The Poetry Of Music

I am a guy who does not watch TV, but literally always has music playing in the background.

I wanted to create a place where lyrics to our favorite songs, songs we enjoy, or lyrics that have touched you or affected us in a certain way could be shared.

Feel free to post a songs lyrics in its entirety, or a verse bridge or chorus by it self.

Also would be interesting to hear your interpretation of the lyrics or what touches you when you hear them (if you don't mind sharing personal feelings).

also feel free to post a link to the song you are sharing so others can listen to it.

Funny, Sad, Happy, Serious, Loving, Whiskey Drinking, all types of music is welcome.

Please credit the songwriter, singer, or band in your post as well.

Lets Get This Party Started !!!!!!!!!!!

Sadness
~Ben Nichols of the band Lucero

You knew it was bound, to catch me again
Well hello sadness
My old friend
Well it's been awhile
But now I see
You're back in style
Well sit down and rest, I ain't goin' no where
I feel the pain
Like a shot from a gun
Feel it deep in my gut
I'm done tryin to run
I'm given in, I'm given up
I'm tired of the fight
Well you got my corner
To know it ain't right
Well ill surrender tomorrow if I live through the night.
Well you got my corner
Hell I know it ain't right,
Well Ill surrender tomorrow if I live through the night

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1CMVMCjDJ8

Great thread 👍🏻

https://youtu.be/psZuC10Oa4E

Phoebe Bridgers - Killer

[Verse 1]
Sometimes I think I'm a killer
I scared you in your house
I even scared myself by talking
About Dahmer on your couch
But I can't sleep next to a body
Even harmless in death
Plus, I'm pretty sure I'd miss you
And faking sleep to count your breath

[Chorus]
Can the killer in me
Tame the fire in you?
Or is there nothing left to do for us?
I am sick of the chase
But I'm hungry for blood
And there's nothing I can do

[Verse 2]
But when I'm sick and tired
And when my mind is barely there
When a machine keeps me alive
And I'm losing all my hair
I hope you kiss my rotten head
And pull the plug
Know that I've burned every playlist
And I've given all my love

[Chorus]
Can the killer in me
Tame the fire in you?
I know there's something waiting for us
I am sick of the chase
But I'm stupid in love
And there's nothing I can do
And there's nothing I can do


So I have literally lost count of all the times I have listened to this album in full. There’s something utterly haunting about it, and I think that relates to the album title of “stranger in the alps” well. You really get that sense of misplacement from this collection as a whole.

What I love about Killer, is the way the backdrop is portrayed. There’s a 25 year old woman, saying all the stuff that just goes through our minds sometimes at some point on a low ebb, but we never really talk about.

The vulnerability that she portrays in the simplicity of her lyrics offers this salve to the fact that like all humans, her frustration is not one of violence, but one of being incomplete and craving love. This idea is cemented by the phrase “and there’s nothing I can do” which is almost an anthem of acceptance. It acknowledges we are what we are.

I love the paradox she creates within this song of the tempestuous nature of being human: half-blood, half-heart. And that I think makes it a very powerful track.

Miss_Sub said:

So I have literally lost count of all the times I have listened to this album in full. There’s something utterly haunting about it, and I think that relates to the album title of “stranger in the alps” well. You really get that sense of misplacement from this collection as a whole.

What I love about Killer, is the way the backdrop is portrayed. There’s a 25 year old woman, saying all the stuff that just goes through our minds sometimes at some point on a low ebb, but we never really talk about.

The vulnerability that she portrays in the simplicity of her lyrics offers this salve to the fact that like all humans, her frustration is not one of violence, but one of being incomplete and craving love. This idea is cemented by the phrase “and there’s nothing I can do” which is almost an anthem of acceptance. It acknowledges we are what we are.

I love the paradox she creates within this song of the tempestuous nature of being human: half-blood, half-heart. And that I think makes it a very powerful track.

I enjoyed this song, it fits both my categories for a good song ... beautiful & devastating

Slint. Good Morning, Captain
Last song on their only album, Spiderland. Chillingly beautiful.

https://youtu.be/XBE2EUT34aY

"Let me in", the voice cried softly
From outside the wooden door.
Scattered remnants of the ship
Could be seen in the distance.
Blood stained the icy wall of the shore.
"I'm the only one left, the storm took them all."

He managed as he tried to stand.
The tears ran down his face.
"Please, it's cold"

When he woke, there was no trace of the ship
Only the dawn was left behind by the storm.
He felt the creaking of the stairs beneath him
That rose, from the sea to the door.
There was a sound at the window then.
The captain started, his breath was still.
Slowly, he turned.

From behind the edge of the windowsill
There appeared a delicate hand of a child.
His face was flush and timid.
He stared at the captain through frightened eyes.

The captain reached for something to hold on to.
"Help me", he whispered, as he rose slowly to his feet.
The boy's face went pale.
He recognized the sound.
Silently, he pulled down the shade against the shadow.
Lost in the doorstep of the empty house.

"I've been trying to find my way home.
I'm sorry, I miss you.
I miss you.
I've grown taller now.
I want the police to be notified.
I'll make it up to you.
I swear, I'll make it up to you.
I miss you."

Strangeways_Rob said:Slint. Good Morning, Captain
Last song on their only album, Spiderland. Chillingly beautiful.

https://youtu.be/XBE2EUT34aY

"I've been trying to find my way home.
I'm sorry, I miss you.
I miss you.
I've grown taller now.
I want the police to be notified.
I'll make it up to you.
I swear, I'll make it up to you.
I miss you."


Thank you for sharing this one. I have them playing on my feed right now and there is some pretty good stuff, In the past I have listened to the yeah yeah yeahs which I believe the bass player was part of, but never listened to Slint before.

No Glory in Regret
~John Moreland

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmBuhVs0kWc

Did you hear the devil laughing
From the ambulance passing
Or was that just my troubled mind?
Don't you wanna shake the ground
And tear heaven down
And raise your fist to the guilty sky
I've been pouring whiskey in the wind
Burning pictures of my best friends
Until the ashes cover me like rain
And you meant something to me then
And you mean something to me now
But some things ain't meant to stay the same
So bless our busted hearts
Just sinking into the dark
Mourning these wasted old sparks
That all disappear
I never meant to be
Your woe-is-me emergency
But I ain't dead yet
And I know there ain't no glory in regret
Don't it feel like the truth
Comes at the price of your youth
When the hell you've paid ain't quite enough
And God's been making deals
While we're down here spinning our wheels
And using up our little share of luck
Well, you beg the world to know your name
And you get glitter spilling out your veins
Turn turn turn, babe, I guess it's true
'Cause I was standing on a dead end drive
With my pride, thumbing for a ride
And somehow I ended up next to you
So bless our busted hearts
Just sinking into the dark
Mourning these wasted old sparks
That all disappear
I never meant to be
Your woe-is-me emergency
But I ain't dead yet
And I know there ain't no glory in regret
Don't it feel like the truth
Comes at the price of your youth

John is a mountain of a man who makes his guitar look like a ukulele when he is playing, and  a tortured soul who is not afraid to put feelings to music. I don't think he has a song that I cannot relate to I could sit and listen to his guitar and raspy voice all day long.

Jethro Tull Aqualung

Sitting on a park bench
Eying little girls with bad intent
Snots running down his nose
Greasy fingers smearing shabby clothes, hey, Aqualung
Drying in the cold sun
Watching as the frilly panties run, hey, Aqualung

Feeling like a dead duck
Spitting out pieces of his broken luck, oh, Aqualung
Sun streaking cold, an old man wandering lonely
Taking time, the only way he knows
Leg hurting bad as he bends to pick a dog end
He goes down to a bog and warms his feet
Feeling alone, the army's up the road
Salvation a la mode and a cup of tea
Aqualung, my friend, don't you start away uneasy
You poor old sod, you see it's only me

Do you still remember
December's foggy freeze
When the ice that clings on to your beard
It was screaming agony
Hey and you snatch your rattling last breaths
With deep-sea diver sounds
And the flowers bloom like
Madness in the spring

Sun streaking cold, an old man wandering lonely
Taking time, the only way he knows
Leg hurting bad as he bends to pick a dog end
He goes down to a bog and warms his feet
Feeling alone, the army's up the road
Salvation a la mode and a cup of tea
Aqualung my friend don't you start away uneasy
You poor old sod, you see it's only me
Aqualung my friend don't you start away uneasy
You poor old sod, you see it's only me



This song when it first came out in 1971 was new different from everyday rocknroll
It touched me then without knowing what the lyrics meant
Later in life I felt it's meaning when I became homeless
The song about a vagrant, a traveler, a sojourner who is seen by others in the worst way
He was creepy frightening and dirty.
A man down on his luck and accepted his fate he had pretty much demoralized himself
The view of the homeless by people who are not empathetic or just ignore the plight of the person is widespread
After living " on the street" for nearly a year I see things much clearer
I cleaned toilets at convenience stores in exchange for day old donuts and sandwiches
I bathed in store bathrooms
My favorite was a new mall that had sprung up for high end vendors granite interior walls in the restrooms spacious spotless clean it became my daily jaunt
The building had only rented out two suites out of 15
I had privacy it was clean and welcoming

There are bums and their are homeless you learn where you will be safe quickly
I carried a knife a curved blade home Depot carpet knife
And what I consider a life saver an anglers filet knife .
I only had one scare during my time on the street but that was enough something I will never forget
I ran so fast and so hard I could not feel my feet as they hit the ground
Knocking on doors people do not answer someone in distress

This song reminds me to not judge others you don't know what their story is
Always be ready and willing to help

https://youtu.be/Vw7OsMkqqiM

New Kind of Lonely
~Hayden Karchmer AKA The Hill Country Devil

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PFdmQSrxSw

I clear my throat as I hold the phone
And I've got so much to say,
But my courage fails and I'm silent anyway.

And I've been giving in to old mistakes,
There's comfort in familiar pain,
Oh it's the new kind of lonely that will drive my mind insane.
Oh it's the new kind of lonely that will drive my mind insane.

I attempt to sleep through the fever dreams,
But never quite win that fight.
So I compensate with nicotine and China white.

And as the moonlight shines upon my tired eyes,
I marvel before the view.
And I wonder if the light is shining on you too.
Yeah, I wonder if the light is shining on you too.

They say you just have to wait it out
It'll fade away like everything else.
But it's no easier now.
No, it's no easier now.
It's no easier now.
And you'd think after all this I'd have settled down.

I'm carrying on the best I can,
but that ain't saying much,
As most of my weight's still leaning on a crutch.

So I beg myself to just be brave,
though it seems I'll never start.
'Cause it's the new kind of lonely that weighs heavy on my heart.
Oh, it's the new kind of lonely that weighs heavy on my heart.

They say that time really ought to help,
and I'll forget in spite of myself
But it's no easier now
No, it's no easier now.
It's no easier now.
And you'd think after all this time I'd have settled down.



There is not much he writes that i cannot relate to. His demons may be different then mine but the end game is oh so similar. We all have struggles, but to put them out there and share them with people letting them know they are not alone in this "fight" is a gift this man has.

Sometimes I think about Saturday's child
And all about the times when we were running wild
I've been out searching for the dolphins in the sea
Ah, but sometimes I wonder, do you ever think of me?

This old world will never change the way it's been
And all our ways of war won't change it back again
I've been out searchin' for the dolphins in the sea
Ah, but sometimes I wonder, do you ever think of me?

Lord, I'm not the one to tell this old world how to get along
I only know that peace will come when all our hate is gone
I've been a-searchin' for the dolphins in the sea
Ah, but sometimes I wonder, do you ever think of me?

Dolphins. Fred Neil. How pertinent to earth, 2020.

https://youtu.be/mrg5C9eUhZc

3 days this thread has been alive and not 1 Morrissey lyric....yet ;)

I Will Rise
~Benjamin Todd

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st-CkCeqMO0

Oh, it's hard to wake from feeling blue
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
And my hands may shake from lack of booze
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
And though I've fallen out of space and time
Oh, I will rise, I will rise
And I dug my grave with honest lies
Oh, I will rise, I will rise
Now, I'm king of the hounds
I wear shame like a crown
And they're placing bets all over town
On how I'll die
But I will rise
And I grieve to death from losing you
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
Now, I choke on ash like cheap perfume
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
Oh, I'm scared to death of my own mind
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
And from the bottom of the well I hide
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
Now, I'm king of the hounds
I wear shame like a crown
And they're placing bets all over town
On how I'll die
But I will rise
And I walk through hell and like the view
Oh, but I will rise, I will rise
And though your image of me now is skewed
Oh, I will rise, I will rise
And I've given up my final time
Oh, and I will rise, I will rise
And now, my candle burns from either side
Oh, and I will rise, I will rise
Now, I'm king of the hounds
I wear shame like a crown
And they're placing bets all over town
On how I'll die
Oh, but I will rise

Just a good song about the struggle and fight

Stars and Stripes of Corruption-----Dead Kennedys


https://youtu.be/983DwAOCXRI



Finally got to Washington in the middle of the night
I couldn't wait
I headed straight for the Capitol Mall
My heart began to pound
Yahoo! It really exists
The American International Pictures logo

I looked up at that Capitol Building
Couldn't help but wonder why
I felt like saying "Hello, old friend"

Walked up the hill to touch it
Then I unzipped my pants
And pissed on it when nobody was looking

Like a great eternal Klansman
With his two flashing red eyes
Turn around he's always watching
The Washington monument pricks the sky
With flags like pubic hair ringed 'round the bottom

The symbols of our heritage
Lit up proudly in the night
Somehow fits to see the homeless people
Passed out on the lawn

So this is where it happens
The power games and bribes
All lobbying for a piece of ass

Of the stars and stripes of corruption
Makes me feel so ashamed
To be an American
When we're too stuck up to learn from our mistakes
Trying to start another Vietnam
Wilke fiddling while Rome burns at home
The Boss says, "You're laid off. Blame the Japanese"
"America's back," alright
At the game it plays the worst
Strip mining the world like a slave plantation

No wonder others hate us
And the Hitlers we handpick
To bleed their people dry
For our evil empire

The drug we're fed
To make us like it
Is God and country with a band

People we know who should know better
Howl, "America riles. Let's go to war!"
Business scams are what's worth dying for

Are the Soviets our worst enemy?
We're destroying ourselves instead
Who cares about our civil rights
As long as I get paid?

The blind Me-Generation
Doesn't care if life's a lie

So easily used, so proud to enforce

The stars and stripes of corruption
Let's bring it all down!
Tell me who's the real patriots
The Archie Bunker slobs waving flags?
Or the people with the guts to work
For some real change
Rednecks and bombs don't make us strong
We loot the world, yet we can't even feed ourselves
Our real test of strength is caring
Not the toys of war we sell the world
Just carry on, thankful to be farmed like worms
Old glory for a blanket
As you suck on your thumbs

Real freedom scares you
'Cause it means responsibility

So you chicken out and threaten me

Saying, "Love it or leave it"
I'll get beat up if I criticize it
You say you'll fight to the death
To save your worthless flag

If you want a banana republic that bad
Why don't you go move to one
But what can just one of us do?
Against all that money and power
Trying to crush us into roaches?

We don't destroy society in a day
Until we change ourselves first
From the inside out

We can start by not lying so much
And treating other people like dirt
It's easy not to base our lives
On how much we can scam

And you know
It feels good to lift that monkey off our backs

I'm thankful I live in a place
Where I can say the things I do
Without being taken out and shot
So I'm on guard against the goons
Trying to take my rights away
We've got to rise above the need for cops and laws

Let kids learn communication
Instead of schools pushing competition
How about more art and theater instead of sports?

People will always do drugs
Let's legalize them
Crime drops when the mob can't price them
Budget's in the red?
Let's tax religion

No one will do it for us
We'll just have to fix ourselves
Honesty ain't all that hard
Just put Rambo back inside your pants
Causing trouble for the system is much more fun

Thank you for the toilet paper
But your flag is meaningless to me
Look around, we're all people
Who needs countries anyway?

Our land, I love it too
I think I love it more than you
I care enough to fight

The stars and stripes of corruption
Let's bring it all down!
If we don't try
If we just lie
If we can't find
A way to do it better than this
Who will?



What can I say, these guys and a few choice others were my entrance into teenhood.
Thinking/digging/exploring the underbelly of the world, whether it be music, politics or art.

These were one of the few groups who actively spoke of politics and it's evils.
The singer Jello Biafra actively worked circuits of spoken word (a few albums released as such as well) and start-up organizations to disrupt or actively support change in his area (S.F.)
He even ran for mayor at one point.


The influence and well...information of the crooked things our government has done and continue to do...it made me look for this suppressed info. throughout my life.
My father worked for the govt. his whole life.
So to see the flip-side of things as opposed to my fathers view ...was truly something for a 13-14 yr. old
So with eye opening realization comes-The Books and Rallies .
Lol...as much as we love them...is it not natural to want rebellion against parental figures at some point?
Ahhhhhh Youth...
again this song is an instant time capsule for me
many snap-shot memories ...

Johnny Marr (formly Of The Smiths, Electronic) - New Town Velocity



Left home a mystery
leave school for poetry
I say goodbye to them and me
mission velocity
It made me just run faster now
I'm gonna take it off driving round
Make up my mind
leave the windows down

I'm in something alright, I know
I got to live it up, oh-oh, oh
I can't resist, make for zero, oh, no
It turned out like I said it would
can I get the world right here?

Step up to symphonies
they play on for you and me
When we face that July dawn,
the uniforms one on one
No run, we chased that summer down

I'm in something alright, I know
I got to live it up, oh-oh, oh
I can't resist, make for zero, oh, no
It turned out like I said it would
can I get the world right here?

Hello, you mystery,
mission velocity
Here comes our poetry,
new town velocity, new town velocity

Cherokee
~ John Moreland

I guess I've got a taste for poison
I've given up on ever being well
I keep mining the horizon
Digging for lies I've yet to tell
I wish you were here to softly say name
Calm down all the chemicals tearing through my brain
I don't think I've missed you this much since I was seventeen
I'd call you in the morning but I think this is a dream

Cherokee
Cherokee
Where you carved those doubts right out of me

I see you shining through the treetops
But I don't feel you pulling strings anymore
I still use your old alarm clock
Every morning I get further off of course
And don't I hear you speaking in the noises of this house
Airplanes flying over shaking all my secrets out
Now darling tell me something I don't already know
I'm aware of where to find you
It hurts too bad to go

To Cherokee
Cherokee
Where you carved those doubts right out of me

I felt like the world was burning
You had stars in your eyes
Shining for a feeling I can't afford to buy
Everything you taught me still rattles in my head
I'm staying off of Main Street
You're talking to the dead

In Cherokee
Cherokee
I wish you'd carve these doubts right out of me

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