I had a discussion with my wife the other night about what draws us to certain music and what we listen for. I am fortunate that we both like a lot of the same music. Anything goes apart from opera.
My wife listens to lyrics first and everything else is secondary. I am the other way around lyrics are the least important thing in a song for me. It's a miracle we like the same stuff. I can like stuff where the lyrics are nonsense (Cream) or mostly about shagging (Led Zep). But I don't look for something deep and meaningful. If it's there and I like it then all well and good. Bland singer songwriter stuff
The first artists who got me taking notice of lyrics were Joni Mitchell and Peter Hammill.
Joni tells stories straight from the heart and paints pictures with words.
'Edith and the Kingpin', 'Shades of Scarlet Conquering', 'Carey', 'Real Good For Free'.
Every one a gem.
Hammill observes, often critically, our fears and emotions and the meaning of what it is to be human.
'Comfortable', 'On Tuesday She used to do Yoga', 'Mirror Images'.
I should say that most of the music I listen to is primarily instrumental.
Although. When I am learning pieces with my choir I do find it very important to understand the meaning behind what I'm singing and project the right 'feeling', otherwise it's just opening your mouth and shifting air.
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I like lyrics which match the music, this will be sword & sorcery / dungeons and dragons in many cases. Ronnie James Dio was the master of this. Rock pointed me towards the writings of Tolkien, a big influence on Robert Plant. That is not to say I have anything against the standard rock lyrics about sex and booze, Bonn Scot being the master craftsmen ime. I also like ambiguity, even if the subject matter could be nonsense, eg early Bowie, early Queen and T.Rex.
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Bob Dylan is fantastic, I agree. I discovered him at University many years ago. One of tbe times you buy one of their albums then have to go and buy all the rest (or a large chunk) all in one go. Man of constant sorrow is one of my fave's.
They found guy the who did it, he had the lobotomy and the chicken eyes,
And he gazed around the courtroom with a kind of vague suprise
Reminded me of one of those Vikings with the long-handled swords
The kind of guy even Joan Baez would not feel non-violent towards
Said he wasn't looking, maybe he had had a bit too much
It was dark, it was raining, he didn't see the light or some such
It was just one of those things,
One of those things.
The other three verses are brilliant too.
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Man of constant sorrow is one of my fave's.
