Jessie’s Girl Lyrics
Jessie is a friend
Yeah, I know, he's been a good friend of mine
But lately something's changed that ain't hard to define
Jessie's got himself a girl, and I wanna make her mine
[Pre-Chorus]
And she's watching him with those eyes
And she's lovin' him with that body
I just know it
And he's holding her in his arms late, late at night
[Chorus]
You know I wish that I had Jessie's girl
I wish that I had Jessie's girl
Where can I find a woman like that?
[Verse 2]
I'll play along with this charade
That doesn't seem to be a reason to change
You know I feel so dirty when they start talking cute
I wanna tell her that I love her, but the point is probably moot
[Pre-Chorus]
'Cause she's watching him with those eyes
And she's lovin' him with that body
I just know it
And he's holding her in his arms late, late at night
You know I wish that I had Jessie's girl
I wish that I had Jessie's girl
Where can I find a woman like that?
Like Jessie's girl
I wish that I had Jessie's girl
Where can I find a woman...
Where can I find a woman like that?
[Bridge]
And I'm lookin' in the mirror all the time
Wonderin' what she don't see in me
I've been funny; I've been cool with the lines
Ain't that the way love's supposed to be?
[Interlude]
Tell me where can I find a woman like that?
[Guitar Solo]
[Chorus]
You know I wish that I had Jessie's girl
I wish that I had Jessie's girl
I want Jessie's girl
Where can I find a woman like that?
Like Jessie's girl
I wish that I had Jessie's girl
I want, I want Jessie's girl
About
“Jessie’s Girl” is the lead single from Rick Springfield’s fifth album Working Class Dog.
The inspiration for the song took place when Rick was taking a stained glass class with his friend Gary and Gary’s girlfriend.
Originally, Rick wanted to use the actual name of the friend that he was singing about, but decided it didn’t sound good when sung, so he went with the name “Jessie” instead after seeing a girl wearing a softball jersey with the name “Jessie” on it.
The song became an international hit, reaching #1 in the US and Australia, and #6 in Canada, in the summer of 1981 (and on the same day MTV launched). It was certified Gold in the United States and Canada. Rick even won a Grammy Award for “Best Male Rock Vocal Performance” for the song.
“Jessie’s Girl” has been featured in a number of films, including Boogie Nights, Keeping the Faith, The Year of Getting to Know Us, Couples Retreat, Hot Tub Time Machine and 13 Going On 30.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
Springfield says that he does not remember the name of the girlfriend, and believes that the real woman who inspired the song has no idea that she was “Jessie’s Girl”, telling Oprah Winfrey, “I was never really introduced to her. It was always just, like, panting from afar.”
Unlikely. Oprah tried to find the man who ran the stained glass class that Rick took with Gary (renamed Jessie in the song) and his girlfriend that inspired the song, but was a year too late:
Oprah’s people tried to find her, and they got as far back as finding the stained glass guy. I couldn’t remember his name, but I said it was late ‘70s; they found him, and he had died two years earlier, and they’d thrown all his papers out a year after that. So we missed finding out who she was by a year.
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