A thread for great song lyrics

[Jorge]

Sunshine in Chicago makes me feel pretty sad
My band played here a lot in the ’90s when we had
lots of female fans, and fuck, they all were cute
Now I just sign posters for guys in tiny tennis shoes

[super nintendo chalmers]

[William Bloke]

Then she opened up a book of poems
And handed it to me
Written by an Italian poet
From the fifteenth century
And every one of them words rang true
And glowed like burning coal
Pouring off of every page
Like it was written in my soul from me to you
Tangled up in blue

For a guy with so many brilliant lyrics I must at that I do very much love that little verse. A genius I say.

[Dscans]

"She said ain't this just like the present
to be showin' up like this."

"How to fight loneliness
Smile all the time
Shine you teeth til meaningless
Sharpen them with lies."

"I wake up without warning
And go flying around the house
In my savignon fierce, freaking out
Take a forty-five minute shower and kiss the mirror

Say 'Look at me
Baby, we'll be fine
All we gotta do is be brave and be kind'

I put on an argyle sweater and put on a smile
I don't know how to do this."

[holdtightthething]

hold tight the thing
the sea will rise, please stay by my hand

[nyquillyn]

I leave you with photographs, pictures of trickery
Stains on the carpet and stains on the memory
Songs about happiness murmured in dreams
When we both of us knew how the end always is
How the end always is

[Birds in Hell]

I leave you with photographs, pictures of trickery
Stains on the carpet and stains on the memory
Songs about happiness murmured in dreams
When we both of us knew how the end always is
How the end always is

[stip]

Mentioning the song and artist won't spoil the lyrics, you know.

[bada]

Get your hands off of my woman motherfucka.

[Dscans]

Mentioning the song and artist won't spoil the lyrics, you know.

Ya know what else will help? Like you did, explaining why you think it's an example of good writing.

And to respond to your snarkiness with more snarkiness: cope+paste+Google is your friend, my friend.

[Dscans]

"How to fight loneliness
Smile all the time
Shine you teeth til meaningless
Sharpen them with lies."

"I wake up without warning
And go flying around the house
In my savignon fierce, freaking out
Take a forty-five minute shower and kiss the mirror

Say 'Look at me
Baby, we'll be fine
All we gotta do is be brave and be kind'

I put on an argyle sweater and put on a smile
I don't know how to do this."

So here we go. I posted these two because they share a theme. The first, in case you couldn't tell, is How to Fight Loneliness by Wilco. I like the wording in the first verse but I really like the last repeated line: Just smile all the time. His best advice is faking it, admitting defeat, that it's a fight you cannot win so do you best you can to grit your teeth and power through it.

The other quote is Baby We'll be Fine by The National, possibly my favorite song of theirs. One of the best pieces of advice on writing I read was: don't write past the point that all the mystery is gone from your characters. That's what I love about this song, the mystery.

Similar to the Wilco song, the character is dealing with something (loneliness, depression, identity crisis) and his only response is to fake it. That's what I love about the "put on an argyle sweater and put on a smile/I don't know how to do this" line.

And the writing. He could've said "drunken stupor" but he said "savignon fierce." Beautiful.

[BurtReynolds]

"it's a little too much to ask of faith
it's a little late to wait for fate"

love that little line from Beck's Emergency Exit.

[BurtReynolds]

I Walk Wherever The Weather Provides
Because Everybody Needs Some Time Outside
Give Me No Lip And I Tell You No Lie.

Hands Down The Illest Ventriloquist This Side Of The Mississippi River
That's Right Operator Smoother Than Faders On An Automated Sound Board
Andretti's Never Raced Me But If He Wants To Oh I'm Ready Coordination Of The Eye And Hand Is Not My Strong Point But I Make Due With What I Have.

Pure Rock Fury The Solution Is So Clear
Calling All Humans And Able Volunteers.

I Walk Wherever The Weather Provides Because Everybody Needs Some Time Outside
I've Seen Them Boxes With Peliculas One Time Stands Out In Particular
I Saw You Dance In The Arena All In Makeup Dressed Up Like A Ballerina
I Got To Wonder What's Got Into You Or Just What You Got Into.

Pure Rock Fury The Solution Is So Clear
Calling All Humans And Able Volunteers.

Hotter Than Abba In Nevada Sun In A Real Small Car With The Windows Rolled Up
No Super Trooper Because You Pooped Your Pants And You're Screaming Oh Please Just Give Me One More Chance
Not One To Shrink From Helping Humankind Brother One Other Thing That You Might Keep In Mind
Coordination Of The Eye And Hand Is Not My Strong Point But I Make Due With What I Have.

Pure Rock Fury The Solution Is So Clear
Calling All Humans And Able Volunteers.

[stip]

This is not the poor capitalization thread, Burt.

[LoathedVermin72]

This song knocks the wind out of me.

Well, you never flew the colors and I never saw you bend a knee to any man.
But you were never short of brothers; there was always someone holding out a helping hand.
Well, I remember the summer we were ridin' to a show
and our road went on forever so we were ridin' nice and slow.
And then I heard the band play.

And the sun burned through the sky.
It was a fine day for a funeral, yeah.
But I never wanted you to die.
No, I never wanted you to die.

We were waiting at the crossroads when I saw you wipin' out.
Some metal box just slid down right into the sun, I was screamin', I was screamin', I was screamin' but nothing was coming out.
They always said you were a dark horse because you rode the land alone.
But, you know, I think the real reason was that you were always ridin' home.
And now your road goes on forever.

The sun will always shine.
One day we'll be together, yeah,
when we cross the final line.
When we cross, when we cross the line.

If I turn to you and call you "friend" when all is said and all is done,
will you meet me on the other side, seven million miles beyond the sun?

Amebix - "Beyond the Sun"

[Jorge]

goat and a pig, ooo
a couple of lifestock living their lives stuck together in harmony
a pig and a goat showing the world that a pig and a goat can be family
love so strong, love so big, such a beautiful
goat and a pig, bound in matrimony now and forever
shopping for groceries and buying a condo and filing their taxes together
goat and a pig, goat and a pig

[William Bloke]

Dawes - If I Wanted Someone

"If I wanted someone to clean me up
I'd find myself a maid
If I wanted someone to spend my money
I wouldn't need to get paid

If I wanted someone to understand me
I'd have so much more to say
I just want you to make the days move easy"

[BigRedLedbetter]

Dawes! Love them.

[LoathedVermin72]

This is a great little lyric that caught my attention today:

"live your life, it is your last
there's no future, there's just past"

[epilogue]

Jordan. Kevin Davis. Join me here for some tea and conversation?