Dave Coulier recalls hearing ex Alanis Morissette’s ‘You Oughta Know’ for the first time: ‘Oh no!’
The 'Full House' alum said he was stunned after hearing the Grammy winner's 'Jagged Little Pill' in his car
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Dave Coulier is coming clean about what it was like hearing Alanis Morissette’s scathing 1995 breakup anthem for the first time, a track that has long been rumored to be written about him.
The "Full House" alum recently appeared on SiriusXM’s "Jim Norton & Sam Roberts" show and recalled his first memory of "You Oughta Know." The actor, 62, and the singer, 48, dated in the early ‘90s before she released the furious single.
"Here’s the story. I’m driving in Detroit, and I’ve got my radio on, and I hear the hook for ‘You Oughta Know’ come on the radio," Coulier explained. "And I’m like, ‘Wow, this is a really cool hook.’ And then I start hearing the voice. I’m like, ‘Wow, this girl can sing.’ And I had no idea, you know, that this was the record."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The comedian said he was taken aback at the song’s enraged message about a callous lover.
Dave Coulier was stunned when he heard his ex Alanis Morissette's '90s breakup anthem for the first time. (Getty Images)
"And then I was listening to the lyrics going, ‘Ooh, oh no!’" Coulier admitted while laughing. "’Oh, I can’t be this guy.’"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Curious, Coulier headed to a record store and purchased Morissette’s album, "Jagged Little Pill." He listened to the entire album in his car. The sitcom star said he was stunned to hear all the undeniable references to their past relationship.
"There was a lot of familiar stuff in there that her and I had talked about," said Coulier. "Like, ‘Your shake is like a fish.’ I’d go, ‘Hey, dead fish me,’ and we’d do this dead fish handshake.
"And so I started listening to it and I thought, ‘Ooh, I think I may have really hurt this woman,’" he said. "And that was my first thought."
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Dave Coulier and Alanis Morissette dated in the '90s. (Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
Morissette has never confirmed who "You Oughta Know" was based on. Coulier said they "reconnected" years after the song was released.
"I said, ‘What do you want me to say when people ask me about this relationship?’" said Coulier. "And she said, ‘You can say whatever you want.’ So she was really sweet about it."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Coulier also insisted that the pair have remained on good terms over the years.
"I’ll tell you the kind of person she is," said Coulier. "When my sister Sharon was dying with cancer, Alanis was living in Toronto. My sister was in Detroit. She actually drove to Detroit with her guitar and sat with my sister playing songs and singing to my sister in the hospital. That’s the kind of human she is. So I’ve never had anything bad to say about her. She’s lovely."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Alanis Morissette and Dave Coulier started dating in 1992 when the singer was 18 and the funnyman was 33. They broke up after two years together. The singer went on to release her Grammy-winning album a year later. (Russell Einhorn/Liaison)
In December 2019, Morissette revealed on "Watch What Happens Live" that she will never reveal who the song is about, adding she was "intrigued" that so many people claimed to be the single’s inspiration.
"I’m thinking, ‘I don’t know if you want to take credit for being the person I wrote ‘You Oughta Know’ about," she chuckled. "I just think if you’re going to take credit for a song where I’m singing about someone being a douche … you might not want to say, ‘Hey, that’s me!’"