Songs with lyrics that you would never, ever be able to figure out on your own

Cafe Society
41

Well, lyrics sites can’t seem to agree on Dollars and Cents lyrics. For instance, the line after “be constructive with yer blues” Is it…
[ul]
[li]Even when it’s only warnings?[/li][li]Even when they tore the wall down?[/li][li]Even he turn the water blues? (okay, this one doesn’t seem too likely to me)[/li][/ul]
The part of the song I’ve found hardest to understand is the verse straight after the crescendo’s climax (after Thom finishes yelling “QUIET DOWN!”). Two of the three sites I linked to above don’t even try to guess all the lyrics in that verse.

But I’m with you on Climbing Up the Walls and Like Spinning Plates. My understanding is that Thom worked out how to sing Like Spinning Plates backwards, did so for the album, and then reversed the track. Hearing it played live (on IMBW Live Recordings) made it a lot easier to interpret. It’s also a very beautiful song when live.

42
  1. Someday, maybe Fred will win the fight,
    And that cat will stay out for the night

Since, as the song is playing, Fred puts the cat out, but it jumps back in the window and then tosses Fred out the front door.

  1. Gee, our old LaSalle ran great
    Those were the days.

A LaSalle being an old model of car. I only know this one because it was a frequent “ask the Globe” question back when the show was in reruns every afternoon on channel five.

43

Yes, and the Littlest Hobo lyric was “Just grab your hat/ we’ll travel light/ that’s hobo style.”

44

Boots, those would be.

And mohair foo.

And no I hit her riddle agonies

B b b b ennie and the Jets s s s ss

45

I always heard:

She’s got 'lectric boots
a mohair suit
you know I read it in a magazine

46

A classic rock station I listened to used to play a few seconds of a Van Morrison song and give a prize to the first caller to get the lyrics right.And it never was a simple as his haywherediwego from Brown Eyed Girl.

47

Yeah, like the lyrics were the whole point of that band.

48

The exact opposite really.

When Aussie band Australian Crawl first appeared no-one could understand what the hell James Reyne was singing due to his odd affected drawling “accent”. For some reason I could make sense of every word. l once overheard someone discusssing the lyrics of a song and someone said, “Ask Barry, he’s the only person in Australia apart from James Reyne who knows what he is singing.”

49

I’d expand that to a good bit of Pearl Jam’s catalog. Try figuring out all the words to “Even Flow” some time.

50

White winged dove?

I don’t care what you say, it sounds like one winged dove.

51

No way, it’s obviously wild winged dove!

52

It’s not “one winged dove”? :eek: Thanks for the enlightenment, 'cause I absolutely would have gone to my grave thinking she was braying about an avian amputee.

53

Oh, and one of mine is Rock the Casbah by the Clash.

“Oh the (something something) boogie bear”
(Now the king told the boogie men)

“Shout we don’t like it”
(Shareef don’t like it)

“As soon as the sherry was out of their hair”
(As soon as the shareef was chauffered out of there)

“From the mental retardated”
(Fundamentally he can’t take it)

54

The third verse of Donovan’s “Mellow Yellow”:

“Born high forever to fly
Wind velocity nil
Wanna high forever to fly
If you want your cup I will fill”

I had the album and the 45 when I was in high school. Bet I listened to that song 100 times trying to figure out those words; even slowing down the 45 to 33 1/3 to see if I understood them.

That song came out in - what? - 1966? I found a songbook in 1986 with the lyrics printed. 20 years to figure out a verse! :mad:

55

Hey, make that 40 years for me! I had no idea what he was saying there, either!

Phonetically, it sounded like:

Gonna have forever to fly
Win-de-vup lor-se-te-noo
Gonna have forever to fly
If you won’t your cup our fill…

What?

56

it looks like this guy figured them out

; )