Lyrics

Once again, I'm going to add my voice to that already over-represented group on the internet: people who make judgements, without having the talent or qualifications to back them up. I know people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, but thankfully the internet has no physical manifestation.

I'm inspired to write about lyrics today as I've recently struggled to write my own. I have managed that task, and one day may share the results on here, but need to be sure they'll stand the test of time in my mind first (as I've discussed in previous posts, my hating them in the end is almost inevitable).

But trying to write lyrics remined me what a tricky business it can be. Writing something true and meaningful, catchy but not clichéd, is - I have come to believe - an almost impossible task. So actually getting something down requires a certain amount of pragmatism: an acknowledgement that what you write is likely to be cheesy or lack profundity. Furthermore, it's hard to predict what will resonate in the minds of the listener. What might seem brilliant and orginal to the writer might seem hopelessly derivative to those that hear it, and vice versa (if the writer's particularly lucky).

The saving grace that lyrics have, though, (that poems don't) is an accompanying tune. A strong tune or a good hook has made up for many a crass lyric. So, ultimately, what one has to hope for is a song that is either strong musically, or lyrically. To hope for both is just greedy!

I'd like to just share a couple of my favourite lyrics to end (I've rambled on lots in recent posts, and thought I should keep this one short).

"For diamonds do appear to be
Just like broken glass to me."

I can't believe it took until 2008 for this particular lyric to be penned. Written by Ryan Ross (who, at the time, was in Panic At The Disco), it surely has many songwriters kicking themselves for not having thought of it. It's so obvious, and brilliant in its simplicity.

"It's the facts of life, sunshine."

This lyric is one that causes the phenomenon in my mind that I mentioned above - it resonates with me for reasons I can't explain. It's from the Manic Street Preachers song All Is Vanity. I don't know if I just like the way it sounds, or I relate to the sentiment. But whatever the reason, I really like that particular lyric.

There are plenty of awful lyrics, but I'd rather focus on the good today. And I'm going to end with one that's an example of a category of lyrics that I enjoy: ones where the songwriting process is laid bare:

"Look, another line without a hook."

Much like Alice Cooper's "We can't even think of a word that ryhmes" from School's Out, this line from My Chemical Romance's I'm Not Okay is a knowing wink, and provides an amateur like me with hope: even the best lyricists sometimes run out of ideas. And when they do, the effect can be better than if they hadn't.