What would you consider a good lyric?

[Neophyte]

Okay, I don't even have to search to know that this is a repeat thread but I gotta know. I was just reading the new Sheryl Crow interview in Newsweek and they were critiquing her lyrics.

"There's a sappy collaberation with Henley about a secret affair and a Nicks duet with broken wings and ebbing tides. Sounds like stuff you'd write on an algebra notebook."

This causes me to wonder, what are good lyrics then. Does everything have to be .......

I looked in the mirror
didn't like what I see'd
felt like the liquid
that flowed when I pee'd

took out da razor
pressed the cold to my wrist
with simply a flick
I knew my mother's be pissed.



Or, is there soemthing else to a fine lyric?

Some of my favorite lyrics are simple.



Neo

 

[Cyrokk]

A common mistake made by music critics, just like the dumbass in Newsweek (a non-music mag to boot), is to forget that poetry and lyrics are not the same thing. You cannot judge lyrics by themselves because how those lyrics are sung can make or break the feel of a song. An example, do you think the words "People try to put us down/just because we get around" are meaningful on their own? Maybe, maybe not.. But the message comes across much more loud and clear when Daltry sings "People try to put us d-down/just because we g-g-g-get around". You can't tell if lyrics are good or bad without the music behind them. And if you make the lyrics a priority over the music, then you've just created poetry set to inconsistent music.

This is why I typically don't respond to the "rate my lyrics" threads because I don't feel I could make a genuine contribution without hearing how the words are sung behind the music.

Cy

 

[AlleyCat]

Exactly Cyrokk!

You are absolutely right. Words...the consonants, the vowels, the stylistic inflections. These are the vocalists tools. It's not simply the words themselves, but how those words are expressed vocally. When I write lyrics, I have to think about how those words will sound when I sing them. For example, some vowel sounds are very easy to sing...others may sound muted or swallowed. I try to choose words that sound good with my voice, and compliment the musical style.

It's not just the meaning of the lyrics, it's also the way those lyrics sound through the vocalist with the music behind them.