The "Lyric Without Music" Daily Review
 

Was thinking, as I do, about how much I enjoy certain lyricists, and I thought, "what if there's a lyricist just as good as Paul Simon whose work I'll never hear, simply because I don't like his genre?" Was also thinking, as I do, about creating a journal. And bing! it happened. Here's the idea: I will work my way through Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time from the bottom up, (skipping songs that I have already heard) posting what I think of each song's lyrics without actually listening to the song, just reading the lyrics. I'll try to put one on every day of the working week. On Saturday, I will take a recommendation from a forum member, if anyone is interested enough to suggest a song. On Sunday, I will actually listen to the song whose lyrics appealed to me the most of the six I reviewed. I'll start things off on Monday. Got it?

If you'd like to make a recommendation, please PM me rather than posting it here. It doesn't matter if it's on the list or not, I'll just skip it when I get there if it is. Thanks.

A quick clarification: I will only skip songs I am familiar with, rather than songs I have heard. Otherwise, I'd jump over most of the 500.The reviews begin tomorrow. #500 is... Smokey Robinson and the Miracles - Shop Around

#500...
 

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. For tonight's entertainment, I will be critiquing some lyrics. Specifically, the lyrics to a soul tune that Rolling Stone ranked as the 500th greatest song of all time, called...

Shop Around - The Miracles (featuring Bill "Smokey" Robinson)

These lyrics are as straightforward as you can get. A mother is advising her recently come-of-age son not to fall for the first pretty face he sees, but to "shop around" and find a true love. No hidden meanings, no double entendres. Which is to be expected: Shop Around was released on October 15, 1960, long before the psychedelic experimentations of the likes of Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix that would define the '60s. But that single was not the song's first exposure. It had been released on September 27 in the Detroit area, before Berry Gordy, its producer and co-writer, decided a poppier re-recording, featuring a more prominent vocal by Robinson, was necessary to ensure Shop Around's appeal to consumers outside Motown. The result was a run of 16 weeks on the Hot 100, peaking at #2, and a eight-week stay at #1 on the R&B chart, but more importantly, the Motown Record Corporation's first million-seller.

Ultimately, I rate the lyrics 6/10. They don't turn me off the song, but I don't come away with an overwhelming desire to hear it, either. I could probably write some equivalent lyrics myself, which isn't exactly a compliment.

Tomorrow I take a look at Weezer's Buddy Holly, a song title that rather intrigues me... But until then, my fellow Music Banterers, I wish you a good night.

You know, some of these early lyrics are really pathetic. But I take corny love lyrics over Uriah Heep-like pretentiousness any day. You know, they may be clichéd lyrics, but they are about reality. And weren't the main point anyway. If clichéd lyrics are accompanied by good music, that's not a problem usually.

Of course, banal love lyrics can and should turn one away from the song, but I don't think cliched means banal...

Great idea! Looking forward to reading this.

Hey, what's wrong with Uriah Heep lyrics, huh?

RETURN TO FANTASY

Searching every day
Looking every way
Trying to make a connection
To find a piece of the action
Like a hungry poet
Who doesn't know
He is close to perfection
Choice is the question

Moonlight night
After moonlight night
Side by side
They will see us ride
But if they cared to look
Then they would see
It's our return to fantasy
Fantasy, fantasy …

Can you understand
That in every man
There's a need to unwind
That's never been defined
Somewhere deep within
There's another being
You are somehow abusing
By the person you're using

Moonlight night
After moonlight night
Side by side
They will see us ride
But if they cared to look
Then they would see
It's just our return to fantasy
Fantasy, fantasy …

Travelling faster than lightening
Closer than ever before
We can go on for you
And take you nearer to
The legend of mystery
From the beginning of time
Dreaming... time ... dreaming
We can return to
The land of the good and the kind
Time... dreaming... time... dreaming
Why don't you come to our party
And open your minds

In another place
There's a newer face
Like an unfinished painting
Your creator is waiting
The brush and pen describe
What it is inside
That will set your mind thinking
While the others are sinking

Oh, that Uriah Heep! For awhile all I could think of was the Dickens character. :banghead:

#499...
 

A challenge for any Buddy Holly aficionados: see if you can find the six song titles not-so-carefully hidden in the above post.

Oh Boy, Well Alright, Think It Over, Heartbeat, Rave On, not so sure about the sixth one. I own nearly complete Buddy Holly collection, a box with 68 tracks on it but I can't find the sixth one.

It's tricky; a one word title.

Reminiscing. A one word title is kind of cheating, though.

After Googling The Rising, I realized that it's a song I'm familiar with, but forgot the name of. Today's critique will be on Jackson Browne's Running on Empty instead.

It's a great song. I love it.

#496...
 

Good evening. For tonight's program, I jump back sixteen years in time to 1977. Fellow Music Banterers, I give you...

Running on Empty- Jackson Browne

Wow. This is one powerful set of lyrics. They really hit home with me, because I'm a restless spirit. I've always wanted to take off and join the birds, to be free of the constraints of this ground on which I tread. I recently visited Europe for a couple of weeks, specifically Germany and the Czech Republic. I want to revisit the places I saw; the Church of Our Lady in Dresden, Prague at night, the Bastei rock formations, but I also want to see new places; England, Switzerland, Rome, Paris... I want to be familiar with all those places, I want to know them. To become a part of them. But time just doesn't cooperate; "I'd love to stick around, but I'm running behind". Reading these lyrics made me realize that maybe it's better to make the best of the little piece of the world you already have, than to try and see it all. Maybe it's better to be appreciated in that little community, than to be unknown across Europe. Maybe it's better to have a few good friends and a place to call home than to be cultured and sophisticated.

I rate these lyrics a 9/10, mostly because of the way they affected me. I could not write anything close to touching these. Thank-you, Jackson Browne.

That concludes tonight's program. Thank-you for taking the time to read my review. Be sure to check in tomorrow at the same time. I will be skipping over the Rolling Stones' Brown Sugar, a track I am familiar with, to R. Kelly's Ignition (Remix). But until then, I wish you all a good night.

I have that Holly box set and I love it. "Well Alright" is one of the greatest pop songs ever written. Nice work, I can't find the 6th one either.

Reminiscing. Don't worry, I had trouble finding it myself just now.

#'s 494 & 493...
 

Good evening, fellow Music Banterers. As you probably didn't notice, I neglected to post last night. I will not elaborate on the reasons, except for saying that it involved a six-foot American alligator. However, the track's lyrics really weren't worth reviewing. Here they are, see for yourself. But without further ado, I present tonight's program...

Time to Pretend - MGMT

To me, these lyrics are about the rock star lifestyle, "Make some music, make some money, find some models for wives" and how it comes with its own baggage. "The models will have children, we'll get a divorce, we'll find some more models, everything must run its course." How many times has that happened? This is why I don't think I'd want to be a star. The story is always the same in the end. Divorces, affairs, drugs... pretending to have a decent life. I challenge somebody to show me a rock star with one marriage. I'm sure there are a few, but I honestly can't think of one. The song ends with a Jimi Hendrix reference: "We'll choke on our vomit and that will be the end."

Apparently, they're actually about the life cyle of the praying mantis. Hmm.

I'll give them a 7/10. Not life-changing, but not a turn-off, either. I don't think I could write better lyrics myself.

Tomorrow, I review Sunny Day Real Estate's Song for an Angel, as requsted by Briks. Hopefully, no reptilian creatures will delay it. But for now, I wish you a good night.

Briks' pick!
 

Good evening. For tonight's program, I take my first recommendation, from a user with whom I am proud to share the title of youngest Music Banterer, Briks. His suggestion...

Song About an Angel - Sunny Day Real Estate

If you've exchanged much music banter with me, you'll know that I'm a fan of '60s psychedelia, and thus, abstract lyrics. I've heard it said that to to write abstract poetry takes little to no talent. Technically, that is correct. But, to write significant abstract poetry, that moves your listener - that is another story. To write apparently meaningless lyrics that affect people more than apparently meaningful lyrics - that takes skill (and often drugs). Personally, no set of straightforward lyrics has moved me as much as The Beach Boys' Surf's Up. Why? I can answer in one word: connotation. Choosing the right word to convey a certain emotion to the listener. But now, for this set of lyrics in particular...

I could spend hours analyzing this song. The lyrics are very cryptic. However, here are a couple of notes. It seems there has been some tragedy in this man's past, from the first stanza. The angel says he is maried to his pain. Perhaps the angel is a dead lover? Desperation pervades the song. As I said, I could spend hours reviewing these lyrics, but they truly can't be described. I recommend you read them for yourself, by clicking on the bold title above.

8/10 score. My only criticism is that they are perhaps too cryptic. Thank-you, Briks, for an excellent recommendation.

That concludes tonight's program. Tomorrow, I will actually listen to one, and only one, of the six songs I've reviewed. Be sure to check in at the same time tomorrow. But until then, good night.

#492...
 

Good evening. As you might have noticed, I didn't post yesterday. I was rather busy, and by the time for reviewing came around, I didn't have the energy for a proper write-up. However, the song I chose to listen to was Jackson Browne's Running on Empty. I've only listened once, and since I make a rule of at least three listens over 24 hours before judging a song, you won't be seeing that until tomorrow or later. But enough pre-amble, let's get down to business. Allow me to present...

I Will Survive - Gloria Gaynor

At a glance, these are shallow. Her man leaves her, wants her back, she ain't goin', etc. But what changes the song is the lonesome tone that pervades the lyrics under the surface. She wants him back, she needs him back, but she has hardened herself. It seems like she is singing to herself. He might be long gone and frankly, not give a damn about where she goes and what she does, but she just can't get him out of her head. She desperately wants to phone him and make up. Will she?

9/10. They flow. Enough said.

Thank-you for reading, as always, and remember to tune in at the same time tomorrow. I'll be looking at Joan Jett and the Blackhearts' I Love Rock 'N Roll. But until then my friends, good night.

#491...
 

Good evening. Tonight, I will take a look at...

I Love Rock 'N Roll - Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

There sure were a lot of songs about rock 'n' roll in the '70s and '80s. Bob Seger's Old Time Rock and Roll, Billy Joel's It's Still Rock and Roll to Me, and the Beach Boys' take on Chuck Berry's Rock and Roll Music, to name a few. Heck, the Stones even had one, the name of which escapes my memory. However, this song opens with a very similar line to the Beatles' I Saw Her Standing There.
Beatles: "Well she was just seventeen, and you know what I mean..."
Jett: "I saw him dancing there by the record machine, I knew he must have been about seventeen..."
(What is it about seventeen-year-olds that songwriters can't resist? Even Meatloaf's tenagers were barely seventeen [and barely dressed!])
These lyrics actually made me laugh with their awkwardness. I mean, seriously, we get that the fella loves rock 'n' roll. What's that got to do with you?
It's worth mentioning that this song is an Arrows cover. One of those covers that outlasts the original, a la Twist and Shout.

5/10. Meh.

A tidbit of information: Since I write every day, barring reptilian intervention, I don't usually go into great depth, so to fully understand the context of everything I say, it is recommended to skim the lyrics linked in the bold song title. Tomorrow, I glance at Coldplay's Clocks. However, until tomorrow, good night.

I know the thing about seventeen years olds. In many countries under sixteen years olds are not legal, if you know what I mean, and Paul McCartney once explained that seventeen is not as young as sixteen,which are barely legal, but still young enough, if you get my drift. And well, I guess sixteen is more popular still... It's a pervert world we're living in ^_^

^
I get your drift, Taxman.

Don't have time fo an entry tonight, but I just wanted to say to anybody, feel free to PM a recommendation to me, and I'll be glad to review it. You don't want to have me call on Briks again, do you! ;)

Good evening. Tonight's lyrics are rather cryptic. I will not attempt to decipher them, as that would detain me from more worthy pursuits far too long. I present...

Clocks - Coldplay

As some of you might know, I was almost aborted. My mother made the difficult decision to keep me. My father was off in England at university when I was born. He didn't even know she was pregnant. It was a year later that, after having been essentially alienated from most of the people in her life, she finally told him her child was his. Thankfully, he was decent enough to shoulder the responsibility of parenthood. Anyhow, those first few years were rough. Luckily, I remember very little. One thing I do recall is the song my mother would sing me to sleep with:

"My grandfather's clock was too large for the shelf, so it stood ninety years on the floor. It was taller by height than the old man himself, but it weighed not a pennyweight more. It was bought on the morn of the day when he wa born, and was always his pleasure and pride. But it stopped, short, never to go again, when the old man died..."

Reading these lyrics made me think once again of those first few years. And how that song seemed like the tick of a clock, keeping life in time. As Billy Joel once said:

"Someday, we'll all be gone, but lullabies live on and on. They never die, that's how you, and I, will be."

9/10. For nostalgia.

I have decided not to reveal the song titles I will be reviewing next. I do want some shock value! Good night to all, and thank-you for reading. Until we meet again...

Good evening. If you are expecting a long, philosophical review and in-depth interpretation of this song's lyrics, you are in for a disappointment.

Under the Boardwalk - The Drifters

My job is easy tonight. No mystery here. This song is simply about a guy having fun with his baby on a blanket under the boardwalk. And I don't think they'll be playing Parcheesi. These lyrics seem pretty loaded for 1964. In fact, in one version, the line "we'll be falling in love" was actually "we'll be making love", which resulted in some radio stations banning the song.

6/10. Rather unimaginative.

If anyone is interested, tomorrow is recommendation day, and I don't have one yet. You have until noon EDT tomorrow to suggest a song, otherwise... I will review the next song on the Top 500. :p: But for now, my fellow Banterers, I bid you good night.

Briks Picks!
 

Good evening. Briks suggested tonight's entertainment. His recommendation...

The Smiths - The Headmaster Ritual

This is a masterful set of lyrics. Though each line is rather short, it's not to he point of being choppy, and they get their point across, complet with a pince of Roald Dahl-esque dark humour. The Headmaster Ritual is told from the point of view of a student at one of those English schools always mentioned in books, where speaking out of line results in a stiff caning. The student has obviously experienced a few of those beatings, and isn't too pleased with the headmaster or the cane. It sound to me as if the chap is taking a beating at the hands of his mates, as the headmaster would likely not be kicking boys in the shower, as mentioned in the last verse. I don't know if corporal punishment was a political issue at the time of the song's release (1985), but that would seem to be the The Headmaster Ritual's message.

9/10. I will definitely be checking out some more of this band's work. Thank-you, Briks!

I won't be posting tomorrow, for one of two reasons. Depending on how things swing, I will either be too happy or too upset to write. So until Monday, good night.

MGMT make some of the most pretentious, least inspired shit around. But that's just one man's opinion. If that's what they said I'd take it with a grain of salt to throw in their four eyes. Not sure how you'd go about throwing one grain in each eye though.

Btw the Weezer song is chock full of that 90s irony I think, taken alone I can see why you'd dislike it for sure. I think it's a fun song but I haven't read the lyric sheet itself either.

In my hopefully respected opinion, Pinkerton has some pretty good lyrics. "Across the Sea" made me burst into tears once on a dreaded summer day.