| Bon Iver – Flume Lyrics | 15 years ago |
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I'll meet you halfway, in that I'll agree that there isn't an overt meaning to the lyrics, but I'll disagree that this is somehow a bad thing. I'd say the first important thing to remember is that this isn't a poem, it's a song. In this song the sound, rhythm and flow of the words are the significant part, specifically in the way that these elements interact with the rest of the music. The fact that it's abstract doesn't mean that it's not beautiful, it just means that its beauty comes from sound as opposed to meaning. Music itself is nothing more than highly structured sounds, but that doesn't mean that music can't be beautiful, does it? Also, even if there's no overt meaning, the diction does have some connection and significance. That is, if I were to listen to the words I could ideantify such things as motherhood, the color red, and a duck in the song, even if the song doesn't have any grammatical meaning. So if you want to look at the song's value from a semantic perspective, the song uses words and their connotations, blending them and associated sentiments, while forgoing a direct meaning through any sort of coherent grammatical structure. It's actually pretty sophisticated stuff. |
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| Peter Gabriel – Downside Up Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| There's a lot of physics in this song, no? Acceleration, and centripetal force...I mean, it's a metaphor, but still... | |
| Peter Gabriel – Big Time Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| I think it is about this whole ambitious, upwardly mobile attitude people seem to have, but at the same time it seems to be very tongue-in-cheek, at the same time making fun of such people for being so superficial and materialistic. | |
| Peter Gabriel – Shock The Monkey Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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In the 60's and 70's they did behavioral experiments with monkeys, part of which involved giving them electrical shocks and seeing how they responded. Reading everything that's been posted so far, this seems to be the most likely/obvious source of the concept of "shocking the monkey" As for what it means, that's still open to interpretation. |
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| Oingo Boingo – Winning Side Lyrics | 17 years ago |
| Hmm...I never thought of the Crusades specifically, but yeah, I'd be inclined to go with it being a sarcastic commentary on general militarism and the like. | |
| Devo – Mongoloid Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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Interestingly enough, not only was Mongoloid a term originally used to describe Down's Syndrome, but John Langdon Down (the guy they named the syndrome after) believed that it it was a result of a sort of genetic de-evolution, which was why it caused White people to take on "Mongoloid" characteristics (It was the 19th century, so I think at that time they believed that Asians were less evolved that Whites/Caucasians). I think what the song means is that this guy, whether through a medical condition or, more probably, as a metaphor, is so underdeveloped could be considered mentally retarded, but no one notices because culture has de-evolved so much that he fits right in. The point is that you don't have to be smart in order to function in society, you just have to be able to fit in with the corporate/consumer culture, which can easily be done, probably best of all, by someone with surprisingly little intelligence. SO as a culture we're all de-evolving... I'm kind of reminded of the song "Plastic Man" by the Kinks. Similar theme. |
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| Devo – Whip It Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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I think the most obvious explanation, or what would seem to be the obvious meaning to those who don't get the irony, would be thatit's about being able to use confidence to overcome your problems (in the sense that to "whip it" would be to beat it or overcome it). What gives away the fact that it's irony is the part about how "Before the cream sits out to long/you must whip it"...because sudden;y it's talking about whipped cream. It's odd that people don't even go so far as to get the first possible misconception, and underthink it to the extent that they think it's about actually whipping something (like with a whip). But that's the point of Devo songs, isn't it? That if you don't think about it you'll completely miss the irony/humor...so you end up being a part of the culture that the song is making fun of, and the joke's on you... That's the point, isn't it? Devo songs are a parody of the consumers of the music industry...? |
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| Devo – Beautiful World Lyrics | 17 years ago |
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You know, I think even without the "It's not for me" line it's got a very sarcastic/ironic vibe to it. It's funny, because it takes the incredibly superficial concept of a "beautiful world", the kind where everything's made of plastic, and has the General Electric logo, which was an actual mentality at one time, but makes it sound so incredibly upbeat that it sounds as superficial as it really is. What it does is take a cultural mentality, and sets it to such repetitive, up-tempo, upbeat music that if you were to take it seriously you would think "ugh, what a terrible pop song", which in turn makes the statement that consumer culture is as superficial as pop music. And the video is great. I'm not even sure the song's complete without the video. |
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| They Might Be Giants – Birdhouse in Your Soul Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| In response to the claim about the Longines Symphonette (first comment), I'd like to point out that, as far as I know, the Longines Symphonette is also the name of a watch made by the Longines company for the 1964 World's Fair...and I know a few TMBG songs have to do with the 1964 WOrld's Fair so...I just thought I'd mention it. | |
| They Might Be Giants – Ana Ng Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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As far as the comments about Ng being a Vietnamese name, I'm pretty sure it's actually Chinese. Looking at a couple of websites, I see that Ng the Cantonese variation of the name Wu, whereas the Vietnamese variation of the same name is Ngo. And I know someone (or at least find myself around someone) with the name Ng, and I think he's Chinese... |
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| The Kinks – God's Children Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| I certainly don't think it's sarcastic. Still, I don't necessarily think it's referring to God as a specific diety, but more as a concept. This is one of a good many of Ray's songs about Man vs. Nature. The idea is that there is a certain natural order to things, and that the power of nature (or God, if you will) is greater than man. | |
| Oingo Boingo – Dead Man's Party Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| The Rodney Dangerfield movie is "Back to School", for which Danny Elfman also wrote the score. In the film, Oingo Boingo can be seen performing the song. | |
| The Tubes – She's A Beauty Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| I believe the lyric is "cause if you do you'll find out she don't love you", not "you're gonna lose" | |
| Queen – I Can't Live With You Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| That's odd...I always thought songs had stanzas. | |
| Queen – Bet Your Bottom Dollar Bill You're a Playboy Lyrics | 18 years ago |
| ...CKER | |
| Elton John – Can You Feel The Love Tonight? Lyrics | 18 years ago |
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It's true, Elton John didn't write the lyrics, for those of you who are interested they were written by Tim Rice (in accordance with the movie "The Lion King, although this version of the lyrics only appeared during the end credits and on the soundtrack). Elton John's a very good singer as well, this is a fantastic song. As to what it means, it carries the general spirit of it's use in "The Lion King" (one of my favorite movies by the way). It's not terribly complicated, essentialy it's a love song, yet one of the better love songs in existence, as rather than addressing a particular person or describing a particular story, it's more of a poetic description of one's feelings of love than anything else (literally "can you feel the love tonight"). In the movie, the film version of the song is used to convey a sense of being at peace with oneself and the world, and being able to set aside your many conflicts and hardships, whatever they may be, in favor of being able to give yourself over to a sort of oneness with the world, brought on by the feeling of love, more poweful than any of your hardhips, or anything else for that matter. This version of the song does pretty much exactly the same thing, if nt more effectively, given the lyrics. It's not clear whether the speaker is actually a warrior/voyager/wanderer, or if he is simply comparing himself to one, but the idea is the same: Even someone with the burdens of a warrior or voyager can set everything else aside for once, because of this overwhelming and enchanting power that love has. Overall it's a fantastic song (as I believe I've said already), however it's terrible that the person who posted these lyrics can't be bothered to write out the word "you". And yes, Elton John is gay, but how that has anything to do with anything is beyond me. He's still very talented. Freddie Mercury was gay as well, and look at all he's accomplished musically. And as long as we're speaking of talented gay writers, Plato and Walt Whitman are all well and good, but you can't forget Oscar Wilde, the Wilde one himself. And that's about it. Ciao. |
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| Queen – My Fairy King Lyrics | 19 years ago |
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Surely we must also see the connection to the later songs "Lily of the Valley" and "Seven Seas of Rhye" with which this song has much in common. Observe "Son of heaven set me free and let me go" compares to "Serpent of the Nile/Relieve me for a while/And cast me from your spell and let me go also the Fairy King "can see things/ He rules the air and turns the tides/That are not there for you and me/Ooh yeah he guides the winds", but by the end of the song someone has "shamed the king in all his pride" In "Lily of the Valley" a "Messenger from seven seas has flown/to tell the king of Rhye he's lost his throne It is quite possible that this "messenger" is the speaker in "Seven Seas of Rhye" As in Seven Seas of Rhye the "messenger" demands that people "fear him" for he "commands their souls" and will "destroy any man who dares abuse his trust", it is possible that he is taking the throne of Rhye, likely from the Fairy King' The question is, is Rhye truly an idyllic place, or is the speaker in "My Fairy King" simply a loyalist to the king, who believes that his king can "do right and nothing wrong". Perhaps the King is in fact an opressive ruler, which explains how he can "rule the air and turn the tides", in the sense that a loyalist speaker may truly believe that his king is omnipotent, and that the speaker believes the King "can see things...that are not there for you and me", while he is actually trying to supress knowledge and keep the populace ignorant. This would be in keeping with the theme that the "messenger" from "Seven Seas of Rhye" was trying to rid the place of corruption, while the speaker believes that the attempt to "take away the power from the magic hand" has simply "brought about the ruin to the promised land" It is likely that this leads to much war and killing, which may or may not have ended, as, while the Messenger has "challenged the mighty titan (the king?) and his troubadors" he states that "with a smile" (victoriously) he'll "take you to the seven seas of Rhye", N.B. he intands to, he has not actually sone so yet, for in "Lily of the Valley" the speaker says that "wars will never cease/is there time enough for peace". While the Fairy King is likely not in power anymore, there does not appear to be stability. The Fairy King "rules the air and turned the tides" yet after the messenger "wronged the winds and turned the tides" the speaker must "carry on through stormy skies" In both "My Fairy King" and "Lily of the Valley" the speaker references Roman gods while crying for help "Mother Mercury/Look what they've done to me" and "Neptune of the seas/An answer from you please" Then again, this is just my interpretation, but it seems to make sense, especially when listening to "My Fairy King", "Seven Seas of Rhye" and "Lily of the Valley" in order, one after another. Still, there are probably other ways of looking at it, and either way, I'd appreciate your input/feedback |
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| Queen – Brighton Rock Lyrics | 19 years ago |
| It's called "Brighton Rock", but it's not about Brighton, it's about Blackpool (I believe at one time the title of the song was going to be "Blackpool Rock). The "gay illuminations" are a reference to the Blackpool Illuminations. | |
| Queen – Spread Your Wings Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| Sammy does't have any real ambition, you know? If he were to follow his dreams he wouldn't get very far. That's the problem | |
| Oingo Boingo – Island In The Sea Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| I believe the proper title of this song is in fact "Islands" | |
| Oingo Boingo – Ain't This The Life Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| I like this song because it mentions New York as a very upscale place | |
| Oingo Boingo – Stay Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| This song is a random collection of short phrases following a very loose set of guidelines put together in a specific order and set to music. I like it | |
| Oingo Boingo – Little Girls Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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See, what's great about this song is that no matter what the meaning it is, it isn't really scandalous at all. Even if it is about pedeophillia, it doesn't make you want to stand up and shout "Oh my, that's indecent!" |
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| Oingo Boingo – Insanity Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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It's one of Danny Elfman's many criticisms of Christianity, amongst other things. Fantastic song, the opening reminds me a bit of some of Danny's film scores. A closing sentence... |
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| Oingo Boingo – Capitalism Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| According to Danny Elfman "It's serious satire". Now all I need to do is figure out what the hell that means... | |
| Oingo Boingo – Mary Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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The song really makes sense in a bery broad way, and the ambiguousness allows for many possibilities. I think we can agree, however, that Mary comes from a white Christian (probably Catholic) family, in either a rural or suburban area. She's unhappy, she runs away, has some very painful yet eye-opening experiences, then realizes that she wants to go back to when she was innocent, but can't. Or it could be a metaphor for a person changing as they grow older. Or it could be that it's the story of Buddha, with the name "Mary" as a substitute for "Buddha" Or it could refer to one of the biblical Marys. Whatever it may be, it's a great song, and it sounds fantastic as well. |
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| Queen – Radio Ga Ga Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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Hmm...I like the idea of a music video to a song about radio. Kind of contradicts itself with the song's general theme, doesn't it? |
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| Queen – I'm In Love With My Car Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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See, this is what I love about Roger Taylor... Not only is this a great song, and he has a great voice, but he's able to sing on so many high keys...then harmonize...with himself. And at the end...he actually has the sound of his car |
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| Queen – Keep Yourself Alive Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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Hey, I like it. I think the idea isn't that you can't change, but that there's no real point. No matter what you do, no matter how much "better" you become, you're still the same person. So what's the point in going through all that work to get ahead in the competition, when you're competing for something that doesn't really matter? The only thing that really does matter is the basic things, or rather, basic thing, which is, in the end, keeping yourself alive. So live simply, because nothing you achieve is going to make you any better. So it's not that you can't change, but that you don't have to. It's a simple song conveying the complicated philosophy of living simply. Or maybe I'm completely wrong, and it's the opposite... |
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| Queen – No-One But You (Only the Good Die Young) Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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Eh, I think Brian May's a fine singer (and a superb guitarist). True, his voice may not be able to convey the passion neccessary, but what can you do? I personally think the song would sound better if he had Roger Tayler backing him up on the chorus...then again, I could be completely crazy. Maybe I just like hearing Roger Taylor... Still, great song; I think Brian May's a great songwriter. |
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| Jethro Tull – Aqualung Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| I heard somewhwere about Ian Anderson getting sued by the company that owns the trademark on the name "Aqualung". Does anyone know anything about this? | |
| Queen – Seven Seas Of Rhye Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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You know what I like about this song? It's fun. I've heard songs that are good, inspiring, beautiful and the likes, but this is one of the few songs in existence that is actually fun. |
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| Living Colour – Memories Can't Wait Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| The original is better | |
| Kelis – Milkshake Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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No, no, no, it's literally about milkshakes. ...well, not really. You know, they say they call it art because it makes you think... |
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| Gus – Don't Fear The Reaper Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| I perfer the original... | |
| Louis Armstrong – What A Wonderful World Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| I've got 6 words for you: "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". The BBC Mini-Series | |
| Britney Spears – Oops!...I Did It Again Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| Ah, I can instantly tell you one problem with the song (or at least a reason you people probably wouldn't like it). This isn't really a "Britney Spears" song, it's a cover...The original was performed by Louis Armstrong back in the 1940s..You know, that "What a Wonderful World" guy. | |
| Akon – Lonely Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| All songs are remakes. "You Are My Sunshine", a song from back in the early 1900s...And here it is again, the same underlying theme in a whole new package. | |
| Queen – I Want To Break Free Lyrics | 20 years ago |
| I can't believe that Coca-Cola got a hold of this song. It seems like more of a Pepsi anthem to me... | |
| Queen – I Want It All Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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I've got the "I'm a man with a one track mind So much to do in one lifetime (people do you hear me) Not a man for compromise and where's and why's and living lies So I'm living it all, yes I'm living it all And I'm giving it all, and I'm giving it all Oooh oh yeah yeah - ha ha ha ha ha" part on my answering machine |
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| Queen – One Vision Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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Hmm...I'd actually have to say that this song seems pretty totalitarian. It seems that the person who this song concerns believed that making everything one would create the ideal society, a society in which everybody was the same. As he got older he realized that this would be impossible, as you can't force everybody to think the same. He is now lamenting about this in an incredibly rockin' way. In an alternate interpretation, the narrator actually created this world he invisioned, but it all comes crashing down on him when he realizes that nobody's really any better off, hence the line "look what they've done to my dream" And even though this is irrelevent, I think that when he says "I'm ready" he sounds a lot like Chris Tucker. Oh, and the fried chicken line is bizarre. I think it's there because you expect to hear "one vision" so much that the words "fried chicken" are ridiculously funny (at least to me they are). |
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| Talking Heads – Heaven Lyrics | 20 years ago |
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"Its hard to imagine that nothing at all could be so exciting, could be so much fun." I always thought that this meant that there was nothing that could be so exciting as Heaven. I now realise that it means that Heaven is exciting and fun, eventhough literally nothing happens. Ingenius. |
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| Talking Heads – Once In A Lifetime Lyrics | 21 years ago |
| The flow of water is the flow of life. You could either just let the days go by, and go with the flow, or you can struggle against it and let it hold you down. | |
| Talking Heads – Heaven Lyrics | 21 years ago |
| Note on "nothing ever happens": The meaning is that Heaven is purely an emotional experience. Remember, even though nothing ever happens, "nothing ever could be so exciting, could be this much fun | |
| Oingo Boingo – Insanity Lyrics | 21 years ago |
| Myoria: A really good Boingo song about the stupidity of evolution id "Why'd We Come" | |
| Oingo Boingo – Out Of Control Lyrics | 21 years ago |
| This song only gets better as time goes by | |
| The Kinks – Waterloo Sunset Lyrics | 21 years ago |
| Actually very similar to the way I feel about Manhattan | |
| Blue Öyster Cult – Don't Fear The Reaper Lyrics | 21 years ago |
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This is quite possibly the most recognizable song in the history of music. I can name it in two or three notes. When I hear this song (or at least the last verse) I am reminded of an episode of The Twilight Zone about a woman who spends her whole life hiding from death. She then unlocks her door to rescue a wounded police officer. She eventually discovers he is in fact Death, but also realises she trusts him more than anyone else. I first heard this song as a bumper for Coast to Coast AM. I fell in love with it instantly, then spent several years trying to find it again (I didn't know the name or artist). Less than a month ago I discovered that I actually own a copy of it, and have all this time. |
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| Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody Lyrics | 21 years ago |
| About Fandango: Interestingly enough, fandango has become the name of a mildly successful company through which you can buy movie tickets. It's commercials feature paper-bag-people who say things like "Yeah, I Fandango. It saves me alot of time so on Saturdays me and my wife can go clubbing" | |
| Queen – The Prophet's Song Lyrics | 21 years ago |
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The impression I recieve from this song is actually that of tribal Africa, and it's invasion by christians. Could it be that "people of the earth refers to people living not neccesarily on the planet, but instead living on the soil, or earth? It seems to me that the "prophet" and "seer" are two different people, the seer being an African priest or priestess, an the prophet being a missionary. I see the very first stanza is a warning from the priest or priestess. The second bit looks like a division between the priest and the christians. And after that begins an all out war, a competition for faith of the Africans, both parties claiming to be prophets, both preaching a religion. Also the "cold of night" could be a metaphor for the result of the lacking of religious grounding from the Africans. Also I believe that the "wise man" is the priest or priestess, wheras the "mad man" is the christian. Or maybe I'm wrong... |
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