Queen of Spades

 

Queen of Spades
Written by James Young/Dennis DeYoung
Lead Vocals by Dennis DeYoung

Day into night she's with me
How sweet is her warm embrace
Safe in the scent of jasmine
So safe in her gold and lace

Mornings I find, she's left me
So cold so alone, but aware
I try to escape, she finds me
Oh run though I may, she's there, there, there, there, there...

Luck is a lady whose smile is as cold as a stone
She'll bring you things, many things you might never have known
But when your die is cast she'll have the final laugh at you
She'll lock you in a duel, where you come out the fool

Beware of the Queen of Spades
Her black widow's curse might find you yet
Beware of a love that you will regret
Her love means only your death

Day into night she's with me
Turn of a card, she's there
The first time is free, you know
But from now on, pay me, me, me, me, me...

Beware of the Queen of Spades
Her black widow's curse might find you yet
Beware of a love that you will regret
Her love means only your death

Interpretation

Queen Of Spades is about a gambling addiction told using the analogy of a woman. However, the lyrics could easily apply to other forms of addiction.

Let's dig deeper...

The scene opens as day turns to night, a man has spent hours with a lady soon to be introduced to us.

The scent of jasmine is incredibly sensual, rich and sweet. More poetically, jasmine could be described as intoxicating, exotic and intense. While it's a floral scent, there's an animalic element to it which might also explain why it's long been considered an aphrodisiac. *

Gold and lace represent luxury and elegance. Combined with the scent of jasmine in the embrace of of a lover, along with the soft haunting music and vocals, it evokes images of ultimate hedonism. 

It is a stark reality to wake the next morning and realize she is gone, leaving you cold and alone, feeling a sense of loss and emptiness. There is an awareness of why she is gone, so this is not a surprise. This is not a pleasant feeling, so you try to escape from her, but she seeks you out and turns up wherever you go.

Next we discover that this temptress is none other than Lady Luck.  She is impersonal and cold, though beautiful.  Playing your luck can "bring you...things you might never have known," but at some point you will roll a die and lose.  The odds are stacked against you, so it is a duel she will ultimately win. 

The Queen of Spades is often an unlucky card.  In the game of Hearts, she is considered the Black Lady, the worst card in the game, worth negative fifteen points. She is called the pick-up five in the game of Eights, the worst card for an opponent on one’s right to play. Also, in the card game Gong Zhu, she is called the pig and should be avoided. In cartomancy, the Queen of Spades is jealous, mean, treacherous, and a liar. **

A female black widow spider has venom fifteen times stronger than rattlesnake venom. Similarly, in a metaphorical sense, love of this lady is just as deadly.

Once addicted, the cycle continues day after day. She turns up everywhere, unavoidable.  Similar to a drug dealer, giving a free sample in order to get an addicted long term customer, gambling can seem harmless and innocent but is actually the first step onto a slippery slope to addiction and ruin.