Song Lyric Chat

[rodney203]

Poetry put to music, or vice versa, is, of course, an old art form with a value of its own. Then too, some people have also made a lot of money from it.

Some lyrics have surprised me over the years with their beauty and meaning.

The song "Please Come To Boston", by the one-hit-wonder Dave Loggins, contains a most beautiful metaphor, and I wonder if anyone here might be interested in seeing if they come to the same conclusion as I on what it's saying.

The passage:

And throw "I love you" echoes down the canyon,

And then lie awake at night till they come back 'round

What's he talking about?

[Peter]

It’s interesting how lyrics seem almost trivial and banal when read, but after hearing them sung with the music they become . . . something else. Do any of the following three song lyrics contain any wisdom or anything compatible with objectivism? Peter  

Fortunate Son by Creedence Clearwater Revival

Some folks are born made to wave the flag
Ooh, they're red, white and blue
And when the band plays "Hail to the chief"
Ooh, they point the cannon at you, Lord
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no senator's son, son
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no

Yeah! Some folks are born silver spoon in hand
Lord, don't they help themselves, oh
But when the taxman comes to the door
Lord, the house looks like a rummage sale, yes

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no millionaire's son, no
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, no

Some folks inherit star spangled eyes
Ooh, they send you down to war, Lord
And when you ask them, "How much should we give?"
Ooh, they only answer More! more! more! yoh

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no military son, son
It ain't me, it ain't me; I ain't no fortunate one, one

It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate one, no no no
It ain't me, it ain't me, I ain't no fortunate son, no no no

Songwriters: John C Fogerty

[Peter]

Imagine by John Lennon.

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No Hell below us
Above us only sky

Imagine all the people
Livin' for today
Aaa haa

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too

Imagine all the people
Livin' life in peace
Yoo hoo

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people
Sharin' all the world
Yoo hoo

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

[Peter]

Like a rolling stone by Bob Dylan.

Once upon a time you dressed so fine
Threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn't you?
People call, say, "Beware doll you're bound to fall"
You thought they were all kiddin' you

You used to laugh about everybody that was hangin' out
Now you don't talk so loud
Now you don't seem so proud
About having to be scrounging your next meal

How does it feel?
How does it feel?
To be without a home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone

You've gone to the finest school, all right Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it
Nobody's ever taught you how to live out on the street
And now you're gonna have to get used to it

You said you'd never compromise with the mystery tramp
But now you realize, he's not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And say, "Do you want to make a deal?"

How does it feel?
How does it feel?
To be on your own
With no direction home
A complete unknown
Like a rolling stone

You never turned around to see the frowns

On the jugglers and the clowns

when they all did tricks for you

Never understood that it ain’t no goodYou shouldn’t let other people get your kicks for you

You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat
Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat
Ain't it hard when you discover that he really wasn't where it's at?
After he took from you everything he could steal

How does it feel?
How does it feel?
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone

Princess on the steeple and all the pretty people
They're all drinkin', thinkin' that they got it made
Exchanging all precious gifts
But you better take your diamond ring, you better pawn it babe

You used to be so amused at Napoleon in rags
And the language that he used, go to him now he calls you
You can't refuse, when you got nothing, you got nothing to lose
You're invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal

How does it feel?
How does it feel?
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone

[Peter]

On 9/19/2010 at 6:18 PM, rodney203 said:

Poetry put to music, or vice versa, is, of course, an old art form with a value of its own. Then too, some people have also made a lot of money from it.

Some lyrics have surprised me over the years with their beauty and meaning.

The song "Please Come To Boston", by the one-hit-wonder Dave Loggins, contains a most beautiful metaphor, and I wonder if anyone here might be interested in seeing if they come to the same conclusion as I on what it's saying.

The passage:

And throw "I love you" echoes down the canyon,

And then lie awake at night till they come back 'round

What's he talking about?

He is waiting for her to respond with her own "I love you." 

[dldelancey]

On ‎9‎/‎19‎/‎2010 at 5:18 PM, rodney203 said:

Poetry put to music, or vice versa, is, of course, an old art form with a value of its own. Then too, some people have also made a lot of money from it.

Some lyrics have surprised me over the years with their beauty and meaning.

The song "Please Come To Boston", by the one-hit-wonder Dave Loggins, contains a most beautiful metaphor, and I wonder if anyone here might be interested in seeing if they come to the same conclusion as I on what it's saying.

The passage:

And throw "I love you" echoes down the canyon,

And then lie awake at night till they come back 'round

What's he talking about?

He has said "I love you" to someone, and he's on pin and needles waiting to hear "I love you, too."

[Peter]

Michael Crawford’s rendition is the best version of “The Music of the Night” from “Les Miserables” but I also like Susan Boyle’s “I Dreamed A Dream.” Check out Susan on Britains Got Talent 2009 on You Tube and Michael's version which I think he is singing to Sarah Brightman is also on You Tube.

Night time sharpens

Heightens each sensation...
Darkness wakes
And stirs imagination
Silently the senses
Abandon their defenses
Helpless to resist
The notes I write
For I compose
The music of the night...

The Music of the Night - Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera

[Peter]

Don Gibson was on a re-re-re-run of the Jimmy Dean Show today on RFD at 5. Many of the songs he wrote were made hits by other people.  The Streets of Laredo.  Oh Lonesome Me.  Sea of Heartbreak.  I Can’t Stop Loving You.

Later, Jimmy Dean quoted another great American. “If you want to wave the flag you’ve got the best one in the world.”

And here’s another quote by that same gentleman.

God bless America, land that I love,
Stand beside her, and guide her,
Through the night, with the light from above,
From the mountains, to the prairies
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, my home sweet home,
God bless America! My Home Sweet Home!

Irving Berlin

I have a feeling Ayn Rand may have hummed that one too. edit. I can't get rid of the underlining.

[Peter]

Name an under-appreciated song with some of the best singing, a lead singer and a stupendous chorus and heart breaking lyrics. It is on You Tube.

She's Leaving Home by The Beatles

Wednesday morning at five o'clock
As the day begins
Silently closing her bedroom door
Leaving the note that she hoped would say more
She goes downstairs to the kitchen
Clutching her handkerchief
Quietly turning the back door key
Stepping outside she is free

She (we gave her most of our lives)
Is leaving (sacrificed most of our lives)
Home (we gave her everything money could buy)
She's leaving home after living alone for
So many years (bye bye)

Father snores as his wife gets into her dressing gown
Picks up the letter that's lying there
Standing alone at the top of the stairs
She breaks down and cries to her husband
Daddy our baby's gone
Why would she treat us so thoughtlessly
How could she do this to me

She (We never thought of ourselves)
Is leaving (never a thought for ourselves)
Home (we struggled hard all our lives to get by)
She's leaving home after living alone for
So many years (bye bye)

Friday morning at nine o'clock she is far away
Waiting to keep the appointment she made
Meeting a man from the motor trade

She (what did we do that was wrong)
Is having (we didn't know it was wrong)
Fun (fun is the one thing that money can't buy)
Something inside that was always denied for
So many years (bye bye)
She's leaving home (bye bye)

Songwriters: JOHN LENNON, PAUL MCCARTNEY