What do you think are some of the best lyrics ever?

(Sorry Erin. There have been a few good lyrics threads on ILM if you fancy searching for them. I think the general consensus is that Nelly's "Hot In Herre" has ended the Lyric Age.)

Lyricists that you should not try and be like even if you think they are good: Morrissey. Stephin Merritt. Bob Dylan doing "typical Dylan". Probably Springsteen. Probably Cocker. Try lyricists whose 'voice' is a little more elusive - Robert Forster, Jimmy Webb, Kate Bush, maybe Hal David. I'm assuming in all this that you're writing rock and pop songs.

Lipstick on my cigarettes
Frost upon the window pane
Nine while nine and I'm waiting
For the train...

She said do you remember the time when angels
Do you remember a time when fear
In the days when I was stronger
In the days when you where here she said
When days had no beginning
While days had no end when
Shadows grew no longer I
Knew no other friend but you were wild...

Frost upon these cigarettes
Lipstick on the window pane and I've
lost all sense of the world outside but I
Can't forget so I call your name and I'm
Looking for a life for me and I'm
Looking for a life for you and I'm
Talking to myself again and it's
So damn cold it's just not true and I'm

Walking through the rain
Trying to hold on waiting for the train and I'm
Only looking for what you want but it's
Lonely here and I think you knew and I'm
And I'm waiting
And I wait in vain
Nine while nine and I'm waiting for the train...

The marriage of flow and imagery (actually all throughout the song) is perfect. For me, could stand reasonably on its own as poetry. However, I think most lyrics are entangled for better or for worse with the music which contextualizes them.

"Lately it seems so empty here,
But I suppose it's all right,
Maybe tomorrow's not so clear,
still I remember that night...
Singing to you like this is,
My only way to reach you,
Though I'm too proud to say it,
Oh how I long to see you..."
-Roxy Music, "Just Another High" (SIREN)

Simple yet elegant. Captures a feeling that most adults have gone through, yet not a word in there is above the 6th-grade reading level. Strongly intertwined with the mournful music and Bryan Ferry's vocal delivery.

"High vibration go on,
To the sun oh let my heart dreaming,
Past all mortal as me,
Where can I be?
Wish the sun to stand still,
Reaching out to touch our own being,
Past all mortal as we,
Here we can be.
Like the time I run away, turned around and you were standing close to me,
Like the time I run away, turned around and you were standing close to me..."
Yes, "Awaken" (GOING FOR THE ONE)

Quite different from the other two in presentation. Like most of the band's lyrics (when they were good, anyway), this mostly appears to be gobbledygook, with things like tense conflation ("like the time I run away") and cryptic content ("wish the sun to stand still"), the juxtaposition of the final line with the loftiness of the preceding words, and then repeating it for emphasis...these elements work to create a potently evocative Gestalt. Unthinkable (for me) to hear this without the context of the unearthly music which surrounds the words...

Don't try to be either too clever or too pedestrian. Don't go out of your way to find unusual rhymes ("fire"/"quagmire"), but steer clear of the cliche "moon"/"June"/"spoon" stuff as well. Don't repeat yourself too much (especially if your lyrics contain jokes -- Morrissey kills a lot of his songs by repeating his best lines too many times); keep your choruses short; and make sure your syllable placement doesn't sound too clunky -- for example, if you were going to sing "make sure your syllable placement doesn't sound too clunky," it wouldn't sound too good as "make sure YOUR syllable placeMENT" etc. unless you'd actually written it as a rap or a prog piece or something.

famous blue raincoat - Leonard Cohen

Good call.

Listen to Dylan always. :)

That and saying "fuck".

I'll write your lyrics for you for a considerable fee.

Beach State Rocking

In Caffeineland all jobs get done
We live by the gun
And life is just a plan for one
In textbook terms and rules of thumb
I walk outside but I freeze in the sun
Having deferred to the longer run
I give up my right to be young
My blood flows as the joy ride comes
And my heart says to grab on
But my fingers are numb
Beach state rocking
Everybody's talking
But it's all been told
It's never old
Beach state rocking
Christmas without stockings
It's the formal code
It's all you own
It takes the children from their homes
Cathy-Ann and all her friends
Are downstairs again
And high school memories fill my head
A time to treasure, so I've read
But summer is dead
And pleasure means nothing, so they said
And so I had some pain instead
I turned my face when tears were shed
And nobody knew that I followed
Each cheer she led

I felt dizzy as I walked the beach
And the sunbathers gave no sound
But the radios all told me that
What was not lost can't be found
Well I'd call myself an artist if I could
Make these feelings clear
But there's a million things to think about
When you're cutting off your ear

I. The Crimson Sunrise [00:00]
(Instrumental)

II. Innocence [03:50]
I remember a time
My frail, virgin mind
watched the crimson sunrise
Imagined what it might find
Life was filled with wonder
I felt the warm wind blow
I must explore the boundaries
Transcend the depth of winter's snow
Innocence caressing me
I never felt so young before
There was so much life in me
Still I longed to search for more
But those days are gone now
Changed like a leaf on a tree
Blown away forever
into the cool autumn breeze
The snow has now fallen
and my sun's not so bright
I struggle to hold on
with the last of my might
In my den of inequity
viciousness and subtlety
struggle to ease the pain
struggle to find the sane
Ignorance surrounding me
I've never been so filled with fear
All my life's been drained from me
The end is drawing near....

III. Carpe Diem [06:54]
'Carpe diem, seize the day'
I'll always remember
The chill of November
The news of the fall
The sounds in the hall
The clock on the wall ticking away
'Seize the Day'
I heard him say
Life will not always be this way
Look around
Hear the sounds
Cherish your life while you're still around

"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, [Sample is James Waterston from ]
Old Time is still a-flying; [the film "Dead Poet's Society". ]
And this same flower that smiles today, [From the poem "To The Virgins, To]
Tomorrow will be dying." [Make Much Of Time" by Robert ]
[Herrick. ]

We can learn from the past
But those days are gone
We can hope for the future
But there might not be one
The words stuck in my mind
alive from what I've learned
I have to seize the day
To home I returned
Preparing for her flight
I held with all my might
Fearing my deepest fright
She walked into the night
She turned for one last look
She looked me in the eye
I said, 'I Love You...Good-bye'

"It's the most awful thing you'll [Various samples mainly John ]
ever hear." [Voight from the film "Table For ]
"If you're lying to me..." [Five", some are from the film ]
"Oh, you dearly love her." ["Dead Poet's Society". ]
"...just have to leave... all our lives."
"Seize the day!"
"Something happened."
"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may."
"She was killed."

IV. The Darkest of Winters [10:08]
(Instrumental)

V. Another World [13:01]
So far or so it seems
All is lost with nothing fulfilled
Off the pages and the T.V. screen
Another world where nothing's true
Tripping through the life fantastic
Lose a step and never get up
Left alone with a cold blank stare
I feel like giving up
I was blinded by a paradise
Utopia high in the sky
A dream that only drowned me
Deep in sorrow, wondering why
Oh come let us adore him
Abuse and then ignore him
No matter what, don't let him be
Let's feed upon his misery
Then string him up for all the world to see
I'm sick of all you hypocrites
holding me at bay
And I don't need your sympathy
to get me through the day
Seasons change and so can I
Hold on Boy, No time to cry
Untie these strings, I'm climbing down
I won't let them push me away
Oh come let us adore him
Abuse and then ignore him
No matter what, don't let him be
Let's feed upon his misery
Now it's time for them to deal with me

VI. The Inevitable Summer [16:59]
(Instrumental)

VII. The Crimson Sunset [20:12]
I'm much wiser now
A lifetime of memories
run through my head
They taught me how
for better or worse, alive or dead
I realize there's no turning back
Life goes on the offbeaten track
I sit down with my son
Set to see the Crimson Sunset
(Gather ye rosebuds while ye may)
Many years have come and gone
I've lived my life, but now must move on
(Gather ye rosebuds while ye may)
He's my only one
Now that my time has come
Now that my life is done
We look into the sun
'Seize the day and don't you cry,
Now it's time to say good-bye
Even though I'll be gone,
I will live on, live on.'

Dream Theater. Mike Portnoy and John Petrucci are some of the greatest lyricists ever. Misunderstood is Petrucci's best.

http://www.angelfire.com/mp/sacredjade/lyrics.htm

And without warning when we're almost at the top
The wheel that turns us all comes to a sudden stop.
The wind that's blown us dies a quick and painless death.
The air gets clammy and we hold each other's breath.
We get the feeling that we're not alone in this
And then a God who really ought not to exist
Sticks out a great big hand and grabs me by the wrist
And asks me "why?" and I say: "Well God, it's like this
It may be arrogance Or just appalling taste.
I'd rather use my pain than let it all go to waste
On some old god who tells me what I want to hear
As if I cannot tell obedience from fear.
I want to take my pleasures where and how I will,
Be they disgraceful or distasteful or distilled.
And to be frank, I find that life has more appeal
Without a driver who's asleep behind the wheel".
Then God decides that he has taken quite enough
Of all this atheistic tosh I'm spouting off
And so he calls upon his favourite angel choir
To sing of times when men were filled with Christian fire.
But over-zealous angels flap their wings too fast
And cause the wind to blow and turn the wheel at last;
And soon my feet are safely back on solid ground
And then I hear a voice say: "Don't look down!".

So sue me. (it's the final bit of The Divine Comedy's "Don't Look Down" btw)

And if that isn't enough then http://www.compsoc.man.ac.uk/~moz/lyrics/azindex.htm

:D

Alternately, "PHO-TO-GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPH!"

And though I know all about those men
Still I don't remember
Cause it was us, baby, way before then, and we're still together.
And I meant, every word I said
When I said that I loved you I meant that I loved you forever.

And I'm gonna keep on lovin' you
Cause it's the only thing I wanna do
I don't wanna sleep, I just wanna keep on lovin' you.
Baby, I'm gonna keep on lovin' you
Cause it's the only thing I wanna do
I don't wanna sleep, I just wanna keep on lovin' you

Oh you are in my blood like holy wine
And you taste so bitter but you taste so sweet
Oh I could drink a case of you
I could drink a case of you darling
Still I'd be on my feet
Oh I'd still be on my feet

it's all in your head she said
morning after nightmare
you're building a wall she said
higher than the both of us
so try living life
instead of hiding in the bedroom
show me a smile
and i'll promise not to leave you

it happened under a rainy cloud
passing through the dark south
we went into a big house
and slept in a small bed
i didn't know you then
as well as you of me
we talked of our sad lives
and we went off separately
i found your overseas souvenirs
holiday greeting cards
and some long forgotten high school fears
it's all in my head i said
banging a piano
i've not been so alone i thought
since kicking in the womb
i drank so much tea
i wrote my letters in kanji
around the block i walked and walked
pretending you were with me
not wanting to die out here
without you

the hurting never ends
like birthdays and old friends
we forget what is flesh blood and bone is human
turning phone lines to airlines
unwilling to face
the love is found on the inside not the outside
and like a medicine bottle
in the cabinet i'll keep you
and like a medicine bottle
in my hand i will hold you
and swallow you slowly
as to last me a lifetime
without holding too tight
i do not want to lose
the thrill that it gives me
to look out from my window
and scowl at the houses
from my world in the bedroom
it's all in my head she read
in her girlfriend's self-help book
it's all his own making
a war with himself
like two sides of a wall
that separates two countries
he shuts out the world
and wants only to love you

not wanting to die out here
without you

Wait 'til you hear your own father singing along with this song...talk about a mindfuck!

Personally, I think Dirt is a drunken mad genius when he's "on". His so-loud-it-sounds-like-I'm-about-to-overdrive-the-mic-and-blow-out-the-soundboard delivery and his eratic explosive lyrics hit me like pure meth and send my system into out-of-control rhythmical seizures, in a very good way.

Then again, there's that flow he did on that Funkmaster Flex tape that goes "First come 12 o'clock, spark da mef, den TA-PLOW!!!" and that was it.

http://www.ilxor.com

why do you love big

Also, Johnny Cash's lyrics are mega-amazing.

When I do try to write, though, it's hard, because I dont want to come off pretentious, and I made a few rules before hand to myself:
1. I wont write any love songs. Everything that could've ever been said about love, already has.
2. Ill try to write songs in styles other the first person. This has been a real challenge to me.

Ive written so far about a hundred songs, and come up with maybe 2 I like.

Give me gin'n'tonic

(prodigy - 2nd verse of mobb deep temperature's rising rmx)

"I spoke of my love for MacArthur/ The man not the park in L.A."

or maybe:

"Somewhat overwhelmed by the enormous dimensions of her lovely breast/ The rector turned his face from Mother Nature back to God"

Over And Out

As he flew right over the ocean
Said that's it I'm over and out
Though I started young as a lover
Now I'm just burning out

And his voice used to soar so high
Close your eyes for California sky
When one day melts into the other
Children still know the way

As he flew right over the ocean
Said that's it I'm over and out
Though I started young as a lover
Now I'm just burning out


Don't You Worry

Don't you worry
I didn't say goodbye
I didn't mean to cry

But beauty
Wrapped up in all life's cruelty
Will never pass you by


Faraway Eyes

Faraway eyes faraway dreams
And faraway schemes
Set out in the stone
These are the rules for being alone

What happened to the time
When we came together?
We're knocking on the door so let us in
Faraway eyes, faraway dreams
and faraway schemes

'Bout a year ago looked to the sky just saw lies
In the shivering cold
love your soul dust heaped bowl

What happened to the time
When we came together?
We're knocking on that door so let us in
Faraway eyes, faraway skies turned to lies

What happened to the time
When we came together?
We're knocking on that door so let us in
Faraway eyes, faraway dreams
And faraway schemes

- all from 'Spanish Dance Troupe'

but you know, lyrics don't have to look good written down.

C'n'c-s Mithering

Three days
Three months
Three days
Three months
A treatise
A treatise
To explain these
First was cash 'n' carry house dance
In Lancashire they're A
In King Nat Ltd. empire
Kwik Save is there
The scene started here
Then was America
Then was America
We went there
Big A&M Herb was there**
His offices had fresh air
But his rota was mediocre
US purge, rock 'n' pop filth
Their material's filched
And the secret of their lives
Is...
All the English groups
Act like peasants with free milk
On a route
On a route to the loot
To candy mountain
Five wacky English proletariat idiots
Californians always think of sex
Or think of death
Five hundred girl deaths
A Mexico revenge, it's stolen land
They really get it off on
"Don't hurt me please"
Rapist fill the TVs
And the secret of their lives
Is S.E.X..
I have dreams, I can see
Carloads of negro Nazis
Like Faust with beards
Hydrochloric shaved weirds
[Applause from audience at Cyprus Tavern ]
This was going to be called crap rap fourteen,
but it's now Stop Mithering.
The things that drain you off and drive you off the hinge.
Boils, dirty socks, the ceilings collapse.
The Sunday morning loud lawn mower,
the upstairs Jewish girl damn hoovering, with valium cig
withdrawal.
She wants communal, fluent flat household.
I want privacy.
The bastard dentist doctors surgery,
Clip, clop, ring, knock, ring
Stop mithering***
The estates stick up like stacks
The estates stick up like stacks
The residents keep wild dogs
And on that father's bedroom closet top,
electric blanket boxes
Surplus jonnies, demob pictures
To their children they sing
Stop mithering
You think you've got it bad with thin ties,
miserable songs synthesized, or circles with A in the middle.
Make joke records, hang out with Gary Bushell,
Join round table. "I like your single yer great!"
A circle of low IQ's.
There are three rules of audience.
My journalist acquaintances, go soft, go places,
on record company expenses.
I lose humor, manners become bog writers, don't know it.
The smart hedonists, same as last verse, allusions with
H in electronics, on stage false histrionics,
Corpse mauling dicks, pose to a good film, him, him
Stop mithering
I'm not joining conventional rock band.
The conventional is experimental, the conventional is now
experimental,
And is no way noble, and I'm no chock stock thing.
So stop mithering.
Engineers save up for cars.
I try to let down their tyres with matches to make them molten.
Ouch! Ouch!
They say I rip off Johnny Rotten
They always strike for more pay.
They say "See yer mate..Yeh...see yer mate"
To their mothers they sing
Stop mithering
Even the drowned penile tissue test.
He hangs out for sex.
He enters magazine contest.
White tan horror in the mirror.
Spotty exterior hides a spotty interior.
He's not your enemy.
He's not your enemy, his name is not Harry.
The secret of Cash and Carry.

(The Fall, 1980)

I ain't got many friends left to talk to
No one's around when I'm in trouble
You know I'd do anything for you
Stay the night, we'll keep it under cover
I just wanna use your love tonight
I don't wanna lose your love tonight

Try and stop my hands from shaking
Something in my mind's not making sense
It's been awhile since we've been all alone
I can't hide the way I'm feeling

As you leave me please would you close the door
And don't forget what I told you
Just cause you're right, that don't mean I'm wrong
Another shoulder to cry upon
I just wanna use your love tonight
I don't wanna lose your love tonight
Yeah
I just wanna use your love tonight
I don't wanna lose your love tonight
Lose your love (3x)

And do you feel scared - I do
But I won’t stop and falter
And if we threw it all away
Things can only get better
Wow wow wow oh, wow wow wow oh oh oh oh

Treating today as though it was
The last, the final show
Get to sixty and feel no regret
It may take a little time
A lonely path, an uphill climb
Success or failure will not alter it

And do you feel
Wow wow wow oh...

And do you feel...

I never had the chance to tell you
How I really feel about ya cos
You're so pretty and I'm such a
casual guy

(sung in a charmingly unconfident voice that wavers especially on 'casual')

Been out all night, I needed a bite
I thought I'd put a record on
I reached for the one with the ultra-modern label
And wondered where the light had gone
It had a futuristic cover
Lifted straight from Buck Rogers
The record was so black it had to be a con
The autochanger switched as I filled my sandwich
And futuristic sounds warbled off and on
Chorus :
The Black Hit Of Space
It's the one without a face
It's the one that doesn't fit
You can only see the flip
The Black Hit Of Space
Sucking in the human race
How can it stay at the top
When it's swallowed all the shops?
As the song climbed the charts
The others disappeared
'Til there was nothing but it left to buy
It got to number one
Then into minus figures
Though nobody could understand why
(Chorus)
I couldn't stand this bland sound any more so I walked towards my deck to
turn it off. All I could see was the B-side of the disc which had assumed a
doughnut shape with the label on the outside rim. I reached for the arm
which was less than one micron long but weighed more than Saturn and time
stood still. I knew I had to escape but every time I tried to flee, the
record was in front of me.
The Black Hit Of Space
Get James Burke on the case
It's the hit that's never gone
Time stops when you put it...

I been bad
I been good
Dallas, Texas
Hollywood

I'm gonna hire a private eye
To help me along
I done posted every cop from here to Rome
And if I ever catch up with them
All my best friends
I tell you they took my money
Now they're gone

I been training two bloodhounds
To track 'em down
Scotland Yard been working
But they can't be found
I wrote to the FBI
They told me it might take a little while
I tell you they took my money
Now they're gone

I been greasin' my shotgun
All night long
I sharpened my razor with a black cat bone
I got a rifle that I borrowed from the war
A butcher knife a axe and a saw
I tell you they done took my money
They won't last long
I tell you they took my money
Now they're gone

--Chris Kenner