Don't Let Daddy Kiss Me

When you think of Motorhead and their hard-rocking, hard-living frontman Lemmy you immediately think of songs like Ace of Spades, Born to Raise Hell, Iron Fist, Overkill and the like, songs that make you want to bang your head and raise your fist in triumph. You rarely think about Lemmy and Motorhead having a social conscience and singing about sensitive subjects. That is until you hear them play “Don’t Let Daddy Kiss Me.”

Released in 1993 and taken from their album “Bastards”, “Don’t Let Daddy Kiss Me” tells the story of a young girl’s relationship with her sexually abusive father, and of her fears of what will happen when he goes into her room every night. Originally written in 1990, Lemmy offered the song to Lita Ford and Joan Jett, both of whom turned it down.

Lemmy eventually recorded the song with Motorhead three years later, and it’s quite unlike anything you’d expect from them. This kind of sensitive subject matter isn’t something the casual fan would associate with someone like Lemmy, but it turns out it was one of his favourite songs.

I listened to the song for the first time in ages a few weeks ago when Spotify picked it randomly from my 90’s Metal playlist. I have to admit it kind of knocked me back a little when it began, simply because I’d forgotten just how powerful a song it is. It’s a song about pain and suffering that, when you think about all of the other classics he’s written, shows the sensitive side of Mr. Kilmister, a side we never seemed to see during his lifetime.

If, when you tell someone that you like Metal music, they tell you that it’s nothing more than mindless and senseless noise with screaming and grunt-filled lyrics that have no meaning, then just play “Don’t Let Daddy Kiss Me” to them.