 "20th Century Boy"'s lyrics are, according to Marc Bolan, based on quotes taken from notable celebrities such as Muhammad Ali.This can be seen through the inclusion of the line "sting like a bee", which is taken from one of Ali's 1969 speeches.Although the lyrical content of a lot of Marc Bolan's songs is ambiguous, analysis of the multi-track recordings of "20th Century Boy" reveals the first line of the song to be "Friends say it's fine, friends say it's good/Everybody says it's just like Robin Hood," and not the often misquoted "...just like rock 'n' roll."