# Song lyrics — the good, the bad, and the ugly **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [November 14, 2023, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148 "2023-11-14T22:02:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FeRDNYC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ferdnyc/32/14000_2.png) [@FeRDNYC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FeRDNYC)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/1 "2023-11-14T22:02:14Z")
Most song lyrics are, let’s face it, not the greatest _writing_ ever. Understandably so: there are a lot more constraints on writers of lyrics than on prose authors, and many of them can work at cross purposes. That clever turn of phrase that doesn’t fit the meter of the song? No sale. So, that being said, when a truly exceptional lyric shows up in a song — good _or_ bad — it tends to stand out. (Note: This is about particular individual lyrics within a song, not the overall lyrics. A song may be great, terrible, or completely forgettable… _except_ for these particular lines.) What are your picks for exceptional (or exceptionally terrible) song lyrics? I’ll start. #### GOOD: “And So It Goes” by Billy Joel This melancholy breakup ballad, the last track on Joel’s _Storm Front_ album, doesn’t really have a “chorus” _per se_, but the title is a refrain repeated several times throughout the song. The _first_ time it shows up, it’s paired with this clever turn of phrase: And so it goes, and so it goes, And so will you, soon, I suppose #### BAD: “Safety Dance” by Men Without Hats Ignoring the complete non sequitur of the statements, the bigger crime here is this: No matter how hard you try to mispronounce it as “hance”, these two lines Do. Not. Rhyme!: We can dance, we can dance, Everybody look at your hands #### GOOD: “I Have My Moments” by Blues Traveler One of the band’s more pop-oriented songs, the verses are written as a childlike series of simple rhymes detailing imaginary events. “Started in a dream / Wound him up on a baseball team”, etc. etc. One of these stands out, though, for playing with that structure. Technically this **does** rhyme… but only in English: Gonna meet the King of France Tell him, “Je ñ’ai pas de pantalons” #### BAD: “My Love is Your Love” by Whitney Houston The lyrics for this song are mostly fairly vapid, as fits the milieu. But there’s a line in the chorus that’s all but unintelligible — Whitney herself completely swallows it, as if she’s ashamed to even sing it. That may have been the case, because it’s just awful. I sought out knowledge of this line way back in the late 1990s when such information was harder to come by, and ever since I’ve wished I could _ **un-** learn_ it. So, fair warning. The chorus to her poppy love song ends on this absolute clunker: Your love is my love, And my love is your love It would take an eternity to break us, And the chains of Amistad couldn’t hold us ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/2 "2023-11-14T22:18:56Z")
You can’t get too far into this without: Every day a little sadder, a little madder Someone get me a ladder Still…it’s a good song. Good: I’ve always smiled at: Somebody needs to know the time glad that I’m here I love how “the time” and “that I’m” echo each other. ---
**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:** [November 14, 2023, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/3 "2023-11-14T22:23:42Z")
It can happen in one artist’s career, my example is Bob Dylan: Mr. Tambourine Man: _And take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind_ _Down the foggy ruins of time_ _Far past the frozen leaves_ _The haunted frightened trees_ _Out to the windy beach_ _Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow_ _Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky_ _With one hand waving free_ _Silhouetted by the sea_ _Circled by the circus sands_ _With all memory and fate_ _Driven deep beneath the waves_ _Let me forget about today until tomorrow_ This is Nobel Prize for literature stuff. “Wiggle Wiggle”, not so much: _Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a bowl of soup_ _Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a rolling hoop_ _Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a ton of lead_ _Wiggle, you can raise the dead_ To be clear: I adore Dylan, but it shows that every genius has their dry spells, as Dylan had his legendary writer’s blocks when he either wrote nothing or shit like this. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/4 "2023-11-14T22:27:22Z")
I remembered my “ugly” April Wine’s immortal, irredeemable “If you see Kay” I think this song singlehandedly ended the band’s career. ---
**Author:** ![FeRDNYC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ferdnyc/32/14000_2.png) [@FeRDNYC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FeRDNYC)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/5 "2023-11-14T22:38:51Z")
I’mma need Dylan to explain how a ton of lead “wiggles”, kthx. I remembered another terrible chorus. #### BAD: “Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin Also one of the more famously misheard lyrics of all time because… well, mostly because whatever people **think** they hear is usually as good or better than the _actual_ chorus, which nearly collapses under the weight of its own pretension: On we sweep, with threshing oar Our only goal will be the western shore ---
**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:** [November 14, 2023, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/6 "2023-11-14T22:41:12Z")
> [@FeRDNYC](#): > > On we sweep, with threshing oar > Our only goal will be the western shore I find this chorus exceptionally good, just because it’s not standard easy fare and quite complex. I can see the Vikings frantically rowing westwards when I hear this. ---
**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:** [November 14, 2023, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/7 "2023-11-14T22:47:52Z")
> [@FeRDNYC](#): > > I’mma need Dylan to explain how a ton of lead “wiggles”, kthx. Yeah, he just didn’t care at this time. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/8 "2023-11-14T22:49:38Z")
> [@FeRDNYC](#): > > whatever people **think** they hear is usually as good or better than the _actual_ chorus, which nearly collapses under the weight of its own pretension: > > On we sweep, with threshing oar > Our only goal will be the western shore > [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > I find this chorus exceptionally good, just because it’s not standard easy fare and quite complex. I can see the Vikings frantically rowing when I hear this Yeah, the song is about Vikings attacking the shores of Europe. The chorus paints a concise but vivid picture of Vikings rowing toward their battle target. Zep has tons of lyrics way more pretentious than this. My vote for good- I’ve always liked this stanza of Solsbury Hill: _When illusion spin her net_ _I’m never where I wanna be_ _And liberty, she pirouette_ _When I think that I am free_ The next one isn’t bad either: _Watched by empty silhouettes_ _Who close their eyes but still can see_ _No one taught them etiquette_ _I will show another me_ Bu then, rhyming ‘replacement’ with ‘face meant’? I’m not sure if that’s good, bad or ugly, but I still like it… _Today I don’t need a replacement_ _I’ll tell them what the smile on my face meant_ ---
**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:** [November 14, 2023, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/9 "2023-11-14T22:52:41Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Bu then, rhyming ‘replacement’ with ‘face meant’? I’m not sure if that’s good, bad or ugly, but I still like it… > > _Today I don’t need a replacement_ > _I’ll tell them what the smile on my face meant_ I know some people call something like this constrained, but I really love this kind of rhymes. Very creative. ---
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/10 "2023-11-14T22:55:05Z")
I honestly can’t decide if it’s really good or really bad, but somehow I deeply love this by the Steve Miller Band: _Ab-ra, Abracadabra_ _I wanna reach out and grab ya_ ---
**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:** [November 14, 2023, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/11 "2023-11-14T22:56:07Z")
> [@Briny\_Deep](#): > > I honestly can’t decide if it’s really good or really bad, but somehow I deeply love this by the Steve Miller Band: > > _Ab-ra, Abracadabra_ > _I wanna reach out and grab ya_ So now you’ve got me, that it one of the worst rhymes in musical history. 😆 (the whole song is dumb, also musically, and I generally like Steve Miller) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/12 "2023-11-14T23:07:24Z")
Good: Warren Zevon, Desperadoes Under the Eaves: _And if California slides into the ocean,_ _Like the mystics and statistics say it will,_ _I predict this motel will be standing,_ _Until I pay my bill._ Bad: America, Horse With No Name _In the desert, you can’t remember your name_ _'Cause there ain’t no one for to give you no pain._ ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2023, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/13 "2023-11-14T23:11:05Z")
As much as I love Leonard Cohen, I think folks sometimes give him a pass for some reason. _Like a worm on a hook_ _Like a knight from some old-fashioned book_ _Oh, like a baby, stillborn_ _Like a beast with his horn_ mmm ---
**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:** [November 15, 2023, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/14 "2023-11-15T04:23:03Z")
We were standing on a mountain top, where the cactus flowers grow. I was wishing that the world would stop, when you said, ‘we’d better go.’ Robert Earl Keen Ever since the watermelon. I mean, WTF, Paul? ---
**Author:** ![peccavi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peccavi/32/388_2.png) [@peccavi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peccavi)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/15 "2023-11-15T04:40:21Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Bad: America, Horse With No Name > > _In the desert, you can’t remember your name_ > _'Cause there ain’t no one for to give you no pain._ But they make up for it with golden metaphors like: _There were plants and birds and rocks and things_ _There was sand and hills and rings_ And _The heat was hot and the ground was dry_ _But the air was full of sound_ For good, I’ll give you: **You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive** _Where the sun comes up about ten in the mornin’_ _And the sun goes down about three in the day_ _And you fill your cup with whatever bitter brew you’re drinkin’_ _And you spend your life diggin’ coal from the bottom of your grave_ ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/16 "2023-11-15T14:27:48Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Ever since the watermelon. > I mean, WTF, Paul? The song “The Myth of Fingerprints” is about racism. The title itself likely refers to the American contradiction that we say we are are all unique individuals, yet we stereotype entire groups of people. “Fingerprints” is a metaphor, meaning, though no two are exactly alike, they are all very similar: “_I’ve seen them all and man, they’re all the same_”. Simon often uses oblique, metaphorical lyrics, but he’s usually going for a certain meaning. It’s not just random word salad. The lyrics: _Well, the sun gets weary_ _And the sun goes down_ _Ever since the watermelon_ To me means that the sun has been rising and setting on racism or racist attitudes for a long time. But instead of just saying “ever since racial injustice” or something, he uses a metaphorically subtle but racially-charged word, that also happens to fit into the rhythm and meter of the song nicely. ---
**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:** [November 15, 2023, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/17 "2023-11-15T15:21:02Z")
> [@FeRDNYC](#): > > #### BAD: “Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin… > > On we sweep, with threshing oar > Our only goal will be the western shore Umm, sir? You with the metal hat? We’re rowing towards the EASTERN shore. Sure, we just left the western shore of Norway, and we’re traveling westward, but that land ahead of us? That’s the _eastern_ shore of Angle-land. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/18 "2023-11-15T15:25:48Z")
Maybe they were going for Wales or Cumbria. ---
**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:** [November 15, 2023, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/19 "2023-11-15T15:33:22Z")
“The very first place they raided was the great monastery of Lindisfarne [in northeast England.](https://www.twinkl.com/homework-help/history-homework-help/vikings-facts-for-kids/when-did-the-vikings-start-to-settle-in-britain#:~:text=In%20fact%2C%20from%20AD793%2C%20many,of%20Lindisfarne%20in%20northeast%20England.) The two main Viking groups carried on sailing westwards across the North Sea to raid Ireland, Scotland and northern England.” [![](https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/siteassets/home/visit/places-to-visit/lindisfarne-priory/history/lindisfarne-map-north-britain.jpg?w=1440&mode=none&scale=downscale&quality=60&anchor=&WebsiteVersion=20231016060118) ](https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/siteassets/home/visit/places-to-visit/lindisfarne-priory/history/lindisfarne-map-north-britain.jpg?w=1440&mode=none&scale=downscale&quality=60&anchor=&WebsiteVersion=20231016060118) ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2023, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148/20 "2023-11-15T16:14:26Z")
I hate Immigrant Song because it glorifies Viking hordes. And they aren’t even “immigrants”, they’re invaders. Rape and pillage. To be honest, I don’t think Plant is a closet Nazi, or gave the lyrics even a bit of analysis. Just pick and choose the “cool” parts of Viking lore and run with it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/song-lyrics-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/993148.md?page=2)