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freak show

By freak show
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freak show

freak show

Posted
Posted

I recently saw a documentary about Elvis. I watched out of curiosity, as I'm not a fan, and it was fairly interesting -- especially since I had never paid that much attention to his music before. Yes, like everyone I had heard a few Elvis songs, but up until this film, I had never really listened. One of the songs in the docu was "Hound Dog":

 

"You ain't nuthin' but a hound dog,

Cryin' all the time.

You ain't nuthin' but a hound dog,

Cryin' all the time.

Well, you never caught a rabbit,

And you ain't no friend of mine.

 

When they said you was high-classed,

Well that was just a lie.

When they said you was high-classed,

Well that was just a lie.

You ain't never caught a rabbit,

And you ain't no friend of mine."

 

WTF? That's the song! I don't think I had ever heard the whole song before, so I guess I had always expected that there was more. But there isn't. I'm not saying the song is "bad". Obviously it's sort of catchy, has a nice sound, and Elvis seems to have a pretty good delivery, but those are some of the worst lyrics I have ever heard. What's that supposed to mean? Do hound dogs cry a lot? Why should this person who is being addressed want to catch a rabbit? And why does not catching a rabbit mean that the person isn't high-classed?

 

Anyway, what do you consider to be an example of really bad lyrics in a successful song?

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Versatile

Versatile

Posted
Posted

I recently saw a documentary about Elvis. I watched out of curiosity, as I'm not a fan, and it was fairly interesting -- especially since I had never paid that much attention to his music before. Yes, like everyone I had heard a few Elvis songs, but up until this film, I had never really listened. One of the songs in the docu was "Hound Dog":

 

"You ain't nuthin' but a hound dog,

Cryin' all the time.

You ain't nuthin' but a hound dog,

Cryin' all the time.

Well, you never caught a rabbit,

And you ain't no friend of mine.

 

When they said you was high-classed,

Well that was just a lie.

When they said you was high-classed,

Well that was just a lie.

You ain't never caught a rabbit,

And you ain't no friend of mine."

 

WTF? That's the song! I don't think I had ever heard the whole song before, so I guess I had always expected that there was more. But there isn't. I'm not saying the song is "bad". Obviously it's sort of catchy, has a nice sound, and Elvis seems to have a pretty good delivery, but those are some of the worst lyrics I have ever heard. What's that supposed to mean? Do hound dogs cry a lot? Why should this person who is being addressed want to catch a rabbit? And why does not catching a rabbit mean that the person isn't high-classed?

 

Anyway, what do you consider to be an example of really bad lyrics in a successful song?

You are completely missing the point

 

This song (and Elvis in general)

 

Was all about good time

 

Dangerous

 

Swivel Hip...Lock up your Daughters

 

Music

 

Somebody must have liked it

 

It sold by the truckload !!

 

Try 'The Ooby Dooby' by Roy Orbison....

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freak show

freak show

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I'm not saying the song is "bad". Obviously it's sort of catchy, has a nice sound, and Elvis seems to have a pretty good delivery, but those are some of the worst lyrics I have ever heard.

[...]

Anyway, what do you consider to be an example of really bad lyrics in a successful song?

 

You are completely missing the point

 

This song (and Elvis in general)

Was all about good time

Dangerous

Swivel Hip...Lock up your Daughters

Music

Somebody must have liked it

It sold by the truckload !!

 

Try 'The Ooby Dooby' by Roy Orbison....

 

I agree with you completely, but like I said initially, I don't consider "Hound Dog" to be a bad song. I have never believed that a great song has to have great lyrics, and I can think of many great (or at least successful) songs which don't. But you've got to admit that the lyrics to "Hound Dog" aren't exactly in the same league as stuff written by Springsteen, Young, Dylan, McCartney, Waters, etc...

 

I'll have to google "The Ooby Dooby", but it sounds promising!

 

[biggrin]

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Versatile

Versatile

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Fats Waller brings his inimitable style to a song called "Your Feet's Too Big".

 

It has the wonderful rhyming couplet;

 

"Your pedal extremities are collossal;

To me you look just like a fossil..."

 

Tremendous stuff!

Yes great fun...written for a laugh...some jazz people had great senses of humour !!

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Versatile

Versatile

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Many modern (and older) song lyrics are silly/amusing/surreal

 

How about Marezy Doats and Dozy Doats?

 

Paul Simon (solo) writes some surreal lyrics :

 

'It was Sunny Day' etc.

 

Paul McCartney 'Rocky Racoon' etc has great humour in a lot of his songs

 

Long may it be so....

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Silenced Fred

Silenced Fred

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Elvis, and for that matter, a lot of artists in that time period wrote just awful stuff. It was all pop music for the sake of getting the attention of 13 year old girls. My sister has a song, I forget who its by, but its the same three words throughout the entire song from someone in the 60s. She loves it, I just crank up Soundgarden [biggrin]

 

That's why I can't stand pop music

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Daryl M

Daryl M

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I have a major pet peeve of folks who just come up with random lines that rhyme that have absolutely nothing to do with anything. There are SO many, but LFO's "Summer Girls" is a perfect example.

 

Stayed all summer then went back home,

Macauly Culkin wasn't Home Alone

Fell deep in love,but now we ain't speaking

Michael J Fox was Alex P Keaton

 

Poetry...just poetry. ](*,)

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EVOL!

EVOL!

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Posted

I don't know who is worse - STP or Bush. Might have to go with Creep by STP. That line where rhymes mouse and house? Epic.

 

Forward yesterday

Makes me wanna stay

What they said was real

Makes me wanna steal

Livin' under house

Guess I'm livin', I'm a mouse

All's I gots is time

Got no meaning, just a rhyme

 

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause it likes to heal

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause I like to steal

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause it likes to heal, I like to steal

 

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

Well, I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

Well, I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

Well, I'm half the man I used to be, half the man I used to be

 

Feelin' uninspired

Think I'll start a fire

Everybody run

Bobby's got a gun

Think you're kinda neat

Then she tells me I'm a creep

Friends don't mean a thing

Guess I'll leave it up to me

 

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause it likes to heal

Take time with a wounded hand

Guess I like to steal

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause it likes to heal, I like to steal

 

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

I'm half the man I used to be, half the man I used to be

 

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause it likes to heal

Take time with a wounded hand

Guess I like to steal

Take time with a wounded hand

'Cause it likes to heal, I like to steal

 

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

I'm half the man I used to be

This I feel as the dawn

It fades to gray

I'm half the man I used to be, half the man I used to be,

Half the man I used to be

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saturn

saturn

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I don't know who is worse - STP or Bush. Might have to go with Creep by STP. That line where rhymes mouse and house? Epic.

 

 

I've always felt the same way about both of those bands. Thing is, I like a lot of their music, the riffs and melody. but the lyrics...what are they singing about? Like Bush "I don't believe that Elvis is dead..." :-k

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mrktwn

mrktwn

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Posted

Any song by any band that tunes guitars lower than D and can only play in a minor key. Its like the only thing they know is to be pissed off at somebody else. Or just pissed off. No metaphor, no story, no emotion, little idea that there is any other kind of a world out there. Yes this is a generalization. Perfectly willing to be proven wrong.

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46 and 2

46 and 2

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.Anyway, I always thought Kiss wrote some of the worst lyrics.

 

Double super triple agree!!! I basically despise KISS anyway but their lyrics give me a special sickness in my stomach. From that gem “Lick It Up” my favorite…”You gotta live like you’re on vacation” woot, thanks for the advice boys!!

Side note, maybe the greatest lyrics in rock form Sammy Hagar's “There's only one way to rock”

 

“Crank up the drums, crank out the bass

CRANK UP MY LES PAUL IN YOUR FACE!!”

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Golem

Golem

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Posted

..... Elvis. ......

 

"You ain't nuthin' but a hound dog,

Cryin' all the time.

You ain't nuthin' but a hound dog,

Cryin' all the time.

Well, you never caught a rabbit,

And you ain't no friend of mine.

 

When they said you was high-classed,

Well that was just a lie.

When they said you was high-classed,

Well that was just a lie.

You ain't never caught a rabbit,

And you ain't no friend of mine."

 

WTF? That's the song! ......

Noooooo... thaz not REALLY the song !

 

Where's the lines like "snoofin' roun' mah door" ?

 

The original "Hound Dog" lyrics are typical of the

lightly veiled sexual rapport thaz traditional in so

much of the recorded blues. Elvis just ripped off

stuff and bleached it.

 

 

 

`

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