Rich Girl by Hall And Oates

This is one of my absolute favorite songs. However, when I first thought to find out more about the song itself, I was stunned by what I found. I found an article in wikipedia which suggested a connection to the Son of Sam, David Berkowitz . Read below and you'll see what I mean.

Single by Hall & Oates
from the album Bigger Than Both of Us
Released 1977
Format 7", 12"
Recorded 1976
Label RCA
Writer(s) Daryl Hall
Producer Hall & Oates

"Rich Girl" is a song by Daryl Hall and John Oates. On March 26th, 1977, it became their first (of six) number one singles on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The single originally appeared on the 1976 album Bigger Than Both of Us.

The song's lyrics are about a spoiled girl who can rely on her parents' money to do whatever she wants. The song was rumored to be about the then-scandalous newspaper heiress Patty Hearst. In fact, the title character in the song is based on a spoiled heir to a fast-food chain who was an ex-boyfriend of Daryl Hall's girlfriend, Sara Allen. "But you can't write, 'You're a rich boy' in a song, so I changed it to a girl," Hall told Rolling Stone.

Several years later, Hall read an interview with David Berkowitz, the Son of Sam killer, in which Berkowitz claimed that "Rich Girl" had motivated him to murder (though interestingly, the song was not released until after the Son of Sam murders had already begun, casting doubts on that suggestion). Hall & Oates later reflected this disturbing fact in the lyrics of the song "Diddy Doo Wop (I Hear Voices)" on the album Voices.

"Rich Girl" was covered by Nina Simone on her 1978 LP Baltimore. "Rich Girl" was covered by Australian R&B singer Selwyn on his 2002 CD Meant To Be. "Rich Girl" was covered by Everclear on their 2008 cover compilation The Vegas Years. "Rich Girl" was covered by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes on their 2008 album Have Another Ball!.

You're a rich girl
and you've gone too far
'Cause you know it
don't matter anyway
You can rely
on the old man's money
You can rely
on the old man honey

It's a bitch girl
but it's gone too far
'Cause you know
it don't matter anyway
Say money money
won't get you too far
Get you too far

Don't you know
don't you know
That it's wrong to take
what he's giving you
So far gone on your own
You can get along
if you try to be strong
But you'll never be strong
'Cause

You're a rich girl
and you've gone too far
'Cause you know
it don't matter anyway
You can rely
on the old man's money
You can rely
on the old man honey
It's a bitch girl
and it's gone too far
'Cause you know
it don't matter anyway
Say money money
won't get you too far
Get you too far

High and dry
and out of the rain
It's so easy to hurt others
when you can't feel pain
And don't you know
that a love can't grow
'Cause there's too much to give
'cause you'd rather live
For the thrill of it all, oh

You're a rich girl
and you've gone too far
'Cause you know
it don't matter anyway
You can rely
on the old man's money
You can rely
on the old man's money
It's a bitch girl
and it's gone too far
'Cause you know
it don't matter anyway
Say money
but it won't get you too far
Say money
but it won't get you too far
Say money
but it won't get you too far
Get you too far

And you say
You can rely
on the old man's money
You can rely
on the old man's money
You're a rich girl,
a rich girl
Oh, you're a rich, rich girl, yeah
Say money
but it won't get you too far,
Oh, get ya too far