While it’s entirely natural in animals such as sheep as well as some humans, depending on an individual’s point of view it’s either a blessing or a curse. From Greek words oûlos (crisp, curly) and -trikhos (haired), this adjective means having curly or woolly hair. Who doesn’t want natural curls though? Not everyone. The earliest known use of the word was in 1857 by author Robert Mayne, but how is being ulotrichous treated in song? Below is an assorted mop of musical examples, from the loosely falling curls to tight frizz, with perspectives about loving or hating it, wanting to keep it or change it, as a metaphor or literal state of self-consciousness or self-care, and in one example, being wary of perms. There’s even an electronic example which uses the word for a title. Across a wide range of genres from funk to jazz, hip hop to folk, pop to punk to dance music, artists include The Love Theme, Immy Owusu, Sensible J, Ralph Heidel, Douglas Dare, The Move, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Handclappers, Jon Harris, Laufey, Sanna, Vince Guaraldi, IDLES and xzeannoonn.
Any further musical or lyrical curly twists on this word? Feel free to share anything more in relation to it, whether in music or wider culture, such as from film, art, or other contexts, in comments below.
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