Maybe it is the saloon song leftover feeling from Dylan or perhaps just a general feeling of nostalgia or the subject of love songs[a particular favorite topic for me] but I offer this effort by My Morning Jacket:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz8qn1_iQ5w
"Golden"
watchin' a stretch of road, miles of light explode.
driftin' off a thing i'd never done before
watchin' a crowd roll in. out go the lights it begins.
a feelin' in my bones i never felt before...
mmm... people always told me. that bars are dark and lonely
and talk is often cheap and filled with air.
sure sometimes they thrill me
but nothin' could ever chill me.
like the way they make the time just disappear
feelin' you are here again. hot on my skin again.
feelin good a thing i'd never known before
what does it mean to feel? millions of dreams come real
a feelin' in my soul i'd never felt before... mmm...
and you always told me.
no matter how long it holds me if it falls apart
or makes us millonaires. you'll be right here forever.
we'll go thru this thing together
and on heaven's golden shore we'll lay our heads
One of my favorite bands and a solid example of how they can take an innocuous item like a bar and make it evoke a sense of longing, fear, sadness and yet ultimately exhilaration by combining all the cliche elements to be found in a bar and rearranging them into a keening song of love as it emanates from the 'golden' vocal chords of Jim James and the superb musicianship of his band mates. Wonderful usage of pedal steel, as well.
And I guess while I am pushing them one more 'love' song-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5Es1flO_2M
"Librarian" by My Morning Jacket
walk across the courtyard, towards the library.
i can hear the insects buzz and the leaves 'neath my feet...
ramble up the stairwell, into the hall of books...
since we got the interweb these hardly get used.
duck into the men's room... combing thru my hair...
when god gave us mirrors he had no idea...
looking for a lesson in the periodicals...
there i spy you listening to the AM radio...
karen of the carpenters- singing in the rain...
another lovely victim of the mirror's evil way.
it's not like you're not trying, with a pencil in your har
to defy the beauty the good lord put in there...
simple little bookworm- buried underneath...
is the sexiest librarian...take off those glasses and let down your hair for me.
so i watch you thru the bookcase- imaging a scene:
you and i at dinner, spending time, then to sleep.
and what then would i say to you- lying there in bed?
these words, with a kiss, i would plant in your head:
"what is it inside our heads that makes us do the opposite?
makes us do the opposite of what's right for us?
cause everything'd be grrreat...and everything'd be good...
if everybody gave...like everybody could."
sweetest little bookworm. hidden underneath...
is the sexiest librarian...
take off those glasses and let your hair down for me.
take off those glasses and let your hair down for me.
simple little beauty- heaven in your breath.
the simplest of pleasures- the world at it's best.
I think any person who is clumsy in relationships, awkward and shy, can identify with these words. Love the playing of the mirror image with the evocation of Karen Carpenter. I can listen to James's voice with great regularity. I cannot hear this song without thinking of the fun scene in "The Big Sleep" where Humphry Bogart gets together with a young Dorothy Malone in the book store waiting out a rain shower while on a stake out.
Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
Moderator: BlueChair
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Wed Sep 29, 2010 5:09 pm
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Otis Westinghouse » Wed Sep 29, 2010 6:17 pm
I don't know their songs, but want to check them out. Golden sounds good.
Alexv: what camera line? 'You got light in your eyes'?! Wouldn't agree at all that Byrne's TH lyrics were gibberish. They're mostly really strong and interesting. Think of The Big Country, Air, Heaven, Found a Job or many others. Oblique and quirky, yes, but often very arresting. Cities, for example. He was often after something very simple and spare, but with deep resonance.
Alexv: what camera line? 'You got light in your eyes'?! Wouldn't agree at all that Byrne's TH lyrics were gibberish. They're mostly really strong and interesting. Think of The Big Country, Air, Heaven, Found a Job or many others. Oblique and quirky, yes, but often very arresting. Cities, for example. He was often after something very simple and spare, but with deep resonance.
There's more to life than books, you know, but not much more
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Fri Oct 01, 2010 2:40 pm
Hey, Otis, how've you been? haven't chatted in a while. The line I was thinking of was "she has a face with a view". That was an allusion to his photographer girl friend. This was eons ago, but for some reason I recall that being brought up in some ancient interview. Have always been a big Talking Heads fan, but in an odd sort of way not a big Byrne fan. Always found him a bit of an ass. Now, by the way, he's constantly on his bike going up and down the City with this shocking mass of white hair looking like a ghost, peddling away to show us all why cars are evil. He reminds of Sting in a lot of ways, our American version.
Anyway, there was always conflict in that band between Tina and her hubby and the other guy (forget the name), and Byrne. I think they resented the credit he got, and there was a lot of sniping from them, in public, about too much being made of Byrne's role, and of his lryics in particular. Again this is working from memory, but the comments were to the effect that many of his lyrics were just stream of conscioussness stuff (david being david) and that too much was being made of them. The song you bring up was cited by them as an example of a new directness, and as something he did deserve credit for. I agreed with them on this, and liked TH songs more for the music than for anything else. I give Byrne credit for the singing style and sense of melody he had, all of which when combined with the great music made for great songs. Not to say that he never wrote great lyrics. Here's Byrne on lyrics:
"The former Talking Heads front man, who has spent decades writing and performing eclectic-sounding music, takes a realistic approach to song lyrics. "People ignore them half the time," he said.It's the unique sounds he hopes listeners will remember. In a certain way, it's the sound of the words, the inflection and the way the song is sung and the way it fits the melody and the way the syllables are on the tongue that has as much of the meaning as the actual, literal words," he said"
That's from something I just saw on the Net and kind of fits in with a lot of what we've been saying on this thread.
Now, Otis, you are big Mozz fan. I remember exactly when I learned about the Smiths. I was going away on vacation, and the Sunday before leaving The Times did a piece on this new band, with the funny name and the odd singer, and there were all kinds of references to how revolutionary a singer Mozz was, with arabian influences (yep, that's right), and I said damn gotta check that out. I got the casette of that record (with hand in glove etc.) and wore it out during my week away. Loved it, have every Smiths record and still follow Mozz and have a few, though by no means all, of his solo stuff.
But here's my problem with his lyrics, from the beginning really. I recognize how literate they are, and in some cases they are just plain beautiful, no matter the context. But so much of it is either camp, or just plain juvenile, and not in the sense that Adge uses, the idea that it's just adolescent rebellion. Very difficult to take a lot of it seriously. So you are left with the music, and the fact that he can write gorgeous lyrics, but in the end much of the stuff is just written either clearly not to be taken seriously, or, if the effect is unintentional, written by someone with a loose connection to reality, or at least a connection to a camp consciousness that maybe only John Walters can appreciate. Curious to get your take on this.
I know that what i'm saying to you here is akin to my sacrilegous comments on Distorted Angel, but remember it's Friday afternoon, it's raining in NYC, and my Mozz/Byrne aversion may just be a reflection of the weather. So, easy there, Otis.
Anyway, there was always conflict in that band between Tina and her hubby and the other guy (forget the name), and Byrne. I think they resented the credit he got, and there was a lot of sniping from them, in public, about too much being made of Byrne's role, and of his lryics in particular. Again this is working from memory, but the comments were to the effect that many of his lyrics were just stream of conscioussness stuff (david being david) and that too much was being made of them. The song you bring up was cited by them as an example of a new directness, and as something he did deserve credit for. I agreed with them on this, and liked TH songs more for the music than for anything else. I give Byrne credit for the singing style and sense of melody he had, all of which when combined with the great music made for great songs. Not to say that he never wrote great lyrics. Here's Byrne on lyrics:
"The former Talking Heads front man, who has spent decades writing and performing eclectic-sounding music, takes a realistic approach to song lyrics. "People ignore them half the time," he said.It's the unique sounds he hopes listeners will remember. In a certain way, it's the sound of the words, the inflection and the way the song is sung and the way it fits the melody and the way the syllables are on the tongue that has as much of the meaning as the actual, literal words," he said"
That's from something I just saw on the Net and kind of fits in with a lot of what we've been saying on this thread.
Now, Otis, you are big Mozz fan. I remember exactly when I learned about the Smiths. I was going away on vacation, and the Sunday before leaving The Times did a piece on this new band, with the funny name and the odd singer, and there were all kinds of references to how revolutionary a singer Mozz was, with arabian influences (yep, that's right), and I said damn gotta check that out. I got the casette of that record (with hand in glove etc.) and wore it out during my week away. Loved it, have every Smiths record and still follow Mozz and have a few, though by no means all, of his solo stuff.
But here's my problem with his lyrics, from the beginning really. I recognize how literate they are, and in some cases they are just plain beautiful, no matter the context. But so much of it is either camp, or just plain juvenile, and not in the sense that Adge uses, the idea that it's just adolescent rebellion. Very difficult to take a lot of it seriously. So you are left with the music, and the fact that he can write gorgeous lyrics, but in the end much of the stuff is just written either clearly not to be taken seriously, or, if the effect is unintentional, written by someone with a loose connection to reality, or at least a connection to a camp consciousness that maybe only John Walters can appreciate. Curious to get your take on this.
I know that what i'm saying to you here is akin to my sacrilegous comments on Distorted Angel, but remember it's Friday afternoon, it's raining in NYC, and my Mozz/Byrne aversion may just be a reflection of the weather. So, easy there, Otis.
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Otis Westinghouse » Sat Oct 02, 2010 5:44 am
I always related 'a face with a view' to 'a room with a view'. I think it's a great line. I remember a South Bank docu about Byrne where he was sitting in his cool NY apartment randomly saying lines into a dictaphone. Influenced by the Bowie cut-up technique, maybe. I do think many of his TH lyrics are very good. I recall all the reports of sniping and ill-feeling in the TH camp, and maybe he was a rampant egotist, but he was massively talented. Haven't bothered with his solo work, but did see him live in Madrid in '91. Instead of the weirdo half-alien manically running around the stage in Stop Making Sense (remember the bit when he does several laps of the stage, including round the back of the drum riser on Life During Wartime - just incredible!), he did seem to have transitioned into a cool dude into Brazilian and Latin rhythms who wanted to get down and party, and he was less interesting for it. He's always been a smart guy. His TH words do lodge in the brain, often arresting. Once in a Lifetime, for example. I'm not sure he's a 'great lyricist', but yes a very good one.
Moz (one 'z' if you please), well yes, a new LP comes out and you think 'how can he be lodged forever in a teenager's 'me against the world' psyche? And when he was on Desert Island Discs too. It's part infuriating, part puerile, and part compelling and fascinating. It's as if he never wanted to lose his mystique or uniqueness, and has done everything all his life to preserve his teenage self. I admire it in some ways, but can easily see why others disdain it, in other words, I have a personal reaction to it which is highly subjective - I won't make claims for artistic greatness, but I do want to hear all his new records. Camp, often, self-parodistic, maybe, but still compelling. I think there's a loss of wit and archness which is regrettable, you just can't hold his recent solo lyrics up to the Smiths and defend them against them artistically, but that's comparing against an incredibly high standard (I don't think many lyricists have come anywhere near to the sheer genius of a lyric such as This Charming Man). Some of the recent songs have had a strong impact, quite a few on all of the last three LPs, e.g. FIrst of the Gang To Die, Irish Blood, English Heart, Dear God Please Help Me (an astonishing song), even the overwrought Life is a Pigsty, The Youngest Was The Most Loved, Mama Lay Softly on the Riverbed. There's a thread running through his life which says 'life is a pigsty, and I'm never going to let you forget, my only defence is to lock myself in my room/mansion with my favourite records and films and convey my suffering to you'. At the end of the day, I have to admire him for simply being true to being Moz. I think he means every word of what he writes and says.
Chacun a son gout, as they say.
Moz (one 'z' if you please), well yes, a new LP comes out and you think 'how can he be lodged forever in a teenager's 'me against the world' psyche? And when he was on Desert Island Discs too. It's part infuriating, part puerile, and part compelling and fascinating. It's as if he never wanted to lose his mystique or uniqueness, and has done everything all his life to preserve his teenage self. I admire it in some ways, but can easily see why others disdain it, in other words, I have a personal reaction to it which is highly subjective - I won't make claims for artistic greatness, but I do want to hear all his new records. Camp, often, self-parodistic, maybe, but still compelling. I think there's a loss of wit and archness which is regrettable, you just can't hold his recent solo lyrics up to the Smiths and defend them against them artistically, but that's comparing against an incredibly high standard (I don't think many lyricists have come anywhere near to the sheer genius of a lyric such as This Charming Man). Some of the recent songs have had a strong impact, quite a few on all of the last three LPs, e.g. FIrst of the Gang To Die, Irish Blood, English Heart, Dear God Please Help Me (an astonishing song), even the overwrought Life is a Pigsty, The Youngest Was The Most Loved, Mama Lay Softly on the Riverbed. There's a thread running through his life which says 'life is a pigsty, and I'm never going to let you forget, my only defence is to lock myself in my room/mansion with my favourite records and films and convey my suffering to you'. At the end of the day, I have to admire him for simply being true to being Moz. I think he means every word of what he writes and says.
Chacun a son gout, as they say.
There's more to life than books, you know, but not much more
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Sun Oct 03, 2010 10:03 am
Nice job on Moz/byrne. Can't say I disagree with any of it. After all these years, whatever criticism can be lobbed at these two is more than overcome by all the fun music and memories. Wished I had seen TH live. Never did. On the other hand, my one and only Smiths show remains one of the most memorable of all. They played The Pier in NYC back in the mid 80s. Beautiful summer night. They made us wait for what seemed like hours before they came on. That was annoying, and I kept telling my wife not to expect too much. She and I don't share musical tastes usually, except for early EC, Squeeze and The Smiths. I suspected that his voice wouldn't carry over well live, and that the band could be outdone by the setting. So, expectations were low. But...what a show. I think they had an extra guitar, and the sound and Moz's voice were unbelievable. They reproduced the sound of the first record to a T. Later on I read that Jagger was at the show, and that there had been all kinds of drama.
I've been walking around Boston this morning, IPod in hand, and enjoying Lazy Sunbathers and Ask. Sunbathers is a classic Moz song don't you think? The "to the planet's core" line makes you cringe and smile at the same time.
I've been walking around Boston this morning, IPod in hand, and enjoying Lazy Sunbathers and Ask. Sunbathers is a classic Moz song don't you think? The "to the planet's core" line makes you cringe and smile at the same time.
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Otis Westinghouse » Sun Oct 03, 2010 1:25 pm
That will be Aug 6 1986:
http://forums.morrissey-solo.com/archiv ... 58191.html
I love these gigographies showing dates you attended, could have attended and didn't, or can only dream of having attended. In my case, Sept 30 1983 is my claim to shame. 27 years ago last Thursday - blimey. I had just entered year 2 at the University of Birmingham, and everything I had read about or heard by The Smiths made me dislike them. Moz just seemed a joke figure with a silly quiff who was trying to make something incredible of himself, and yet Hand in Glove, possibly all I'd heard thus far, struck me as pretty average. I just hadn't got it yet. I think the first Peel session, with This Charming Man and Reel Around the Fountain, the 'Hatful of Hollow' versions, was the first sense I had of something special. Even when the first LP came out I was resisting them as everybody was fanatically drooling over them by that point - my student career coincided very much with theirs, they just outlived it by a year and a half. I think I really overcame all resistance when Heaven Knows... came out. Why didn't I see them at the Hippodrome in March '85? Shame I missed them in Madrid - they only played once, a few months before I went to work there. Sigh sigh sigh. At least I've seen Moz three times.
Agree Lazy Sunbathers is a cracker. A late friend of mine was a particular fan of that one.
http://forums.morrissey-solo.com/archiv ... 58191.html
I love these gigographies showing dates you attended, could have attended and didn't, or can only dream of having attended. In my case, Sept 30 1983 is my claim to shame. 27 years ago last Thursday - blimey. I had just entered year 2 at the University of Birmingham, and everything I had read about or heard by The Smiths made me dislike them. Moz just seemed a joke figure with a silly quiff who was trying to make something incredible of himself, and yet Hand in Glove, possibly all I'd heard thus far, struck me as pretty average. I just hadn't got it yet. I think the first Peel session, with This Charming Man and Reel Around the Fountain, the 'Hatful of Hollow' versions, was the first sense I had of something special. Even when the first LP came out I was resisting them as everybody was fanatically drooling over them by that point - my student career coincided very much with theirs, they just outlived it by a year and a half. I think I really overcame all resistance when Heaven Knows... came out. Why didn't I see them at the Hippodrome in March '85? Shame I missed them in Madrid - they only played once, a few months before I went to work there. Sigh sigh sigh. At least I've seen Moz three times.
Agree Lazy Sunbathers is a cracker. A late friend of mine was a particular fan of that one.
There's more to life than books, you know, but not much more
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by bambooneedle » Sun Oct 03, 2010 10:09 pm
I Need You - The Beatles (Help!). My favourite George Harrison song at the moment. It's such a subversive and clever study of pathetic dependence way beyond its time. So well crafted. I guess he was probably inspired by Dylan's boldly personal lyric style of the time, but manages to not-too-bluntly parody some of the inane pop groups of the time, all with amazing economy. Not just the lyrics on paper but the droll way they are delivered, which makes it, eg. how he sings "don't want my lovin' anymore". The lyrics are on this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10CGRLLWwLc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10CGRLLWwLc
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Tue Oct 26, 2010 5:15 pm
"Something So Right"
You've got the cool water
When the fever runs high
You've got the look of
lovelight in your eyes
And I was in crazy motion
'til you calmed me down
It took a little time
But you calmed me down.
When something goes wrong
I'm the first to admit it
I'm the first to admit it
And the last one to know .
When something goes right
Well it's likely to lose me,
It's apt to confuse me
It's such an unusual sight
Oh, I can't, I can't get used
to something so right
Something so right.
They've got a wall in China
It's a thousand miles long
To keep out the foreigners
they made it strong
And I've got a wall around me
That you can't even see
It took a little time
To get next to me
When something goes wrong
I'm the first to admit it
I'm the first to admit it
And the last one to know
when something goes right
Well it's likely to lose me,
It's apt to confuse me
because it's such an unusual sight
Oh, I swear, I can't get used
to something so right
Something so right.
Some people never say the words
"I love you"
It's not their style
to be so bold
Some people never say those words
"I love you"
But like a child they're
longing to be told.
When something goes wrong
I'm the first to admit it
I'm the first to admit it
And the last one to know
when something goes right
Well it's likely to lose me, mm
It's apt to confuse me
because it's such an unusual sight
I swear, I can't, I can't get
used to something so right
Something so right
Paul Simon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQqAKAAkufE
When I am crazed, gnashing at the world, I need only think of this song and how it most approaches my wife and I am instantly calmed. It has that talisman power over me. It is a song to treasure and to draw tremendous succor from regularly. Simple in structure, incredibly strong in subtle emotion, the lyric draws its power for me from the paradox of frazzled emotions and states a person can cause his self through insecurity and the sanctuary that can be found in love. I have always loved the image of the Wall of China and its equation with an internal wall within the narrator. Simple melody, tasteful arrangement, uncomplicated images make for a timeless song.
Or from a slightly different angle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhORXmgYbS4
"Just Breathe" Pearl Jam
Yes I understand that every life must end, aw huh,..
As we sit alone, I know someday we must go, aw huh,..
I’m a lucky man to count on both hands
The ones I love,..
Some folks just have one,
Others they got none, aw huh,..
Stay with me,..
Let’s just breathe.
Practiced are my sins,
Never gonna let me win, aw huh,..
Under everything, just another human being, aw huh,..
Yeh, I don’t wanna hurt, there’s so much in this world
To make me bleed.
Stay with me,..
You’re all I see.
Did I say that I need you?
Did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see,..
No one knows this more than me.
As I come clean.
I wonder everyday
as I look upon your face, aw huh,..
Everything you gave
And nothing you would take, aw huh,..
Nothing you would take,..
Everything you gave.
Did I say that I need you?
Oh, Did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see,..
No one know this more than me.
As I come clean.
Nothing you would take,..
everything you gave.
Hold me till I die,..
Meet you on the other side.
Grossard/Veder
Equally restorative in its power to remind me to cherish what I have in my life in the person of my wife. That chorus "Did I say that I need you? is a constant mantra.
You've got the cool water
When the fever runs high
You've got the look of
lovelight in your eyes
And I was in crazy motion
'til you calmed me down
It took a little time
But you calmed me down.
When something goes wrong
I'm the first to admit it
I'm the first to admit it
And the last one to know .
When something goes right
Well it's likely to lose me,
It's apt to confuse me
It's such an unusual sight
Oh, I can't, I can't get used
to something so right
Something so right.
They've got a wall in China
It's a thousand miles long
To keep out the foreigners
they made it strong
And I've got a wall around me
That you can't even see
It took a little time
To get next to me
When something goes wrong
I'm the first to admit it
I'm the first to admit it
And the last one to know
when something goes right
Well it's likely to lose me,
It's apt to confuse me
because it's such an unusual sight
Oh, I swear, I can't get used
to something so right
Something so right.
Some people never say the words
"I love you"
It's not their style
to be so bold
Some people never say those words
"I love you"
But like a child they're
longing to be told.
When something goes wrong
I'm the first to admit it
I'm the first to admit it
And the last one to know
when something goes right
Well it's likely to lose me, mm
It's apt to confuse me
because it's such an unusual sight
I swear, I can't, I can't get
used to something so right
Something so right
Paul Simon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQqAKAAkufE
When I am crazed, gnashing at the world, I need only think of this song and how it most approaches my wife and I am instantly calmed. It has that talisman power over me. It is a song to treasure and to draw tremendous succor from regularly. Simple in structure, incredibly strong in subtle emotion, the lyric draws its power for me from the paradox of frazzled emotions and states a person can cause his self through insecurity and the sanctuary that can be found in love. I have always loved the image of the Wall of China and its equation with an internal wall within the narrator. Simple melody, tasteful arrangement, uncomplicated images make for a timeless song.
Or from a slightly different angle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhORXmgYbS4
"Just Breathe" Pearl Jam
Yes I understand that every life must end, aw huh,..
As we sit alone, I know someday we must go, aw huh,..
I’m a lucky man to count on both hands
The ones I love,..
Some folks just have one,
Others they got none, aw huh,..
Stay with me,..
Let’s just breathe.
Practiced are my sins,
Never gonna let me win, aw huh,..
Under everything, just another human being, aw huh,..
Yeh, I don’t wanna hurt, there’s so much in this world
To make me bleed.
Stay with me,..
You’re all I see.
Did I say that I need you?
Did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see,..
No one knows this more than me.
As I come clean.
I wonder everyday
as I look upon your face, aw huh,..
Everything you gave
And nothing you would take, aw huh,..
Nothing you would take,..
Everything you gave.
Did I say that I need you?
Oh, Did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see,..
No one know this more than me.
As I come clean.
Nothing you would take,..
everything you gave.
Hold me till I die,..
Meet you on the other side.
Grossard/Veder
Equally restorative in its power to remind me to cherish what I have in my life in the person of my wife. That chorus "Did I say that I need you? is a constant mantra.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
-
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Wed Oct 27, 2010 11:12 am
Christopher, I love that PS song. Check out the Annie Lennox version. Only one line that bothers me, and it's that motion line. Stilted, but hey who am I to critique PS. I think PS is one of those songwriters we've sort of gotten used to over the years, so much so that he's actually taken for granted or not fully appreciated. As I've said here many times, EC is my favorite artist, for aesthetic, personal and who knows what else reasons. But if shoved into a corner and forced to answer, truthfully and without the personal getting in the way, who is the better songwriter, I would have to say PS beats our Boy by a landslide. I think he writes perfect songs.
The Pearl Jam song, suffers by comparison, pretty as it is. But my reaction may be marred by the fact that every time I hear that guy sing I want to shoot myself.
The Pearl Jam song, suffers by comparison, pretty as it is. But my reaction may be marred by the fact that every time I hear that guy sing I want to shoot myself.
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by verbal gymnastics » Wed Oct 27, 2010 3:49 pm
I think "You make the sun shine brighter than Doris Day" in Wham's Wak Me Up Before You Go Go is a great line.
Seriously.
Seriously.
I'm not the foolish man I was before
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Wed Oct 27, 2010 4:12 pm
Most definitely a tremendous songwriter, Alex, is PS. He is in my pantheon and, like you, ahead of EC. He even passes the daughter test. In this case all three. They have raided dad's cd collection many times to load their ipods with PS and S&G over the years. Attribute that to the power and beauty of the material and to the genius of marketing "The Only Living Boy In NY" on the soundtrack for "Garden State", their generations "The Graduate". Have never been as successful in getting EC on their ipods. A real fun thing for me of late has been spending time with his collected Lyrics which I picked up for a $1.00 at Borders last year. Some many of his lyrics approach poetry on the written page. He takes such care with his line and word choices. He has as well worked in the past with poets such as Ted Hughes and Derek Walcott.
On the reverse, I love Mr. Vedder's voice and owe that to the introduction to his material by my oldest daughter years ago. I, too, can learn from her.
On the reverse, I love Mr. Vedder's voice and owe that to the introduction to his material by my oldest daughter years ago. I, too, can learn from her.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Thu Oct 28, 2010 9:40 am
Agreed, Verbal. I think that's a great pop song, and a great line. In the same vein, how about "shake it like a Polaroid picture" from that rap song. And that song that EC covered in Kojak, with the line about "pickles".
But speaking of rap, I think it's time we expanded our lyric appreciation society to include some of our newer kinda poets. You know how Dylan used to say Smokey was the great American poet (or something like that), I think some of these homeys have a little lyric poetry in them. Too bad this one's dead.
I was a terror since the public school era
Bathroom passes, cuttin classes, squeezing asses
Smoking blunts was a daily routine
Since thirteen, a chubby nigga on the scene
I used to have the tre` duce
And the deuce deuce in my bubblegoose
Now i got a mac in my knapsack
Loungin' black, smoking sacks up in acts
And sidekicks with my sidekicks rockin fly kicks
Honeys want to chat
But all we wanna know is "Where the party at?"
And can i bring my gat?
If not, I hope I don't get shot
But i throw my vest on my chest
'Cause niggaz is a mess
It don't take nothin' but frontin'
For me to start somethin'
Buggin' and barkin' at niggaz like i was duck huntin'
Dumbing out, just me and my crew
Cause all we wanna do is...
Chorus:
Party... And bullshit, and... (x9)
Hugs from the honeys, Pounds from the roughnecks
Seen my man Sei that I knew from the projects
Said he had beef, asked me if I had my peice
Sure do, two .22's in my shoes
Holler if you need me love i'm in the house
Roam and strollin' see what the honeys is about
Moet popping, hoe hopping, ain't no stopping Big Poppa, I'm a BAD BOY
Niggaz wanna front, who got your back? (BIGGIE!)
Niggaz wanna flex, who got the gat? (BIGGIE!)
It ain't hard to tell I'm the east coast overdoser
Nigga you scared you're supposed to
Nigga I told ya, put fear in your heart
Fuck up the party before it even start
Pissy drunk, off the Henny and skunk
Or some brand-nubian shit beatin' down punks!
Chorus
Bitches in the back looking righteous
In a tight dress, i think i might just
Hit her with a little Biggie 101, How to tote a gun
And have fun with Jamaican rum
Conversations, blunts in rotation
My man Big Jacques got the glock in his waist and
we're smoking, drinking, got the hooker thinking
If money smell bad than this nigga Biggie stinking
Is it my charm? I got the hookers eatin out my palm
She grabbed my arm and said "Let's leave calm"
I'm hittin' skins again
Rolled up another blunt, bought a Heineken
Niggaz start to loke out, a kid got choked out
Blows was thrown and a fucking fight broke out
[Music stops, indecipherable sounds of people yelling and arguing,
Biggie breaks it up yelling "Yo chill, man, chill!"]
Can't we just all get along?
So i can put hickies on her chest like Li'l Shawn
Get her pissy drunk off of Don Perrignon
And it's on, and I'm gone
that's that.
[Chorus w/ Puff talking after selected lines]
Party... and Bullshit, (Party.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Bullshit.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Party.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Bullshit.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Yea... Junior Mafia likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Uptown likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Bad Boy likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Brooklyn Crew likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Third Eye likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
[Repeats until fade out]
My favorite lines:
I was a terror since the public school era
Bathroom passes, cuttin classes, squeezing asses
Buggin' and barkin' at niggaz like i was duck huntin'
Moet popping, hoe hopping, ain't no stopping Big Poppa, I'm a BAD BOY
Niggaz wanna front, who got your back? (BIGGIE!)
Niggaz wanna flex, who got the gat? (BIGGIE!)
Bitches in the back looking righteous
In a tight dress, i think i might just
Hit her with a little Biggie 101, How to tote a gun
And have fun with Jamaican rum
Conversations, blunts in rotation
My man Big Jacques got the glock in his waist and
we're smoking, drinking, got the hooker thinking
If money smell bad than this nigga Biggie stinking
Is it my charm? I got the hookers eatin out my palm
She grabbed my arm and said "Let's leave calm"
That's a nice little urban short story there, Brooklyn circa ....
But speaking of rap, I think it's time we expanded our lyric appreciation society to include some of our newer kinda poets. You know how Dylan used to say Smokey was the great American poet (or something like that), I think some of these homeys have a little lyric poetry in them. Too bad this one's dead.
I was a terror since the public school era
Bathroom passes, cuttin classes, squeezing asses
Smoking blunts was a daily routine
Since thirteen, a chubby nigga on the scene
I used to have the tre` duce
And the deuce deuce in my bubblegoose
Now i got a mac in my knapsack
Loungin' black, smoking sacks up in acts
And sidekicks with my sidekicks rockin fly kicks
Honeys want to chat
But all we wanna know is "Where the party at?"
And can i bring my gat?
If not, I hope I don't get shot
But i throw my vest on my chest
'Cause niggaz is a mess
It don't take nothin' but frontin'
For me to start somethin'
Buggin' and barkin' at niggaz like i was duck huntin'
Dumbing out, just me and my crew
Cause all we wanna do is...
Chorus:
Party... And bullshit, and... (x9)
Hugs from the honeys, Pounds from the roughnecks
Seen my man Sei that I knew from the projects
Said he had beef, asked me if I had my peice
Sure do, two .22's in my shoes
Holler if you need me love i'm in the house
Roam and strollin' see what the honeys is about
Moet popping, hoe hopping, ain't no stopping Big Poppa, I'm a BAD BOY
Niggaz wanna front, who got your back? (BIGGIE!)
Niggaz wanna flex, who got the gat? (BIGGIE!)
It ain't hard to tell I'm the east coast overdoser
Nigga you scared you're supposed to
Nigga I told ya, put fear in your heart
Fuck up the party before it even start
Pissy drunk, off the Henny and skunk
Or some brand-nubian shit beatin' down punks!
Chorus
Bitches in the back looking righteous
In a tight dress, i think i might just
Hit her with a little Biggie 101, How to tote a gun
And have fun with Jamaican rum
Conversations, blunts in rotation
My man Big Jacques got the glock in his waist and
we're smoking, drinking, got the hooker thinking
If money smell bad than this nigga Biggie stinking
Is it my charm? I got the hookers eatin out my palm
She grabbed my arm and said "Let's leave calm"
I'm hittin' skins again
Rolled up another blunt, bought a Heineken
Niggaz start to loke out, a kid got choked out
Blows was thrown and a fucking fight broke out
[Music stops, indecipherable sounds of people yelling and arguing,
Biggie breaks it up yelling "Yo chill, man, chill!"]
Can't we just all get along?
So i can put hickies on her chest like Li'l Shawn
Get her pissy drunk off of Don Perrignon
And it's on, and I'm gone
that's that.
[Chorus w/ Puff talking after selected lines]
Party... and Bullshit, (Party.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Bullshit.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Party.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Bullshit.)
and Party... and Bullshit, (Yea... Junior Mafia likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Uptown likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Bad Boy likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Brooklyn Crew likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
and Party... and Bullshit, (Third Eye likes that.)
and Party... and Bullshit,
[Repeats until fade out]
My favorite lines:
I was a terror since the public school era
Bathroom passes, cuttin classes, squeezing asses
Buggin' and barkin' at niggaz like i was duck huntin'
Moet popping, hoe hopping, ain't no stopping Big Poppa, I'm a BAD BOY
Niggaz wanna front, who got your back? (BIGGIE!)
Niggaz wanna flex, who got the gat? (BIGGIE!)
Bitches in the back looking righteous
In a tight dress, i think i might just
Hit her with a little Biggie 101, How to tote a gun
And have fun with Jamaican rum
Conversations, blunts in rotation
My man Big Jacques got the glock in his waist and
we're smoking, drinking, got the hooker thinking
If money smell bad than this nigga Biggie stinking
Is it my charm? I got the hookers eatin out my palm
She grabbed my arm and said "Let's leave calm"
That's a nice little urban short story there, Brooklyn circa ....
- alexv
- Posts: 772
- Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2003 2:32 pm
- Location: USA
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Fri Oct 29, 2010 7:01 am
Nice "street cred' Alex!
"My Three Sons"
Day is dawning
Almost sounded like a warning
Wind was rushing through the trees almost falling
I never thought that I’d become
The proud father of my three sons
Years of fragment
Between the shame and the sentiment
For all the years that I might have been absent
I can’t do what can’t be undone
Oh no, my three songs
I love you more than I can say
What I give to one, the other cannot take away
I bless the day you came to be
With everything that is left to me
Here’s your pillow
Go to sleep and I will follow
May you never have anymore sorrows
That’s not something that you can count upon
Still I want it for my three sons
My, my, my three sons
Deep in the night I turn cold and sick
But I only curse arithmetic
I bless the day that you came to be
With everything that is left to me
Day is closing
Old men and infants are dosing
That’s the kind of life I’ve chosen
To see what I’ve become
The humble father of my three sons
The humbled father of my three sons
Elvis Costello
Limited genre the loving tribute to progeny [Hey Jude, Forever Young] this though is a particularly strong example for me, maybe because I am the father of three daughters. Haunting, loving, cleanly delivered with a beautiful economy of line and furnished with non-cloying sentiment. That final image of old and young dozing at end of day always catches me and chokes me up. Just a superb job.
"My Three Sons"
Day is dawning
Almost sounded like a warning
Wind was rushing through the trees almost falling
I never thought that I’d become
The proud father of my three sons
Years of fragment
Between the shame and the sentiment
For all the years that I might have been absent
I can’t do what can’t be undone
Oh no, my three songs
I love you more than I can say
What I give to one, the other cannot take away
I bless the day you came to be
With everything that is left to me
Here’s your pillow
Go to sleep and I will follow
May you never have anymore sorrows
That’s not something that you can count upon
Still I want it for my three sons
My, my, my three sons
Deep in the night I turn cold and sick
But I only curse arithmetic
I bless the day that you came to be
With everything that is left to me
Day is closing
Old men and infants are dosing
That’s the kind of life I’ve chosen
To see what I’ve become
The humble father of my three sons
The humbled father of my three sons
Elvis Costello
Limited genre the loving tribute to progeny [Hey Jude, Forever Young] this though is a particularly strong example for me, maybe because I am the father of three daughters. Haunting, loving, cleanly delivered with a beautiful economy of line and furnished with non-cloying sentiment. That final image of old and young dozing at end of day always catches me and chokes me up. Just a superb job.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
-
Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
- Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 11:31 am
- Location: Where I wish to be
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Sat Nov 06, 2010 6:51 am
"You Turn Me On, I'm A Radio"
If you're driving into town
With a dark cloud above you
Dial in the number
Who's bound to love you
Oh honey you turn me on
I'm a radio
I'm a country station
I'm a little bit corny
I'm a wildwood flower
Waving for you
Broadcasting tower
Waving for you
And I'm sending you out
This signal here
I hope you can pick it up
Loud and clear
I know you don't like weak women
You get bored so quick
And you don't like strong women
'Cause they're hip to your tricks
It's been dirty for dirty
Down the line
But you know
I come when you whistle
When you're loving and kind
But if you've got too many doubts
If there's no good reception for me
Then tune me out, 'cause honey
Who needs the static
It hurts the head
And you wind up cracking
And the day goes dismal
From "Breakfast Barney"
To the sign-off prayer
What a sorry face you get to wear
I'm going to tell you again now
If you're still listening there
If you're driving into town
With a dark cloud above you
Dial in the number
Who's bound to love you
If you're lying on the beach
With the transistor going
Kick off the sand cause honey
The love's still flowing
If your head says forget it
But your heart's still smoking
Call me at the station
The lines are open
Joni Mitchell
Crazy Crow Music
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMT5nMRp_lo
Should have done this a while ago. Best example I can think of that links a love of music with erotic love. The linkage of signals, whether they be radio waves or the pheromones of a flower is brilliant. The resultant joy that can come from either is evident. Economical, universal, lyrical and joyful- this song has always caught how love should feel for me.
If you're driving into town
With a dark cloud above you
Dial in the number
Who's bound to love you
Oh honey you turn me on
I'm a radio
I'm a country station
I'm a little bit corny
I'm a wildwood flower
Waving for you
Broadcasting tower
Waving for you
And I'm sending you out
This signal here
I hope you can pick it up
Loud and clear
I know you don't like weak women
You get bored so quick
And you don't like strong women
'Cause they're hip to your tricks
It's been dirty for dirty
Down the line
But you know
I come when you whistle
When you're loving and kind
But if you've got too many doubts
If there's no good reception for me
Then tune me out, 'cause honey
Who needs the static
It hurts the head
And you wind up cracking
And the day goes dismal
From "Breakfast Barney"
To the sign-off prayer
What a sorry face you get to wear
I'm going to tell you again now
If you're still listening there
If you're driving into town
With a dark cloud above you
Dial in the number
Who's bound to love you
If you're lying on the beach
With the transistor going
Kick off the sand cause honey
The love's still flowing
If your head says forget it
But your heart's still smoking
Call me at the station
The lines are open
Joni Mitchell
Crazy Crow Music
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMT5nMRp_lo
Should have done this a while ago. Best example I can think of that links a love of music with erotic love. The linkage of signals, whether they be radio waves or the pheromones of a flower is brilliant. The resultant joy that can come from either is evident. Economical, universal, lyrical and joyful- this song has always caught how love should feel for me.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
-
Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
- Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 11:31 am
- Location: Where I wish to be
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Sat Nov 06, 2010 2:31 pm
Espuma y Arena
Aunque siempre me veas como una flor en veda,
tejiendo abecedarios contra viento y marea;
no creas que mis manos despedazan florestas,
despedazan florestas.
Aunque sienta deseos de odiar hasta que muera
la angustia inevitable de tu cara perfecta,
no creas que mi odio es el odio de veras;
es tan solo el intento de caer en tu hoguera
y de quemar conmigo tu soledad enferma.
Quiero verte reir mujer de mi dilema,
desordenada, libre; sin rienda ni frontera,
reir como si el alma huyera de esta selva.
Quiero verte reir mujer, mujer, mujer de mi experiencia;
llorando la distancia,
cayendo con tu estrella;
haciendo de las cosas para siempre no pesan,
olvidemos un poco lo que nos desespera;
que se convierta el mundo en espuma y arena,
en espuma y arena.
Aunque sienta deseos de odiar hasta que muera
la angustia inevitable de tu cara perfecta,
no creas que mi odio es el odio de veras;
es tan solo el intento de caer en tu hoguera,
y de quemar conmigo tu soledad enferma.
Quiero verte surgir como la luna llena,
en el brillo de un charco después de la tormenta;
tendida en el asfalto y en todas las aceras.
Quiero verte reir mujer de mi experiencia,
llorando la distancia,
cayendo con tu estrella;
haciendo de las cosas para siempre no pesan,
olvidemos un poco lo que nos desespera;
que se convierta el mundo en espuma y arena.
...en espuma y arena tú ve',
en espuma y arena;
que se convierta el mundo caramba
en espuma y arena...
Pidiendo estoy que tu pecho acabe con esa pena,
pidiendo estoy que tu pecho acabe con esa pena;
y que todo tu dolor se te convierta en arena.
...en espuma y arena tú ve',
en espuma y arena;
que se convierta el mundo caramba
en espuma y arena...
Quiero que tu soledad salga pronto de esta bruma,
quiero que tu soledad salga pronto de esta bruma;
y que todo tu dolor se te convierta en espuma.
...en espuma y arena tú ve',
en espuma y arena;
que se convierta el mundo caramba,
en espuma y arena...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7JIUMIf ... re=related
How about some spanish lyrics? This is one of my all-time favorites, from a great and underappreciated Cuban singer/songwriter, Pedro Luis Ferrer. This is poetry set to music.
Aunque siempre me veas como una flor en veda,
tejiendo abecedarios contra viento y marea;
no creas que mis manos despedazan florestas,
despedazan florestas.
Aunque sienta deseos de odiar hasta que muera
la angustia inevitable de tu cara perfecta,
no creas que mi odio es el odio de veras;
es tan solo el intento de caer en tu hoguera
y de quemar conmigo tu soledad enferma.
Quiero verte reir mujer de mi dilema,
desordenada, libre; sin rienda ni frontera,
reir como si el alma huyera de esta selva.
Quiero verte reir mujer, mujer, mujer de mi experiencia;
llorando la distancia,
cayendo con tu estrella;
haciendo de las cosas para siempre no pesan,
olvidemos un poco lo que nos desespera;
que se convierta el mundo en espuma y arena,
en espuma y arena.
Aunque sienta deseos de odiar hasta que muera
la angustia inevitable de tu cara perfecta,
no creas que mi odio es el odio de veras;
es tan solo el intento de caer en tu hoguera,
y de quemar conmigo tu soledad enferma.
Quiero verte surgir como la luna llena,
en el brillo de un charco después de la tormenta;
tendida en el asfalto y en todas las aceras.
Quiero verte reir mujer de mi experiencia,
llorando la distancia,
cayendo con tu estrella;
haciendo de las cosas para siempre no pesan,
olvidemos un poco lo que nos desespera;
que se convierta el mundo en espuma y arena.
...en espuma y arena tú ve',
en espuma y arena;
que se convierta el mundo caramba
en espuma y arena...
Pidiendo estoy que tu pecho acabe con esa pena,
pidiendo estoy que tu pecho acabe con esa pena;
y que todo tu dolor se te convierta en arena.
...en espuma y arena tú ve',
en espuma y arena;
que se convierta el mundo caramba
en espuma y arena...
Quiero que tu soledad salga pronto de esta bruma,
quiero que tu soledad salga pronto de esta bruma;
y que todo tu dolor se te convierta en espuma.
...en espuma y arena tú ve',
en espuma y arena;
que se convierta el mundo caramba,
en espuma y arena...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7JIUMIf ... re=related
How about some spanish lyrics? This is one of my all-time favorites, from a great and underappreciated Cuban singer/songwriter, Pedro Luis Ferrer. This is poetry set to music.
- alexv
- Posts: 772
- Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2003 2:32 pm
- Location: USA
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Sat Nov 06, 2010 4:09 pm
I enjoyed that although my translation skills are very rusty[thankfully I can still bring back some of my Latin- now there is a thought- a Gregorian Chant] continuing the thought:
"Sabor A Mi"
(Alvaro Carrillo)
Tanto tiempo disfrutamos este amor
Nuestras almas se acercaron tanto asi
Que yo guardo tu sabor
Pero tu llevas tambien sabor a mi
Si negaras mi presencia en tu vivir
Bastaria con abrazarte y conversar
Tanta vida yo te di
Que por fuerza tienes ya sabor a mi
No pretendo ser tu dueno
No soy nada yo no tengo vanidad
De mi vida doy lo bueno
Yo tan pobre que otra cosa puedo dar
Pasaran mas de mil anos muchos mas
Yo no se si tenga amor la eternida
Pero alla tal como aqui
En la boca llevaras sabor a mi
No pretendo ser tu dueno
No soy nada yo no tengo vanidad
De mi vida doy lo bueno
Yo tan pobre que otra cosa puedo dar
Pasaran mas de mil anos muchos mas
Yo no se si tenga amor la eternida
Pero alla tal como aqui
En la boca llevaras sabor a mi
Sabor a mi
Sabor a mi
Sabor a mi
as done by
LOS LOBOS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rU-LeccqS48
Equally poetry and one I have been very fond of over the years. When sung I am always a sucker for Spanish.
Tanto tiempo disfrutamos de este amor
For so long we have enjoyed this love
Nuestras almas se acercaron tanto así
our souls got so close
Que yo guardo tu sabor
that I keep your taste (1)
pero tu llevas tambien
but you also carry
sabor a mí
a taste of me
Si negaras mi presencia en tu vivir
If you would deny my presence in your life
bastaría con abrazarte y conversar
it would suffice to embrace you and to talk (2)
Tanta vida yo te di
so much (of my) live I gave to you
que por fuerza tienes ya
that you cannot help but having
sabor a mí
a taste of me
No pretendo ser tu dueño
I am not trying to be your owner
No soy nada, yo no tengo vanidad
I am nothing, I have not vanity
De mi vida, doy lo bueno
Of my life, I give the good (the best)
Soy tan pobre que otra cosa puedo dar?
I am so poor, what else can I give?
Pasarán mas de mil años
A thousand years may pass
muchos más
many more
Yo no se si tenga amor la eternidad
I dont know whether love exist in eternity
Pero alla tal como aquí
But there just as here
en la boca llevaras
in the mouth you will carry
sabor a mí
a taste of me
An English translation for those who are challenged by the Spanish like me.
What is equally amazing is how they can go from that to this in the drop of a hat- my favorite band hands down.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tao8rbrn ... re=related
and then they can turn back around and give you something like this with an assist from Antonio:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TY3F5A9L ... re=related
"Sabor A Mi"
(Alvaro Carrillo)
Tanto tiempo disfrutamos este amor
Nuestras almas se acercaron tanto asi
Que yo guardo tu sabor
Pero tu llevas tambien sabor a mi
Si negaras mi presencia en tu vivir
Bastaria con abrazarte y conversar
Tanta vida yo te di
Que por fuerza tienes ya sabor a mi
No pretendo ser tu dueno
No soy nada yo no tengo vanidad
De mi vida doy lo bueno
Yo tan pobre que otra cosa puedo dar
Pasaran mas de mil anos muchos mas
Yo no se si tenga amor la eternida
Pero alla tal como aqui
En la boca llevaras sabor a mi
No pretendo ser tu dueno
No soy nada yo no tengo vanidad
De mi vida doy lo bueno
Yo tan pobre que otra cosa puedo dar
Pasaran mas de mil anos muchos mas
Yo no se si tenga amor la eternida
Pero alla tal como aqui
En la boca llevaras sabor a mi
Sabor a mi
Sabor a mi
Sabor a mi
as done by
LOS LOBOS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rU-LeccqS48
Equally poetry and one I have been very fond of over the years. When sung I am always a sucker for Spanish.
Tanto tiempo disfrutamos de este amor
For so long we have enjoyed this love
Nuestras almas se acercaron tanto así
our souls got so close
Que yo guardo tu sabor
that I keep your taste (1)
pero tu llevas tambien
but you also carry
sabor a mí
a taste of me
Si negaras mi presencia en tu vivir
If you would deny my presence in your life
bastaría con abrazarte y conversar
it would suffice to embrace you and to talk (2)
Tanta vida yo te di
so much (of my) live I gave to you
que por fuerza tienes ya
that you cannot help but having
sabor a mí
a taste of me
No pretendo ser tu dueño
I am not trying to be your owner
No soy nada, yo no tengo vanidad
I am nothing, I have not vanity
De mi vida, doy lo bueno
Of my life, I give the good (the best)
Soy tan pobre que otra cosa puedo dar?
I am so poor, what else can I give?
Pasarán mas de mil años
A thousand years may pass
muchos más
many more
Yo no se si tenga amor la eternidad
I dont know whether love exist in eternity
Pero alla tal como aquí
But there just as here
en la boca llevaras
in the mouth you will carry
sabor a mí
a taste of me
An English translation for those who are challenged by the Spanish like me.
What is equally amazing is how they can go from that to this in the drop of a hat- my favorite band hands down.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tao8rbrn ... re=related
and then they can turn back around and give you something like this with an assist from Antonio:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TY3F5A9L ... re=related
Last edited by Jack of All Parades on Sun Nov 07, 2010 11:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by ReadyToHearTheWorst » Sat Nov 06, 2010 9:07 pm
How Will I Ever Be Simple Again
Written by Richard Thompson
Oh she danced in the street with the guns all around her
All torn like a rag doll, barefoot in the rain
And she sang like a child, toora-day toora-daddy
Oh how will I ever be simple again
She sat by the banks of the dirty grey river
And tried for a fish with a worm on a pin
There was nothing but fever and ghosts in the water
Oh how will I ever be simple again
War was my love and my friend and companion
And what did I care for the pretty and plain
But her smile was so clear and my heart was so troubled
Oh how will I ever be simple again
In her poor burned-out house I sat at her table
The smell of her hair was like cornfields in May
And I wanted to weep and my eyes ached from trying
Oh how will I ever be simple again
So graceful she moved through the dust and the ruin
And happy she was in her dances and games
Oh teach me to see with your innocent eyes, love
Oh how will I ever be simple again
Oh how will I ever be simple again
A perfect lyric, evocative rather than specific. There are lyrical and musical allusions to Ireland, but it could be anywhere, anytime.
I'd recomend the Christine Collister version, if you can find it - haunting.
Written by Richard Thompson
Oh she danced in the street with the guns all around her
All torn like a rag doll, barefoot in the rain
And she sang like a child, toora-day toora-daddy
Oh how will I ever be simple again
She sat by the banks of the dirty grey river
And tried for a fish with a worm on a pin
There was nothing but fever and ghosts in the water
Oh how will I ever be simple again
War was my love and my friend and companion
And what did I care for the pretty and plain
But her smile was so clear and my heart was so troubled
Oh how will I ever be simple again
In her poor burned-out house I sat at her table
The smell of her hair was like cornfields in May
And I wanted to weep and my eyes ached from trying
Oh how will I ever be simple again
So graceful she moved through the dust and the ruin
And happy she was in her dances and games
Oh teach me to see with your innocent eyes, love
Oh how will I ever be simple again
Oh how will I ever be simple again
A perfect lyric, evocative rather than specific. There are lyrical and musical allusions to Ireland, but it could be anywhere, anytime.
I'd recomend the Christine Collister version, if you can find it - haunting.
"I'm the Rock and Roll Scrabble champion"
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ReadyToHearTheWorst - Posts: 956
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Sun Nov 07, 2010 8:35 am
A very nice choice- I had intended to get around to that artist and this lyric in particular so why not now:
ARTIST: Richard Thompson
TITLE: The Dimming of the Day
This old house is falling down around my ears
I'm drowning in a river of my tears
When all my will is gone you hold me sway
I need you at the dimming of the day
You pull me like the moon pulls on the tide
You know just where I keep my better side
What days have come to keep us far apart
A broken promise or a broken heart
Now all the bonnie birds have winged away
I need you at the dimming of the day
Come the night you're only what I want
Come the night you could be my confidant
I see you on the street in company
Why don't you come and ease your mind with me
I'm living for the night we steal away
I need you at the dimming of the day
I need you at the dimming of the day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzqjD-_OMHk
My favorite and perhaps a sister song to PS's "Something So Right" as both play on that conceit of a human anchor that can soothe, calm or act as a balm to the fevered or anxious moments that play upon another. This particular lyrics insistent usage of natural forces like the moon's gravitational pull or the ebbing of daylight[something I am very cognizant of today as I changed the clocks] is touching. As darkness envelopes we need to hold on to one another. Something another artist is saying in a current album. Note too the evocative usage of rising water images and the notion of drowning-again shared by another artist in his current album.
Interesting to view this offering by Dylan as the opposite of what can happen if you lack that shelter at the 'dimming' of the day:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvnSyOYz ... re=related
ARTIST: Richard Thompson
TITLE: The Dimming of the Day
This old house is falling down around my ears
I'm drowning in a river of my tears
When all my will is gone you hold me sway
I need you at the dimming of the day
You pull me like the moon pulls on the tide
You know just where I keep my better side
What days have come to keep us far apart
A broken promise or a broken heart
Now all the bonnie birds have winged away
I need you at the dimming of the day
Come the night you're only what I want
Come the night you could be my confidant
I see you on the street in company
Why don't you come and ease your mind with me
I'm living for the night we steal away
I need you at the dimming of the day
I need you at the dimming of the day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzqjD-_OMHk
My favorite and perhaps a sister song to PS's "Something So Right" as both play on that conceit of a human anchor that can soothe, calm or act as a balm to the fevered or anxious moments that play upon another. This particular lyrics insistent usage of natural forces like the moon's gravitational pull or the ebbing of daylight[something I am very cognizant of today as I changed the clocks] is touching. As darkness envelopes we need to hold on to one another. Something another artist is saying in a current album. Note too the evocative usage of rising water images and the notion of drowning-again shared by another artist in his current album.
Interesting to view this offering by Dylan as the opposite of what can happen if you lack that shelter at the 'dimming' of the day:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvnSyOYz ... re=related
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Sun Nov 07, 2010 10:12 am
Sometimes the sheer infectiousness of the melody, harmony and instrumentation are the lyric- I think that is the case in this number by my father - in -law and his best friend, Zoot Sims, the joyfulness and lyrical life is in the playing :
"Morning Fun" by Al Cohn
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-BYJLZaMN0
Or in this melodic sister song which mirrors the feel I get from"'Dimming of the Day" along with my father-in-law's infectious "Doodle Oodle" God I miss those two!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR4ZfCh6 ... re=related
And they could be equally pensive witness:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPSZlveu ... re=related
yet they still could swing with the best as Zoot demonstrates in this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCx5_-P4 ... re=related
and that ability to swing continues into the next generation with my brother in law Joe Cohn, Al's son:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pc6Ta4Pn ... re=related
"Morning Fun" by Al Cohn
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-BYJLZaMN0
Or in this melodic sister song which mirrors the feel I get from"'Dimming of the Day" along with my father-in-law's infectious "Doodle Oodle" God I miss those two!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR4ZfCh6 ... re=related
And they could be equally pensive witness:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPSZlveu ... re=related
yet they still could swing with the best as Zoot demonstrates in this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCx5_-P4 ... re=related
and that ability to swing continues into the next generation with my brother in law Joe Cohn, Al's son:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pc6Ta4Pn ... re=related
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
- Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 11:31 am
- Location: Where I wish to be
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Tue Nov 09, 2010 12:40 pm
Each night I leave the bar room when it's over
Not feeling any pain at closing time
But tonight your memory found me much too sober
Couldn't drink enough to keep you off my mind
Tonight the bottle let me down
And let your memory come around
The one true friend I thought I'd found
Tonight the bottle let me down
I've always had a bottle I could turn to
And lately I've been turnin' every day
But the wine don't take effect the way it used to
And I'm hurtin' in an old familiar way
Tonight the bottle let me down
and let your memory come around
The one true friend I thought I'd found
Tonight the bottle let me down
Tonight the bottle let me down
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVq27glk ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lcdFJkeRRY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iub6PQxU ... re=related
Not feeling any pain at closing time
But tonight your memory found me much too sober
Couldn't drink enough to keep you off my mind
Tonight the bottle let me down
And let your memory come around
The one true friend I thought I'd found
Tonight the bottle let me down
I've always had a bottle I could turn to
And lately I've been turnin' every day
But the wine don't take effect the way it used to
And I'm hurtin' in an old familiar way
Tonight the bottle let me down
and let your memory come around
The one true friend I thought I'd found
Tonight the bottle let me down
Tonight the bottle let me down
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVq27glk ... re=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lcdFJkeRRY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iub6PQxU ... re=related
- alexv
- Posts: 772
- Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2003 2:32 pm
- Location: USA
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Tue Nov 09, 2010 5:26 pm
Well all right the requisite Drinking song! I would add one more version of this great Haggard tune-one you should appreciate as it features a fellow Cubano showing his moxie:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6fcGL1DI0
And as long as we are hoisting the bottle- I have always found this the penultimate 'drinking' song with the attendant guilt, in particular as performed by the writer, Mr. Newman, to be the best modern day saloon song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxYTILdWRaU
Guilty by Randy Newman
Yes, baby, I been drinkin'
And I shouldn't come by I know
But I found myself in trouble
And I had nowhere else to go
Got some whisky from the barman
Got some cocaine from a friend
I just had to keep on movin'
Til I was back in your arms again
Guilty, baby I'm guilty
And I'll be guilty the rest of my life
How come I never do what I'm supposed to do
How come nothin' that I try to do ever turns out right?
You know, you know how it is with me baby
You know, I just can't stand myself
And it takes a whole lot of medicine
For me to pretend that I'm somebody else
As I said just the penultimate modern day saloon song-bar none[bad pun intended]. I always love the association of lifelong 'guilt' that you cannot erase- something Haggard caught in the notion that the bottle cannot erase, as well. You know "it takes a whole lot of medicine" to be in this world. This is how Kafka makes me feel.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk6fcGL1DI0
And as long as we are hoisting the bottle- I have always found this the penultimate 'drinking' song with the attendant guilt, in particular as performed by the writer, Mr. Newman, to be the best modern day saloon song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxYTILdWRaU
Guilty by Randy Newman
Yes, baby, I been drinkin'
And I shouldn't come by I know
But I found myself in trouble
And I had nowhere else to go
Got some whisky from the barman
Got some cocaine from a friend
I just had to keep on movin'
Til I was back in your arms again
Guilty, baby I'm guilty
And I'll be guilty the rest of my life
How come I never do what I'm supposed to do
How come nothin' that I try to do ever turns out right?
You know, you know how it is with me baby
You know, I just can't stand myself
And it takes a whole lot of medicine
For me to pretend that I'm somebody else
As I said just the penultimate modern day saloon song-bar none[bad pun intended]. I always love the association of lifelong 'guilt' that you cannot erase- something Haggard caught in the notion that the bottle cannot erase, as well. You know "it takes a whole lot of medicine" to be in this world. This is how Kafka makes me feel.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
- Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 11:31 am
- Location: Where I wish to be
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Thu Nov 11, 2010 5:58 pm
"The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll"
William Zanzinger killed poor Hattie Carroll
And the cops were called in and his weapon took from him
As they rode him in custody down to the station
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
Owns a tobacco farm of six hundred acres
And high office relations in the politics of Maryland
Reacted to his deed with a shrug of his shoulders
In a matter of minutes on bail was out walking
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
Hattie Carroll was a maid of the kitchen
Who carried the dishes and took out the garbage
And never sat once at the head of the table
And didn’t even talk to the people at the table
Who just cleaned up all the food from the table
And emptied the ashtrays on a whole other level
That sailed through the air and came down through the room
Doomed and determined to destroy all the gentle
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
In the courtroom of honor, the judge pounded his gavel
To show that all’s equal and that the courts are on the level
And that the strings in the books ain’t pulled and persuaded
And that even the nobles get properly handled
Once that the cops have chased after and caught ’em
And that the ladder of law has no top and no bottom
Stared at the person who killed for no reason
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now’s the time for your tears
Bob Dylan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkQGUlwuTX8
http://www.bu.edu/today/node/11812
Have to get around to the Protest song given the NR vent. Here is perhaps one of the supreme examples. The site above references to Christopher Ricks's recent talk at BU which my daughter attended. Dr. Ricks considers this song perfect from the get go and in fact takes exception to subsequent live versions Dylan has performed as he feels the impact of the song has been watered down. In fact at the talk he challenged his audience to defend a more recent live version and risk earning his 'universal enmity'. My daughter took him up on the challenge and was unsuccessful in convincing him but did not earn his 'enmity' but instead a well done and a copy of a live performance from his private collection. His dissection of this lyric in his Dylan's Visions of Sin is the ultimate reading.
I have always admired how Dylan restrained himself from ranting but just let the facts speak for themselves, how he does not call it white vs black or wealthy vs poor. Instead he focuses on the universal miscarriage of justice that can happen to us all[sound familiar today?] A most effective usage of blank verse with extremely deft usage of feminine and masculine rhyme and off rhymes, as well. Powerful then; still most powerful.
William Zanzinger killed poor Hattie Carroll
And the cops were called in and his weapon took from him
As they rode him in custody down to the station
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
Owns a tobacco farm of six hundred acres
And high office relations in the politics of Maryland
Reacted to his deed with a shrug of his shoulders
In a matter of minutes on bail was out walking
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
Hattie Carroll was a maid of the kitchen
Who carried the dishes and took out the garbage
And never sat once at the head of the table
And didn’t even talk to the people at the table
Who just cleaned up all the food from the table
And emptied the ashtrays on a whole other level
That sailed through the air and came down through the room
Doomed and determined to destroy all the gentle
Take the rag away from your face
Now ain’t the time for your tears
In the courtroom of honor, the judge pounded his gavel
To show that all’s equal and that the courts are on the level
And that the strings in the books ain’t pulled and persuaded
And that even the nobles get properly handled
Once that the cops have chased after and caught ’em
And that the ladder of law has no top and no bottom
Stared at the person who killed for no reason
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now’s the time for your tears
Bob Dylan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkQGUlwuTX8
http://www.bu.edu/today/node/11812
Have to get around to the Protest song given the NR vent. Here is perhaps one of the supreme examples. The site above references to Christopher Ricks's recent talk at BU which my daughter attended. Dr. Ricks considers this song perfect from the get go and in fact takes exception to subsequent live versions Dylan has performed as he feels the impact of the song has been watered down. In fact at the talk he challenged his audience to defend a more recent live version and risk earning his 'universal enmity'. My daughter took him up on the challenge and was unsuccessful in convincing him but did not earn his 'enmity' but instead a well done and a copy of a live performance from his private collection. His dissection of this lyric in his Dylan's Visions of Sin is the ultimate reading.
I have always admired how Dylan restrained himself from ranting but just let the facts speak for themselves, how he does not call it white vs black or wealthy vs poor. Instead he focuses on the universal miscarriage of justice that can happen to us all[sound familiar today?] A most effective usage of blank verse with extremely deft usage of feminine and masculine rhyme and off rhymes, as well. Powerful then; still most powerful.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
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Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
- Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 11:31 am
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by bambooneedle » Mon Nov 15, 2010 3:24 am
"who are you that I should have to lie?" When The Night Comes Falling From The Sky ~ Bob Dylan
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Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by Jack of All Parades » Tue Nov 23, 2010 10:07 am
"Red River Shore" Bob Dylan
Some of us turn off the lights and we live
In the moonlight shooting by
Some of us scare ourselves to death in the dark
To be where the angels fly
Pretty maids all in a row lined up
Outside my cabin door
I've never wanted any of them wanting me
'Cept the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I sat by her side and for a while I tried
To make that girl my wife
She gave me her best advice and she said
"Go home and lead a quiet life."
Well, I've been to the east and I've been to the west
And I've been out where the black winds roar
Somehow, though, I never did get that far
With the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I knew when I first laid eyes on her
I could never be free
One look at her and I knew right away
She should always be with me
Well, the dream dried up a long time ago
Don't know where it is anymore
True to life, true to me
Was the girl from the Red River shore
Now I'm wearing the cloak of misery
And I've tasted jilted love
And the frozen smile upon my face
Fits me like a glove
But I can't escape from the memory
Of the one that I'll always adore
All those nights when I lay in the arms
Of the girl from the Red River shore
Well, we're living in the shadows of a fading past
Trapped in the fires of time
I've tried not to ever hurt anybody
And to stay out of a life of crime
And when it's all been said and done
I never did know the score
One more day is another day away
From the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I'm a stranger here in a strange land
But I know this is where I belong
I'll ramble and gamble for the one I love
And the hills will give me a song
Though nothing looks familiar to me
I know I've stayed here before
Once, a thousand nights ago
With the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I went back to see about it once
Went back to straighten it out
Everybody that I talked to had seen us there
Said they didn't know who I was talking about
Well, the sun went down on me a long time ago
I've had to fall back from the door
I wish I could have spent every hour of my life
With the girl from the Red River shore
Now, I've heard of a guy who lived a long time ago
A man full of sorrow and strife
Whenever someone around him died and was dead
He knew how to bring 'em on back to life
Well, I don't know what kind of language he used
Or if they do that kind of thing anymore
Sometimes I think nobody ever saw me here at all
'Cept the girl from the Red River shore
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdAjU-x2DJo
"This Charming Man" Morrissey and Marr
Punctured bicycle
on a hillside desolate.
Will nature make a man of me yet?
When in this charming car
this charming man.
Why pamper life's complexities
when the leather runs smooth
on the passenger seat?
I would go out tonight.
but I haven't got a stitch to wear.
This man said “It's gruesome
that someone so handsome should care”.
A jumped-up pantry boy
who never knew his place
he said “Return the ring”.
He knows so much about these things.
He knows so much about these things.
I would go out tonight
but I haven't got a stitch to wear.
This man said “It's gruesome
that someone so handsome should care.”
This charming man.
This charming man.
A jumped-up pantry boy
who never knew his place
he said “Return the ring”.
He knows so much about these things.
He knows so much about these things.
He knows so much about these things.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_S8d3jim ... re=related
Two songs of reverie- memory haunted and each unique in their own iconoclastic way. The first ably demonstrates how we can luxuriate in memory and punish ourselves, self doubt can be crippling; the second in deft, piquant stanzas coupled with a vibrant melody draws a musical picture of sexual awakening, its joy, bafflement and self-awareness. Both songs consistently play on the internal tape loop within my musical memory.
Some of us turn off the lights and we live
In the moonlight shooting by
Some of us scare ourselves to death in the dark
To be where the angels fly
Pretty maids all in a row lined up
Outside my cabin door
I've never wanted any of them wanting me
'Cept the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I sat by her side and for a while I tried
To make that girl my wife
She gave me her best advice and she said
"Go home and lead a quiet life."
Well, I've been to the east and I've been to the west
And I've been out where the black winds roar
Somehow, though, I never did get that far
With the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I knew when I first laid eyes on her
I could never be free
One look at her and I knew right away
She should always be with me
Well, the dream dried up a long time ago
Don't know where it is anymore
True to life, true to me
Was the girl from the Red River shore
Now I'm wearing the cloak of misery
And I've tasted jilted love
And the frozen smile upon my face
Fits me like a glove
But I can't escape from the memory
Of the one that I'll always adore
All those nights when I lay in the arms
Of the girl from the Red River shore
Well, we're living in the shadows of a fading past
Trapped in the fires of time
I've tried not to ever hurt anybody
And to stay out of a life of crime
And when it's all been said and done
I never did know the score
One more day is another day away
From the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I'm a stranger here in a strange land
But I know this is where I belong
I'll ramble and gamble for the one I love
And the hills will give me a song
Though nothing looks familiar to me
I know I've stayed here before
Once, a thousand nights ago
With the girl from the Red River shore
Well, I went back to see about it once
Went back to straighten it out
Everybody that I talked to had seen us there
Said they didn't know who I was talking about
Well, the sun went down on me a long time ago
I've had to fall back from the door
I wish I could have spent every hour of my life
With the girl from the Red River shore
Now, I've heard of a guy who lived a long time ago
A man full of sorrow and strife
Whenever someone around him died and was dead
He knew how to bring 'em on back to life
Well, I don't know what kind of language he used
Or if they do that kind of thing anymore
Sometimes I think nobody ever saw me here at all
'Cept the girl from the Red River shore
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdAjU-x2DJo
"This Charming Man" Morrissey and Marr
Punctured bicycle
on a hillside desolate.
Will nature make a man of me yet?
When in this charming car
this charming man.
Why pamper life's complexities
when the leather runs smooth
on the passenger seat?
I would go out tonight.
but I haven't got a stitch to wear.
This man said “It's gruesome
that someone so handsome should care”.
A jumped-up pantry boy
who never knew his place
he said “Return the ring”.
He knows so much about these things.
He knows so much about these things.
I would go out tonight
but I haven't got a stitch to wear.
This man said “It's gruesome
that someone so handsome should care.”
This charming man.
This charming man.
A jumped-up pantry boy
who never knew his place
he said “Return the ring”.
He knows so much about these things.
He knows so much about these things.
He knows so much about these things.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_S8d3jim ... re=related
Two songs of reverie- memory haunted and each unique in their own iconoclastic way. The first ably demonstrates how we can luxuriate in memory and punish ourselves, self doubt can be crippling; the second in deft, piquant stanzas coupled with a vibrant melody draws a musical picture of sexual awakening, its joy, bafflement and self-awareness. Both songs consistently play on the internal tape loop within my musical memory.
"....there's a merry song that starts in 'I' and ends in 'You', as many famous pop songs do....'
-
Jack of All Parades - Posts: 3010
- Joined: Sun Apr 12, 2009 11:31 am
- Location: Where I wish to be
Re: Do you have a prized or favorite lyric?
by alexv » Tue Nov 30, 2010 5:57 pm
Hung up on You---Fountains of Wayne
While I down Kentucky bourbon
I am waiting for a call
And the moon and stars tonight
Are playing shadows on the wall
With the moon the way it is, dear
Would you answer out of spite
Or are you feeling lonely tonight
Cause I remember last time
We were out under the stars
Driving crooked down the highway
Drinking beer in roadside bars
And now and then I wonder
Why this painful memory
Can never find its way to you from me
And I can't dial the phone just now
Even though I know your number
Can't bring my broken heart to be untrue
Like you did today
You'll say goodbye the same old way
Ever since you hung up on me
I'm hung up on you
Well the house I'm ringing up from
Is a half a mile from you
But with the reception I'm getting
Might as well be Timbuktu
And behind the door of your home
Is a strange and foreign land
Where you speak a language I don't understand
And I can't dial the phone just now
Even though I know your number
Can't bring my broken heart to be untrue
Like you did today
You'll say goodbye the same old way
Ever since you hung up on me
I'm hung up on you
Now I'm going down to Jimmy's bar
Like a thousand other times
With an appetite for poison
And a suitcase full of dimes
And I'll wait there by the payphone
With one hundred other guys
With those sorry hung-up teardrops in our eyes
And I can't dial the phone just now
Even though I know your number
Can't bring my broken heart to be untrue
Like you did today
You'll say goodbye the same old way
Ever since you hung up on me
I'm hung up on you
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xf-_CXMqMk
EC does country, and these boys do country. They do country reeeel good. Great lyric and great performance.
Hey, Christopher, I did a double take when I saw your Dylan/Morrissey coupling. The Dylan song is, even by Dylan standards, one of the great Dylan songs. Of course, devious bastard that he is, he left it off a record and put it out as part of the Bootleg series.
It’s about lost love, wanting what you can’t have and not wanting what you have, about life, about growing up, about pain and loss, and it ends with Jesus. What can I say? It's Dylan. One of a kind.
Now, I’m a Smiths fan, going right back to the beginning, and i've chatted about them here in this very thread I think when Otis and I did some gentlemanly disagreeing about Mozz (is that the preferred nomenclature?), but as far as Smiths lyrics go….Oy!!
Morrissey’s lyrics have that poetic thing to them (and no one picks better song titles) but there’s a camp element to them that prevents me from taking them seriously. They’ve always had that swooning, swooshy, (not that there’s anything wrong with that) teenage angst thing to them. I think he’s in his fifties and it’s still there, bless his fey soul.
The melodies are great, though, as is the guitar work and the singing works, given the material. And all that, even the silly lyrics, have made me a life-long Smiths fan. It's great pop music.
But to compare this to this Dylan song, Christopher, particularly to this one? I’m all for contrasts, and I think that’s where you are heading, right? You are doing a sublime to the ridiculous thing? One is a song that addresses love and obsession and God knows what from an almost Olympian perspective. The other is a maddeningly catchy tune, with lyrics awash in homoerotic longing, done from an almost adolescent perspective. To quote, McEnroe, "you cannot be serious".
While I down Kentucky bourbon
I am waiting for a call
And the moon and stars tonight
Are playing shadows on the wall
With the moon the way it is, dear
Would you answer out of spite
Or are you feeling lonely tonight
Cause I remember last time
We were out under the stars
Driving crooked down the highway
Drinking beer in roadside bars
And now and then I wonder
Why this painful memory
Can never find its way to you from me
And I can't dial the phone just now
Even though I know your number
Can't bring my broken heart to be untrue
Like you did today
You'll say goodbye the same old way
Ever since you hung up on me
I'm hung up on you
Well the house I'm ringing up from
Is a half a mile from you
But with the reception I'm getting
Might as well be Timbuktu
And behind the door of your home
Is a strange and foreign land
Where you speak a language I don't understand
And I can't dial the phone just now
Even though I know your number
Can't bring my broken heart to be untrue
Like you did today
You'll say goodbye the same old way
Ever since you hung up on me
I'm hung up on you
Now I'm going down to Jimmy's bar
Like a thousand other times
With an appetite for poison
And a suitcase full of dimes
And I'll wait there by the payphone
With one hundred other guys
With those sorry hung-up teardrops in our eyes
And I can't dial the phone just now
Even though I know your number
Can't bring my broken heart to be untrue
Like you did today
You'll say goodbye the same old way
Ever since you hung up on me
I'm hung up on you
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xf-_CXMqMk
EC does country, and these boys do country. They do country reeeel good. Great lyric and great performance.
Hey, Christopher, I did a double take when I saw your Dylan/Morrissey coupling. The Dylan song is, even by Dylan standards, one of the great Dylan songs. Of course, devious bastard that he is, he left it off a record and put it out as part of the Bootleg series.
It’s about lost love, wanting what you can’t have and not wanting what you have, about life, about growing up, about pain and loss, and it ends with Jesus. What can I say? It's Dylan. One of a kind.
Now, I’m a Smiths fan, going right back to the beginning, and i've chatted about them here in this very thread I think when Otis and I did some gentlemanly disagreeing about Mozz (is that the preferred nomenclature?), but as far as Smiths lyrics go….Oy!!
Morrissey’s lyrics have that poetic thing to them (and no one picks better song titles) but there’s a camp element to them that prevents me from taking them seriously. They’ve always had that swooning, swooshy, (not that there’s anything wrong with that) teenage angst thing to them. I think he’s in his fifties and it’s still there, bless his fey soul.
The melodies are great, though, as is the guitar work and the singing works, given the material. And all that, even the silly lyrics, have made me a life-long Smiths fan. It's great pop music.
But to compare this to this Dylan song, Christopher, particularly to this one? I’m all for contrasts, and I think that’s where you are heading, right? You are doing a sublime to the ridiculous thing? One is a song that addresses love and obsession and God knows what from an almost Olympian perspective. The other is a maddeningly catchy tune, with lyrics awash in homoerotic longing, done from an almost adolescent perspective. To quote, McEnroe, "you cannot be serious".
- alexv
- Posts: 772
- Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2003 2:32 pm
- Location: USA
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