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Monday, July 24, 2006
"You make my peepee go DOING DOING DOING"
Just one of the selections in the Phoenix's list of the 32 worst lyrics of all time.
Thing is, you could probably come up with as good a list by just taking the first 32 CDs out of your cupboard and noting down a couple of lines from the first songs on them out of context. A more worthy exercise would actually be to come up with 32 really bad lyrics by artists otherwise acclaimed for their lyrics, like Bob Dylan and Bono. (And I promise you, you'll get some wicked shit.) But it's all pointless, because to me Rock 'n Roll's never been about the lyrics. Sure, good lyrics add to the mix, but they're the cherry, not part of the cake.
The most sublime album I've ever heard is Van Morrison's Astral Weeks, and the lyrics of its title track are, well, crappy. Yet, as Jay Berliner's guitar kicks in behind Richard Davis's bassline, and as Morrison begins to sing, it's the closest to musical heaven I can get. (More about Astral Weeks here and here.)
And ah, the bit quoted in the headline of this post is by Eminem. And here's an excellent essay on him, The Zen of Eminem, by Zadie Smith. (I love the way it ends, those last two paras.)
(Phoenix link via email from Scribbler.)
Thing is, you could probably come up with as good a list by just taking the first 32 CDs out of your cupboard and noting down a couple of lines from the first songs on them out of context. A more worthy exercise would actually be to come up with 32 really bad lyrics by artists otherwise acclaimed for their lyrics, like Bob Dylan and Bono. (And I promise you, you'll get some wicked shit.) But it's all pointless, because to me Rock 'n Roll's never been about the lyrics. Sure, good lyrics add to the mix, but they're the cherry, not part of the cake.
The most sublime album I've ever heard is Van Morrison's Astral Weeks, and the lyrics of its title track are, well, crappy. Yet, as Jay Berliner's guitar kicks in behind Richard Davis's bassline, and as Morrison begins to sing, it's the closest to musical heaven I can get. (More about Astral Weeks here and here.)
And ah, the bit quoted in the headline of this post is by Eminem. And here's an excellent essay on him, The Zen of Eminem, by Zadie Smith. (I love the way it ends, those last two paras.)
(Phoenix link via email from Scribbler.)
