Usually songs by old men.
For example, Nick Cave "We Call Upon the Author to Explain":
Well, I go guruing down the street, young people gather round my feet,Ask me things, but I don't know where to start.They ignite the powder-trail straight to my father's heartAnd once again I call upon the author to explain
Another Nick Cave example, from "Oh My Lord":
They called at me through the fenceThey were not making any senseThey claimed that I'd lost the plotKept saying that I was notThe man I used to be
From The Auteurs' "Some Changes":
This kid comes up to me, says "You've gotta raise your game."This kid is half my age. "Pleased to meet you, Mr Haines."
Or David Bowie, "Teenage Wildlife":
You'll take me aside, and say"Well, David, what shall I do?They wait for me in the hallway."I'll say "Don't ask me, I don't know any hallways"
More!
― Eyeball Kicks, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 20:52 (twelve years ago)
Teenage Wildlife by Bowie? Although they really confront the star (Gary Numan?) that comes to Bowie for help
― Iago Galdston, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 20:55 (twelve years ago)
Oh shit, should have read the rest of the post...sorry
Neil's "Mr. Soul" and Minor Threat's "Cashing In"--sort of.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 20:56 (twelve years ago)
I thought of Neil Young's On the Beach too but it doesn't exactly fit
― space phwoar (Hurting 2), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 20:57 (twelve years ago)
1,2,3,4It was an average night backstage at a showI seen this girlie that I knew, she was a cutie and Yo!She had it goin' on from her head to her feetHer shape was so petite, and so uniqueHer eyes flamed with passion like she was possessedAs I shivered and quivered while she rubbed on my chest'Slaved and engraved I couldn't screamMoaning and groaning like she could take on the A-TeamI was one of many that she'd chooseDo me, pursue me, twice as nice but don't refuseLeaving her breathless as the sweat poured onThe spot that I was in was so soft and warmThis was far from a story you will find in a bookHot off the platter, and boy, could she cookRoastin' my body it left a stain in my brainAnd all I kept sayin' to myself was
Stop that train, I want to get offStop that train, I want to get off
Oh my God, what have I got into?Sooner or later I thought she'd get the clue'Cause my body was tired and full of sweat and perspireThe situation I was in could've started a campfireNo more skeezin' and teasin' for the Ice right nowI found me a corner, play it cool for a whileJust mackin' and schemin' on a woman I thought was coolBut now I realize that the Ice was the fool'Cause a woman will play you, lay you and obey youYou better watch your back 'cause a woman will slay youNot to mention the one who got meYea, she got me, the I-see-EBut, back to the story of a one night standI thought I was strong but she was He-manLovin' every second tryin' to make me blushAnd all 'n all it was for the lustI though, she was an angel and soft as a cream puffUntil I seen her come out with the whip and handcuffsBreathin' down my neck I was scared to deathThe sweat from my body as it rolls down my neckAnd out of all nights, where was my crew?'Cause this was somethin' I didn't know what to doD already told me that the girlie was strangeBut I didn't know until she pulled out the chainsWalkin' and stalkin' towards me with a planAnd now I regret all the things I was sayin'Now the moment is critical, so what should I do?Leave while I can, or just take the abuseNow I'm drippin' with sweat, Why? 'Cause I'm afraidHandcuffs and chains is a game I don't playNo doubt in my mind that the girlie is the bossStop this train 'cause I want to get off
Later on that night as it got worseMy body's steamin' up and I was ready to burstShe had me hot as a skillet taken from a flameAnd my admission was free for me to ride on this trainYea, I must admit to myself, it was funBut, now I'm lookin' for my shoes, I'm ready to runSo, now I'm hopin' and prayin' for the moment to come'Cause I couldn't move and my body was numb
So, now what have I done to get myself into this?It started from a kiss, now I'm ready to resistI couldn't take it no more, on the bed, or the floorMy knees were gettin' weak and my back was gettin' soreThe room was destroyed, not to mention my bodyWhy did I ever tell her to "Pump it, Hottie?"What could I do to just ease the pain?I think I'll let the hook just try to explain
― congratulations (n/a), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 20:59 (twelve years ago)
Eminem's "Stan," obviously.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:00 (twelve years ago)
Would "American Woman" by The Guess Who qualify?I always assumed the woman was a fan.And, um, American.
― Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:01 (twelve years ago)
Def Leppard"Getcha Rocks Off"
Well, we were gettin' ready just the other nightWhen a knock on the dressing room doorGave way to a leather jacket little girlWho we'd never ever seen before
In her red satin dress and her high heeled shoesShe took us all by surpriseAnd when she asked us what we wanted to doShe said it with her eyes
Just getcha rocks off, whoa
Well, when we finally took the stageThere she was but she wasn't on her own'Cos shed brought some friends maybe 5 or 6Yeah, she must have been on the phone
And when they started dancing and jumping aroundWell, we couldn’t believe our eyes'Cos they'd got the whole damn audience rockin'And they'd got us paralyzed
Just getcha rocks off
― Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:02 (twelve years ago)
And one that nobody knows unless you're Canadian: Valdy's "Rock and Roll Song," in which he gets booed and heckled by fans (including some "track star") for playing folk music--sort of Newport '65 in reverse.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:06 (twelve years ago)
probably best not approach Peter Hammill after a gig:
Hunched in the corner of the dressing-room,trying to get back to the real...Uh-oh, here they come, ready for their meal:
Energy Vampires, crawling out of the wall,they want to steal my vitality,they want to drink it all.
This guy says that he wrote all my songs,this girl says she's had my baby –me, I don't know them from Adam and Eve,sometimes I really believe I'm going crazy.
"Excuse me while I suck your blood,excuse me when I phone you,I've got every one of your records, man,doesn't that mean I own you?"Oh, sure, I long ago decided to make myself an exponentof public possession in the private obsession zone.
But now I'm serious, let's be serious,I'm not selling you my soul,try to put it in the recordsbut I've got to keep my life my own.One thing I've not got a lot of is timeand it's slipping away...
I've got a life to live too.
Ah, here they come...Vampires!
― poking pocong (Noodle Vague), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:08 (twelve years ago)
The Fall's "How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'", the whole song basically but this in particular
"But in the townThey'll stop me in the shoppesVerily they'll track me downTouch my shoulder and ignore my dumb missionAnd sick red faced smileAnd they will ask meAnd they will ask meHow I wrote "Elastic Man""
― chr1sb3singer, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:08 (twelve years ago)
Wow. So bitter... (xp)
― Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:09 (twelve years ago)
i know, right?
― poking pocong (Noodle Vague), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:14 (twelve years ago)
Outkast, "2 Dope Boyz (In a Cadillac)"
This ol sucka MC stepped up to meChallenged Andre to a battle and I stood there patientlyAs he spit and stumbled over cliches, so called freestylinWhole purpose just to make me feel low, I guess you whylinI say look boi, I ain't for that fuck shit; so fuck thisLet me explain on this child style so you don't missI grew up to myself not round no park benchjust a nigga bustin flows off in apartments
― only built 4 cuban twinx... (The Reverend), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:15 (twelve years ago)
Not a song, but there's a great bit in Dylan's Chronicles when he's accosted by another musician asking him where he's planning to "take music to next"
― Dr X O'Skeleton, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:16 (twelve years ago)
and "Elevators" too
Got stopped at the mall the other dayHeard a call from the other waythat I just came from, some nigga was sayin somethintalkin bout "Hey man, you remember me from school?" smoke someNaw not really but he kept smilin like a clownfacial expression lookin sillyAnd he kept askin me, what kind of car you drive, I know you paidI know y'all got beaucoup of hoes from all them songs that y'all done madeAnd I replied that I had been goin through tha same thing that he hadTrue I got more fans than the average man but not enough loot to last meto the end of the week, I live by the beat like you live check to checkIf you don't move yo' foot then I don't eat, so we like neck to neckYes we done come a long way like them Slim ass cigarettesfrom Virginia, this ain't gon stop so we just gonna continue
― only built 4 cuban twinx... (The Reverend), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:17 (twelve years ago)
Eazy :D
don't ask to battle me home boy what's thatyou wanna battle me boy ya better be strappedcause where I'm from it ain't all about that playin'[gun shots]now that's what I'm sayin'
― poking pocong (Noodle Vague), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:17 (twelve years ago)
and of course the whole of Ice Cube's "Get Off My Dick"
― poking pocong (Noodle Vague), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:18 (twelve years ago)
haha yes
― only built 4 cuban twinx... (The Reverend), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:19 (twelve years ago)
Is there a song off "the Wall" like this?
― Poliopolice, Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:23 (twelve years ago)
A NIGHT IN THE LIFE OF A SWAMP FOX (Tony Joe White)
I step off off the aeroplane And the hall cuts through my clothes Like I was naked I walked down to the bagage claim And the situation there is what I expected My bags were left in Memphis And I am standing there wondering what to do? When a cat walks up from the local news And says: Can I get an interview? No, no, no, no I said no, no, no, no No, no, no Another night in the life of a swamp fox
We get into a taxi cab and we're late So we rush down to the Colosseum Promotion man at the front door And I can tell no matter what I say That I just want to please him He said that the tickets are selling to slow And now it's starting to rain When a cat walks up with a soulful look And says: Can you spare some change? No, no, no, no he said no, no, no, no No baby Another night in the life of a swamp fox
And now we walk out on the stage And we get into a thing called Polk Salad Annie ...Ungr for some of you never been down south... And it's looking like we got it made Til it gets to the part where it says ...That the 'gators got your granny... The people are feeling the music And the groove is knocking me out When a cat hollers out from the front row And says: Can you play it wipe out? No, no, no, no I said no, baby No, no, no, no Another night in the life of a swamp fox No, I can't play that song
― i guess i'd just rather listen to canned heat? (ian), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:24 (twelve years ago)
Smiths "Paint a Vulgar Picture"
― his girlfriend was all 'ugh and he wears a solar backpack' (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:27 (twelve years ago)
or maybe that's backwards (and more like the Carpenters' Superstar)
― his girlfriend was all 'ugh and he wears a solar backpack' (Shakey Mo Collier), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 21:28 (twelve years ago)
ziggy stardust....
― m0stlyClean, Thursday, 14 March 2013 03:40 (twelve years ago)
That Peter Hammill song is indeed fantastically bitter but it was written in response to a specific situation, he never intended it as a general comment on his fans.
― my father will guide me up the stairs to bed (anagram), Thursday, 14 March 2013 09:28 (twelve years ago)
At the opposite extreme lies...
Incredible String Band, "The Letter"
"Mister Postman have you got a letter for me?Mr. Heron, yes I have yes I have Too much I've got a letter I said with some joyIt came from Maria, Chicago, Illinois"
― Step not on a loose unforgiving stone on a pyramid to paradise (Tom D.), Thursday, 14 March 2013 11:46 (twelve years ago)
And then again there's...
Lou Reed "NY Stars"
"They say, I'm so emptyno surface, no depthOh, please, can I be youyour personality's so great"
... strictly speaking that's about other musicians but other musicians who are fans of Lou Reed
― Step not on a loose unforgiving stone on a pyramid to paradise (Tom D.), Thursday, 14 March 2013 11:49 (twelve years ago)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iXLpJmKoArg
― an average girl realizing that leggings aren't helping the cause (DJ Mencap), Thursday, 14 March 2013 12:35 (twelve years ago)
White Stripes' Take Take Take is about exactly that, although it's told via a story about Rita Hayworth so may not count.
― Deafening silence (DL), Thursday, 14 March 2013 12:54 (twelve years ago)
Pet Shop Boys, 'Yesterday, When I Was Mad'
― Half of these sound like rappers. (snoball), Thursday, 14 March 2013 12:56 (twelve years ago)
how about The Cure's (second-)worst single:
It started with a dedication"lost in admiration - happy birthday - I'm forever yours - blossom"Faded red inside a tiny book of butterfliesI smiled surprised at how when flickered throughThe wings flew by spelled out my name...Six months went by the summer lostObsessively the letters dropped into my lifeThe same soft blood smooth flowing hand"please try to understand - I have to see you - have to feel you -Tell you all the ways I need you - yours forever in love... "Strange attraction spreads it's wingsIt varies but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will changeStrange attraction spreads it's wingsAnd alters but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will fadeThe year grew old incessantly she wrote to meShe'd started smoking poetry!I laughed in recognition of a favourite phraseShe'd pulled me in...I answered herA christmas card in sepiaArranging when and whereAnd how the two of us should meet...Her opening so well preparedA nervous smileI couldn't take my eyes from herShe whispered"can I use some of your lipstick?"It was perfect so believableI couldn't help but feel that it was realAnd kissing crimson fell into her waiting arms...Strange attraction spreads it's wingsIt varies but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will changeStrange attraction spreads it's wingsAnd alters but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will fadeSo alone into the cold new year without another word from herI wrote to ask if we could maybe meet again before the springBut weeks went by with no reply until once more my birthday cameAnd with it my surprise but this time nothing was the same..."I'm sorry - blame infatuation - blame imagination -I was sure you'd be the one but I was wrong -It seems reality destroys our dreams - I won't forget you - blossom"Faded red inside a tiny book of old goodbyes...Strange attraction spreads it's wingsIt varies but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will changeStrange attraction spreads it's wingsAnd alters but the smallest thingsAnd you never know...
Six months went by the summer lostObsessively the letters dropped into my lifeThe same soft blood smooth flowing hand"please try to understand - I have to see you - have to feel you -Tell you all the ways I need you - yours forever in love... "
Strange attraction spreads it's wingsIt varies but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will changeStrange attraction spreads it's wingsAnd alters but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will fade
The year grew old incessantly she wrote to meShe'd started smoking poetry!I laughed in recognition of a favourite phraseShe'd pulled me in...I answered herA christmas card in sepiaArranging when and whereAnd how the two of us should meet...
Her opening so well preparedA nervous smileI couldn't take my eyes from herShe whispered"can I use some of your lipstick?"It was perfect so believableI couldn't help but feel that it was realAnd kissing crimson fell into her waiting arms...
So alone into the cold new year without another word from herI wrote to ask if we could maybe meet again before the springBut weeks went by with no reply until once more my birthday cameAnd with it my surprise but this time nothing was the same...
"I'm sorry - blame infatuation - blame imagination -I was sure you'd be the one but I was wrong -It seems reality destroys our dreams - I won't forget you - blossom"Faded red inside a tiny book of old goodbyes...
Strange attraction spreads it's wingsIt varies but the smallest thingsYou never know how anything will changeStrange attraction spreads it's wingsAnd alters but the smallest thingsAnd you never know...
― Darth Icky (DJP), Thursday, 14 March 2013 17:08 (twelve years ago)
JUDAS
― 乒乓, Thursday, 14 March 2013 17:10 (twelve years ago)
this dude at white castle asked for my autograph so i signed it, 'dear dave, thanks for the support... asshole'
― îron swanson (Whiney G. Weingarten), Thursday, 14 March 2013 17:14 (twelve years ago)
From both perspectives, the Who, "The Punk and the Godfather":
PUNK:You declared you would be three inches tallerYou only became what we made you.Thought you were chasing a destiny callingYou only earned what we gave you.You fell and cried as our people were starving,Now you know that we blame you.You tried to walk on the trail we were carving,Now you know that we framed you.G.F.:I'm the guy in the skyFlying high Flashing eyesNo surprise I told liesI'm the punk in the gutterI'm the new presidentBut I grew and I bentDon't you know? don't it show?I'm the punk with the stutter.My my my my my mmmm my my my.GGGGG-g-g-g-g generation.PUNK:We tried to speak between lines of orationYou could only repeat what we told you.Your axe belongs to a dying nation,They don't know that we own you.You're watching movies trying to find the feelers,You only see what we show you.We're the slaves of the phony leadersBreathe the air we have blown you.G.F.:I'm the guy etc.I have to be careful not to preachI can't pretend that I can teach,And yet I've lived your future outBy pounding stages like a clown.And on the dance floor broken glass,And bloody faces slowly pass,The numbered seats in empty rows,It all belongs to me you know.PUNK:You declared etc.
G.F.:I'm the guy in the skyFlying high Flashing eyesNo surprise I told liesI'm the punk in the gutterI'm the new presidentBut I grew and I bentDon't you know? don't it show?I'm the punk with the stutter.My my my my my mmmm my my my.
GGGGG-g-g-g-g generation.
PUNK:We tried to speak between lines of orationYou could only repeat what we told you.Your axe belongs to a dying nation,They don't know that we own you.You're watching movies trying to find the feelers,You only see what we show you.We're the slaves of the phony leadersBreathe the air we have blown you.
G.F.:I'm the guy etc.
I have to be careful not to preachI can't pretend that I can teach,And yet I've lived your future outBy pounding stages like a clown.And on the dance floor broken glass,And bloody faces slowly pass,The numbered seats in empty rows,It all belongs to me you know.
PUNK:You declared etc.
― Tarfumes The Escape Goat, Thursday, 14 March 2013 17:59 (twelve years ago)
not so much "confrontational", but another sweet Andre 3000 example (scans terribly on the page, sorry):
See we do it for that boy that graduated That looked you in your eyes real tough and said 'preciate it And that he wouldn'ta made it if it wasn't for your CD number 9 And he's standing with his baby mama Kiki and she cryin', talkin 'bout That they used to get high to me in high schoolAnd they used to make love to me in collegeThen they told me 'bout their first date, listenin' to my tunesAnd how he liked her finger nail polish.I say hate to cut you off but I gotta go;I wish you could tell me mo, but I'm off to the studio, gotta write tonight "Hey, can you put us in your rap?" I don't see why not.
― fiscal cliff racer (bernard snowy), Thursday, 14 March 2013 18:11 (twelve years ago)
Exodus' "Bonded By Blood" talks about their fans... IN THE PIT, MOTHERFUCKER!
Murder in the front row, crowd begins to bangAnd there's blood upon the stageBang your head against the stageAnd metal takes its price, bonded by blood
― Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Thursday, 14 March 2013 20:10 (twelve years ago)
Sometimes, the feelingPrevails upon em so hard, belovedBut they just have toMount up on the stageAnd get to gigging with the bandAnd when they do, uh ohHere comes the security fuzz!And the scene is something like this"Hey, you guys are really good, manI dig up on you guys.When you gonna playSmokin In The…ow ow owMan, you made me drop myBottle of wine on the floor..."
- Brownsville Station, The Kings of The Party
― brio, Thursday, 14 March 2013 20:25 (twelve years ago)