JUKEBOX: “Strangers Like Me” by Phil Collins

Tarzan shows Jane his world.

Hello everybody! It’s Kimberly here for my second post for the genre “Children’s Music.”

Dr. Seuss once said, “I am weird, you are weird. Everyone in this world is weird. One day two people come together in mutual weirdness and fall in love.” The song “Strangers Like Me” from the 1999 movie Tarzan encompasses this quotation perfectly. “Strangers Like Me” was both written and performed by Phil Collins, the lead singer of Genesis. Genesis is a “Grammy Award-winning English rock band formed in 1967.” To get an idea of their sound, I would recommend listening to their U.S. number 1 hit “Invisible Touch.” Phil Collins’s voice is quite recognizable, and is used quite effectively in the song “Strangers Like Me.”

Tarzan will be celebrating its 15^th anniversary on June 18^th, which is hard to believe because I myself remember watching it a total of 3 times while it was in the theaters. However, since it has been fifteen years since it first came out I wanted to give some context to the song “Strangers Like Me,” for those who don’t remember the storyline clearly. Gorillas raise Tarzan to adulthood after a leopard kills his parents when he is just a baby. Tarzan never quite feels like he belongs with the gorillas because he looks different from them. However, things change when he meets Jane, a woman from England who has come to Africa to study the gorillas.

“Strangers Like Me” is written in the perspective of Tarzan as Jane teaches him how to be “civilized.” Even though Tarzan doesn’t yet know how to speak English, Phil Collins’s lyrics are meant to give words to Tarzan’s curiosity. Tarzan wants to know about these strangers who look like him and as he learns more about them he finally feels like he belongs. It is during this song that Tarzan falls in love with Jane and he shows Jane his world in the jungle. Both Tarzan and Jane want to learn about each other’s lifestyles and are able to connect through each other’s curiosity of one another. Phil Collins’s voice and the wonderful drumbeat make “Strangers Like Me” particularly enjoyable to listen to. The song slows down at the bridge and the instrumental accompaniment is breathtaking. I am giving “Strangers Like Me” 4 records because although I particularly enjoy this song the lyrics don’t draw the listener in as much as they do when they are combined with Disney’s animation.

We’re all weird in our own way and we can relate to Tarzan in that it’s incredibly gratifying and comforting to find people who share our weirdness. Until next time, please enjoy “Strangers Like Me.” J

Below is a lyric video for “Strangers Like Me.”