He doesn't sing particularly well most of the time, in my opinion, though he definitely has the ability to. But I find his songwriting to be superb. I don't know, the fact that he's written about 10 albums worth of poetry, without ever really striving to stick to one particular genre, makes him one of my top artists. I know a lot of people who can't stand the sound of him when a song starts; but I think there's genius in his words whether you like his voice or not.
Posts: 349 | Registered: Jul 2006
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I'll add Tom Waits to my list. The vocals really help carry the lyrics, but they can be phenominal on their own.
Also, Ween. Maybe their songs seem nonsensical a lot of the time, but Buenas Tardes Amigo and Mutilated Lips, to name a few, are awesome.
*sings* "Mutilated lips give a kiss on the wrist of the worm-like tips of tentacles expanding in my mind. I'm fine, accepting only fresh brine. You can get another drop of this, yeah you wish."
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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GD: I can't actually follow the link you provided, because at my workplace I can't watch YouTube. Am I right in guessing that it links to Weird Al's video? Anyhoo.. I am a Nirvana fan, but that doesn't mean I'm totally deaf to any criticism about Cobain's skills/talent. For me the songs just work, I can't tell you why. (Well, actually I could but then this post would likely trail on into infinty ) If you really want to know something about Nirvana's lyrics, I propose you read the book on the subject. It was written by a guy named Chuck Chrisafulli and has some pretty decent explanations on even the vaguest of lyrics.
Besides Cobain, I'd like to give kudos to Ian Anderson (especially for such songs as "My God" and "Skating Away On The Thin Ice Of A New Day") and Daniel Johns ("Cemetery", "Ana's Song" and "Thinking In Reverse" are amongst my favourites).
Furthermore I'd like to second the following: Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Carole King and yes even the Offspring ("When will the world listen to reason... when will the truth come into season I have a feeling it'll be a long time")
I can't really tell you why I like certain lyrics and/or lyricists, but the following statement comes pretty close. Some songs just agree with me, and far more often than not I find that I agree with the songs as well. I like lyrics that aren't immediately clear in their meaning. Musing on the possible interpretations of words is a favourite pastime of mine (this doesn't apply only to song lyrics). In agreement with Steve I do have to add that it isn't necessary for the lyrics to have some deep underlying theme going on. (I also like Weird Al, and one of my favourite songs "Frutch" by the Incredible String Band is a non-sensical song if ever there was one.)
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The first person I thought of was Bono from U2. I was suprised he hasn't been listed so far. I know he can get preachey sometimes, and his themes may be to religous for some but he still has some of the best lyrics in the last 20 years.
Still haven't found what I'm looking for Is almost a hymn.
Running to stand still -- about someone dealing with addiction
Wild Horses -- Has some great lines.
Heaven’s white rose The doors you open I just can't close
The Fly -- written from the point of view of someone on a pay phone in hell.
Every artist is a cannibal, every poet is a thief All kill their inspiration and sing about their grief
Trying to throw your arms around the world -- Written from the point of view of Judas
Sometimes you can't make it on your own -- about his relationship with his father, written after he died. (they didn't get along most of the time)
Can you hear me when I sing... You're the reason I sing You're the reason why the opera is in me
A Man and a Woman - about the love for his wife, whom he has been faithful to since before he was famous.
But I could never take a chance Of losing love to find romance In the mysterious distance Between a man and a woman
Bono has written lots of great songs over the years you just have to dig into them a little. I think his greatest talent is to write lyrics that are specifically vague. Meaning he generally writes about things that are going one with him, a very specific situation, but he writes them in a way that is vague enough to apply to lots of people's own situations. The listener may have completely different meaning in mind than what Bono was going through, but somehow the emotions express still apply.
There are lots of other great lyricist, like some of the ones already on the list but since no one had discussed Bono I went into detail...
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By the way Cobain wasn't a very good lyricist. Good performer, yes, but not lyricist. If he hadn’t committed suicide we would talk about him nearly as much and Nirvana wouldn’t be nearly as popular with the critics today. Sorry to the fans.
Look, I gotta go, yeah I'm running outta change
Posts: 555 | Registered: Jun 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Eduardo St. Elmo: If you really want to know something about Nirvana's lyrics, I propose you read the book on the subject. It was written by a guy named Chuck Chrisafulli and has some pretty decent explanations on even the vaguest of lyrics.
I love poetry and music that makes me think, but I firmly believe that if you have to go to a source outside of the original material just to understand what the song is about, then it’s a bad song (the only exceptions being when a dictionary is required and when writers use allusions the reader is not familiar with). In order for communication (and that’s what art is to me, at its core) to be good, the audience should be able to understand the message just based on the message, even if it takes hours of thought.
I’m completely comfortable with music for the sake of music, and I know that there isn’t always a message beyond trying to evoke an emotion.
quote:Originally posted by GaalDornick: First, I just want to say I hate Kurt Cobain as much as I can hate someone I've never met . I think his music is complete crap and he has basically no talent as a guitarist or a lyricist. ... And I hate what he represented and his influence on his generation. I blame emo crap on him.
You shouldn’t blame emo crap on him, it’s been around for a long time. Follow the link to see the role-model responsible for American youth today and all that Emo crap. The parallels are astounding. Deathly thin, pale white complexion, suffered from depression, he even cut himself, and had frequent dreams about his own death and went so far as to threaten suicide at various points in his life. I almost forgot to mention that he loved to wear black. If you're going to blame anyone, it should be him.
Plus, Rush played a role in emo music as well. 2112 is about a misunderstood artist in an oppressive society who dreams of men from outer-space liberating the world and then he commits suicide. It's hard to get more emo than that (and yes, a lot of emo music is sci-fi inspired).
Posts: 247 | Registered: Feb 2007
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[/qb][/QUOTE]You shouldn’t blame emo crap on him, it’s been around for a long time. Follow the link to see the role-model responsible for American youth today and all that Emo crap. The parallels are astounding. Deathly thin, pale white complexion, suffered from depression, he even cut himself, and had frequent dreams about his own death and went so far as to threaten suicide at various points in his life. I almost forgot to mention that he loved to wear black. If you're going to blame anyone, it should be him.
[/QB][/QUOTE]
I rather like Nirvana. Without them I would have kept hating rock and roll, thinking that it's all men singing about how much sex they want to have with every woman. Kurt Cobain had this tongue in cheek sarcasm I liked. But I wonder if Eddie Vedder in some ways overtakes him. Perhaps not enough, since he kept singing songs about how much he hated being famous when Dir en grey probably would love the sort of respect Pearl Jam probably got in the past. Kaoru says many folks in Japan HATE Dir en grey which is quite depressing considering how good they are at what they do.
Posts: 9942 | Registered: Mar 2003
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DD: I can basically agree with you about the need for outside sources being proof that the song in question isn't very good. I'm not saying that I didn't understand what the songs were about until I read the book, but it did help me see through some of the more vague lyrics. I would never have guessed that the lyrics to "Polly" described actual events, if I hadn't read about it. Let's just say that (for me) this was a major help in knowing how to see beyond the literal meaning of words and investigating every possible meaning until you find the idea that ties it all together - most of the time after hours of thought.
quote:Originally posted by DevilDreamt: You shouldn’t blame emo crap on him, it’s been around for a long time. Follow the link to see the role-model responsible for American youth today and all that Emo crap. The parallels are astounding. Deathly thin, pale white complexion, suffered from depression, he even cut himself, and had frequent dreams about his own death and went so far as to threaten suicide at various points in his life. I almost forgot to mention that he loved to wear black. If you're going to blame anyone, it should be him.
I go back further to Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Posts: 14017 | Registered: May 2000
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quote: You shouldn’t blame emo crap on him, it’s been around for a long time. Follow the link to see the role-model responsible for American youth today and all that Emo crap. The parallels are astounding. Deathly thin, pale white complexion, suffered from depression, he even cut himself, and had frequent dreams about his own death and went so far as to threaten suicide at various points in his life. I almost forgot to mention that he loved to wear black. If you're going to blame anyone, it should be him.
Ok, to be specific, Cobain is responsible for the current wave of emo. IMO.
Posts: 2054 | Registered: Nov 2005
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He sings from the heart, and has INCREDIBLE range, but that's not why i like him. I like it because when he writes, he writes things that are important to him, based on situations he's been in, but in a way that can be interpreted literally thousands of ways, so each fan can take what they need from it. He's not afraid to approach taboo subjects, especially things like suicide. The AFI fan club, the Despair Faction, is HUGE. But even while we connect over the music, we connect over things that are completely unrelated. Since everyone takes something different from the words, everyone is different- we're not carbon copies of each other, like some fan bases are. And it's an incredible feeling, having a family like that.
Posts: 1591 | Registered: Jul 2005
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I was listening to some Hank Williams and thinking about how incredible some of his lyrics are in that they're so evocative of a certain mood. I had to dig up this thread 'cause I never mentioned him in it.
Sorry for the resurrection. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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I missed the thread the first time arround. Now I scanned it for Cole Porter. I knew he had to be here. Synesthesia finally came through. They don't write lyrics like this any more!
Posts: 1167 | Registered: Oct 2005
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Because Elton John isn't a lyricist. Now Bernie Taupin, on the other hand...
Peter Gabriel Woody Guthrie Ian Anderson W.S. Gilbert James Taylor Christine Lavin Phil Collins Stephen Schwartz Alanis Morrisette
Posts: 3735 | Registered: Mar 2002
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The guy who sings for Eve 6 writes some great lyrics. They're usually just pop songs about girls, but the phrasing is very clever.
Jim-Me mentioned Maynard Keenan last year -- Maynard doesn't write the lyrics for A Perfect Circle, Billy Howerdel does. Or rather, did. Howerdel's now gone on to form his own band, Ashes Divide, where he sings his own lyrics. I think he's a good lyricist.
I also think Maynard is a pretty good lyricsist. There's some random weirdness in some Tool songs, but others (e.g. 10,000 Days) have great lyrics. About his mother dying:
Fetch me the Spirit, the Son and the Father, Tell them their pillar of faith is ascending.
Whoever writes the lyrics for Novillero songs is good, too, in a totally different way:
And I just sit here minding my morally deficient business Watching the world pass nonchalantly by
That's, like, my life anthem. Posts: 10886 | Registered: Feb 2000
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![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
) If you really want to know something about Nirvana's lyrics, I propose you read the ![[Laugh]](graemlins/laugh.gif)
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Ok, to be specific, Cobain is responsible for the current wave of emo. IMO.
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