shindig

Hi,

I've been searching for the last..few years..for music that has lyrics I deem "good". I've had trouble finding music like this so I have turned to instrumental music. I like instrumental music, but I still have a desire to listen to music with lyrics.

I admit, I'm very picky about lyrics. I've chatted with several people about this, and I've come to understand that my lyrical taste is not the most common. That's the reason I'm here--I figured it's time to ask for help.

I am seeking music with "good" lyrics. My subjective qualifications for "good" are below. My request is that if you know of music that meets these qualifications that you share it with me and the rest of the world here in this thread.

"Good" is a subjective term, here's my definition as it pertains to lyrics:

Obvious (clear) meaning
I'm looking for music with lyrics that are not poetic/metaphoric*. Good lyrics, to me, have clear meaning. They communicate ideas how ideas are presented in essays or in speech.

Most lyrics I hear are subjective and therefore meaningless. One can validly interpret them in several different ways--sometimes in unrelated or even contradictory ways. Lyrics like this are (to me) gibberish--they're sounds without meaning. Usually the gibberish sounds beautiful, but it's so vacuous!

* Metaphors are fine as long as they are easy to interpret correctly.

Single coherent topic per song
I'm looking for music with coherent lyrics. An individual song should be about one topic. All the lyrics of that song should be aimed at explaining, building up to, or otherwise staying relevant to the central idea of that song. A song should not wander off into a bunch of topics but instead stay clear on explaining the central concept.

Minimal emphasis on rhymes
Rhymes are fun, but when the lyricist builds meaning from rhyme rather than using rhyme to convey meaning, it dilutes the power of the message. If a rhyme can be squeezed in without losing meaning, great. In almost all circumstances I've encountered this is not the case which is why I listed this as such a big point.

Rhymless music isn't critical--the first two points (coherency and obviousness) are. I only listed rhymes here because when it's obvious the rhyme doesn't fit (the line was developed after the rhyme) I get very turned off to the song.

I believe music can be both an expression of emotion and mind. As it stands, I have a hard time finding music that is an expression of clear coherent thought. Most music seems to be emotionally meaningful but devoid of intellectual meaning.

Please share if you know some bands that meet these conditions.
Cheers!

Pet_Sounds

The Beach Boys' album Pet Sounds, to me, has the best "meaningful" lyrics. The original wasn't on YouTube, unfortunately. You will not hear any readily understandable lyrics finer than these.
Have you tried any Paul Simon, pre- or post-Simon and Garfunkel? He is the most incredible lyricist I've ever heard. If you like straightforward lyrics, here are two for you:





I am a fan of '60s psychedelia, and I've found what helps some people to appreciate abstract lyrics is just to think of the voice as an instrument. You don't have to understand a piano to appreciate it. For example, many of the thousands of Russian teens who fell in love with the Beatles despite not understanding the lyrics wre disappointed when they found out the Beatles were just singing about girls and love. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

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Moss

Sun kill moon or anything else by Mark Kozelek.

Try Gustavo on youtube.

shindig

Holy ****, I totally forgot about the Beach Boys. I love several songs on this album and you're totally right about the lyrics! Excellent!!

Amazing! I've heard his name (and the band) before, but I've never listened to one of his songs. I just listened to the two you posted and they definitely meet the criteria Thanks for sharing these Pet_Sounds!

I'll definitely explore these band a lot more, thanks so much

Thanks for the advice. The piano's notes aren't words which makes it quite different. I definitely love music with lyricless vocals, but when I listen to music with vocals which consist of words and the words don't meet the criteria I listed above, I become very frustrated. I wish it didn't bug me so much, but it does :/

shindig

!!! I'm so excited to listen to more of this artist! Thanks for sharing Moss!



I know a bit of spanish, but not that much. I'm guessing you're referring to some other Gustavo other than the one that pops up when I searched for "Gustavo." A song name might help.

Pet_Sounds

Abtract lyrics certainly aren't everyone's cup of tea. I first heard the Beach Boys' SMiLE project when I was four years old, so I'm rather used to the weirdness. I know a lot of people who don't like it though, including siblings who have been exposed to it just as much as I.

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shindig

If anyone else has any other artists they'd like to share, please do so.

Plankton

To me, and although I've heard/known the song for many years, the idea that this just might be the "Perfect Song" came to mind. The musicianship is solid, the crescendo is beautiful, and in reference to what you're looking for, the lyrics are clear, concise, and paint a vivid picture of what the artist(s) are trying to convey to the listener.



Believe me I'm no PF fanboy, but this tune has to hit home with everyone on the planet (whether they want it to or not), since everyone has a Mother.

Or they are one (of the varying kind).

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Necromancer

I agree with plankton concerning Pink Floyd, that's a good choice.
My pic of choice would be Fools Overture, composed and sung by Roger Hodgson of Supertramp.
There are a number of different songs to choose from in this particular genre of progressive/classic rock.

Stonedtone

here's one of mine:

Watch the leaves cradle the falling snow. The tree provides a home for the unfortunate soul
Hurried feel step around him below. The people's vision focused only on the problems they tow

OOOO, but I've done my part, but I feel I turned away. I justified their fall
All the wrong was done by closed eyes they hold the reins
Don't let them influence us all

Customary ways. A jingle to guide our lives that provides the power of their passions simply to sharpen the knife
Don't give it away, the things we worked for and effort to glamorized the thing they branded a class war

ooo, but you tell me they can hlp themselves. They fit that life, I can tell
But I've tried and I've tried to understand the hand we dealt to them
Sand is all you can draw from a dry well

Watch the leaves turn to brown wither and low
The trees provide a theme that we all soon much go
It's too late to look down now, you already know
We try but we can change life's eventual flow

ooo, but I've done my part, my parish recognizes me
I scrub the pews til my hand bleed
but morality is not measured by the number of palms that you read

Bridge
Watch the signs of the trust that surround you
Tired of empty pleas that occupy you faith it's a never ending trend that's delivering you

Watch the people file into the church alone. It contradicts their ways and their pictures of evil tone
Hypocritical ways. Subscribing to some self rightist code
Enriching the mix of the burden for others to carry the load

oooo, ut I've done my part, but I feel I turned away. I justified their fall
All the wrong was seen by closed eyes they hold the reins
Don't let them influence us all....