Coffee Homeground

Album: Lionheart (1978)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The stunningly attractive Kate Bush has her dark side, as evinced by "Army Dreamers" and similar tracks. This is a more straightforward song though - about a poisoner! Running to 3 minutes 39 seconds, this is the ninth track on Kate's second album. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England
  • This was inspired by a paranoid cab driver Kate met who was convinced he was being poisoned. "[He] was in fact a bit nutty," she explained in the album's promo materials. "And it's just a song about someone who thinks they're being poisoned by another person, they think that there's Belladonna in their tea and that whenever they offer them something to eat, it's got poison in it. And it's just a humorous aspect of paranoia really and we sort of done it in a Brechtian style, the old sort of German vibe [e.g. "Mack The Knife"] to try and bring across the humor side of it."
  • The lyrics mention "pictures of Crippen." Hawley Harvey Crippen was an American doctor who murdered his wife at their home in England in 1910 by overdosing her with the anti-nausea drug hyoscine. He tried to escape to Canada on an ocean liner but was captured when the captain recognized him and sent a wireless telegram to British authorities. It was the first time a suspect was apprehended with the aid of wireless telegraphy.
  • Despite its German influence, this tune was actually written while Kate was visiting the US to appear on Saturday Night Live.

Comments: 1

  • Zabadak from London, EnglandThis is a very funny record, er, about poisoning! The melody, however, is reminiscent of the theme to the UK TV series "Tales Of The Unexpected", half-hour vignettes which would feature a deadly, often ironic twist at the end.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Mike Campbell

Mike CampbellSongwriter Interviews

Mike is lead guitarist with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and co-writer of classic songs like "Boys Of Summer," "Refugee" and "The Heart Of The Matter."

Donny Osmond

Donny OsmondSongwriter Interviews

Donny Osmond talks about his biggest hits, his Vegas show, and the fan who taught him to take "Puppy Love" seriously.

Carl Sturken

Carl SturkenSongwriter Interviews

Hitmaker Carl Sturken on writing and producing for Rihanna, 'N Sync, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson, Donny Osmond, Shakira and Karyn White.

American Hits With Foreign Titles

American Hits With Foreign TitlesSong Writing

What are the biggest US hits with French, Spanish (not "Rico Suave"), Italian, Scottish, Greek, and Japanese titles?

Mick Jones of Foreigner

Mick Jones of ForeignerSongwriter Interviews

Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.

The Police

The PoliceFact or Fiction

Do their first three albums have French titles? Is "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" really meaningless? See if you can tell in this Fact or Fiction.