northern_angel455

Lyrics matter sooo much. I would say the most important factor in deciding whether I am going to love a song or a group on a long-term basis. I have to feel on the same wavelength, have to relate to something in the lyrics.

But vocals and lead guitar are also very, very important. My favourite bands seem to be those where all three are strong in most cases, with the occasional exception.

Yippee

Kind of hard to sing along to if there isn't anything to sing. Ok ok, can you still hum to it?

Lyrics is a grand part of the music, but you can still be inspired by a single instrument, an orchestra, an instrumental piece, the same as by someone singing acappella. As stated elsewhere, depends on your mood, emotion, and mind set at the time.

ally

lyrics are really important for me in songs. i always look them up for songs so i can understand what its about, and so i understand what they are saying.

AFX

It's nice when the lyrics are meaningful but honestly I don't know if I've ever liked a song just for its lyrics. It's more about the general atmosphere, mood, and the music itself that interests me the most.

SweetHeartHolly

To me, lyrics may be the most important because they give the actual meaning of the song. A song can mean anything if it's just the instrument playing. To me, this song should be the next CMA Song Of The Year. What a lyric at the beginning of the chorus. "Sure, the sun will come up, but it won't shine on her skin."


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=piIRWHEuTDA

God bless you always!!!

Holly

P.S. I just want to put my arms around him when he falls apart while singing the song during his American Idol homecoming performance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRkle1tY73Y

Start at the 1:20 mark of the clip. Before singing the song, he talks about how the song came to be.

vittra

it depends. even though theyre my favourite band my bloody valentines lyrics doesnt matter to me that much, because their music is very focused on the instrumentation. but then they have some songs where the vocals are more present and then of course the lyrics matter more.

it definitely depends on the genre and song.

DriveYourCarDownToTheSea

For me, the point of music is ... well, the music. I listen to a lot of music that doesn't have any "lyrics" at all, so they aren't really terribly important to me.

There are a few songs that I like mostly because of the lyrics, but probably 99.5% of the pop music I like, I like because of the music and are indifferent about the lyrics.

Some perfectly nice music that has no lyrics at all:

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AFX

I totally agree with you. If the music is awful I'm not even going to look into the lyrics, even if they're absolute poetry. I mean at that point I might just look at it as a separate art form.

That's a lovely piece.

jadis

On the one hand, I love music for the music, if I want words I'll look for them elsewhere. And I love bands who are brave enough to do away with lyrics as we conventionally understand them: my favorite band is Can, whose main frontman Damo Suzuki never felt constrained by the tyranny of sense. But Cocteau Twins and MBV also have that.

On the other hand, sometimes lyrics catch my ear and I'm interested. Beefheart's lyrics are a case in point. I love him for the music, the songs, the arrangements, the feel, the sound of his voice. But lyrics are part of the package. Tom Waits too. He's a musical genius and that's why I'm a huge fan. But the lyrics to something like Goin Out West is part of what makes this song so awesome.

And then there's The Fall. I am obsessed with this guy's lyrics. He's so damn good, so sharp and eloquent and original, his delivery is inimitable. With the Fall the lyrics are as important as the music, even when the music is brilliant (and it isn't always the case).

TNWRA (a “rich and baffling song … about an insurrection in the north of Britain”) is a song I want to extended to novel or film form. It's just fascinating.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo5a...=TheFall-Topic

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AFX

Great points, I'll have to check out more of his lyrics.