It's not that funny is it
When you don't know what it is
But you can't get enough of it
It's not that funny, is it?
Don't blame me!
Please, please, please!
I didn't wanna bleed so
I didn't wanna be this late
So don't make me wait!

Well, it's not that funny is it?
No one to turn you on
All your hope is gone
Well, it's not that funny, is it?
Yeah, so don't blame me!
Please, please, please!
You're here 'cause I say so
Didn't wanna be this late
So don't make me
Don't make me wait!

Here comes the nighttime looking for a little more
Workin' on checkin' out somebody outside the door
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh

It's not that funny is it?
You can't get enough of it
It's not that funny, is it?
Not that funny
Not funny
Can't get enough
Not that funny, is it?
Not that funny, is it?
Not too funny, no
It's not that funny
Not too funny
Yeah, yeah, yeah...

Live versions released on Live (1980) and 25 Years - The Chain

WEBMISTRESS speculates:

Yikes! Out of all of Lindsey's songs, I think this one is the most biting and vitrolic. He's basically saying "Ha, ha, now you know how I feel!" The "it" in the song, I think, is love, and probably sex as well. Perhaps that Stevie thought it would be easy to find someone else after she left him - but he sees it wasn't so easy as she'd thought it would be. She did find other men - but not that "great love" she was searching for. Lindsey enjoys her unhappiness immensely, apparently, as he gleefully exclaims, "It's not that funny, is it" - to do without. He is quick to remind her she's the one who threw it all away - it's not his fault, he didn't want to end it, to "bleed so." He warns her that she has kept him waiting too long. [Personally, I think Lindsey should have said "I didn't want to be this lame" because he is acting so juvenile in this song, but that's just my opinion!]

The second verse is even worse as Lindsey degenerates into taunts. "No one to turn you on" - "All your hope is gone" - she has dumped him but cannot find a replacement. And what's this "You're here 'cause I say so"? I'm afraid Lindsey was rubbing it in her face that Mick asked for him and he's the one who arranged for Stevie to join - the old "package deal" story. However, it could also mean that Stevie can't have sex with Lindsey unless he says she can and now that she's alone and needs someone he's not sure he wants to be there!

It ends with a final jab at Stevie - he's claiming that she's willing to do it with anyone who's "outside the door" in order to fill the gap until she finds real love - something Lindsey doesn't think will ever happen since she gave him up. The worst part is that in this song, Lindsey revels in her misery. But you know what they say... the opposite of love isn't hate, it's indifference. Doth Lindsey protest too much?

Now, the live version of this on 25 Years - The Chain emphasizes the sexual aspect of the song A LOT, which leads me to believe that part of the thing that's not that funny is she can't find another man that's as good a lover as he is (a la Come)! If that's the case, I imagine it made Lindsey feel pretty darn good! (And for those of you who haven't heard that version, let's just say that there's a whole lot of moaning and groaning...and then howling! Have mercy, Lindsey! I must admit it's very....enjoyable.)

 

DW speculates:

In Dreams, Stevie rather condescendingly predicts a future for Lindsey where women will come and go and he'll never be fulfilled without her. Seems like an awfully mean sentiment considering it was she who left him. In Silver Springs, she actually hopes and wishes that he'll be haunted by her forever and always be miserable and lonely from this point forward in life without her. Again, that's stinging and cruel considering it was she who left him. To lend credence to all of Stevie's hurt feelings and harsh words, but label Lindsey's hurt feelings and harsh words as childish doesn't really seem fair to me. Lindsey's expression is far more direct than Stevie's, but no less valid.

I don't think he's reveling in her problems as much as he's hoping that since she hasn't been able to simply move on so easily without him, that she won't feel so self-righteous in telling him how to behave and predicting harsh things for his future so much anymore. When asked about this song in an interview, Lindsey didn't mention Stevie at all. What he said was that this song was about growing up and understanding that so little of life is really in your control the way you thought it was when you were younger, and it's not that funny when you come to that realization. I think that sentiment and the song applies to both himself and Stevie here.