# Poor grammar in music **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 17, 2007, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537 "2007-09-17T20:46:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2007, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/61 "2007-09-22T15:00:38Z")
James Brown: “It’s Man’s, Man’s Man’s World” Practically the whole song, but this part especially: _Man thinks of our little baby girls And the baby boys Man make them happy 'Cause man makes them toys And after man make everything, everything he can **You know that man makes money to buy from other man** _ ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2007, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/62 "2007-09-23T02:34:03Z")
**Tom Lehrer** > [@](#): > > The tune don’t have to be clever > And it doesn’t matter if you fit a few extra syllables into a line > _It sounds more ethnic if it ain’t good English_ > And it don’t even have to rhyme ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/63 "2007-09-25T15:44:04Z")
[QUOTE=Pine Fresh Scent] I just took it as deliberate irony, as “Teacher, leave them kids alone” ends the refrain. Kids using poor grammer to rail against their teacher/school - it works for me. [/QUOTE] I always took it as irony on top of irony. I don’t remember if someone told me this, or if I read it, but the fact that the kids singing in that song weren’t allowed to user the improper grammar just makes me chuckle. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/64 "2007-09-25T16:54:46Z")
[QUOTE=Windwalker] Heh, what exactly is he trying to get across? If he was to say X to her, they couldn’t get much higher? Or that if he was to tell her that they couldn’t get much higher, some unknown, unstated consequence would happen? [/QUOTE] I’m sure I’m missing the point, but it should be the conditional “If I were”. As should your second and third sentences. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/65 "2007-09-25T17:09:15Z")
Amanda Marshall’s “Beautiful Goodbye”: _Cause I still remember you and_\* I\*\* And that beautiful goodbye Do you ever think of you and\*\* I\*\* And that beautiful goodbye\* They’re trying so hard for that rhyme that it makes me wince. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/66 "2007-09-25T18:30:31Z")
[QUOTE=olivesmarch4th] Paula Cole’s song ‘‘I Don’t Want to Wait’’ _Open up your morning light and say a little prayer for I_ I don’t care if you were raised by wolves! There is no excuse for that. [/QUOTE] I agree. I find this the most egregious example I can think of. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2007, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537/67 "2007-09-25T19:33:49Z")
[QUOTE=Windwalker] Heh, what exactly is he trying to get across? If he was to say X to her, they couldn’t get much higher? Or that if he was to tell her that they couldn’t get much higher, some unknown, unstated consequence would happen? [/QUOTE] In the context of the preceding lines it makes a modicum of sense - he would be a liar, _were_ he to say to her that they couldn’t get much higher: ergo it is possible for them to get higher. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poor-grammar-in-music/419537.md?page=3)