Lyrics
I am always boggled by the number of lyrics that appear on blogs. James Graham (musical background) and Lela Rae are but two examples of most excellent nude-photographic-art-related bloggers who constantly use lyrics as a method of expressing their thoughts, their mood, and trying to teach their readers about how they think and feel. They both use lyrics to communicate their art.
Music is the universal language. We humans express ourselves best through music and also via poetry. Of course, poetry nowadays is deeply untrendy. But when it’s put to music, to really GOOD music, it conveys wisdom and enlightenment to the reader. This applies to all types of music – including country, pop, rock and especially opera.
In the movie Dangerous Minds, a schoolteacher (played by Michelle Pfieffer) in an inner-city school finally reaches an impossible class by getting them interested in poetry. Poetry?! Yes, poetry. The poetry of lyrics. Bob Dylan to be exact. The poetry of rock music. This method of teaching has in fact been used all over the world, to great effect, by innovative English Literature teachers. The best way to teach kids, and to make the poetry to stick in their minds, is to use the powerful medium of music. Poetry and rhythm inexorably intertwined are a powerful combination which sticks in your mind and can touch your soul.
Once upon a time, I memorised the first few opening bars and the complete lyrics to every British top 40 single between 1980-1985. No I’m not kidding. What can I say? I loved music with a passion, and I had a heck of a memory then. Plus it was a darn sight more interesting than learning physics. As a result I learned a lot of fantastic rock/pop/love poetry off by heart, but I know nothing about the origins of the universe. However, it’s a useful party piece, and I can impress the kids when they test me (big kudos in the “Clever Momma” stakes.)
If you go to a neuro-linguistic programming class (I have been to several) often they will use music and lyrics to help you remember things. Lyrics are a very useful memory technique. I used to make up lyrics as a method of learning my chemistry periodic tables, and I swear I got full marks every time.
But lyrics are more than that. The good ones are profound. They express mood, teach you a message, and most importantly, because the song is catchy, you remember and identify with them. They are the most powerful teaching mechanism in the world, and I truly wish school teachers would use them more often to engage pupils.
Unfortunately, because I am half deaf nowadays, I tend not to search out new music in the same way as I used to. As a result, I miss out on a heck of a lot of modern artistic thought and enlightenment.
Musicians are poets of the modern society. They teach more than studying ever will. Ignore lyrics at your peril.
And to James and Lela…keep on blogging lyrics! At the very least they introduce me to some grand new tunes every day (‘cos I look them up!), and teach me some fabulous new poetry !
BTW, for those who are interested, my favourite lyrics of all time are U2’s “One” which always makes me “well up” whenever I listen to it. Besides applying to all human-kind, of course, I swear they were written as a sort of psychic predictive wisdom for a good friend of mine because they apply to a particularly rough time not so long ago. Of course, the poetry means nothing without the music (and if you don’t know this song, which rock have you been living under for the last sixteen years? I insist you go download it now!?!) To do this justice, please only listen to when you're feeling melancholy and after at least one bottle of really good red….
Is it getting better?
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now?
You got someone to blame
You say
One love
One life
When it's one need
In the night
One love
We get to share it
Leaves you baby if you
Don't care for it
Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well it's
Too late
Tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to
carry each other
carry each other
One
Have you come here for forgiveness?
Have you come to raise the dead?
Have you come here to play Jesus?
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much?
More than a lot.
You gave me nothing,
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
See we
Hurt each other
Then we do it again
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love is a higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't keep holding on
To what you got
When all you've got is hurt
One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters and my
Brothers
One life
But we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One...
Regular readers will remember the beautiful Rachel T.
Music is the universal language. We humans express ourselves best through music and also via poetry. Of course, poetry nowadays is deeply untrendy. But when it’s put to music, to really GOOD music, it conveys wisdom and enlightenment to the reader. This applies to all types of music – including country, pop, rock and especially opera.
In the movie Dangerous Minds, a schoolteacher (played by Michelle Pfieffer) in an inner-city school finally reaches an impossible class by getting them interested in poetry. Poetry?! Yes, poetry. The poetry of lyrics. Bob Dylan to be exact. The poetry of rock music. This method of teaching has in fact been used all over the world, to great effect, by innovative English Literature teachers. The best way to teach kids, and to make the poetry to stick in their minds, is to use the powerful medium of music. Poetry and rhythm inexorably intertwined are a powerful combination which sticks in your mind and can touch your soul.
Once upon a time, I memorised the first few opening bars and the complete lyrics to every British top 40 single between 1980-1985. No I’m not kidding. What can I say? I loved music with a passion, and I had a heck of a memory then. Plus it was a darn sight more interesting than learning physics. As a result I learned a lot of fantastic rock/pop/love poetry off by heart, but I know nothing about the origins of the universe. However, it’s a useful party piece, and I can impress the kids when they test me (big kudos in the “Clever Momma” stakes.)
If you go to a neuro-linguistic programming class (I have been to several) often they will use music and lyrics to help you remember things. Lyrics are a very useful memory technique. I used to make up lyrics as a method of learning my chemistry periodic tables, and I swear I got full marks every time.
But lyrics are more than that. The good ones are profound. They express mood, teach you a message, and most importantly, because the song is catchy, you remember and identify with them. They are the most powerful teaching mechanism in the world, and I truly wish school teachers would use them more often to engage pupils.
Unfortunately, because I am half deaf nowadays, I tend not to search out new music in the same way as I used to. As a result, I miss out on a heck of a lot of modern artistic thought and enlightenment.
Musicians are poets of the modern society. They teach more than studying ever will. Ignore lyrics at your peril.
And to James and Lela…keep on blogging lyrics! At the very least they introduce me to some grand new tunes every day (‘cos I look them up!), and teach me some fabulous new poetry !
BTW, for those who are interested, my favourite lyrics of all time are U2’s “One” which always makes me “well up” whenever I listen to it. Besides applying to all human-kind, of course, I swear they were written as a sort of psychic predictive wisdom for a good friend of mine because they apply to a particularly rough time not so long ago. Of course, the poetry means nothing without the music (and if you don’t know this song, which rock have you been living under for the last sixteen years? I insist you go download it now!?!) To do this justice, please only listen to when you're feeling melancholy and after at least one bottle of really good red….
Is it getting better?
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now?
You got someone to blame
You say
One love
One life
When it's one need
In the night
One love
We get to share it
Leaves you baby if you
Don't care for it
Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well it's
Too late
Tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to
carry each other
carry each other
One
Have you come here for forgiveness?
Have you come to raise the dead?
Have you come here to play Jesus?
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much?
More than a lot.
You gave me nothing,
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
See we
Hurt each other
Then we do it again
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love is a higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't keep holding on
To what you got
When all you've got is hurt
One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters and my
Brothers
One life
But we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One...
Regular readers will remember the beautiful Rachel T.
Labels: Rachel T
posted by Lin at 6:38 PM
3 Comments:
Great post. I am an oddball. I am more into the music (and the feel)..than the lyrics. I completely understand where your coming from however. I played in a band all the way up through High School up to the point of getting married to Mrs BT in Oct of 1980. Long hair to my fanny...yep..a rock and roller. But I rarely paid attention to the lyrics..it was about the cords..the feel...the blast of the guitar...the drums...the rhythm...the beat...and the bass. It was the "feel" that was appealing. Hypnotic..it was. Nothing like standing in front of a Marshal Stack at 3/4 volume, and banging away at a E chord and letting it sustain away..!!! I still play some today (not as much as I would like)..but I am a hack!! But it still is fun.
I do remember lyrics..but they are secondary for me, and I have to think about it..it does not come natural. Music is not cognitive for me.......its all about the feel..how it effects the soul. Think Charley Patton instead of Eddie Van Halen. Its all about the feel baby!!
oddball bt
Lin,
I couldn't have said this better myself! To me, music, (unless it is the classical music I was trained under) is ALL about the lyrics. There are styles of music I don't care for as much as others, but I still end up loving the song because of the poetry that is the lyrics. I've ALWAYS loved poetry and quotes... and music is my favorite form of poetry.
Also, thank you! I'm glad to know the nearly constant posting of lyrics isn't just annoying everyone! I've been picked on by one or two (though lovingly)... but to me, music is life. Without it, I just don't know how to make my brain work.
And, to prove your point, in a bit different way... studies have show that certain types of classical and ambient music played softly while working or studying increases learning and production in leaps and bounds. The only high school math class I ever did well in, and didn't struggle horribly but actually understood what I was doing... was the only class I ever had that the teacher knew these research findings and always had soft music playing and also let us listen to our own while studying and taking tests.
Thanks for another wonderfully worded post! You always find the best ways to explain everything, and I find myself nodding in agreement quite often while reading! :)
I'm a sucker for good lyrics too. To me, a song is defined by them. To me, the words, lyrics and poetrty matter more than the music, melody or beat. It's the thing that draws me in about a song.
I'm often tempted to post the ones I like, based on what I'm going through in my personal life at that point in time. I usually decide against posting them because I'm really not wanting to share the things that are so personal to me.
Nothing against anybody posting them though. I love reading them, but I like to keep mine close to my chest.
You expressed the meaning of lyrics so well! Kudos once again for another great post.
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