Twenty-four before my love, and I see you!
(I’ve always loved that song, BTW.)
Ca. 1990, SNL had a TV ad parody (couldn’t find a link) for an album called “Beatles Songs You Sort Of Know The Words To.” Some people I worked with and I proposed a comparable album called “R.E.M. Songs You Sort Of Know The Words To” (specifically regarding their early stuff) but agreed that it would probably be more like this, especially the one with all the question marks.
Burn out:
Joplin
Morrison
Moon
Hendrix
Fade Away:
Jagger
Richards
McCartney
Waters
Gilmour
You dig?
Yeah, I was cottoning on to that. I figure Johnny Rotten, in Niel’s tune, would go under the “fade away” heading, although one could posit that PIL was a perfectly robust enterprise for some time.
It’s Neil.
To me, burning out is having a wonderful time in whatever way is wonderful to you and then dying. Fading away is sitting in the old folks home rocking slowly and wondering what the hell is good about living so long. I choose column A. Personally I like Neil’s other line more (better to burn out than it is to rust) mostly for the sound of it, but it’s the same thing.
All of those are still touring, recording, and are hugely successful. They are probably the worst examples of fading away you could have come up with.
There are plenty of people out there who haven’t released a record for decades, who are playing hit songs they despise to (small) crowds who are indifferent to most of them - they are the ones who have faded away. Chuck Berry for the last half of his life would be a pretty good example.
I always got a skeevy impression from Judas Priest’s “Take On the World”.
Sure, Halford wrote it as a stadium-chant rival to “We Are the Champions”, but:
“Put yourself in our hands so our voices can be heard
And together we will take on all the world
Put yourself in our hands so our voices can be heard
And together we will take on all the world”
Came across to me as a rallying-cry to summon all his Aryan catamites together for world domination.
“Move a little nearer you know you gotta follow your leaders
As we need you like you need us for sure
We’re gonna drive you we’re gonna ride you we’re gonna get right inside you:p
And if you wanna keep going just shout out for more!”
Yeah, Rob, I’m sure you felt the force, writing that, you turbo lover, you.
Sting’s Every Breath You Take is often considered a love song, and played at weddings.
Though it is one of the songs about stalking ever written.
It truly is one of them.
“They call me Mellow Yellow.”
That isn’t your name Donovan, stop doing drugs.
“You’re eyes without a face.”
Yes, Wiliiam thinks you’re nothing but a pair of eyeballs. Na-ha.
Anna (Arthur Alexander, covered by The Beatles)
Anna,
You come and ask me, girl,
To set you free, girl,
You say he loves you more than me,
So I will set you free…
You say he loves you more than he loves me, so I will set you free??
“One thing I do have on my mind, if you can clarify please do
It’s the way you call me by another guy’s name when I try to make love to you, yeah”
At first, I had a mondegreen, here, with “by another guy’s name” - for some reason, up until, oh, ten minutes ago, I had always thought it was “by my last name”, and I was gonna post something along the lines of “So - is she sarcastically goin - ‘Oh, Plant, you’re so big (roll eyes)’, or something?”
Now I know what that lyric actually is, I can still point out, though, that the content, itself, is still kinda on the nasty side, especially if this was an intentional habit of hers.
Much as I’ve loved Blue Oyster Cult, I suspect they’re a much better example. Their last album was around 2001, the last album anyone actually cared about was 1988. I last saw them over a decade ago, and it was small clubs even then, yet they still have tour dates in 2019. I’ve heard reports that there are songs they no longer do because Eric Bloom can no longer hit the notes.
The Sex Pistols had just broken up when “Hey, Hey, My, My” was a minor hit (the live version, that is) and who would have thought anyone would remember Johnny Rotten in 40 years, let alone that he would still be a public figure?
Another Yes lyric, from Love Will Find a Way…
Here is my heart
Waiting for you
Here is my soul
I eat at chez nous
What the eff does the last line have to do with this love talk? Why did you have change course and go all pretentious about some hipster cafe?
If you wanted a word to rhyme with “you,” there’s “I have to go poo.” It’s just as relevant.
Picking on Rob again -
“And I’m singing all my songs to the girl that won my heart.
She is only three years and it’s a real fine way to start.”
Yeah yeah I get it that he’s singing about his daughter.
Still, though - on the face of it? Yeah, still kinda ew.
Kinda like the dumb annoying album cover.
“I want a new drug, one that won’t make me sick
One that won’t make me crash my car
Or make me feel, three feet thick”
(my bold) Um, Hubert, where can I get some of this shit?
ok, picking on Niel again (or Steve?) (David?)
"Almost cut my hair
Happened just the other day
It’s gettin’ kind of long
I could’ve said it was in my way
But I didn’t and I wonder why"
Yes, I know, these decisions in life can leave one in a tizzy.
Hey - I almost cleaned out my ears just the other day, myself!
David Crosby, there.