☝️ Key Points
- The song tells the story of a man who stops being nice due to negative reactions and treatments.
- The protagonist feels isolated and beaten down by rumors or negative reports in the media.
- The chorus emphasizes that the protagonist stops being nice and clean because people think he is sick and obscene.
- The protagonist's environment reacts negatively to his change, his family suffers, and he is even attacked in church.
- The song is about how society's judgment and treatment can cause a person to change their behavior and stop being nice.
Interpretation
In "No More Mr Nice Guy" by
Alice Cooper, it's about a man who used to be very nice and friendly, as shown in the lyrics: "I used to be such a sweet, sweet thing" and "I opened doors for little old ladies, I helped the blind to see." But due to the negative reactions and treatment he receives from other people, he has decided to stop being the nice guy.
The lines "I got no friends 'cause they read the papers. They can't be seen with me and I'm gettin' real shot down And I'm feeling mean" suggest that he was isolated due to rumors or negative reports in the media and now feels tough and bitter.
The chorus "No more Mister Nice Guy, No more Mister Clean, No more Mister Nice Guy, They say he's sick, he's obscene." repeats the central message of the song, that the protagonist stops being nice and clean because people think he's sick and obscene.
In the following lines, the negative reaction of his environment to his change is depicted, even his dog and cat attack him, his mother is excluded from her social circle, and his father has to hide. Even in church, where he went incognito, he was recognized and attacked.
Overall, the song is about how society's judgment and treatment can cause a person to change their behavior and stop being nice.