The Songwriter Forum - songwriting reviews, tips and chat
Songwriter Forum => The Bar => Topic started by: Sterix on April 28, 2018, 03:19:58 PM
-
So we've just had a "greatest guitar solo ever" thread... I wondered what are your feelings for the best song lyrics ever? It doesn't have to necessarily be the greatest tune - but the lyrics have to make you sit up and say "wow!". I'm not going to narrow anyone down to ONE song in this though. Feel free to nominate as many as you want... I'll come to some of mine shortly.
-
No logical reason why. They just hit me hard, emotionally.
I'll write you a letter tomorrow
Tonight I can't hold a pen
Someone's got a stamp that I can borrow
I promise not to blow the address again
Lights that flash in the evening,
Through a crack in the drapes
Jesus rides beside me
He never buys any smokes
Hurry up, hurry up, ain't you had enough of this stuff
Ashtray floors, dirty clothes, and filthy jokes
See you're high and lonesome
Try and try and try
Lights that flash in the evening,
Through a hole in the drapes
I'll be home when I'm sleeping
I can't hardly wait
I can't wait. Hardly wait.
-
And I can never get through this one without choking up.
It was Christmas Eve babe
In the drunk tank
An old man said to me, won't see another one
And then he sang a song
The Rare Old Mountain Dew
I turned my face away
And dreamed about you
Got on a lucky one
Came in eighteen to one
I've got a feeling
This year's for me and you
So happy Christmas
I love you baby
I can see a better time
When all our dreams come true
They've got cars big as bars
They've got rivers of gold
But the wind goes right through you
It's no place for the old
When you first took my hand
On a cold Christmas Eve
You promised me
Broadway was waiting for me
You were handsome
You were pretty
Queen of New York City
When the band finished playing
They howled out for more
Sinatra was swinging,
All the drunks they were singing
We kissed on a corner
Then danced through the night
The boys of the NYPD choir
Were singing "Galway Bay"
And the bells were ringing out
For Christmas day
You're a bum
You're a punk
You're an old slut on junk
Lying there almost dead on a drip in that bed
You scumbag, you maggot
You cheap lousy faggot
Happy Christmas your arse
I pray God it's our last
The boys of the NYPD choir
Still singing "Galway Bay"
And the bells were ringing out
For Christmas day
I could have been someone
Well so could anyone
You took my dreams from me
When I first found you
I kept them with me babe
I put them with my own
Can't make it all alone
I've built my dreams around you
The boys of the NYPD choir
Still singing "Galway Bay"
And the bells are ringing out
For Christmas day
-
I like your twisted point of view, Mike
I like your questioning eyebrows
You've made it pretty clear what you like
It's only fair to tell you now
that I leave early in the morning
and I won't be back till next year
I see that kiss-me pucker forming
but maybe you should plug it with a beer, cause
Papa was a rodeo - Mama was a rock'n'roll band
I could play a guitar and rope a steer before I learned to stand
Home was anywhere with diesel gas - Love was a trucker's hand
Never stuck around long enough for a one night stand
Before you kiss me you should know
Papa was a rodeo
The light reflecting off the mirror ball
looks like a thousand swirling eyes
They make me think I shouldn't be here at all
You know, every minute someone dies
What are we doing in this dive bar
How can you live in a place like this
Why don't you just get into my car
and I'll take you away I'll take that kiss now, but
(boy) Papa was a rodeo...
And now it's 55 years later
We've had the romance of the century
After all these years wrestling gators
I still feel like crying when I think of what you said to me
Papa was a rodeo...
Before you kiss me you should know - Papa was a rodeo
What a coincidence, your Papa was a rodeo too
-
I don't know about deciding upon 'best lyrics ever' until I've heard every song ever, but these are my favourite lyrics (from 'Royals' by Lorde)
My friends and I—we've cracked the code.
We count our dollars on the train to the party.
And everyone who knows us knows that we're fine with this,
We didn't come from money.
But every song's like gold teeth, grey goose, trippin' in the bathroom.
Blood stains, ball gowns, trashin' the hotel room,
We don't care, we're driving Cadillacs in our dreams.
But everybody's like Cristal, Maybach, diamonds on your timepiece.
Jet planes, islands, tigers on a gold leash
We don't care, we aren't caught up in your love affair
And we'll never be royals (royals).
It don't run in our blood
That kind of luxe just ain't for us.
We crave a different kind of buzz.
Let me be your ruler (ruler),
You can call me queen Bee
And baby I'll rule (I'll rule, I'll rule, I'll rule)
Let me live that fantasy.
-
Whato Sterix, what a super idea
My ears/brain have a strange condition in that I can't hear song other than how it's made up, the lyrics always pass me by, it's all about the music and how the song is structured/mixed/produced, so for me the idea of great lyrics is kind of hard, but I know I'm not allowed 2 so here's my choice, it's one to play just before you have to say goodbye to someone you love. Has one of the best drum loop intros, distant, pulsing like the heart beats of the lovers that don't want to let go of their embrace...
Stay by me by Annie Lennox
Stay by me
And make the moment last
Please take these lips
Even if I have been kissed
A million times
And I don't care if there is no tomorrow
When I could die here in your arms
Even if the stars have made us blind
We're blind we're blind
So blind in love
Sweet darling
Don't you know that we're no different to anyone
We stumble
We falter
But we're no different that anyone
And all the winter snow has melted down
Into a pool of silver water
And we're standing in a thunder cloud
Dark as your hair
Dark as your hair
Streets of London by Ralph McTell is my second choice, I always feel so humbled when I see homeless folk, what their story was that led them there, and that I am a lucky indeed that I don't have to worry about putting my dirty hair down on a dirty wet pillow at 11pm knowing that at 4am there will be -20 deg... I wish I could eliminate all that.
But I'm not allowed 2...
Thanks Sterix
cpm
-
There's only 1 winner for me. Desolation Row by Bob Dylan. So poetic and so intelligent. The last verse with the devastating reveal is the most powerful lyric I've ever come across.
They're selling postcards of the hanging, they're painting the passports brown
The beauty parlor is filled with sailors, the circus is in town
Here comes the blind commissioner, they've got him in a trance
One hand is tied to the tight-rope walker, the other is in his pants
And the riot squad they're restless, they need somewhere to go
As Lady and I look out tonight, from Desolation Row
Cinderella, she seems so easy, "It takes one to know one, " she smiles
And puts her hands in her back pockets Bette Davis style
And in comes Romeo, he's moaning. "You Belong to Me I Believe"
And someone says, "You're in the wrong place, my friend, you'd better leave"
And the only sound that's left after the ambulances go
Is Cinderella sweeping up on Desolation Row
Now the moon is almost hidden, the stars are beginning to hide
The fortune telling lady has even taken all her things inside
All except for Cain and Abel and the hunchback of Notre Dame
Everybody is making love or else expecting rain
And the Good Samaritan, he's dressing, he's getting ready for the show
He's going to the carnival tonight on Desolation Row
Ophelia, she's 'neath the window for her I feel so afraid
On her twenty-second birthday she already is an old maid
To her, death is quite romantic she wears an iron vest
Her profession's her religion, her sin is her lifelessness
And though her eyes are fixed upon Noah's great rainbow
She spends her time peeking into Desolation Row
Einstein, disguised as Robin Hood with his memories in a trunk
Passed this way an hour ago with his friend, a jealous monk
Now he looked so immaculately frightful as he bummed a cigarette
And he when off sniffing drainpipes and reciting the alphabet
You would not think to look at him, but he was famous long ago
For playing the electric violin on Desolation Row
Dr. Filth, he keeps his world inside of a leather cup
But all his sexless patients, they're trying to blow it up
Now his nurse, some local loser, she's in charge of the cyanide hole
And she also keeps the cards that read, "Have Mercy on His Soul"
They all play on the penny whistles, you can hear them blow
If you lean your head out far enough from Desolation Row
Across the street they've nailed the curtains, they're getting ready for the feast
The Phantom of the Opera in a perfect image of a priest
They are spoon feeding Casanova to get him to feel more assured
Then they'll kill him with self-confidence after poisoning him with words
And the Phantom's shouting to skinny girls, "Get outta here if you don't know"
Casanova is just being punished for going to Desolation Row"
At midnight all the agents and the superhuman crew
Come out and round up everyone that knows more than they do
Then they bring them to the factory where the heart-attack machine
Is strapped across their shoulders and then the kerosene
Is brought down from the castles by insurance men who go
Check to see that nobody is escaping to Desolation Row
Praise be to Nero's Neptune, the Titanic sails at dawn
Everybody's shouting, "Which side are you on?!"
And Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot fighting in the captain's tower
While calypso singers laugh at them and fishermen hold flowers
Between the windows of the sea where lovely mermaids flow
And nobody has to think too much about Desolation Row
Yes, I received your letter yesterday, about the time the doorknob broke
When you asked me how I was doing, was that some kind of joke
All these people that you mention, yes, I know them, they're quite lame
I had to rearrange their faces and give them all another name
Right now, I can't read too good, don't send me no more letters no
Not unless you mail them from Desolation Row
Songwriters: Bob Dylan
-
Bob Dylan Lyrics
"Where Are You Tonight (Journey Through Dark Heat)"
There's a long distance train rolling through the rain, tears on the letter I write
There's a woman I long to touch and I miss her so much but she's drifting
like a satelite
There's a neon light ablaze in the green smoky haze, and laughter down on
Elizabeth Street
And a lonesome bell tone in that valley of stone where she bathed
in a stream of pure heat
Her father would emphasize you got to be more than street-wise but he practiced
what he preached from the heart
A full-blooded Cherokee, he predicted it to me the time and the place it
would start.
There's a babe in the arms of a woman in a rage
And a longtime golden-haired stripper onstage
And she winds back the clock and she turns back the page
Of a book that nobody write
Oh, where are you tonight ?
The truth was obscure, too profound and too pure, to live it you have to explode
In the last hour of need, we entirely agreed, sacrifice was the code of the road
I left town at dawn, with Marcel and St. John, strong men betitled by doubt
I couldn't tell her what my private thoughts were but she had some way of finding
them out
He took dead-center aim but he missed just the same, she was waiting putting
flowers on the shelf
She could feel my despair as I climbed up her hair and discovered her invisible self.
There's a lion in the road, there's a demon escaped
There's a million dreams gone, there's a landscape being raped
As her beauty fades and I watch her undrape
I won't but then again, maybe I might
Oh, if I could just find you tonight.
I fought with ny twin, that enemy within, 'til both of us fell by the way
Horseplay and disease is killing me by degrees while the law looks the other way
Your partners in crime hit me up for nickels and dimes, the man you were loving
couldn't never get clean
It felt outa place, my foot in his face, but he should-a stayed where his money
was green
I bit into the root of forbidden fruit with the juice running down my leg
Then I dealt with your boss, who'd never known about loss and who always was too
proud to beg
There's a white diamond gloom on the dark side of this room and a pathway that
leads up to the stars
If you don't believe there's a price for this sweet paradise, just remind me to show
you the scars.
There's a new day at dawn and I've finally arrived
If I'm there in the morning, baby, you'll know I've survived
I can't believe it, I can't believe I'm alive
But without you it just doesn't seem right
Oh, where are you tonight ?
-
Phish Lyrics
"Weigh"
I'd like to cut your head off so I could weigh it, what do ya say?
Five pounds, six, pounds, seven pounds
I'd like to go to your house and gather all your razors and pick all the
little prickly hairs so I can weigh them, what do ya say?
Five pounds, six pounds, seven pounds
I'd like to gather all your friends and squish them all into a small
swimming pool so I can weigh them, what do ya say?
Five pounds, six pounds, seven pounds
Why weigh on a sunny day?
So much to do so why, why weigh?
On a sunny day, why wei-igh-hey?
Why weigh, why weigh?
I'd like to hear my options, so I can weigh them, what do ya say?
Five pounds, six pounds, seven pounds
Why weigh on a sunny day?
So much to do, so why, why weigh?
On a sunny day, why wei-gh-hey?
Why
Oh Why [x11]
Why weigh?
-
This is the best song ever written, for real:
Grateful Dead
Lyrics Written by Robert Hunter
Lady with a Fan
Let my inspiration flow
In token rhyme suggesting rhythm
That will not forsake me
Till my tale is told and done
While the firelight's aglow
Strange shadows from the flames will grow
'till things we've never seen
Will seem familiar
Shadows of a sailor forming
Winds both foul and fair all swarm
Down in Carlisle, he loved a lady
Many years ago
Here beside him stands a man
A soldier from the looks of him
Who came through many fights
But lost at love
While the storyteller speaks
A door within the fire creaks
Suddenly flies open
And a girl is standing there
Eyes alight with glowing hair
All that fancy paints as fair
She takes her fan and throws it
In the lion's den
"Which of you to gain me, tell
Will risk uncertain pains of hell?
I will not forgive you
If you will not take the chance"
The sailor gave at least a try
The soldier being much too wise
Strategy was his strength
And not disaster
The sailor coming out again
The lady fairly leapt at him
That's how it stands today
You decide if he was wise
The storyteller makes no choice
Soon you will not hear his voice
His job is to shed light
And not to master
Since the end is never told
We pay the teller off in gold
In hopes he will come back
But he cannot be bought or sold
Terrapin Station
Inspiration move me brightly
Light the song with sense and color
Hold away despair
More than this I will not ask
Faced with mysteries dark and vast
Statements just seem vain at last
Some rise, some fall, some climb
To get to Terrapin
Counting stars by candlelight
All are dim but one is bright:
The spiral light of Venus
Rising first and shining best
(Oh)
From the northwest corner
Of a brand-new crescent moon
Crickets and cicadas sing
A rare and different tune
Terrapin Station
In the shadow of the moon
Terrapin Station
And I know we'll be there soon
Terrapin - I can't figure out
Terrapin - if it's the end or beginning
Terrapin - but the train's put it's brakes on
And the whistle is screaming: Terrapin
At a Siding
While you were gone
These faces filled with darkness
The obvious was hidden
With nothing to believe in
The compass always points to Terrapin
Sullen wings of fortune beat like rain
You're back in Terrapin for good or ill again
For good or ill again
-
Cream Lyrics
"SWLABR(She Walks Like a Bearded Rainbow)"
Coming to me in the morning, leaving me at night.
Coming to me in the morning, leaving me alone.
You've got that rainbow feel,
But the rainbow has a beard.
Running to me a-cryin', when he throws you out.
Running to me a-cryin', on your own again.
You've got that pure feel,
Such good responses,
But the picture has a mustache.
You're comin' to me with that soulful look on your face.
Coming lookin' like you've never ever done one wrong thing.
You're comin' to me with that soulful look on your face.
You're comin' lookin' like you've never ever done one wrong thing.
So many fantastic colours, I feel in a wonderland.
Many fantastic colours, makes me feel so good.
You've got that pure feel,
Such good responses,
Got that rainbow feel,
But the rainbow has a beard.
-
The Velvet Underground
Lisa Says
1969 live version
--------------------------------------------
Lisa says on a night like this,
It'll be so nice if you'd give me a kiss.
And lisa says for just one little smile,
I'll sit next to you for a little while.
Lisa says, lisa says, lisa says, lisa says
Lisa says you must be some kind of fool,
The way you treat everybody so cruel.
And lisa says you must be a funny kind of guy,
The way you're always staring at the sky.
Lisa says, lisa says, lisa says, lisa says
If you're lookin for a good-time charlie,
Well that's not really what I am.
You know a good-time charlie's wastin time.
Cause the good-time charlie,
That's not baby where I am.
You know that good times just seem to pass me by.
Lisa says on a night like this,
It'll be so nice if you'd give me a kiss.
And lisa says for just one little smile,
I'll sit next to you for a little while.
Lisa says, lisa says, lisa says, lisa says
Why am I so shy, why am I so shy.
Good times you know they just seem to pass me by.
Why am I so shy.
First time I saw you I was talkin to myself
I said wow she's got such pretty pretty eyes
Such pretty eyes...
Now that you are next to me I just get so upset
Oh will you tell me why am I so shy
Why am I so shy, why am I so shy.
Good times you know they just seem to pass me by.
Why am I so shy.
Lisa says on a night like this,
It'll be so nice if you'd give me a kiss.
And Lisa says if you stick your tongue in my ear, the scene around here will become very clear.
Lisa says you must be some kind of fool,
The way you treat everybody so cruel.
Lisa says, lisa says, lisa says, lisa says
Lisa Says lyrics © SONY ATV MUSIC PUB LLC
-
Smashing Pumpkins Lyrics
"1979"
Shakedown 1979
Cool kids never have the time
On a live wire right up off the street
You and I should meet
Junebug skipping like a stone
With the headlights pointed at the dawn
We were sure we'd never see an end to it all
And I don't even care to shake these zipper blues
And we don't know just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below
Double-cross the vacant and the bored
They're not sure just what we have in store
Morphine city slipping dues down to see
That we don't even care as restless as we are
We feel the pull in the land of a thousand guilts
And poured cement, lamented and assured
To the lights and towns below
Faster than the speed of sound
Faster than we thought we'd go
Beneath the sound of hope
Justine never knew the rules,
Hung down with the freaks and ghouls
No apologies ever need be made
I know you better than you fake it to see
That we don't even care to shake these zipper blues
And we don't know just where our bones will rest
To dust I guess
Forgotten and absorbed into the earth below
The street heats the urgency of now
As you see there's no one around
[ Invalid YouTube link ]
-
Warren Zevon - Party For The Rest Of The Night
Why stop now? Let's party the rest of the night!
Seven o'clock, Eight o'clock, Nine o'clock. Ten
You wanna go home? Why? Honey, When?
We may never get this chance again!
Let's party for the rest of the night!
Yeah, Yeah! Oh, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
Yeah, Yeah! Oh, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
Why leave now? Let's party for the rest of the night!
Eleven o'clock, Twelve o'clock, One o'clock, Two
Me tired? Well boo-hoo!
I'm starting to fall in love with you
Let's party for the rest of the night!
Yeah, Yeah! Oh, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
Yeah, Yeah! Oh. Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
Why slow down? Let's party for the rest of the night!
Three o'clock, Four o'clock, Five o'clock, Six
Let's throw it all into the mix and open up our bag of tricks
And party for the rest of the night!
Oh, Yeah! Yeah, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
Oh, Yeah! Yeah, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
We never had an issue! We never had a fight!
Someone must be doing something right!
Yeah, Yeah! Oh, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
Yeah, Yeah! Oh, Yeah! Let's party for the rest of the night!
-
Warren Zevon Lyrics
"Numb As A Statue"
("let's do another bad one because I love it when the blood drains from Dave's face") I'm numb as a statue
I may have to beg, borrow or steal
Some feelings from you
So I can have some feelings too
I'm pale as a ghost
You know what I love about you
That's what I need the most
I'm gonna beg, borrow or steal
Some feelings from you
I'm gonna beg, borrow or steal
So I can have some feelings too
I don't care if it's superficial
You don't have to dig down deep
Just bring enough for the ritual
Get here before I fall asleep
Ain't nothing special
When the present meets the past
I've always taken care of business
I've paid my first and last
&index=4
-
Neil Young Lyrics
"Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere"
I think I'd like to go
back home
And take it easy
There's a woman that
I'd like to get to know
Living there
Everybody seems to wonder
What it's like down here
I gotta get away
from this day-to-day
running around,
Everybody knows
this is nowhere.
Everybody, everybody knows
Everybody knows.
Every time I think about
back home
It's cool and breezy
I wish that I could be there
right now
Just passing time.
Everybody seems to wonder
What it's like down here
I gotta get away
from this day-to-day
running around,
Everybody knows
this is nowhere.
Everybody, everybody knows
Everybody knows.
-
Alice Cooper Lyrics
"Big Apple Dreamin' (Hippo)"
We're so young and pretty
We're so young and clean
So many things
That we have never seen
...from Ohio (let's move from Ohio)
Sell this damn old store
Big Apple dreamin
On a wooden floor
*
Skyscrapers
And subways and stations
Starin' up
At the United Nations
**
New York is waiting
For you and me, baby
Waiting to swallow us down
New York, we're coming
To see what you're made of
Are you as great as you sound
Heard about them massages
And all those dirty shows
Well, I read somewhere
Some places never close
While we waste time on yokels
Comin' through the door
Big Apple dreamin'
On a wooden floor
(* **)
***
New York is waiting
For you and me, baby
Waiting to swallow us down
New York, we're coming
To see what you're made of
Are you as tough as you sound
(***)
Yeah, New York is waitin', baby
Waitin' to swallow us down
New York, we're coming
To see what you're made of
Can't be as tough as you sound
(**)
Oh, New York
Oh New York, we're comin'
Oh we're comin'
To see what you're made of
Oh can't be as good as you sound
Me and my baby, we're comin'
Oh we're comin'
They're waitin' for you and me, baby...
-
Alice Cooper Lyrics
"I'm Eighteen"
Lines form on my face and hands
Lines form from the ups and downs
I'm in the middle without any plans
I'm a boy and I'm a man
I'm eighteen and I don't know what I want
Eighteen I just don't know what I want
Eighteen I gotta get away
I gotta get out of this place
I'll go runnin' in outer space oh yeah
I got a baby's brain and an old man's heart took eighteen years to get this far
Don't always know what I'm talkin' about feels like I'm livin' in the middle of doubt
'Cause I'm eighteen I get confused every day eighteen I just don't know what to say
Eighteen I gotta get away
Whoa lines form on my face and my hands
Lines form on the left and right
I'm in the middle the middle of life
I'm a boy and I'm a man
I'm eighteen and I like it
Yes I like it
Oh I like it love it like it love it
Eighteen eighteen eighteen eighteen and I like it
-
Alice Cooper Lyrics
"Be My Lover"
She struts into the room well I don't know her but with a magnifying glance I just sort of looked her over hmm
We had a drink or two well maybe three and then suddenly she starts telling me her life story
She says baby if you wanna be my lover you better take me home
'cause it's a long long way to paradise and I'm still on my own
Told her that I came from Detroit city and I played guitar in a long haired rock and roll band
She asked me why the singer's name was Alice I said listen baby you really wouldn't understand
And I said baby if you wanna be my lover you better take me home
'cause it's a long long way to paradise and I'm still on my own on my own
Oh baby if you wanna be my lover you better take me home
'cause it's a long long way to paradise and I'm still on my own.
-
Alice Cooper Lyrics
"Under My Wheels"
The telephone is ringing you got me on the run I'm driving in my car now anticipating fun
I'm driving right up to you babe I guess that you couldn't see yeah yeah
But you were under my wheels why don't you let me be
'cause when you call me on the telephone saying take me to the show
And then I say honey I just can't go old lady's sick and I can't leave her home
The telephone is ringing you got me on the run I'm driving in my car now
I got you under my wheels I got you under my wheels I got you under my wheels
Got you under my wheels yeah yeah I got you under my wheels
Aah the telephone is ringing you got me on the run I'm driving in my car now anticipating fun
I'm driving right up to you babe I guess that you couldn't see yeah yeah
But you were under my wheels why don't you let me be
Yeah yeah got you under my wheels yeah yeah I got you under my wheels
I got you under my wheels got you got you got you got you
Under my wheels got you under my wheels wheels wheels wheels
-
The Who Lyrics
"Blue, Red And Grey"
Some people seem so obsessed with the morning
Get up early just to watch the sun rise
Some people like it more when there's fire in the sky
Worship the sun when it's high
Some people go for those sultry evenings
Sipping cocktails in the blue, red and grey
But I like every minute of the day
I like every second, so long as you are on my mind
Every moment has its special charm
It's all right when you're around, rain or shine
I know a crowd who only live after midnight
Their faces always seem so pale
And then there's friends of mine who must have sunlight
They say a suntan never fails
I know a man who works the night shift
He's lucky to get a job and some pay
And I like every minute of the day
I dig every second
I can laugh in the snow and rain
I get a buzz from being cold and wet
The pleasure seems to balance out the pain
And so you see that I'm completely crazy
I even shun the south of France
The people on the hill, they say I'm lazy
But when they sleep, I sing and dance
Some people have to have the sultry evenings
Cocktails in the blue, red and grey
But I like every minute of the day
I like every minute of the day
-
The Who Lyrics
"How Many Friends"
I'm feelin' so good right now
There's a handsome boy tells me how I changed his past
He buys me a brandy
But could it be he's really just after my ass?
He likes the clothes I wear
He says he likes a man who's dressed in season
But no-one else ever stares, he's being so kind
What's the reason?
How many friends have I really got?
You can count 'em on one hand
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?
Suddenly it's the silver screen
And a face so beautiful that I have to cry out
Everybody hears me
But I look like a fool now
With a cry and I shy out
She knows all of my friends
But it's nice to find a woman who's keen on living
Now I think I've reached the end
I wonder in the dead of night - how do I rate?
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?
It's all like a dream you know
When you're still up early in the morning
And you all sit together to watch the sun come through
But things don't look so good
When you could use a bit of warning
Then you know that no-one will ever speak the truth about you
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?
When I first signed a contract
It was more than a handshake then
I know it still is
But there's a plain fact
We talk so much shit behind each other's backs
I get the willies
People know nothing about their own soft gut
So how come they can sum us up
Without suffering all the hype we've known
How come they bum us up
How many friends have I really got?
Well, you can count 'em on one hand
How many friends have I really got?
How many friends have I really got?
That love me, that want me, that'll take me as I am?
-
The Who Lyrics
"However Much I Booze"
I see myself on T.V., I'm a faker, a paper clown
It's clear to all my friends that I habitually lie; I just bring them down
I claim proneness to exaggeration
But the truth lies in my frustration
The children of the night, they all pass me by
Have to drench myself in brandy
In sleep I'll hide
But however much I booze
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
I don't care what you say, boy
There ain't no way out
I lose so many nights of sleep worrying about my responsibilities
Are the problems that screw me up really down to him or me
My ego will just confuse me
Some day it's going to up and use me
Dish me out another tailor-made compliment
Tell me about some destiny I can't prevent
And however much I squirm
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
I don't care what you say, boy
There ain't no way out
Won't somebody tell me how to get out of this place?!
Then the night comes down like a cell door closing
Suddenly I realize that I'm right now, I'm on the scene
While sitting here all alone with a bottle and my head a-floating
Far away from the phone and the conscience going on at me
And on at me, and I don't care what you say
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
Now the walls are all clawed and scratched
Like by some soul insane
In the morning I humbly detach myself
I take no blame
I just can't face my failure
I'm nothing but a well fucked sailor
You at home can easily decide what's right
By glancing very briefly at the songs I write
But it don't help me that you know
This ain't no way out
Won't somebody tell me?
I don't care what you say, boy
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
Give me the key, lock it away
There ain't
There ain't
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
There ain't no way out
-
"I Think I Love You"
(originally by The Partridge Family)
I'm sleeping
right in the middle of a good dream
when all at once i wake up
from somethign that keeps knocking at my brain
before i go insane
i hold my pillow to my head
and spring up in my bed
screaming out the words i dread
I think I love you!
this morning i woke up with this feeling
i didnt kno how to deal with
and so i just decided to myself
id hide it to myself
and never talk about it
and did not go and shout
when you walked into the room
i think i love you
i think i love you
so what am i so afraid of
im afraid that im not sure of
a love that theres no cure for
i think i love you
is that what life is made of
though it worries me to say
that i've never felt this way
believe me
u really dont have to worry
i only wanna make you happy
and if u say hey go away i will
but i think better still
i better stare out and love you
do u think i have a case
let me ask you to your face
i think i love you
i think i love you
so what am i so afraid of
im afraid that im not sure of
a love that theres no cure for
i think i love you
is that what life is made of
though it worries me to say
that i've never felt this way
i dont kno what im up agaisnt
i dont kno what its all about
i got so much to think about
i think i love
so what am i so afraid of
im afraid that im not sure of
a love that theres no cure for
do you think u love me?
i think i love you
i think i love you
i think i love you
-
Joni Mitchell Lyrics
"Big Yellow Taxi"
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
With a pink hotel, a boutique
And a swinging hot SPOT
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
They took all the trees
And put them in a tree museum
Then they charged the people
A dollar and a half just to see 'em
Don't it always seem to go,
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
Hey, farmer, farmer,
Put away that DDT now
Give me spots on my apples
But leave me the birds and the bees
Please!
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til its gone?
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
Late last night I heard the screen door slam
And a big yellow taxi took away my old man
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
I said
Don't it always seem to go
That you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
They paved paradise
Put up a parking lot
-
Deana Carter Lyrics
"Brand New Key"
I rode my bicycle past your window last night
I rollerskated to your door at daylight
It almost seems that you're avoiding me
I'm okay alone but you've got something I need
Well, I've gotta brand new pair of rollerskates
You got a brand new key
I think that we should get together
And try them out ya see
I've been lookin' around a while
You got somethin' for me
Oh, I've gotta brand new pair of rollerskates
You got a brand new key
I ride my bike, I rollerskate, don't drive no car
Don't go too fast, but I go pretty far
For somebody who don't drive I've been all around the world
Some people say I've done alright for a girl
I asked your mother if you were at home
She said yes, but you weren't alone
Oh sometimes I think that you're avoiding me
I'm okay alone but you got something I need
Well, I've gotta brand new pair of rollerskates
You got a brand new key
I think that we should get together
And try them out ya see
Oh, I've gotta brand new pair of rollerskates
You got a brand new key
Oh, I've gotta brand new pair of rollerskates
You got a brand new key
-
The Rolling Stones Lyrics
"Something Happened To Me Yesterday"
Something happened to me yesterday
Something, I can't speak of right away
Something happened to me, something, oh, so groovy
Something happened to me yesterday
He don't know if it's right or wrong
Maybe he should tell someone
He's not sure just what it was
Or if it's against the law, something
Something very strange I hear you say
You're talking in a most peculiar way
But something really threw me, something, oh, so groovy
Something happened to me yesterday
(Yesterday)
He don't know just where it's gone
He don't really care at all
No one's sure just what it was
Or the meaning and the cause, something
What kinda joint is this?
Take your partners
He don't know if it's right or wrong
Maybe he should tell someone
He's not sure just what it was
Or if it's against the law, something
Someone says there's something more to pay
For sins that you committed yesterday
It's really rather drippy but something, oh, so trippy
Something happened to me yesterday
Right, he don't know just where it's gone
He don't really care at all
No one's sure just what it was
Or the meaning and the cause, something
Someone's singing loud across the bay
Sittin' on a mat about to pray
Isn't half as looney as something, oh, so groovy
Something happened to me yesterday
Right, he don't know if it's right or wrong
Maybe he should tell someone
He's not sure just what it was
Or if it's against the law, something
Well, thank you very much and now I think it's time for us all to go
So from all of us to all of you not forgetting the boys in the band
And our producer, Reg Thorpe, we'd like to say "God Bless"
So, if you're out tonight, don't forget, if you're on your bike, wear white
Amen
-
Rolling Stones Lyrics
"She's A Rainbow"
She comes in colors ev'rywhere;
She combs her hair
She's like a rainbow
Coming, colors in the air
Oh, everywhere
She comes in colors
She comes in colors ev'rywhere;
She combs her hair
She's like a rainbow
Coming, colors in the air
Oh, everywhere
She comes in colors
Have you seen her dressed in blue?
See the sky in front of you
And her face is like a sail
Speck of white so fair and pale
Have you seen a lady fairer?
She comes in colors ev'rywhere;
She combs her hair
She's like a rainbow
Coming, colors in the air
Oh, everywhere
She comes in colors
Have you seen her all in gold?
Like a queen in days of old
She shoots her colors all around
Like a sunset going down
Have you seen a lady fairer?
She comes in colors ev'rywhere;
She combs her hair
She's like a rainbow
Coming, colors in the air
Oh, everywhere
She comes in colors
She's like a rainbow
Coming, colors in the air
Oh, everywhere
She comes in colors
-
T. Rex Lyrics
"Jeepster"
You're so sweet
You're so fine
I want you all and everything
Just to be mine
'Cos you're my baby
'Cos you're my love
Girl I'm just a Jeepster
For you love
You slide so good
With bones so fair
You've got the universe
Reclining in your hair
Just like a car
You're pleasing to behold
I'll call you Jaguar
If I may be so bold
The wild winds blow
Upon your frozen cheeks
The way you flip your hip
It always makes me weak
Your motivation
Is so sweet
Your vibrations
Are burning up my feet
Girl I'm just a jeepster
For your love
Girl I'm just a vampire
For your love
I'm gonna suck you.
-
Chuck Berry Lyrics
"You Never Can Tell"
It was a teenage wedding, and the old folks wished them well
You could see that Pierre did truly love the mademoiselle
And now the young monsieur and madame have rung the chapel bell
"C'est la vie," say the old folks, "it goes to show you never can tell"
They furnished off an apartment with a 2-room Roebuck sale
The coolerator was crammed with TV dinners and ginger ale,
But when Pierre found work, the little money comin' worked out well
"C'est la vie," say the old folks, "it goes to show you never can tell"
They had a hi-fi phono, boy, did they let it blast
700 little records, all rock, rhythm and jazz
But when the sun went down, the rapid tempo of the music fell
"C'est la vie," say the old folks, "it goes to show you never can tell"
They bought a souped-up jitney, was a cherry red '53
And drove it down to Orleans to celebrate their anniversary
It was there where Pierre was wedded to the lovely mademoiselle
"C'est la vie," say the old folks, "it goes to show you never can tell"
They had a teenage wedding, and the old folks wished them well
You could see that Pierre did truly love the mademoiselle
And now the young monsieur and madame have rung the chapel bell
"C'est la vie," say the old folks, "it goes to show you never can tell"
-
Iggy Pop Lyrics
"Real Wild Child"
Well I'm just outta school
Like I'm real real cool
Gotta dance like a fool
Got the message that I gotta be
A wild one
Ooh yeah I'm a wild one
Gotta break it loose
Gonna keep 'em movin' wild
Gonna keep a swingin' baby
I'm a real wild child
Well, I'm a real wild one
An' I like a wild fun
In a world gone crazy
Everything seems hazy
I'm a wild one
Ooh yeah I'm a wild one
Gotta break it loose
Gonna keep 'em movin' wild
Gonna keep a swingin' baby
I'm a real wild child
Well I'm just outta school
Like I'm real real cool
Gotta dance like a fool
Got the message that I gotta be
A wild one
Ooh yeah I'm a wild one
Gotta break it loose
Gonna keep 'em movin' wild
Gonna keep a swingin' baby
I'm a real wild child
I'm a wild one
Ooh yeah
I'm a wild one
Oh yeah
I'm a wild one
Oh baby
I'm a wild one
Gotta break it loose
Gonna keep 'em movin' wild
Gonna keep a swingin' baby
I'm a real wild child
-
Black Sabbath Lyrics
"Snowblind"
What you get and what you see
Things that don't come easily
Feeling happy in my pain
Icicles within my brain
(cocaine)
Something blowing in my head
Winds of ice that soon will spread
Down to freeze my very soul
Makes me happy, makes me cold
My eyes are blind but I can see
The snowflakes glisten on the tree
The sun no longer sets me free
I feel the snowflakes freezing me
Let the winter sunshine on
Let me feel the frost of dawn
Build my dreams on flakes of snow
Soon I’ll feel the chilling glow
Don't you think I know what I'm doing
Don't tell me that it's doing me wrong
You're the one that's really the loser
This is where I feel I belong
Kiss the world with winter flowers
Turn my days to frozen hours
Lying snowblind in the sun
Will my ice age ever come?
-
Black Sabbath Lyrics
"N.I.B./Basically"
Some people say my love cannot be true
please believe me, my love, and I'll show you
I will give you those things you thought unreal
The sun, the moon, the stars all bear my seal
Oh yeah!
Follow me now and you will not regret
leaving the life you led before we met
You are the first to have this love of mine
forever with me 'till the end of time
Your love for me has just got to be real
before you know the way I'm going to feel
I'm going to feel
I'm going to feel
Oh yeah!
Now I have you with me, under my power
Our love grows stronger now with every hour
Look into my eyes, you will see who I am
my name is Lucifer, please take my hand
Oh yeah!
Follow me now and you will not regret
leaving the life you led before we met
You are the first to have this love of mine
forever with me 'till the end of time
Your love for me has just got to be real
before you know the way I'm going to feel
I'm going to feel
I'm going to feel
Oh yeah!
Now I have you with me, under my power
Our love grows stronger now with every hour
Look into my eyes, you will see who I am
my name is Lucifer, please take my hand
-
Mudcrutch Lyrics
"Six Days On The Road"
Well, I pulled out of Pittsburgh
I'm rollin' down the Eastern Seaboard
I've got my diesel wound up
She's running like she never did before
There's a speed zone ahead, all right
I don't see a cop in sight
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
I've got ten forward gears
And a Georgiea overdrive
I'm taking little white pills
My eyes are open wide
Well I just passed a 'Jimmy' and a 'White
I've been passin' everything in sight
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
Well it seems like a month
Since I kissed my baby good-bye
Could have a lot of women
But I'm not like some other guys
I could find one to hold me tight
But I could never believe it's right
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
Well the I.C.C. is checking down the line
I'm a little overweight and my log's three days behind
But nothing bothers me tonight
I can dodge them scales all right
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
Well my rig's a little old
That don't mean she's slow
And the smoke's rolling black as coal
Well my hometown's coming in sight
If you think I'm happy you're right
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
Six days on the road and I'm gonna see my baby tonight
-
The Honeydrippers Lyrics
"Sea Of Love"
Do you remember when we met?
That's the day I knew you were my pet
I wanna tell you how much I love you
Come with me, my love, to the sea
The sea of love
I wanna tell you just how much I love you
Come with me to the sea of love
Do you remember when we met?
Oh, that's the day I knew you were my pet
I wanna tell you, oh, how much I love you
Come with me to the sea of love
Come with me, my love, to the sea
The sea of love
I wanna tell you just how much I love you
I wanna tell you, oh, how much I love you
-
Lynn Anderson
"(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden"
I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden
Along with the sunshine there's gotta be a little rain sometime
When you take you gotta give so live and let live and let go oh oh oh oh
I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden
I could promise you things like big diamond rings
But you don't find roses growin' on stalks of clover
So you better think it over
Well, if sweet talking you could make it come true
I would give you the world right now on a silver platter
But what would it matter
So smile for a while and let's be jolly love shouldn't be so melancholy
Come along and share the good times while we can
I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden
Along with the sunshine there's gotta be a little rain sometime
I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden
I could sing you a tune and promise you the moon
But if that's what it takes to hold you I'd just as soon let you go
But there's one thing I want you to know
You'd better look before you leap still waters run deep
And there won't always be someone there to pull you out
And you know what I'm talking about
So smile for a while and let's be jolly love shouldn't be so melancholy
Come along and share the good times while we can
I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden
Along with the sunshine there's gotta be a little rain sometime.....
I beg your pardon I never promised you a rose garden
Along with the sunshine there's gotta be a little rain sometime.....
-
Jeannie C. Riley Lyrics
"Harper Valley P.T.A."
I want to tell you all a story 'bout a Harper Valley widowed wife
Who had a teenage daughter who attended Harper Valley Junior High
Well her daughter came home one afternoon and didn't even stop to play
She said, "Mom, I got a note here from the Harper Valley P.T.A."
The note said, "Mrs. Johnson, you're wearing your dresses way too high
It's reported you've been drinking and a-runnin' 'round with men and going wild
And we don't believe you ought to be bringing up your little girl this way"
It was signed by the secretary, Harper Valley P.T.A.
Well, it happened that the P.T.A. was gonna meet that very afternoon
They were sure surprised when Mrs. Johnson wore her mini-skirt into the room
And as she walked up to the blackboard, I still recall the words she had to say
She said, "I'd like to address this meeting of the Harper Valley P.T.A."
Well, there's Bobby Taylor sittin' there and seven times he's asked me for a date
Mrs. Taylor sure seems to use a lot of ice whenever he's away
And Mr. Baker, can you tell us why your secretary had to leave this town?
And shouldn't widow Jones be told to keep her window shades all pulled completely down?
Well, Mr. Harper couldn't be here 'cause he stayed too long at Kelly's Bar again
And if you smell Shirley Thompson's breath, you'll find she's had a little nip of gin
Then you have the nerve to tell me you think that as a mother I'm not fit
Well, this is just a little Peyton Place and you're all Harper Valley hypocrites
No I wouldn't put you on because it really did, it happened just this way
The day my Mama socked it to the Harper Valley P.T.A.
The day my Mama socked it to the Harper Valley P.T.A.
-
Ricky Nelson Lyrics
"Garden Party"
I went to a garden party
To reminisce with my old friends
A chance to share old memories
And play our songs again
When I got to the garden party
They all knew my name
No one recognized me
I didn't look the same
But it's all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can't please everyone
So ya got to please yourself
People came from miles around
Everyone was there
Yoko brought her walrus
There was magic in the air
'N' over in the corner
Much to my surprise
Mr Hughes hid in Dylan's shoes
Wearing his disguise
But it's all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can't please everyone
So ya got to please yourself
Lott-in-dah-dah
lot-in-dah-dah-dah
Played them all the old songs
Thought that's why they came
No one heard the music
We didn't look the same
I said hello to "Mary Lou"
She belongs to me
When I sang a song about a honky-tonk
It was time to leave
But it's all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can't please everyone
So ya got to please yourself
Lot-dah-dah (lot-dah-dah-dah)
Lot-in-dah-dah-dah
Someone opened up a closet door
And out stepped Johnny B Goode
Playing guitar
Like a-ringin' a bell
And lookin' like he should
If you gotta play at garden parties
I wish you a lotta luck
But if memories were all I sang
I rather drive a truck
But it's all right now
I learned my lesson well
You see, ya can't please everyone
So ya got to please yourself
Lot-dah-dah (lot-dah-dah-dah)
Lot-in-dah-dah-dah
'N' it's all right now
Learned my lesson well
You see, ya can't please everyone
So you got to please yourself
-
KISS Lyrics
"Hotter Than Hell"
He calls me the devil
I make him wanna sin
Every time I knock, he can't help but let me in
Must be homesick for the real
I'm the realest it gets
You probably still adore me
With my hands around your neck
Can you feel the warmth? Yeah
As my kiss goes down you like some sweet alcohol
Where I'm coming from, yeah
It's the darker side of me that makes you feel so numb
Cause we're hot like hell
Does it burn when I'm not there?
When you're by yourself
Am I the answer to your prayers
I'm giving you that pleasure heaven
And I'll give it to you
Hotter than hell
Hotter than hell
You're my manna from heaven
We all gotta get fed
Can let me know I'm wanted
Can let me in your head
I'm not here to make you kneel
But it's praise that I'll get
You ain't gonna walk free boy
Not finished with you yet, no
Can you feel the warmth? Yeah
As my kiss goes down you like some sweet alcohol
Where I'm coming from, yeah
It's the darker side of me that makes you feel so numb
Cause we're hot like hell
Does it burn when I'm not there?
When you're by yourself
Am I the answer to your prayers
I'm giving you the pleasure heaven
And I'll give it to you
Hotter than hell
Hotter than hell
When we go down right there
You make me feel right there
When you lay me down right there
We just make it right there
Cause you're looking so right there
Baby you should touch me right there
You can take me right there
We can make it
Cause we're hot like hell
Does it burn when I'm not there?
When you're by yourself
Am I the answer to your prayers
I'm giving you that pleasure heaven
And I'll give it to you
Hotter than hell
Hotter than hell
Hotter than hell
Hotter than hell
And I'll give it to you
Hotter than hell
-
Kiss Lyrics
"Strutter"
I know a thing or two about her
I know she'll only make you cry
She'll let you walk the street beside her
But when she wants she'll pass you by
Everybody says she's lookin' good
And the lady knows it's understood
Strutter
She wears her satins like a lady
She gets her way just like a child
You take her home and she says "Maybe, baby"
She takes you down and drives you wild
Everybody says she's lookin' good
And the lady knows it's understood
Strutter
I know a thing or two about her
I know she'll only make you cry
She'll let you walk the street beside her
But when she wants, she'll pass you by
Everybody says she's lookin' good
And the lady knows it's understood
Strutter
Strutter
Strutter
-
Whoah Tex! You might wanna reign those in pardner!
I think you may have just broken the record for the number of consecutive posts by one person in such a short time! Unfortunately, I'm not sure many (if any) people will actually read all of those (if any!). I know I've just skimmed through and pretty much read none of them. I just don't have that kind of time. Better to post one or two - with maybe a few words as to why they mean so much to you or why they're so good - and give people time to read them and maybe even respond to them.
I'm going to start my own offerings with a classic from Simon and Garfunkel - The Sound of Silence. I like lyrics that make you think about the story behind them.
Hello darkness, my old friend
I've come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence
In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone
'Neath the halo of a streetlamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence
And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
No one dare
Disturb the sound of silence
"Fools" said I, "You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells of silence
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said "The words of the prophets
Are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls
And whispered in the sounds of silence"
-
Gordon Lightfoot -- Too Late for Prayin.
Hoyt Axton (Performed by Steppenwolf) -- Snowblind Friend.
Simon and Garfunkel -- Sounds of Silence
The Raspberries -- Starting Over
Eric Clapton --- Let It Flow
Elton John - Empty garden