Mermaid Motel Lyrics
Maybe I could sing the national anthem
Buy a white sweater, for the last white day
Of the summer
For my mermaid video
Walk back to where we live
In a motel
on Neptune Avenue
You say take it off, take it off
You call me lavender, you call me sunshine
You say take it off, take it off
We'll see Van Halen at the reunion show
Heavy metal hour on T.V.
Diamond Dave and Ray Lee
And you salute me, Miss America
Because I am, I am
You say take it off, take it off
You call me lavender, you call me sunshine
You say take it off, take it off
Maybe I could sing you to sleep
God bless the universe, god bless the ocean
God bless you and god bless me
God bless you and god bless me
You say take it off, take it off
You call me lavender, you call me sunshine
You say take it off, take it off
![Cover art for Mermaid Motel lyrics by Lana Del Rey](https://images.songmeanings.com/eed14553-49e8-4992-861f-993eea7825d2.webp)
she writes a lot about coney island. i wonder what kind of experiences she has had there..... ponder ponder
From the song I'm guessin' an exprerience with some mighty fine drugs :)
From the song I'm guessin' an exprerience with some mighty fine drugs :)
I believe that Coney Island (Brooklyn) is near New York (where she lived) and was the place she first began playing in clubs. Soon after, she began writing her own songs and recording them. Obviously quite a milestone for her career. /:)
I believe that Coney Island (Brooklyn) is near New York (where she lived) and was the place she first began playing in clubs. Soon after, she began writing her own songs and recording them. Obviously quite a milestone for her career. /:)
![Cover art for Mermaid Motel lyrics by Lana Del Rey](https://images.songmeanings.com/eed14553-49e8-4992-861f-993eea7825d2.webp)
I’m not saying I’m privy to Lana’s intentions for this song and I could be way off, but this is my take:
From the picture this song paints, I get a kind of seedy, amateur porno film vibe. She’s living in a motel with an unknown man, she’s buying a purple wig for her “mermaid video” -- it could be a music video, but it seems like they’re shooting in the motel because she says she walks back to the motel after she buys it, and he repeatedly tells her to “take it off,” implying her clothing, obviously. The gasps she makes after each set of “take it off”s sound almost a little surprised, like her innocence has been corrupted… with the motel on Neptune Avenue, the fact that they live there, and the almost childlike, whimsical image of the vivid purple wig all paired with her little girly gasping sounds invoke a scene of a naïve, possibly nervous young woman being persuaded or cajoled into “tak[ing] it off.” The pet names he uses for her of “Lavender” and “Sunshine” also reinforce that she’s young and innocent, and the breathy way she sings “you call me Lavender, you call me Sunshine” further suggest that she’s been/being coaxed into his dirtier, more adult world. As for the heavy metal and Americana references, I don’t know, that sounds like Lana just being Lana ;) (Or should I say Lizzy being Lizzy…?)
Love the song, the whole album is great to listen to while lazing in the sun by the pool or on the beach :)
Oh yeah, not to mention the "white sweater" reference; buying a white sweater on "the last white day of the summer," definitely carries some "loss of innocence" connotations.
Oh yeah, not to mention the "white sweater" reference; buying a white sweater on "the last white day of the summer," definitely carries some "loss of innocence" connotations.
![Cover art for Mermaid Motel lyrics by Lana Del Rey](https://images.songmeanings.com/eed14553-49e8-4992-861f-993eea7825d2.webp)
I think the line "Diamond Dave and Ray late" should be:
"Diamond Dave and Ray Lee"