Even if you’re not familiar with Sonic Youth’s 1990 single “Kool Thing,” its refrain might sound vaguely familiar. The melody bears some resemblance to the hook from LL Cool J’s “Going Back to Cali,” and the line I don’t think so is taken directly from the 1988 hit. The connection between Sonic Youth and LL Cool J in “Kool Thing” goes far beyond a pilfered lyric. The song would not exist if not for the time that Kim Gordon—who co-wrote and sings “Kool Thing”—interviewed the rapper-turned-actor for a major music publication.
The interview didn’t go as the Sonic Youth bassist had planned, and she took the awkward, frustrating experience as inspiration for “Kool Thing.” The result was one of the band’s best-known songs, which featured one of the most memorable indie rock choruses of the early ‘90s.
An Interview Gone Wrong
Gordon interviewed LL Cool J for SPIN in 1989, and if you read the piece, it’s apparent that the two were talking past each other. When LL Cool J insisted that Andrew Dice Clay was a funny comedian, Gordon wasn’t having it. A little later in the exchange, LL Cool J commented that a boyfriend or husband has to “have control over his woman.” When Gordon asked him about “mainstream corporate rock”—a leading question if there ever was one—and cited Bon Jovi as an example of it, LL Cool J responded he thought it was “cool.”
In a 1991 interview with the Phoenix New Times, Gordon said this fraught exchange was her inspiration for “Kool Thing.” She explained, “It was totally ridiculous for me to assume that we had anything in common. That’s why I tried to make the article show how elite and small the downtown scene that I come out of is. I was trying to make fun of myself. I don’t know if that came across.” It’s unclear at what point Gordon decided to parody herself, though she likely arrived there by the time she was explaining the significance of Iggy Pop to her interview subject.
Self-Parodying Lyrics
Gordon’s self-parody extended into “Kool Thing” itself. Chuck D from Public Enemy kicks off the song’s bridge by cheering on Gordon, saying Tell ‘em about it / Hit ‘em where it hurts. Gordon’s line of questioning, however, is not exactly hard-hitting.
I just wanna know, what are you gonna do for me?
I mean, are you gonna liberate us girls
From male white corporate oppression?
She also takes LL Cool J’s famous line from “Going Back to Cali” and uses it to show the lack of connection between them during their interview. In “Kool Thing”’s final verse, Gordon implores him to Come on and give me an answer. LL Cool J’s implied response, as sung by Gordon, was simply I don’t wanna / I don’t think so.
Some Not-So-Subtle References
In the conclusion of her piece for SPIN, Gordon and some additional interviewees questioned whether the rift between the audiences for black and white artists could ever be closed. Music fans who happen to be in the Venn diagram intersection between Sonic Youth and LL Cool J will pick up on a few Easter eggs planted in “Kool Thing” and in the Tamra Davis-directed official video. In addition to playing on I’m going back to Cali / I don’t think so, Gordon drops a reference to LL Cool J’s 1989 album Walking with a Panther, which includes “Going Back to Cali.” Gordon begins the final verse with the line Kool thing, walking like a panther.
She makes a couple of connections with the cover art for Walking with a Panther as well. The first line of “Kool Thing” is Kool thing, sitting with a kitty. In the official video, Gordon doesn’t pose with an actual panther, as LL Cool J does on the cover of Walking with a Panther, but there are several shots of her with a black cat. The video for “Kool Thing” features go-go dancers, just like the “Going Back to Cali” video does, and Gordon herself mimics some of the dance moves.
The Impact of “Kool Thing”
“Kool Thing” was the first Sonic Youth song to register in the Top 10 of Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart, and it peaked at No. 7. As the only single from Goo to reach a Billboard chart, “Kool Thing” played a large role in making the album Sonic Youth’s first to crack the Billboard 200. It topped out at No. 96, and its 15-week run on the chart is the longest for any of the band’s albums.
Even though “Kool Thing” is about an event that specifically involved Gordon, it has been covered by a few other artists. Most notably, Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate, Baseball Project) recorded a version of the song, which he released on the Kerosene Man maxi-single in 1991. “Kool Thing” has been used in several television series, including Gilmore Girls and Once Upon a Time. It was also one of 73 songs included in the game Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
We can all probably relate to feeling let down when we don’t connect with someone we hope to bond with. It’s a feeling that stings, but Gordon shows us that we can also find humor in the situation. And that’s a pretty cool thing.
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