# Best single lines in rock lyrics **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [November 20, 2022, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262 "2022-11-20T16:21:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/241 "2022-12-11T05:15:44Z")
So many possibilities… Have you come here to play Jesus To the lepers in you head? If I just lay here Would you lie with me and just forget the world? Elvis was a hero to most You don’t need to be a Weather Man To know which way the wind blows The only girl I’ve ever loved Was born with roses in her eyes And every handout in every town And every lock that ain’t locked When no one’s around I played the pump and took the hump And watered whiskey down I was once like you are now/ and I know that it’s not easy/ To be calm when you’ve found/ Something going on Did they get you to trade/ Your heroes for ghosts? His Majesty signed/ With his own rubber stamp Take a sad song and make it better Picture yourself in a boat on a river With tangerine trees and marmalade skies We sick and tired of your ism-schism game Dyin’ an’ goin’ to Heaven in a Jesus name We used to mix Hen with Bacardi Dark And when it kicks in you can hardly talk Adolph builds a bonfire, Enrico plays with it To love another person is to see the face of God Dance me to your beauty with a burning violin But you don’t really care for music, do ya? Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard Fat Charlie the Archangel sloped into the room It was the myth of fingerprints Emancipate yourself from mental slavery It smelled like turpentine it looked like India ink Don’t know about you, but I am a chein Andalusia Little did I know that you were Romeo you were throwing pebbles Desmond takes a trolley to the jeweller’s store No you can’t go back to Constantinople Been a long time gone ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/242 "2022-12-11T05:53:47Z")
There is a crack, a crack in everything That’s how the light gets in And leaning on your window sill He’ll say one day you caused his will To weaken with your love and warmth and shelter Daylight come an’ I wanna go home I’ve been to Hollywood, I’ve been to Redwood I crossed the ocean for a heart of gold Some folks inherit star-spangled eyes Or in the parking lot, circling, screaming, “I don’t give a fuck!”/ With his windows down and his system up And found my cleanest dirty shirt To die by your side us such a heavenly way to die Standin’ in the sunlight laughing’ hiding’ behind a rainbow wall ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/243 "2022-12-11T07:22:51Z")
bad religion : Better off dead A smile on the lips and a hole in the head Better off dead Yeah, better than this Take it away, 'cause there’s nothing to miss Better off dead You’re better off dead Why don’t you try pushing daisies instead? Better off dead You’re better off dead A smile on the lips and a hole in the head And I’ll never make The same mistake The next time I create the universe, I’ll make sure you participate Oh yeah and “I want to conquer the world and show all the idiots a brand new religion” one more: have you ever done everything you’ve ever wanted to ? well that’s just what I do so hooray for me and fuck you " ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/244 "2022-12-11T08:05:59Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > And found my cleanest dirty shirt Having done this once or thrice in my lifetime … I always hear Johnny Cash in my head when I do. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/245 "2022-12-11T15:09:14Z")
The buzzing of the bees in the cigarette trees And the wise men don’t know how it feels to be thick as a brick Does anybody really know what time it is? Don’t go changing to try to please me ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/246 "2022-12-11T16:42:33Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > And the wise men don’t know how it feels to be thick as a brick Another great line about wise men: _Although the masters make the rules, for the wise men and the fools_ Bob Dylan, It’s Alright Ma, I’m Only Bleeding ---
**Author:** ![2\_More\_Bits](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2_more_bits/32/4148_2.png) [@2\_More\_Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2_More_Bits)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2022, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/247 "2022-12-11T16:49:30Z")
_There’s something in the way she moves_ _Or looks my way, or calls my name_ _That seems to leave this troubled world behind_ -James Taylor ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/248 "2022-12-12T00:03:43Z")
So many of Cockburn’s best lines need the rest of the stanza for context, but not this one. _ **May your life be filled with light…** _ _ **Except for when you’re trying to sleep.** _ . (ETA: Eh, I’ll include them anyhow) _May you never tire of waiting,_ _Never feel that life is cheap._ _May your life be filled with light…_ _Except for when you’re trying to sleep._ ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/249 "2022-12-12T01:26:20Z")
Merry Christmas everyone, _Just for a moment I was back at school, and felt that old familiar pain,_ _and as I turned to make my way back home, the snow turned in to rain._ Dan Fogelberg _Hey, Santa, pass us that bottle, willya?_ Jethro Tull _When what to my wondering eyes should appear, in the line it’s that guy I’ve been chasing all year._ The Waitresses ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/250 "2022-12-12T02:12:08Z")
“Cold and misty morning, I heard a warning borne in the air” - ELP. “I drank a jar of coffee, and then I took some of these” - The Fall. Don’t get me even _started_ on Mark E. Smith “Housewife heroines, addicts to their homes” - Gang of Four “If you like piña coladas, and gettin’ caught in the rain” - Do I even need to _say?_ Um, like, the Smooth One, himself? What can I say? He’s slick, he can’t help it. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/251 "2022-12-12T02:53:55Z")
And I wondered how the same moon outside this chinatown fair; could look down on Illinois and find you there ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/252 "2022-12-12T04:49:26Z")
> [@EnolaStraight](#): > > For a pocket full of mumbles such are promises…all lies and jests, > Still a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest. > > The Boxer, Simon and Garfunkel Lyric from the Central Park Concert: _I am older than I once was_ _And younger than I’ll be_ _That’s not unusual_ _No, it isn’t strange_ _After changes upon changes_ _We are more or less the same_ ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/253 "2022-12-12T12:43:45Z")
May your heart always be joyful May your song always be sung And may you stay forever young Bob Dylan ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2022, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/254 "2022-12-12T13:04:26Z")
Two from the same song: “You consider me the young apprentice Caught between the Scylla and Charibdes” “Mephistopheles is not your name I know what you’re up to just the same” That’s some serious wordsmithing there. ---
**Author:** ![EnolaStraight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/41988e/32.png) [@EnolaStraight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EnolaStraight)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2022, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/255 "2022-12-13T01:27:26Z")
“Didn’t need no Welfare State, everybody pulled his weight.” Those were the Days, Archie and Edith ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2022, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/256 "2022-12-13T10:54:38Z")
“Desire is hunger is the fire I breathe, Love is the banquet on which we feed.” - Patti Smith, _ **Because the Night** _ (Springsteen is on record as saying he only did the music and the chorus, every other lyric was Patti) “It was a pretty big year for fashion A lousy year for rock and roll The people gave their blessing to crimes of passion It was a dark, dark night for the collective soul.” - Don Henley, _ **The Garden of Allah** _ “At a tombstone bar in a juke joint car, he made a stop Just long enough to grab a handle off the top.” - Boz Scaggs, _ **Lido Shuffle** _ “Spanish Johnny drove in from the underworld last night With bruised arms and broken rhythm and a beat-up old Buick but dressed just like dynamite” - Bruce Springsteen, _ **Incident On 57th Street** _ ---
**Author:** ![its\_the\_daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bb73d2/32.png) [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2022, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/257 "2022-12-13T11:16:10Z")
Now Hobnail Kelly and the Beefcake Kid Just rolled into town from the land of sewn-up faces Looking for a woman who can punch and kick and bite Slide on down to the Egypt Room Find the only woman who’s holding all the aces The Princess is dancing at the Egypt Room tonight ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2022, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/258 "2022-12-14T00:06:13Z")
“…everybody funny, now you funny, too.” —George Thorogood & The Destroyers, “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer” ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2022, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/259 "2022-12-14T01:56:09Z")
Just a stranger on the bus ,trying to make his way home. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2022, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262/260 "2022-12-14T02:01:00Z")
Well she might be nasty she might be fat But I never met a person who would tell her that She’s my big blonde bomber My heavy handed Hackensack mama [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-single-lines-in-rock-lyrics/975262.md?page=14)