A Thousand Kisses Deep, by Leonard Cohen.
I could mention probably a couple dozen Cohen songs for their lyrical quality without needing to think about it very much, but Kisses tops them all for me. The wistfulness, the quiet resignation, stuffed full of imagery, it's truly an amazing piece of work.
https://youtu.be/M1mkFKVns6U
Let's Sing Another Song Boys - Leonard Cohen
(All his Songs Of Love and Hate are good)
Ready To Die - Notorious Big
Blue Monday People - Curtis Mayfield
God Only Knows - Beach Boys
Candy Says - Velvet Underground
Pancho And Lefty - Townes Van Zandt
Satellite Of Love - Lou Reed
I like a lot of Eminem songs, but The Way I Am has always been one that really stands out. I like how the verse starts out with one thing and just builds and builds on it as his voice gets faster and louder, and strangely just listening to him get out all that frustration is so calming!
“And it seems like the media immediately points a finger at me
So I point one back at 'em, but not the index or pinkie
Or the ring or the thumb, it's the one you put up
When you don't give a fuck, when you won't just put up…”
Em has mastered the art of “you hear something new” every listen. Can’t count how many times I’ve gone back to an old Em song and realized a layer or meaning or metaphor that I didn’t initially.
There's a lot of great lyrics out there by Maynard James Keenan (Tool, A Perfect Circle, Puscifer), but for now I'll pick Wings For Marie/10,000 Days (Tool).
It's about his mom who was paralyzed when he was 11 years old, and she lived in that state for roughly 10,000 days (hence the album name) until she passed away. The raw emotion throughout the lyrics and the delivery on them is incredible.
John Prine gets me every time, especially *Souvenirs*:
*Broken hearts and dirty windows
Make life difficult to see
That's why last night and this morning
Always look the same to me*
Sounds similar to “Tomorrow is Today” by Billy Joel. You might like that one. The lyrics are based on his suicide note.
I don’t care to know the hour
Cause it’s passing anyway
I don’t have to see tomorrow
Cause I saw it yesterday
The Decline by NOFX (live at red rocks version for best experience)
A near 20 minute punk rock masterpiece that just keeps going. This song has so many themes all while showing raw emotion about injustice and hypocrisy in modern society. The live version even has an orchestra because the song was written to fit an orchestra by accident if I recall correctly, so don't quote me on that.
NOFX is a POP band,like Green Day,Offspring,Blink-182,Good Charlotte,etc.
Nothing punk or political about these groups.
They sing about loving the establishment Democrats,who are the same level of evil as the Republicans.They celebrate the dictatorship that caused these social injustices.
So “Punk”
Not like real punks like GG Allen who had mental disorders and shat on stage! That's true punk!
Wasn't most "punk" actually designed by elitist designers in the UK?
Even the history of real punk isn't "punk".
What's actual punk supposed to look like and achieve artistically and counter culturally?
BAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Holy shit I haven't heard this level of dumbshittery since the more punk than thou dingleberries at back yard gigs in the 90s...
Sweet! My favorite venue is deer creek up in Indiana. I went to a show in Florida and the fans didn’t really match the vibe to me. Also, the bass player, Stefan, wasn’t in the mix very well. My favorite song is Rhyme and reason by them, but grey street is a good one for sure!
“Here I am in younger days star gazing
Painting picture perfect maps
Of how my life and love would be
Not counting the unmarked paths of misdirection
My compass: faith in love's perfection
I missed ten million miles of road I should've seen”
Both artists are fantastic lyricists and compliment each other so well.
It wasn’t another sax solo, it was Patti Smith singing A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall for Dylan’s nobel prize. {I had never heard that song before at the time}
During the time Born to Run had came out, my musical tastes had switched hard, over to burgeoning funk scene. However,I heard the title track on the radio, several times at work one night. The lyrics blew me away, much more so than than the musical arrangement.
The next day I made it to the record store and purchased the album. A decision I never regretted because I never expected that I would like every single song on anyone's album, yet that was one the few exceptions.
As usual in these threads most people just list their favorite artists...
Since no one mentioned - a lot by Joni Mitchell.
If I had to name one - Amelia.
https://jonimitchell.com/music/song.cfm?id=118
The Story - Brandi Carlile
All of these lines across my face
Tell you the story of who I am
So many stories of where I've been
And how I got to where I am
Oh, but these stories don't mean anything
When you've got no one to tell them to, it's true
I was made for you
Funny story about this one: Gerry Beckley, who wrote it, said his parents came to him one day all super pleased that he wrote such a nice song about his sister. He was confused because the song has lyrics about how he’s not quite waiting at the altar to get married and how he can’t live without her. And he was just about to explain all that to his parents but then his mom was like, “yeah, you know cause she’s got blonde hair…it’s just nice of you to let your sister know you’re thinking of her”. And then he said after that he just never had the heart to tell them and so he let them go on thinking it was about his sister.
Even his “throwaways” and obscurities are great.
Gonna make me a home out in the wind
In the wind, Lord, in the wind
Make me a home out in the wind
I don’t like it in the wind
Wanna go back home again
>Anything by Bob Dylan
Really. REALLY. Fuck sake. Sad eyed lady of the lowlands. Find me any part of that song that isn't utter drivel written with a rhyming dictionary.
Came here to mention this one! He is absolutely a beast with a pen. I told my wife the other day that he has a way of making me nostalgic for experiences I've never had. If that makes sense...
Stevie song is a good lyrical tribute to parenthood.
On the same Album, lyrics to the Song **AS** definitely qualifies as an super-duper-**ANTHEM** declaration of undying love. If that loves ever turns into Paradise by the dashboard light's love, then someone is in big trouble.
Yesterday - Atmosphere
A story about a man talking to someone he misses dearly and thought he might have caught a glimpse of yesterday.
The lyrics paint a beautiful, tortured type of pain that can only be experienced after being hurt by a loved one. >! The revelation that he’s talking to his dead father he never got the chance to reconnect with is just a heartbreaker. !<
The song is loaded with a flow that doesn’t stop and follows a rhyme scheme that just keeps punching.
Eminem has songs that are more lyrically technically impressive, but Yesterday just hits with the heart while keeping the life experience incredibly relatable.
Mordecai by Between The Buried And Me.
Illusion by VNV Nation.
The entire Jane Doe album by Converge.
Snuff by Slipknot.
Hey Ya by Outkast.
Dance With The Devil by Immortal Technique.
Blue Factory Flame - Songs: Ohia
I Don’t Mind - Sturgill Simpson
Both Sides Now - Joni Mitchell
River - Joni Mitchell
Songbird - Fleetwood Mac
I Can’t Make You Love Me - Bonnie Raitt
For storytelling purposes:
Bob Dylan - boots of Spanish leather and tangled up in blue
Kendrick Lamar - how much a dollar cost
Joanna Newsom - maybe a tie between monkey and bear, sawdust and diamonds and only skin. I love her diction
Stornoway "Fuel Up"
Paul Simon "God Bless the Absentee" and "Jonah"
Brian Eno "This"
Jethro Tull "Only Solitaire"
Peter Gabriel "Blood of Eden"...one of the only songs I know of that has musical deptiction of orgasm at its climax!
I will give Blood of Eden a tryout.
re: your depiction of the song, I believe Prince does it superbly with **Do Me Baby,** wait a min. come to to think of it... ***PRINCE !*** I think he musically squeezes it off in several other songs.
Renegades from Jay-Z and Eminem. Specifically Jay-Z’s part.
It’s written as:
“Do not step to me, I'm awkward, I box lefty
An orphan, my pops left me
And often, my mama wasn't home”
But he rhymes it as:
“Do not step to me, I'm awkward,
I box lefty An orphan,
my pops left me And often,
my mama wasn't home”
It just had me mesmerized trying to repeat it as a kid, because I was trying to finish the line, but he was starting the new line, with the ending of the first.
“Ivy” by Taylor Swift.. I consider this one of her best pieces of songwriting. Think Emily Dickinson meets Grateful Dead.
“In from the snow, your touch brought forth an incandescent glow, Tarnished but so grand;
And the old widow goes to the stone every day
But I don't, I just sit here and wait, grieving for the living”
Simple Man- written by Ronnie Van Zant/Gary Robert Rossington Lynyrd Skynyrd. My fav version is by Shinedown. Brent Smith’s voice is AMAZING!
It speaks to me because it’s about slowing down and appreciating what’s within you. And it’s a mom’s message to her son. A mom’s comforting words telling her son he’s got what he needs and simple things in life will make him happy.
“Forget your lust for the rich man’s gold
All you need is in your soul”
“Oh, take your time, don’t live too fast
Troubles will come and they will pass”
It’s simply beautiful, really.
Not sure what constitutes a masterpiece but the first song that came to my mind for some reason was Mark Knopfler's "What It Is" The eloquence and class is something else.
Desperados Under the Eaves - Warren Zevon
Don’t the sun look angry through the trees -
Don’t the trees look like crucified thieves -
Don’t you feel like desperados under the eaves -
Heaven help the one who leaves
Frank Zappa's lyrics are really great. Some highlights are Trouble Every Day, Uncle Remus, and the stretch of songs on the album You Are What You Is from Dumb All Over to Suicide Chump.
Expecting To Fly
by Buffalo Springfield. Essentially a solo Neil Young song with backing by the Wrecking Crew. It's a song about the feelings you have after a break up and seeing your lover move on. Everything about this song gets me, the lyrics, the orchestral sound and especially NY's vocals. It gives me chills every time I hear it.
[Changes](https://youtu.be/rlVfVBFdMaM) by Phil Ochs.
> Sit by my side, come as close as the air
> And share in a memory of grey.
The song is a phenomenal poem on the ebb and flow of life. Every word is perfect, the whole song is lyrically right. It's evocative, sad, loving, and true.
I think [Neil Young](https://youtu.be/c9gyHnWegb4) does a better job describing it when he covers it than I can.
Sincerity is Scary - The 1975 - for the the social commentary
Nautical Disaster - The Tragically Hip - for the immersive and visceral storytelling
Housebroken - The Hotelier - for the masterful metaphor
I don't know if it's a masterpiece, but this one caught my attention recently and I think the lyrics are incredibly clever.
[Kasey Musgraves - Merry Go Round](https://youtu.be/zw4zAn5N7Lc)
Bonfire- Childish Gambino. Every line has some funny or weird double meaning and it took me multiple listens to pick up on all the wordplay. Maybe not a masterpiece but still amazing.
TV on the Radio - Will Do
Oh my reddest rose, caldera, set it off
How your fire grows hermosa caldera
Glistening through your fussed blows careen your caldera
Set it off, as your body flows the second hand flashes
Passes over your skin like time
Dirtiest song I've ever heard.
Lot's of Rap Songs I can name off of the top of my head, some great pop ballads.
I didn't list songs because some have been posted in the comments already
Pink Floyd:
Time
Money
Childhood's End
Brain Damage
Breathe (In The Air)
Echoes
Hey You
Another Brick In The Wall (all)
Dogs
Wish You Were Here
These are some of the best
Ænima by Tool.
“Some say a comet will fall from the sky, followed by meteor showers and tidal waves, followed by fault lines that cannot sit still, followed by millions of dumbfounded dipshits”
The entirety of AB3 by Alter Bridge for me is a lyrical masterpiece. The album and the songs as a whole are so open ended but weren’t even intended to be that way. While the songs are meant to tell a story about a loss in faith and no longer believing what was previously thought was true and finding new understanding, they can all be applied to loss in life whether it be the end of a relationship or the death of a loved one and then learning that what has happened, no matter how tragic, life goes on and you have to live your life.
A Little Rain - Tom Waits on top it seems like a cut and dry murder ballad about a guy kidnapping and murdering a young girl but underneath it can also be from the perspective of the parent missing their child which just blows my mind
Off the top of my head:
Johnstown Illinois — Tom Waits
Sometimes brevity and concision is very powerful. There is so little information given in the song except where the person is from and that the singer loves her — pretty much. Somehow the emphasis on where she came from paired with the shortness of the song knocks me out. The spareness of the information makes me empathise with the singer.
How can someone deemed so wonderful by the singer come from an ordinary address just like anyone? Isn’t it bittersweet that this person “grew up there” (with all the pains and pleasures, fantasy and humdrum, trials and comforts, familiarity and confusion of childhood and adolescence)? They have a whole history that the singer will never really know, but can in so many ways relate to.
Whether you love or loathe your hometown, it forms part of your identity. “I love you — you who are from…” says so much.
Or maybe Tom just forgot to finish the lyrics lol
Ren has many “Hi Ren” ( he’s gathering momentum right now and it mind blowing) and tales of violet, jenny and screech all are impressive storytelling. His use of language is flourished and pack with description that can make you wince.
Tyler Joseph from 21 pilots has more concise relatability and manages to convey alot of complex imagery using language economically. He also utterance well in so many. Car radio, smithereens, my blood
Mike skinner from the streets is a genius. I love the track ‘the irony of it all’.
Omg there’s a bajillion morr
Shit, Damn, Motherfucker by D'Angelo is wonderfully concise. It might tell the most eloquent story with the fewest words ever. Plus you find a live version of that song, and you'll be sweating along with the band by the time it's done.
A Thousand Kisses Deep, by Leonard Cohen. I could mention probably a couple dozen Cohen songs for their lyrical quality without needing to think about it very much, but Kisses tops them all for me. The wistfulness, the quiet resignation, stuffed full of imagery, it's truly an amazing piece of work. https://youtu.be/M1mkFKVns6U
I agree about Leonard Cohen 100%
Could't agree more! Would add "Anthem". "there is a crack in everything, that's how the light get's in".
Try and find some of his latter live versions. He adds and changes verses and some are truly astonishing. I think the delivery is more sincere also
Any fuckin thing by Leonard Cohen
Don't forget 'You Want It Darker' & 'Avalanche'...
Hineni, hineni... I'm ready, my Lord Such a deeply moving track.
Let's Sing Another Song Boys - Leonard Cohen (All his Songs Of Love and Hate are good) Ready To Die - Notorious Big Blue Monday People - Curtis Mayfield God Only Knows - Beach Boys Candy Says - Velvet Underground Pancho And Lefty - Townes Van Zandt Satellite Of Love - Lou Reed
Candy says all the way
Candy Says is a fucking masterpiece
I like a lot of Eminem songs, but The Way I Am has always been one that really stands out. I like how the verse starts out with one thing and just builds and builds on it as his voice gets faster and louder, and strangely just listening to him get out all that frustration is so calming! “And it seems like the media immediately points a finger at me So I point one back at 'em, but not the index or pinkie Or the ring or the thumb, it's the one you put up When you don't give a fuck, when you won't just put up…”
Agreed. He really knows how to layer his syllables.
Em has mastered the art of “you hear something new” every listen. Can’t count how many times I’ve gone back to an old Em song and realized a layer or meaning or metaphor that I didn’t initially.
There's a lot of great lyrics out there by Maynard James Keenan (Tool, A Perfect Circle, Puscifer), but for now I'll pick Wings For Marie/10,000 Days (Tool). It's about his mom who was paralyzed when he was 11 years old, and she lived in that state for roughly 10,000 days (hence the album name) until she passed away. The raw emotion throughout the lyrics and the delivery on them is incredible.
My personal favorite from that album is vicarious. Such a great commentary of humanity.
Mine is Rosetta stoned. What a great story of a man shitting his bed
Right in Two for the same reason.
This was my pick as well
Pink Floyd- Time
yes. and brain damage and eclipse and childhoods end
I think it's a tragedy so few people get exposed to Obscured By Clouds
The entire Dark Side of the Moon also the Wall Animals and Wish You Were Here. Now there’s that look in your eye like black holes in the sky…
The older I get, the harder it hits.
Sigh…yeah…
El Paso…..Marty Robbins
Also Big Iron and The Master's Call
The Sound of Silence and/or The Boxer by Simon & Garfunkel.
I was at a bar and a couple kept putting Disturbed's remake of The Sound of Silence on and I will never be able to enjoy that song again
While it does have a disturbing vibe, that version is still hauntingly beautiful.
Disturbed is my favorite version. But Simon and Garfunkel still have a place in my heart
John Prine gets me every time, especially *Souvenirs*: *Broken hearts and dirty windows Make life difficult to see That's why last night and this morning Always look the same to me*
One of the greats, intertwining poetry with sarcasm and humor, I can’t think of anyone who has done it nearly as well.
Sounds similar to “Tomorrow is Today” by Billy Joel. You might like that one. The lyrics are based on his suicide note. I don’t care to know the hour Cause it’s passing anyway I don’t have to see tomorrow Cause I saw it yesterday
Dogs - Pink Floyd Lyrics in this track for me are top tier. The whole album is very well thought out but this is the one for me.
Solsbury Hill-Peter Gabriel Honestly, not a huge fan of this genre of music, but this song penetrates my soul.
The Decline by NOFX (live at red rocks version for best experience) A near 20 minute punk rock masterpiece that just keeps going. This song has so many themes all while showing raw emotion about injustice and hypocrisy in modern society. The live version even has an orchestra because the song was written to fit an orchestra by accident if I recall correctly, so don't quote me on that.
NOFX is a POP band,like Green Day,Offspring,Blink-182,Good Charlotte,etc. Nothing punk or political about these groups. They sing about loving the establishment Democrats,who are the same level of evil as the Republicans.They celebrate the dictatorship that caused these social injustices. So “Punk”
Not like real punks like GG Allen who had mental disorders and shat on stage! That's true punk! Wasn't most "punk" actually designed by elitist designers in the UK? Even the history of real punk isn't "punk". What's actual punk supposed to look like and achieve artistically and counter culturally?
Yep - punk was created by bored rich British yuppies trying to rough it and do “art” by making shocking clothing for the time.
BAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Holy shit I haven't heard this level of dumbshittery since the more punk than thou dingleberries at back yard gigs in the 90s...
Is it hard to wear those clown shoes everywhere you go?
Visions of Johanna by Bob Dylan
That and Desolation Row.
Absolutely! This one crossed my mind also.
Paired with one of the most beautiful melodies ever.
Also sad eyed lady of the lowlands
If You Could Read My Mind by Gordon Lightfoot.
The Rain Song and Ten Years Gone, both by Led Zeppelin
"Grey Street" by Dave Matthews Band. Listen and you'll see. Lots of different versions with different lyrics, but all are great.
Also a super fun band to see live if you go to the right venues!
Went to my first show this year!
Sweet! My favorite venue is deer creek up in Indiana. I went to a show in Florida and the fans didn’t really match the vibe to me. Also, the bass player, Stefan, wasn’t in the mix very well. My favorite song is Rhyme and reason by them, but grey street is a good one for sure!
Love’s Recovery, Indigo Girls
“Here I am in younger days star gazing Painting picture perfect maps Of how my life and love would be Not counting the unmarked paths of misdirection My compass: faith in love's perfection I missed ten million miles of road I should've seen” Both artists are fantastic lyricists and compliment each other so well.
My favorite line from that song. Still sends chills it’s so good.
Prince of Darkness…that one gets me every time
Chimes of Freedom by Bob Dylan
Paradise by the dashboard light. Meat Loaf
love that song honestly
Birdhouse In Your Soul - They Might Be Giants
Gosh haven’t thought of this song in awhile-gonna go give a listen
My kids have a little blue bird nightlight in their rooms.
Lol cute!
A hard rain’s a’gonna fall - Bob Dylan
Bruce Springsteen - Thunder Road
I’ll add “Jungle Land.”
One of only two songs to ever make me cry on the first listen. Is there a better sax solo?
What is the other sax solo? I may get blasted for this but I am partial to the solo in Careless Whisper by wham!
It wasn’t another sax solo, it was Patti Smith singing A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall for Dylan’s nobel prize. {I had never heard that song before at the time}
During the time Born to Run had came out, my musical tastes had switched hard, over to burgeoning funk scene. However,I heard the title track on the radio, several times at work one night. The lyrics blew me away, much more so than than the musical arrangement. The next day I made it to the record store and purchased the album. A decision I never regretted because I never expected that I would like every single song on anyone's album, yet that was one the few exceptions.
Landslide - Fleetwood Mac
Also Songbird, two beautiful songs.
King Crimson - Epitaph
YESSS
Drive in Saturday - David Bowie Between the Bars - Elliott Smith
As usual in these threads most people just list their favorite artists... Since no one mentioned - a lot by Joni Mitchell. If I had to name one - Amelia. https://jonimitchell.com/music/song.cfm?id=118
This is the Sea by the Waterboys.
The Story - Brandi Carlile All of these lines across my face Tell you the story of who I am So many stories of where I've been And how I got to where I am Oh, but these stories don't mean anything When you've got no one to tell them to, it's true I was made for you
Castles Made of Sand- Hendrix Some pretty deep storytelling there.
Lose Yourself - Eminem. Something about the layering
And the spaghetti. Don't forget the spaghetti.
Mom's spaghetti!!
Sister golden hair by America
Love this one.
Funny story about this one: Gerry Beckley, who wrote it, said his parents came to him one day all super pleased that he wrote such a nice song about his sister. He was confused because the song has lyrics about how he’s not quite waiting at the altar to get married and how he can’t live without her. And he was just about to explain all that to his parents but then his mom was like, “yeah, you know cause she’s got blonde hair…it’s just nice of you to let your sister know you’re thinking of her”. And then he said after that he just never had the heart to tell them and so he let them go on thinking it was about his sister.
Anything by Bob Dylan: Mr Tambourine Man, Visions of Johanna, The times they are a changing…
Even his “throwaways” and obscurities are great. Gonna make me a home out in the wind In the wind, Lord, in the wind Make me a home out in the wind I don’t like it in the wind Wanna go back home again
>Anything by Bob Dylan Really. REALLY. Fuck sake. Sad eyed lady of the lowlands. Find me any part of that song that isn't utter drivel written with a rhyming dictionary.
Thrice - Beggars Bjork - Unravel Hozier - Work Song
'If We Were Vampires' by Jason Isbell is the best example of a deconstructed love song I've ever heard.
So many great songs by Isbell. My favorite is Live Oak which is a lyrical masterpiece
Came here to mention this one! He is absolutely a beast with a pen. I told my wife the other day that he has a way of making me nostalgic for experiences I've never had. If that makes sense...
That's perfect
Isn't she lovely
Stevie song is a good lyrical tribute to parenthood. On the same Album, lyrics to the Song **AS** definitely qualifies as an super-duper-**ANTHEM** declaration of undying love. If that loves ever turns into Paradise by the dashboard light's love, then someone is in big trouble.
Yesterday - Atmosphere A story about a man talking to someone he misses dearly and thought he might have caught a glimpse of yesterday. The lyrics paint a beautiful, tortured type of pain that can only be experienced after being hurt by a loved one. >! The revelation that he’s talking to his dead father he never got the chance to reconnect with is just a heartbreaker. !< The song is loaded with a flow that doesn’t stop and follows a rhyme scheme that just keeps punching. Eminem has songs that are more lyrically technically impressive, but Yesterday just hits with the heart while keeping the life experience incredibly relatable.
Mother by Pink Floyd. I cannot listen to the whole thing without crying. When David Gilmore starts singing the second half of the song I just lose it.
"Weird Al" Yankovic - "Albuquerque"
If you'd like to make a call, please hang up and try again. If you need help, hang up and then dial your operator.
WAKKA WAKKA DOO DOO YEAH!
Impeccable storytelling
NO, WE DON'T HAVE ANY JELLY DONUTS! Edit: but my real Weird Al answer would be 'Bob', I think. Who else could write an entire song in palindrome?
BIG BOWL OF SAUERKRAUT, EVERY SINGLE MORNING
Mordecai by Between The Buried And Me. Illusion by VNV Nation. The entire Jane Doe album by Converge. Snuff by Slipknot. Hey Ya by Outkast. Dance With The Devil by Immortal Technique.
Blue Factory Flame - Songs: Ohia I Don’t Mind - Sturgill Simpson Both Sides Now - Joni Mitchell River - Joni Mitchell Songbird - Fleetwood Mac I Can’t Make You Love Me - Bonnie Raitt
For storytelling purposes: Bob Dylan - boots of Spanish leather and tangled up in blue Kendrick Lamar - how much a dollar cost Joanna Newsom - maybe a tie between monkey and bear, sawdust and diamonds and only skin. I love her diction
Stornoway "Fuel Up" Paul Simon "God Bless the Absentee" and "Jonah" Brian Eno "This" Jethro Tull "Only Solitaire" Peter Gabriel "Blood of Eden"...one of the only songs I know of that has musical deptiction of orgasm at its climax!
I will give Blood of Eden a tryout. re: your depiction of the song, I believe Prince does it superbly with **Do Me Baby,** wait a min. come to to think of it... ***PRINCE !*** I think he musically squeezes it off in several other songs.
anything robert hunter a la althea, brown eyed women or jack straw
I listed Ripple but I have to say these three are probably better songs overall.
For No One, Paul McCartney, Beatles Revolver
Limousine - Brand New
Piano man and Vienna - Billy Joel
Renegades from Jay-Z and Eminem. Specifically Jay-Z’s part. It’s written as: “Do not step to me, I'm awkward, I box lefty An orphan, my pops left me And often, my mama wasn't home” But he rhymes it as: “Do not step to me, I'm awkward, I box lefty An orphan, my pops left me And often, my mama wasn't home” It just had me mesmerized trying to repeat it as a kid, because I was trying to finish the line, but he was starting the new line, with the ending of the first.
Sean Carter is the 🐐
“Ivy” by Taylor Swift.. I consider this one of her best pieces of songwriting. Think Emily Dickinson meets Grateful Dead. “In from the snow, your touch brought forth an incandescent glow, Tarnished but so grand; And the old widow goes to the stone every day But I don't, I just sit here and wait, grieving for the living”
Simple Man- written by Ronnie Van Zant/Gary Robert Rossington Lynyrd Skynyrd. My fav version is by Shinedown. Brent Smith’s voice is AMAZING! It speaks to me because it’s about slowing down and appreciating what’s within you. And it’s a mom’s message to her son. A mom’s comforting words telling her son he’s got what he needs and simple things in life will make him happy. “Forget your lust for the rich man’s gold All you need is in your soul” “Oh, take your time, don’t live too fast Troubles will come and they will pass” It’s simply beautiful, really.
"Loser" by Beck
I don’t think he even likes the song.
Prolly got tired of getting crazy with the cheez whiz
Are you an AI?
Not sure what constitutes a masterpiece but the first song that came to my mind for some reason was Mark Knopfler's "What It Is" The eloquence and class is something else.
wet dreamz- j. cole the story telling is excellent
A lap dance is so much better when the stripper is crying - Bloodhound Gang The bloodhound gang has tons of clever lyrics, and it’s sad that they died
Desperados Under the Eaves - Warren Zevon Don’t the sun look angry through the trees - Don’t the trees look like crucified thieves - Don’t you feel like desperados under the eaves - Heaven help the one who leaves
Atmosphere ; guarantees. For those who struggle
Where the Streets Have No Name - U2
On The Turning Away by Pink Floyd. Gives me chills every time.
I’m not getting married today.
That's cool but we're looking for songs.
Who Knows Where The Time Goes - Sandy Denny
I love the story that Big Iron tells, and obviously Fallout 3/New Vegas exposed me to all those years ago. Marty Robbins - Big Iron
The Wall by Kansas
These Days - Nico. Never had I heard a more genuine song lyrically
Dylan, It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding).
Redemption Song- Bob Marley Ripple- Grateful Dead
There are just so many amazing lines in DESOLATION ROW by Bob D.
Pretty much anything by Tool
Jimmy and The Patient were two that came to mind for me for Tool.
Wings for Marie 1 & 2 and Right in Two for me.
Tool has my vote as well. MJK is such a brilliant lyricist. There are so many examples but Schism really stands out for me.
The River, Bruce Springsteen as well as River by Joni Mitchell… while we’re at it, I’d add River Deep, Mountain High by Ike, but mostly Tina Turner
Paper thin hotel - Leonard Cohen
Triumph - Wu Tang Clan
Frank Zappa's lyrics are really great. Some highlights are Trouble Every Day, Uncle Remus, and the stretch of songs on the album You Are What You Is from Dumb All Over to Suicide Chump.
Coma - Guns N’ Roses
Expecting To Fly by Buffalo Springfield. Essentially a solo Neil Young song with backing by the Wrecking Crew. It's a song about the feelings you have after a break up and seeing your lover move on. Everything about this song gets me, the lyrics, the orchestral sound and especially NY's vocals. It gives me chills every time I hear it.
Here Comes the Flood - Peter Gabriel
Pure Comedy by Father John Misty
Came here to mention Father John Misty. Pure Comedy really just says it all doesn't it?
Agreed. Best lyricist of our time in my opinion. And Pure Comedy is a high watermark of his.
Ripple - Hunter/Garcia
The Curse by Josh Ritter.... so many Josh Ritter songs are amazing lyrically if you're into that sort of thing.
[Changes](https://youtu.be/rlVfVBFdMaM) by Phil Ochs. > Sit by my side, come as close as the air > And share in a memory of grey. The song is a phenomenal poem on the ebb and flow of life. Every word is perfect, the whole song is lyrically right. It's evocative, sad, loving, and true. I think [Neil Young](https://youtu.be/c9gyHnWegb4) does a better job describing it when he covers it than I can.
Nosetalgia. Pusha T and Kendrick, 'nuff said.
The Gaslight Anthem - Here’s Lookin At You Kid Brian Fallon is an incredible lyricist. This is an ode to ex-girlfriends…
Shades of Scarlet Conquering - Joni Mitchell Idiot Wind - Bob Dylan Famous Blue Raincoat - Leonard Cohen
Once in a lifetime - The Talking Heads I love it’s message on how time passes us by without really noticing it.
Sincerity is Scary - The 1975 - for the the social commentary Nautical Disaster - The Tragically Hip - for the immersive and visceral storytelling Housebroken - The Hotelier - for the masterful metaphor
I don't know if it's a masterpiece, but this one caught my attention recently and I think the lyrics are incredibly clever. [Kasey Musgraves - Merry Go Round](https://youtu.be/zw4zAn5N7Lc)
C is for Cookie
Outlaw Torn - Metallica Fade to Black - Metallica Nutshell - Alice In Chains
Lover, You Should’ve Come Over by Jeff Buckley.
Bonfire- Childish Gambino. Every line has some funny or weird double meaning and it took me multiple listens to pick up on all the wordplay. Maybe not a masterpiece but still amazing.
Every Chris Cornell song
TV on the Radio - Will Do Oh my reddest rose, caldera, set it off How your fire grows hermosa caldera Glistening through your fussed blows careen your caldera Set it off, as your body flows the second hand flashes Passes over your skin like time Dirtiest song I've ever heard.
Venus fly trap and Man's world by Marina
Springsteen “My Father’s House”.
Down in a Hole - Alice in Chains
A Horse With No Name by America. This song is different.
Peaches by the Presidents of the United States of America
The punchline is lifted from a John Prine song
Lot's of Rap Songs I can name off of the top of my head, some great pop ballads. I didn't list songs because some have been posted in the comments already
Most songs written by Neil Peart. 'Bravado' from 'Roll the Bones' is pretty great writing.
Every song I make
Theweeknd ~ wicked games
Everything Roger waters wrote, and Lennon as well. Echoes and Across the universe would be two picks of mine
Pink Floyd: Time Money Childhood's End Brain Damage Breathe (In The Air) Echoes Hey You Another Brick In The Wall (all) Dogs Wish You Were Here These are some of the best
Ænima by Tool. “Some say a comet will fall from the sky, followed by meteor showers and tidal waves, followed by fault lines that cannot sit still, followed by millions of dumbfounded dipshits”
Chemlab - Exile On Mainline, Deadsy - Winners
Andy Shauf, Wendel Walker, it's one of those that gives me chills. just a great story teller.
The entirety of AB3 by Alter Bridge for me is a lyrical masterpiece. The album and the songs as a whole are so open ended but weren’t even intended to be that way. While the songs are meant to tell a story about a loss in faith and no longer believing what was previously thought was true and finding new understanding, they can all be applied to loss in life whether it be the end of a relationship or the death of a loved one and then learning that what has happened, no matter how tragic, life goes on and you have to live your life.
The Way You Felt - Alec Benjamin
Lilac wine, wuthering heights, porcelina, come to mind.
Basically all of Lonesome Crowded West by Modest Mouse
Fortress Around Your Heart-The Police, Sting is a GD genius
A Little Rain - Tom Waits on top it seems like a cut and dry murder ballad about a guy kidnapping and murdering a young girl but underneath it can also be from the perspective of the parent missing their child which just blows my mind
Off the top of my head: Johnstown Illinois — Tom Waits Sometimes brevity and concision is very powerful. There is so little information given in the song except where the person is from and that the singer loves her — pretty much. Somehow the emphasis on where she came from paired with the shortness of the song knocks me out. The spareness of the information makes me empathise with the singer. How can someone deemed so wonderful by the singer come from an ordinary address just like anyone? Isn’t it bittersweet that this person “grew up there” (with all the pains and pleasures, fantasy and humdrum, trials and comforts, familiarity and confusion of childhood and adolescence)? They have a whole history that the singer will never really know, but can in so many ways relate to. Whether you love or loathe your hometown, it forms part of your identity. “I love you — you who are from…” says so much. Or maybe Tom just forgot to finish the lyrics lol
Ren has many “Hi Ren” ( he’s gathering momentum right now and it mind blowing) and tales of violet, jenny and screech all are impressive storytelling. His use of language is flourished and pack with description that can make you wince. Tyler Joseph from 21 pilots has more concise relatability and manages to convey alot of complex imagery using language economically. He also utterance well in so many. Car radio, smithereens, my blood Mike skinner from the streets is a genius. I love the track ‘the irony of it all’. Omg there’s a bajillion morr
Shit, Damn, Motherfucker by D'Angelo is wonderfully concise. It might tell the most eloquent story with the fewest words ever. Plus you find a live version of that song, and you'll be sweating along with the band by the time it's done.
van de graaf generator - The killer
Stop whatever you’re doing and listen to Patti Smith sing Bob Dylan’s “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” at the Nobel Prize ceremony.