The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite and laughs at his own inability to pronounce that correctly, which Mike Mills kept trying to get him to do. Stipe says he loved Dr. Seuss as a kid but always pronounced his name the wrong way. The song's complete title is not featured in the lyrics, but there is the line "the sidewinder sleeps in a coil" as well as the later line "the sidewinder sleeps on its back". A sidewinder is a species of rattlesnake ("Crotalus cerastes"), and also an antique style of telephone, with a winding handle on the side. The lyrics frequently refer to making and
Snake oil a concept for a particular type of fraud that may be extended to many of the same intoxicating drugs once sold at medicine shows that remain widely prescribed and available today. Most of these drugs are now manufactured by pharmaceutical companies, or fall under government control in some form or fashion. Snake oil Snake oil is a traditional Chinese medicament utilizing fat extracted from the Chinese water snake ("Enhydris chinensis"). It is a rubefacient and/or ointment, and is applied topically to relieve minor physical pain. It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for many centuries, and is a relatively