bloomer and didn't really start to find and accept myself until my late 2o's . Those kids who had it made in high school.That was their peak it was never going to be any better.
rlspencer100 1 year ago 65
@rlspencer100 hey spence i remember the first episode of saturday night live janice sang this.i was a geek at 16 and had nothing else to do on a saturday. now i'm a doctor, have had many,many women if that's important to you. i have never felt the need to go back to show my bullies i'm better than them. waste of time for me. remember young man you only stay young for a short time, learn from it . after 17 you have a life of 50 or so years!
oddwiak 1 year ago
@rlspencer100
:) soon i hope
TheXander360 10 months ago
We've all been there, it's a matter of learning & growing up with strength and grace. It is how you grow and mature as once you are a adult--it helps to know that beauty comes from within.
longmeadowquilter 1 year ago
This song was never about any specific gender. It was about me. It was about anybody, male or female, who carry the remains of a scared and gangly teenager deep in their souls. Thanks for the video. Take it easy.
raybradhausen 1 year ago 5
Currently 16, Junior in High School, and I loathe going to school just because I can't deal with preps anymore. I'm so shy and scared of everyone. I try to talk, and nothing ever comes out. I have only 1 friend, and she's not even THAT close. My dad always says these are supposed to be the best years of my life. Well, I'm sorry, but these are the WORSE fucking years of my life. Ever since Freshmen year, I've had multiple thoughts of suicide and self harmed myself.
This song explains me. =/
ToxicMonkies 1 year ago
@ToxicMonkies Life gets better when you grow up, don't give up hope at this age. Teenagers can be pretty mean (always have been, always will be), but eventually you will find and surround yourself with people who you can relate to. There are always people who are willing to listen, finding them is difficult but worth it, so do not give up on life just yet ;)
pURanoslav 1 year ago 4
Beautifully Haunting
popey111 1 year ago
i soooo forgot about this song =)
TwiBunny 1 year ago
If this were made compulsory listening/study at schools, we may stand a chance of reducing the suicide rate.....how about it people!!
southerncreature 1 year ago
I love what she said to introduce the song... almost everyone was an ugly duckling in some way, and it mattered too much at 17 :D
batlin 1 year ago
Touching song. Going to commit suicide now.
ObiWanGuacamoli 1 year ago
@ObiWanGuacamoli ...that's funny, and I always loved the bossa in this...Janis
Ian; forever defending the less fortunate and at a cost....even still.
jonieheffner 1 year ago
My friend died this week. Today was his funeral, and they played this song. I think he really related to it, even though he was 26...
He came out when he was 17...
R.I.P. Ryan
lany2912 1 year ago
the lyrics is still so true now days..
daimin1 1 year ago 4
This was always the touching song to me to. Having been burned severally at 1 ½, I grew up feeling very much like an ugly duckling myself. Although my early years were difficult, I eventually learned that one can become beautiful in what they do as well. With some help from Shiner’s Hospital, a good hair stylist and lots of dance lessons, I now delight many with my performances and social dancing. I have found my passion and place in life, and I encourage all of you to find yours!
hotcha10 1 year ago 79
@hotcha10 I felt like that when I was twelve. I thought I was ugly (frizzy hair and acne), fat (I was only eight stone at the time), stupid and talentless. I'm seventeen now and life is better now than it was then. I'm more physically fit, controlled the hair and acne, realised I was smarter than I thought and became a good writer, guitarist and public speaker. If anything causes worry, ask "is there fire or blood?" If no fire or blood, it's nothing to worry about. It works for me.
lamc93 1 year ago
@hotcha10 like it
sesanaa 1 year ago
@hotcha10 Bless you X
MITCHWILD 1 year ago
Lynnbarb1@verizon.net: {{hotcha10}} inspirational, friend! You GO!
Lynnbarb1 1 year ago
@hotcha10 thanks for sharing such a lovely and heartfelt story. I'd like to see your videos of you at dances sometime. your story is really encouraging. it just goes to show how despite any obstacles, it is possible to come out a winner in this life. Bless you!
namcasithienphu 1 year ago
The gays need their queen again. Cher needs to record. Lady Gaga just isn't cutting it. At Seventeen was a great song to listen to when I was a teenager and on the outside.
EuroTom1 1 year ago
One gets the sense that it hurts her just as much in this performance as it did back when she was seventeen.
mjmcnult 1 year ago 5
Profoundly moving
6793612 1 year ago 2
she sings with so much passion
songs today lack emotion
xPiNKyHEiDix 1 year ago 4
beautiful song
xPiNKyHEiDix 1 year ago
You see ? The 20th century was the best century of all time. Screw the 2000's. Who do we have now ? Lady Gaga ? Miley Cyrus ? They're garbage. This is real singing, real talent, real heart. I'm glad I was born in the 20th century. I did not see the 70's (I saw the 80's) but I did love and still love oldies and classic songs of a better time than now.
AmericanEvita 1 year ago 3
@AmericanEvita 30years later and people are still listening to this - Who will listen to Lady Gaga in 30years - Kids get bored of her music after 30minutes - No substance cheap mass-market crap doesn't last
furb393 1 year ago 3
@furb393 Exactly. And this song makes me cry each time I hear it. There are many 50's, 60's and 70's songs that have so much emotion in them. Today's songs are garbage and none of today's songs make me cry. They just make me puke!
AmericanEvita 1 year ago 2
Thank god i thought i was only 1 looking up the song from simpsons on hulu.. Wat a deep song. Real though out lyrics, which is hard to find in this lady gaga era, I think i was born in the wrong generation ..
princeOthievz 1 year ago 2
@princeOthievz same here im 13 and all i listen to is beatles and stuff like this
azile10101 4 months ago
I think I love her@@
Vameon 1 year ago
*tear* :')
qx125365 1 year ago
With your talent and wonderful vocals I take you every day and three times on Sundays to put you on a pedestal like bouquet of wild lili. You are immortal.
Aliof 1 year ago
Every time i listen to it.......well, sheer beauty!
klipdriftpower 1 year ago
This is so true! For all of us that weren't in the in crowd.
kbrown1969 1 year ago
I love this song. Great lyrics!
HamptonDoll 1 year ago
One of the finest, and one of my All-Time Favorite Poetic songs, ever.!!! It was the song and message of many young people, not in the popular in-crowd, of their youth. How can we not relate to this song..!! I love it.!!
MrSonny119 1 year ago
this was the end of bowling for columbine @ the creds which is how i found it...pretty cool.
attatae 1 year ago
why does this song remind me of the bell jar
northernlights12345 1 year ago
...i feel ugly.
jonieheffner 1 year ago
@jonieheffner Cheer up Jonie. Maybe a quote from Baz Luhrman's "Sunscreen" may lighten u up? "... in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you cant grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked...You are not as fat as you imagine"
(not saying your fat ;-)
tomdewilde1 1 year ago
@tomdewilde1 ..i was joking...I am hardly a disappointment.
jonieheffner 1 year ago
ZOMG WHY CANT TODAYS MUSIC BE LIKE THIS...... THIS WAS WHEN MUSIC WAS FOR REAL......NOT LIKE TODAYS COMPLETE LACK OF MUSIC!!! MUSIC, COME BACK!!!!!!
/s
nomec182 1 year ago 2
when i can't move. the music moves for me. this is a great song, and she puts her heart in it.
MyTiger16 1 year ago 2
im 17 right now and i feel so lost
ohhrichie 1 year ago 14
@ohhrichie same here. hang in there
MyTiger16 1 year ago
@ohhrichie I'm also 17 and I feel the same way
Trickishismael360 1 year ago
@ohhrichie When I was 17 I was lost... when I was 13 I was lost... it was years later that I realized that I have been lost for most of my child hood.
valleart 1 year ago
@ohhrichie At the risk of sounding like Bill Clinton "I feel your pain". I was also lost at 17. I am much older now, and wish that I had spoken to someone about the things that were bothering me. Just know that you are not alone. What helped me tremendously was reading books like the Power of Positive Thinking (Peale), and though I do not go as often as I should what I have found is that there is no place like Church to help renew the spirit. Go to any Church, and sit in on one of the services
Karmala2 1 year ago
@Karmala2 Yes not only going to church but also to recieve the Holy Spirit is what totally heals our broken spirit and gives us a hope not just to deal with this life but also to enter the gates of joy in the next life
LOWGM 1 year ago
@LOWGM What a lovely delusion!
Deesade86 1 year ago
@Karmala2
I agree. My faith in Christ has helped me SO much in life.
thematronicuk 1 year ago
@ohhrichie Stay with it, it will be worthwhile its only natural you feel like this at your young age. STAY THE DISTANCE BUDDY, life has loads to offer, take it and enjoy it.
KC
klipdriftpower 1 year ago
@ohhrichie We all at one point of our lives felt that way too . Your not alone. It's normal .
MajorSecord 1 year ago
@ohhrichie oh! but dont forget life getz better ok
dianita817 1 year ago
@ohhrichie
You are not alone hon. I'm 29 and when I was 17 I was lost too. However as you get older you WILL find your way........ Trust me. :)
thematronicuk 1 year ago
@ohhrichie chin up baby. It gets better... Hang in there!
dmaraire 1 year ago
@ohhrichie It gets better. It really does.
freshacconci 1 year ago
This song is outstanding. Those of us who have been there get it.
woosailor 1 year ago 5
OMG!.... Brings tears to my eyes. Such a true story that goes on every day! Her voice in this song is un-matched...I'm sorry for anyone that has felt this same pain.
mongovette 1 year ago 6
I know exactly what she went through, i had terrible eczema when i was younger, and kids gave me hell for the way i looked. It really made me break down sometimes, and when i heard this song on the radio i always sang along, it still brings tears to my eyes... Going through all that crap really made me a stronger, better person though, and i wouldn't go back in time to change anything even if i could.
utternutter91 1 year ago 6
love this song and " society's child" of her too..
beautiful and haunting both....
solameencuentro 1 year ago
Amazing song
4ev3rs 1 year ago
i thought this was "SEVENTEEN" by kresling. great song, but the other video is cooler...
theasdfgman 1 year ago
I weep when I hear this.
mpm111144 1 year ago 2