Favorite Lyrics

Sing in Leon

You taught me precious secrets
Of a true love
You wanted nothing
You came out in front
When I was hiding
But now I'm so much better
And if my words don't come together
Listen to the melody
'Cause my love is in there hiding

I love you in a place
Where there's no space or time
I love you for my life
You're a friend of mine
And when my life is over
Remember when we were together
We were alone
And I was singing this song to you

Abandoned by the husband, his father,,,Paul Williams to his mother...

And when one of us is gone,
And one of us is left to carry on,
Then remembering will have to do,
Our memories alone will get us through
Think about the days of me and you,
Of you and me against the world.

Attempts and thoughts of suicide. Powerful stuff.

I am a man. I am self aware.
Everywhere I go, you're always right there with me.
I flirted with you all my life
Even kissed you once or twice
To this day I swear it was nice.
But clearly, I was not ready.

Of death you hinder me.
Death makes those dear to me.
Tease me with your sweet relief.
You're cool, and you are constant.

Everyday life

Mother chants her litany of boredom and frustration
But we know all her suicides are fake
Daddy only stares into the distance
There's only so much more that he can take

Another working day has ended
Only the rush hour hell to face
Packed like lemmings into shiny metal boxes
Contestants in a suicidal race

All the other kids with the pumped up kicks
You'd better run, better run, out run my gun
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks
You'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet

Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
That's how it goes
And everybody knows

Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied
Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died
Everybody talking to their pockets
Everybody wants a box of chocolates
And a long-stem rose
Everybody knows

Leonard Cohen

Thanks for starting this topic. I’ve been thinking about doing something vaguely similar. You saved me some time. Now, then, submitted for your consideration:

Will You Love Me Tomorrow?
-Carole King

Tonight you’re mine, completely
You give your love so sweetly
Tonight the light of love is in your eyes
But will you love me tomorrow?

Is this a lasting treasure
Or just a moment’s pleasure?
Can I believe the magic of your sighs?
Will you love me tomorrow?

Tonight, with words unspoken,
You say that I’m the only one
But will my heart be broken
When the night meets the morning sun?

I’d like to know that your love
Is love I can be sure of
So tell me now and I won’t ask again
Will you still love me tomorrow?
Will you still love me tomorrow?

I’m posting this for two reasons. First, the song is a classic summary of a universal human fear, of the potential pain of being completely vulnerable to another person. It could easily be sung by a man as well as a woman, and it could be sung to someone of either gender. It’s everything that a pop tune can be.

This leads to my second reason: modern pop lyrics are abysmally awful. They are repetitive, badly rhymed (if at all), illiterate celebrations of sex and stupidity and, too often, violence. In Will You Live Me Tomorrow, the single repetition is the refrain. The words are simple, accessible to an audience with a limited vocabulary, but they are also thoughtful, and elegantly arranged; and the lines rhyme. There’s no reason that pop tunes composed today can’t do the same. This song will still be enjoyed many years from now, by those who are lucky enough to hear it.

Does any one know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours?

G Lightfoot
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald