Talk:Cat's in the Cradle

message: An infobox was requested for the 1974 Harry Chapin version of "Cats in the Cradle" at Wikipedia:WikiProject_Missing_encyclopedic_articles/List_of_notable_songs/3.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by InnocuousPseudonym (talk • contribs) 06:55, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

message: What is the origin of the phrase "Cats in the Cradle"?  Does it refer to the situation where a baby has grown past cradle age, and therefore the cat is free to sit in the cradle?  The other lyrics make sense:
*Silver spoon
*Little Boy Blue
*Man in the moon
--70.57.151.211 03:54, 7 September 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I always thought that it was a cliche which I just did not know... but I've asked around and nobody knows, either! Anyway, it's a heck of a stretch, but maybe it's a reference to Cat's Cradle? --Doc Sigma (wait, what?) 03:28, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: Origin of the phrase (not the song)

message: This is all very wrong as I have the GNR cover of cats in the cradle and I am listening to it right now!! it has been recorded by them!!  Use the force 15:38, 10 December 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I can believe that P2P networks have falsely labelled the song by GNR (it wouldn't be the first person) however it states in this article that this is often confused with the Ugly Kid Joe version. I remember once downloading a terrible cover that sounded akin to GNR and it was certainly not the glorious UKJ one as it was much more rock/metal influenced and had an Axl Rose like sheering voice. There must be another version of this song that it is confused with.Tony2Times (talk) 17:45, 23 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Incorrect 

message: These lyrics are mentioned in the article. I could swear I've always heard Harry Chapin sing, "the kids are the flu" rather than have the flu. This could mean that the kids were a handful and it took lots of patience to deal with them. I think back in the 70's the term "the flu" did have a popular meaning aside from the sickness, maybe to mean that something was undesireable and it might have caused you great disappointment or hardship. 
Also, I'm not sure any dads aside from single parent dads ever did much to take care of sick kids, as they have traditionally been the breadwinners. So he could've left the kids with his wife to go spend time with his dad.
--
The line is definitely "and the kids have the flu". Don't you think the line "the kids are the flu" is a little unlikely in a song with this message?
 
Of course, no one would put that in a song!! And if they did it wouldn't be on the charts.
To spell it out, the importance of these lines is that the son is now the one making the same kind of excuses for not spending time with his father, and probably isn't spending much time with his own kids either- whether they have the flu or not. Overall, the song reflects on our society's (and our own) priorities: that we focus on money, work, etc. thinking these are the most important things in our lives, but eventually we look back and realize that, although we didn't see it then, relationships with people were much more important and sadly neglected. I think the song is something of a lament, because once we realize this, it's too late.   Prosebuster 23:22, 9 July 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Kids have the flu?

message: Have a look at the infobox, does it seem wierd that its a cover version rather than the original which seem to be occupying the infobox.KTo288 20:02, 21 August 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Infobox

message: There seems to be some incongruity between the title of the article and the title of the song. Is it Cat's In The Cradle (suggesting there is one cat) or Cats In The Cradle (suggesting mutliple cats)?Tony2Times (talk) 17:53, 23 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Title

message: I remember the song being played in Married with Children. I dont know which episode but i remember the scene:
Al sits in the garage and listens to the radio when the song is played. He then starts to cry due to the sad lyrics. It might be a cover version (probably by UKJ).  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.41.65.2 (talk) 10:25, 20 January 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Song in Married with Children 

message: Is it Cat's in the Cradle or Cats in the Cradle? The Harry Chapin article says Cat's, but this says Cats. Looking at the lyrics, I'd assume Cat's, but it could be plural. KeithD (talk) 09:31, 5 March 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: You're NOT wrong. Take a look here: http://www.discogs.com/Ugly-Kid-Joe-Cats-In-The-Cradle/release/1756642 This shows that the Ugly Kid Joe version does INDEED omit the apostrophe (but they did leave it in on some releases). I've now added this information to the article because, with no doubt, this will change the meaning a bit, since one cat and multiple cats is not the same kind of thing. -andy 92.229.75.192 (talk) 23:04, 10 May 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Cat's or Cats? 

message: "Silver Spoon" is not a reference to "Hey, Diddle Diddle."  In the nursery rhyme, the line is "And the dish ran away with the spoon." No reference to the spoon being silver, wooden, metal or whatever else spoons were made of. "Silver spoon" refers to children born to affluent families.  A child born to a privileged upbringing is said to be born "with a silver spoon in his mouth."  Probably a reference to the father narrating the song being a workaholic and not having time for his son.  70.126.99.61 (talk) 22:41, 18 July 2010 (UTC)
thread_title: Hey, Diddle Diddle? WRONG!

message: Pretty sure they never covered this. Every reference to Guns n Roses covering it is actually the Ugly Kid Joe cover.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.209.148.18 (talk) 16:39, 22 July 2010 (UTC)
replies: text: I heard it was because Ugly Kid Joe on YouTube is blocked in Germany, so if people wish to hear this song or other songs by UKJ they need to listen to the "mislabelled" YouTube videos.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.10.139.210 (talk) 00:50, 27 February 2011 (UTC)

text: The mix-up probably precedes YouTube and stems, somewhat likely, from a mislabelled MP3 that was (and supposedly still is) in circulation in the dawn of peer-to-peer filesharing. Back in the nineties, making a mistake like simply mislabelling a song could cause quite a lot of confusion because it was harder to find out whether it was correct or not as well as there simply not being as many sources to acquire a song from.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.58.48.18 (talk) 02:26, 1 November 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  Guns n Roses 

message: Has anyone mentionned this?
There was an episode in The Simpsons "Saturdays of Thunder" (I think) where Homer feels like a loser father and so he calls fathers anonymous (or something) and he is put on hold and the hold music is Cat's in the cradle, and then I think he starts bawling.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Gljsd (talk • contribs) 23:45, 28 March 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  The Simpsons 

message: Mass Effect 2 contains an Achievement called "Cat's in the Cradle" awarded for completing a mission where an assassin is trying to prevent his estranged son from following in his footsteps.  Considering it is a bit more of an oblique reference and doesn't actually feature the song, I'm not sure if it should be thrown in here as one of the popular culture references.  Thoughts? --Forgottenlord (talk) 16:30, 23 September 2011 (UTC)
replies: text: I think it should be added. While the song itself isn't played, Thane's and son's strained relationship is a fitting reference. 
--Apz (talk) 22:26, 24 October 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  References: Mass Effect 

message: Source for use in PSA:
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/eerily-prophetic-troubles-ad-that-shocked-us-in-1993-gets-500000-views-in-one-day-34407900.html
©Geni (talk) 13:38, 7 June 2016 (UTC)
thread_title: Northern Ireland

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thread_title:  External links modified 

message: It should be noted that there is a Dutch fairy tale called [The Cat And the Cradle](http://childrens-stories.edigg.com/Ethnic_Fairy_Tales/Dutch_Fairy_Tales/The_Cat_And_The_Cradle.shtml).  This seems like a more likely source of "cat's in the cradle" than the story about cats sucking the breath out of infants.
As to "silver spoon", it was once common even in families of modest means for some relative (generally a grandparent) to award a new infant with a silver spoon engraved with the name and birth date of the child.  This is the sort of "keepsake" which tends to get lost over the years, a fact that would feed into the theme of the song.
drh (talk) 19:05, 23 March 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  Cat's cradle and silver spoon 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Hi everyone,
I've noticed that the Johnny Cash version of the song (present on his album Boom Chicka Boom), which was a single, is not mentioned on the article. 
Is it a matter of notoriety or could information be added?
See y'all,  21stCenturySloth (talk) 14:43, 15 November 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Johnny Cash version 

message: For the Ugly Kid Joe cover of this song. There are multiple references to this song being a part of this genre. 
1. https://www.hairandflannel.com/ugly-kid-joe/
"A California band that can best be described as the bridge between hair metal and 90s rock. Their big hits include Neighbor and Everything I Hate About You, a song that made its way into movies.
Sporting original hits like Neighbor and Everything About You, and a near chart topping version of Cats in the Cradle, Ugly Kid Joe gained a fair share of popularity in the early 90s."
2. https://www.pajiba.com/miscellaneous/latestage-hair-metal-was-a-hell-of-a-thing.php
"There was also a band called Ugly Kid Joe, whose biggest hit was a bad remake of “Cats in the Cradle." AgentKozak (talk) 18:12, 2 May 2023 (UTC)
thread_title:  Adding the genre 'Glam Metal' to the Ugly Kid Joe version?