Clever lyrics (or "Wish I'd thought of that!")

[DeepGreenEyes]

You know what I mean: You're driving, music blasting, and you're wowed by linguistic gymnastics. A line that delights you, and maybe makes you envious. And while lyrics aren't poetry - not strictly, I guess - they do eat at the same table.

Wordplay, metaphors, puns, unusual voices - whatever turns your crank.

So what have you got? Paste the full song, or just the parts that hooked you. And if you can find a youtube link, that'd be swell, too.

 

[DeepGreenEyes]

I heard this last week and liked it. I particularly thought this board might appreciate the line I italicized.

"Aside"
The Weakerthans

Measure me in metered lines, in one decisive stare,
the time it takes to get from here to there.
My ribs that show through t-shirts and these shoes I got for free;
I'm unconsoled, I'm lonely.
I am so much better than I used to be.

Terrified of telephones and shopping malls and knives,
And drowning in the pools of other lives.
Rely a bit too heavily on alcohol and irony.
Get clobbered on by courtesy, in love with love, and lousy poetry.

And I'm leaning on this broken fence between Past and Present tense.
And I'm losing all those stupid games that I swore I'd never play.
But it almost feels okay.

Circumnavigate this body of wonder and uncertainty.
Armed with every precious failure, and amateur cartography,
I breathe in deep before I spread those maps out on my bedroom floor.

And I'm leaning on this broken fence between Past and Present tense.
And I'm losing all those stupid games that I swore I'd never play.
But it feels okay.

And I'm leaving. Wave goodbye.
And I'm losing, but I'll try, with the last ways left, to remember.
Sing my imperfect offering.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znAS5KPceYk

 

[audeamus]

hello deepgreeneyes, thank you for starting this thread. i'd like to highlight a few lines from the piece you posted and add a couple of my own.

these lines from 'aside' caught my attention:

And I'm leaning on this broken fence between Past and Present tense
Armed with every precious failure, and amateur cartography, : precious failure -- isn't that a great title for a poem?

my additions:

better version - shinedown
Excuse the mess, I didn't see you from behind
I caught a glimpse, but the reflection's only mine
It's almost like I'm paralyzed and locked outside myself
What I don't need is to concede because I won't be someone else
I am not perfect and I don't claim to be
And if that's what you wanted
Well then I'm so sorry

How about a better version of the way that I am
How about a better version that makes me understand
How about a better version of the way that I am
The way I look, the way I speak,
How about a better version of me

Excuse the wall, I put it up from time to time
A silver shade, and the design is all mine
It's just a maze that everyday I seem to be stuck in
It never seems to fade away but I pray for the day it ends

I am not perfect and I don't claim to be
And if that's what you wanted
Well then I'm so sorry

Show me my vital signs until I'm realigned (4x)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92cuutNx1iE

stranger inside - shinedown
This day could be the worst one yet,
I just won't relax I can't catch my breath
Because I'm sick and tired of "you'll be fine"
Well how do you know, can you read minds

[Pre Chorus]
So take it while you can so you can meet demands
My insanity is what you thrive on
So rip it from my soul, so everyone will know in the end
We were never friends

[Chorus]
Have you ever felt lost inside so unloved within that you almost died
Have you ever stepped out of the light and realized there's a stranger inside

Don't push your ignorance on me
I'm not unrehearsed to your jealousy
And I know you think I don't see the signs
Well how do you know, do I look blind

So take it while you can so you can meet demands
My breakdown is what you thrive on
So rip it from my soul so everyone will know in the end
I'm the break you're the bend

[Chorus]

[Bridge]

Stranger inside

[Chorus out]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agFl7zaJJbI

if anymore come to mind, i'll post those as well.
be golden.

 

[DeepGreenEyes]

Great additions, audeamus. Among other things, this thread is going to be really good for my youtube playlists.

I particularly like "I'm the break you're the bend." Ouch.

My insanity is what you thrive on
So rip it from my soul, so everyone will know in the end
We were never friends

So take it while you can so you can meet demands
My breakdown is what you thrive on
So rip it from my soul so everyone will know in the end
I'm the break you're the bend

 

[audeamus]

hello deepgreeneyes,

music has a lovely way of moving me - i love that how one person interprets it, another establishes a different significance. you form -- a bond, and the lyrics seem personalized; speaking directly to you and helping you cope with whatever emotional strain that consumes you.

while watching pbs last night, i was captivated by john mayer's live performance of 'gravity', and quickly added it to my youtube playlist. the guitar solo towards the end is -- delicious. my favorite lines are italicized. hope you find it enjoyable. be golden.

gravity - john mayer
Gravity
Is working against me
And gravity
Wants to bring me down

Whoa I'll never know
What makes this man
With all the love
That his heart can stand
Dream of ways
To throw it all away

Whoa Gravity
Is working against me
And gravity
Wants to bring me down

Oh twice as much
Ain’t twice as good
And can't sustain
Like one half could
It's wanting more
It's gonna send me to my knees

instrumental

Oh twice as much
Ain’t twice as good
And can't sustain
Like one half could
It's wanting more
It's gonna send me to my knees

Oh gravity
Stay the hell away from me
Oh gravity
Has taken better men than me
Now how can that be?

Just keep me where the light is
Just keep me where the light is
Just keep me where the light is
C’mon keep me where the light is
C’mon keep me where the light is
C’mon keep me where keep me where the light is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TErQbwHHh_w

 

[UnderYourSpell]

At first listen just another love affair that went bad but no it's about her parents broken marriage and he inability to trust now, Affects me because I know childhood trauma can live with you forever

I will not make the same mistakes that you did
I will not let myself cause my heart so much misery
I will not break the way you did
You fell so hard
I've learned the hard way, to never let it get that far

Because of you
I will never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side
So I don't get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust
Not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you
I am afraid

I lose my way
And it's not too long before you point it out
I cannot cry
Because I know that's weakness in your eyes
I'm forced to fake, a smile, a laugh
Every day of my life
My heart can't possibly break
When it wasn't even whole to start with

Because of you
I will never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side
So I don't get hurt
Because of you
I find it hard to trust
Not only me, but everyone around me
Because of you
I am afraid

I watched you die
I heard you cry
Every night in your sleep
I was so young
You should have known better than to lean on me
You never thought of anyone else
You just saw your pain
And now I cry
In the middle of the night
For the same damn thing

Because of you
I will never stray too far from the sidewalk
Because of you
I learned to play on the safe side
So I don't get hurt
Because of you
I tried my hardest just to forget everything
Because of you
I don't know how to let anyone else in
Because of you
I'm ashamed of my life because it's empty
Because of you
I am afraid

Because of you
Because of you

Kelly Clarkson - Because of you

 

[Roxxxy91]

This is one of those, "couldn't have said it better!" songs for me.. I could put a TONNE of evanescence songs up though that I really like the words in.. I'll spare you guy's though ;-)

Lacrymosa - Evanescence.
Out on your own,
Cold and alone again.
Can this be what you really wanted, baby?

Blame it on me,
Set your guilt free,
Nothing can hold you back now.

Now that you're gone
I feel like myself again
Grieving the things I can't repair and willing ...

To let you blame it on me,
and set your guilt free
I don't want to hold you back now love.

I can't change who I am,
Not this time, I wont lie to keep you near me.
And in this short life, there's no time to waste on giving up
My love wasn't enough.

And you can blame it on me,
Just set your guilt free, honey,
I don't want to hold you back now love.

 

[audeamus]

hello roxxxy91, i enjoyed your addition and would like to see any more you care to share.

 

[Roxxxy91]

Hey, audeamus thank you! I was wondering what anyone else thinks about the lyrics to the only one? and what the song says to you? since everyone is different.

The Only One
When they all come crashing down midflight
you know you're not the only one
when they're so alone they find a back door out of life
you know you're not the only one

We're all grieving
lost and bleeding

All our lives
we've been waiting
for someone to call our leader
all your lies
I'm not believing
heaven shine a light down on me

So afraid to open your eyes- hypnotized
you know you're not the only one
never understood this life
and you're right I don't deserve but you know I'm not the only one

We're all grieving
lost and bleeding

All our lives
we've been waiting
for someone to call our leader
all your lies
I'm not believing
heaven shine a light down on me

Don't look down
don't look into the eyes of the world beneath you
don't look down, you'll fall down,
you'll become their sacrifice
right or wrong
can't hold onto the fear that I'm lost without you
if I can't feel, I'm not mine,
I'm not real

All our lives
we've been waiting
for someone to call our leader
all your lies
I'm not believing
heaven shine a light down on me

 

[neci]

All I ever needed was to eat popcorn with you,
Come on over,
Watch the late show,
Stay up talking until two

Today's the day you're leaving,
And tomorrow you'll be gone
You're in my heart and on my mind,
I will bring you along

Everything sucks when you're gone,
Everything sucks when you're gone

A dream of our reunion makes me crazy just to think,
How so very far away you are,
My hope begins to sink

Today's the day you're leaving,
And tomorrow you'll be gone
You're in my heart and on my mind,
I will bring you along

Everything sucks when you're gone,
Everything sucks when you're gone

It's not ok,
I've baked dinner here for two,
And it's not ok,
I've got candles lit for you,
And It's not ok,
I've got you're favorite records out,
And it's not ok,
You should have let it be,
And ran after me

Today's the day you're leaving,
And tomorrow you'll be gone
You're in my heart and on my mind,
I will bring you along

Everything sucks when you're gone,
(I want you! I need you!)
Everything sucks when you're gone
(I want you! I need you!) [x2]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6x4KJpiJsA

 

[neci]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLwwy-g2wkc

aside from the fact that i cry everytime i hear this song, it is beautiful.

Concrete Angel lyrics
Songwriters: Bentley, Stephanie; Crosby, Rob;
She walks to school with the lunch she packed
Nobody knows what she's holding back
Wearing the same dress she wore yesterday
She hides the bruises with the linen and lace, oh

The teacher wonders but she doesn't ask
It's hard to see the pain behind the mask
Bearing the burden of a secret storm
Sometimes she wishes she was never born

Through the wind and the rain she stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place
Where she's loved concrete angel

Somebody cries in the middle of the night
The neighbors hear but they turn out the light
A fragile soul caught in the hands of fate
When morning comes it will be too late

Through the wind and the rain she stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place
Where she's loved concrete angel

A statue stands in a shaded place
An angel girl with an upturned face
A name is written on a polished rock
A broken heart that the world forgot

Through the wind and the rain she stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings and she flies to a place
Where she's loved concrete angel

 

[oggbashan]

Shakespeare

Verse 1
Blow, blow, thou winter wind,
Thou art not so unkind
As man’s ingratitude;
Thy tooth is not so keen,
Because thou art not seen,
Although thy breath be rude.

Chorus
Heigh-ho! sing,heigh-ho!
unto the green holly:
Most friendship is feigning,
most loving mere folly:
Then, heigh-ho, the holly!
This life is most jolly.

Verse 2
Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky,
That does not bite so nigh
As benefits forgot:
Though thou the waters warp,
Thy sting is not so sharp
As friend remembered not.
(To chorus)

(2.7)

Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 sung by Bryan Ferry: Shall I compare thee to a Summer's Day?

Og

 

[DeepGreenEyes]

It's interesting to see the stuff people are adding to this thread; incredibly different, but each person inspired by some poetic quality of the song.


oggbashan,
Well, we might as well shut down the thread. That's it. Game over.

On a side note, I knew that Bryan Ferry covered Cole Porter - but...the Bard??!



neci,
I've heard that song, and at first I was put off by the simple everydayness of the title/chorus. But the more I heard it, the more I realized that it's perfect, and would be just another song if it used more "poetic" language.

I'm not sure you can do better than having someone cry every time they hear what you've written (unless you're going for comedy, I guess). I like the perfect antithetical quality of the name: Concrete Angel.



I hadn't heard the John Mayer song before. Thanks.

Oh gravity
Stay the hell away from me.

This is just soooooo cool. Hmmmm...actually, I generally feel this way after eating bbq ribs.



I particularly liked this line from Evanescence:

Not this time, I won't lie to keep you near me.



I also experienced the feint of Because of You, UnderYourSpell - how you think it's about one thing, then gradually realize... it isn't.

 

[audeamus]

hello roxxxy91, thank you for the addition. this is probably only because i'm hurting (inside) at the moment and the lyrics may mean something different to me once that pain has washed away. the first verse to me, spoke of depression, possibly suicide. going on to tell us that even though we all hurt and suffer, we're not alone. there are others like us:

When they all come crashing down midflight
you know you're not the only one
when they're so alone they find a back door out of life that powerful line in particular is what stood out to me.
you know you're not the only one
We're all grieving
lost and bleeding

also, and this is probably a random, 'out there kind of thought', but i can certainly draw some the religious aspects from certain lines,

Don't look down
don't look into the eyes of the world beneath you
don't look down, you'll fall down,
you'll become their sacrifice...

perhaps referring to a soul in heaven. they are free now, and are being told not to look down into the (toxic/secular) world below or the "demons" will pull them back into that life:


just my two cents. again, i'm in a dark place right now-- these words may take on a different meaning at a later date. i'd love to know what you, or anyone else thinks of the lyrics. i always enjoy a different point of view.

 

[oggbashan]

Do not stand at my grave and weep...

As sung by Katherine Jenkins

Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow,
I am the softly falling snow.
I am the gentle showers of rain,
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush,
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.
I am in the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there. I do not die.

Og

PS. This is another song sung by her that I can't forget: Cymru Fach

 

[UnderYourSpell]

I said to my husband that I wished I had her voice and he replied so do I then I'd never have to work again!

 

[Roxxxy91]

audeamus, Im glad to hear you say about the religion aspect of the song, when i think of the song i think of religion as well. It feels better to know im not a complete nut, drawing something out of it thats not there. Its strange and good how everyone can see something different in a song and relate it directly back on themselves.

All our lives
we've been waiting
for someone to call our leader
all your lies
I'm not believing
When i hear this verse I think of it as religious groups taking advantage of the fact that people are lost and need something to look up to. "never understood this life
and you're right I don't deserve but you know I'm not the only one".. I think in essence what she is saying is she doesnt just blindly follow what they say but she questions it and she she's not the only one that knows something more sinister is going on.. Anyways thats just how the song relates to me and what i 'hear' in it probably because when i was younger I had alot of religion forced down my throat and met some religious people who were alot different to how they seemed, or how they were supposed to be, as trusted memebers of the community.. Thats just what I think of about the song, probably has nothing to do with how she wrote it hehe.
Theres another line from an evanescence song wich i think is really clever, "I dont need to touch the sky - I just want to feel that high. But you refuse to lift me

oggbashan, funny you should bring that song up! Ive never heard of it but I actually wrote a poem after my father died (i was 12 at the time) that is very similar, damn... I feel so un original now lol!

My Mum is a huge fan of that kelly clarkson song and I think its because she directly relates to it..

I also loved concrete angel. There are some good songs coming up

 

[audeamus]

hello roxxxy91, you are definitely not a nut. i value your opinions on lyrics that impact you. and anyone else for that matter. if you don't mind me asking, and this question is for anyone interested, are there any other genre's of music you enjoy? i love all kinds, but don't want to post something that everyone may not delight in. thank you for sharing your thoughts -- look forward to more additions.

concrete angel is so touching, here is my favorite line:
Bearing the burden of a secret storm

 

[Roxxxy91]

I like all kinds too. I used to be into alot of the 'darker' stuff but Im alot more cruisey these days . I love alot of Jason Mraz/accousticy kinda stuff.. How about every one else?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MA5vR_f34hA&feature=related
This is an absoloute awesome song

 

[DeepGreenEyes]

audeamus,
I'm sorry you're having a hard time right now. I hope things get better. Songs have always helped me to feel better, too. Sometimes when I'm down, I like to wallow in dark lyrics that make me feel less alone; other times, if I can find something quirky and funny that helps me.

I don't know what anyone else thinks, but I have no problem with adding anything that has particular meaning to you, lyrically. If people don't connect to it, they can always scroll by it.

Take care.

 

[Roxxxy91]

Oooh this is another really cool one, I really like it and I know exactly what he is saying Ive felt the exact same about a woman, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpGmhdMW0Is - LOL sorry about the pics in the vid, but because the song was never a single there is no music video for it and i just had to use one that someone had made..

"Woman"

If I be so inclined to climb up beside you,
Would you tell me that the time just isnt right?
And if I should ever find the key you hide so well,
Will you tell me that I can spend the night?

Leavin your smell on my coat, leavin your taste on my shoulder.
I still fail to understand what it is about this woman.

If I could bottle up the chills that you give me
I would keep them in a jar next to my bed.
And If I should ever draw a picture of a woman
It is you that would come flowing from my pen

Leavin your clothes on the floor, Making me walk out the door
And I still fail to understand what it is about this woman.

Helplessly melting as I stand next to the sun.
As she burns me, I am screaming out for more
Drink every drop of liquid heat that I've become.
Pop me open, spill me out on to the floor.

Leavin your smell on my coat, leavin your taste on my shoulder,
I still fail to understand, fail to understand
Leavin your smell on my coat, leavin your taste on my shoulder.
I still fail to understand what it is about this woman.

Hmm thinking im so spamming this thread lol! Theres Sooo many cool songs though!

 

[audeamus]

love this line :

And If I should ever draw a picture of a woman
It is you that would come flowing from my pen

 

[audeamus]

audeamus,
I'm sorry you're having a hard time right now. I hope things get better. Songs have always helped me to feel better, too. Sometimes when I'm down, I like to wallow in dark lyrics that make me feel less alone; other times, if I can find something quirky and funny that helps me.

I don't know what anyone else thinks, but I have no problem with adding anything that has particular meaning to you, lyrically. If people don't connect to it, they can always scroll by it.

Take care.

hello deepgreeneyes,

thank you so much for your concern. both you and roxxxy91 are precious.

 

[UnderYourSpell]

Squeeze - Labelled with Love

She unscrews the top of a new whiskey bottle
And shuffles about in her candle lit hovel,
Like some kind of witch with blue fingers in mittens
She smells like the cat and the neighbours she sickens,
The black and white t.v. has long seen a picture
The cross on the wall is a permanent fixture,
The postman delivers the final reminders
She sells off her silver and poodles in China.

Drinks to remember, I me and myself
And winds up the clock
And knocks dust from the shelf
Home is a love that I miss very much
So the past has been bottled and labelled with love.

During the war time an American pilot
Made every air raid a time of excitement,
She moved to his prairie and married the Texan
She learnt from a distance how love was a lesson,
He became drinker and she became mother
She knew that one day she'd be one or the other,
He ate himself older, drunk himself dizzy
Proud of her features, she kept herself pretty.

Drinks to remember, I me and myself
And winds up the clock
And knocks dust from the shelf
Home is a love that I miss very much
So the past has been bottled and labelled with love.

He like a cowboy died drunk in his slumber
Out on the porch in the middle of summer,
She crossed the ocean back home to her family
But they had retired to roads that were sandy,
She moved home alone without friends or relations
Lived in a world full of age reservation,
On moth eaten armchairs she'd say that she'd sod all
The friends who had left her to drink from the bottle .

Drinks to remember, I me and myself
And winds up the clock
And knocks dust from the shelf
Home is a love that I miss very much
So the past has been bottled and labelled with love .
The past has been bottled and labelled with love.
The past - has been bottled and labelled with love.

 

[neci]

Swing Life Away - Rise Against

Am I loud and clear, or am I breaking up?
Am I still your charm, or am I just bad luck?
Are we getting closer, or are we just getting more lost?

I'll show you mine if you show me yours first
Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse
Let's unwrite these pages and replace them with our own words

We live on front porches and swing life away,
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
If love is a labor I'll slave till the end,
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand

I've been here so long, I think that it's time to move
The winter's so cold, summer's over too soon
Let's pack our bags and settle down where palm trees grow

I've got some friends, some that I hardly know
But we've had some times, I wouldn't trade for the world
We chase these days down with talks of the places that we will go

We live on front porches and swing life away,
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
If love is a labor I'll slave till the end,
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand....until you hold my hand

I'll show you mine if you show me yours first
Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse
Let's unwrite these pages and replace them with our own words

We live on front porches and swing life away,
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
If love is a labor I'll slave till the end,
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand

Swing life away [x4]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_WwsA_Ky-k