Best Lyricist of the last 30 years

oxx

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Thread starter #26
Van Der Zeevalk said:
Hm.. almost forgot this one..

Paddy McAloon from Prefab Sprout.

Most of Todd Rundgren's best work was pre 1975. Started to go more ' commercial' and mainstream after the 1975 album ' Initiation ' and more involved in the Utopia band concept, although still maintained a solid output of great lyrics on subsequent releases, most notably ' Hermit Of Mink Hollow ( 1978 ) and ' The Ever Popular Tortured Artist Effect " ( 1983 )

McAloon's lyrics though are the produce of one brilliant mind and many of Prefab Sprout's songs are some of the most emotive stuff I have ever heard.
To cite a few examples, Cruel, We Let The Stars Go, Life Of Surprises and Carnival 2000 stand out, and then there are their two gems which were minor chart hits here in the mid to late '80s, ' Appetite ' and ' Cars & Girls ' .
Cars & Girls I would say is close to the best lyric ever written.
.
Insightful.
Good posting.

I've never given Todd any thought,may have to listen.
 

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#27
Last 30 years means 1975-2005. Ok.. hmm Paul Kelly certainly should get a mention. John Williamson for bringing the countryside into my city lounge room.

Bernie Taupin has done some good work as has Paul MaCartney. Nick Cave has some good work. Paul Stanley? Angus Young?

The problem with an exercise like this is the range of musical styles and tastes. Bob Marley as well.. see the names keep on coming. But to define the greatest lyricist is to look at who has remained constant and popular. How the Strolling Bones continue to sell out stadiums is beyond me..yet they havent had a number 1 in 25 years.

So I guess Bernie Taupin for consistency and range would be in the top 3
 

Van Der Zeevalk

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#28
oxx said:
Insightful.
Good posting.

I've never given Todd any thought,may have to listen.
If you can, try and get hold of some of Todd's work with the band' The Nazz ' who had 3 ablums between 1968 - 1970. A lot of the lyrics were obscure but if you have a ' cryptic' mind alignment, they are a good collection of messages.
As for Todd's solo work, the albums ' Runt ' ( 1970 ) and ' Something / Anything' ( 1972 ) were definate works of art.
It;s a real shame Todd is best known for the one song he wrote that was absolute and utter garbage - the three minute thirty three second piece of utter and complete sht otherwise known as ' Can We Still Be Friends '
 

oxx

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Thread starter #33
Sptingsteen ?

This is close to brilliance when comparing to the AMERICAN MID-WESTERN dream.

In the day we sweat it out in the streets of a runaway american dream
At night we ride through mansions of glory in suicide machines
Sprung from cages out on highway 9,
Chrome wheeled, fuel injected and steppin’ out over the line
Baby this town rips the bones from your back
It’s a death trap, it’s a suicide rap
We gotta get out while we’re young
`cause tramps like us, baby we were born to run

Wendy let me in I wanna be your friend
I want to guard your dreams and visions
Just wrap your legs round these velvet rims
And strap your hands across my engines
Together we could break this trap
We’ll run till we drop, baby we’ll never go back
Will you walk with me out on the wire
`cause baby I’m just a scared and lonely rider
But I gotta find out how it feels
I want to know if love is wild, girl I want to know if love is real

Beyond the palace hemi-powered drones scream down the boulevard
The girls comb their hair in rearview mirrors
And the boys try to look so hard
The amusement park rises bold and stark
Kids are huddled on the beach in a mist
I wanna die with you wendy on the streets tonight
In an everlasting kiss

The highway’s jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive
Everybody’s out on the run tonight but there’s no place left to hide
Together wendy we’ll live with the sadness
I’ll love you with all the madness in my soul
Someday girl I don’t know when we’re gonna get to that place
Where we really want to go and we’ll walk in the sun
But till then tramps like us baby we were born to run
 

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#34
oxx said:
Sptingsteen ?

Born To Run
Hard to top this IMO:

Cars And Girls

Brucie dreams...
Life's a highway - too many roads bypass my way
Or they never begin.
Innocence coming to grief
At the hands of life - stinkin’ car thief,
That’s my concept of sin
Does heaven wait all heavenly over the next horizon ?

But look at us now, quit driving, some things hurt more much more than cars and girls.
Just look at us now, start counting, what adds up the way it did when we were young ?
Look at us now, quit driving, some things hurt much more than cars and girls.

Life’s a drive through a dust bowl, what’s it do, do to a young soul
We are deeply concerned,
Someone stops for directions, something responds deep in our engines
We have all been burned
Will heaven wait all heavenly over the next horizon ?

But look at us now, quit driving, some things hurt more much more than cars and girls.
Just look at us now, start counting, what adds up the way it did when we were young ?
Look at us now, quit driving, some things hurt much more than cars and girls.

Little boy got a hot rod, thinks it makes him some kind of new god
Well this is one race he won’t win,
’cos life’s no cruise with a cool chick
Too many folks feelin’ car sick, but it never pulls in.
Brucie’s thoughts - pretty streamers
Guess this world needs it’s dreamers
May they never wake up.

But look at us now, quit driving, some things hurt more much more than cars and girls.
Just look at us now, start counting, what adds up the way it did when we were young ?
Look at us now, quit driving, some things hurt much more than cars and girls.
 

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Van Der Zeevalk

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#41
Cruel - Prefab Sprout ( Paddy McAloon )
Cruel is the gospel thats sets us all free,
Then takes you away from me.

There is no Chicago urban blues, more heartfelt than my lament for you.

I’m a liberal guy, too cool for the macho ache, with a secret tooth,
For the cherry on the cake.
With a pious smile, a smile that changes what I say.
While I waste my time, inregretting that the days,
Went from perfect to just OK

Lordy, what would I do?
Don’t call me possessive,
But God if he’s smoochin’ with you.
I’s a jealous boy root, -the world should be free,
But don’t you go following suit
My heart is aligned-
It couldn’t be neutral, I couldn’t be that way inclined.
Its hard to defend, ba ba ba, ba, ba ba,
These feelings tuppentup friend.
Its cruel, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba,
Ba ba it’s cruel, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba,
Ba ba it’s cruel, it’s crueler than cruel.

But cruel is the gospel thats sets us all free,
Then takes you away from me.

Should a love be tender, and bleed out loud?
Or be tougher than tough, and prouder than proud.
If I’m troubled by every folding of your skirt,
Am I guilty of every male inflicted hurt?
But I don’t know how to describe the modern rose,
When I can’t refer to her shape against her clothes.
With the fever of purple prose.

Lordy, what would I do?
Don’t call me possessive,
But God if he’s smoochin’ with you.
I’s a jealous boy root, -the world should be free,
But don’t you go following suit
My heart is aligned-
It couldn’t be neutral, I couldn’t be that way inclined.
Its hard to defend, ba ba ba, ba, ba ba,
These feelings tuppentup friend.
Its cruel, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba,
Ba ba it’s cruel, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba, ba ba ba,
Ba ba it’s cruel, it’s crueler than cruel.


But cruel is the gospel thats sets us all free,
Then takes you away from me.

My contribution, to urban blues.
 

Van Der Zeevalk

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#42
I Remember That - Prefab Sprout ( Paddy McAloon )

Nothing sounds as good as "i remember that"
Like a bolt out from the blue, did you feel it too ?
- I remember that

Name me one little thing, you’ll be wanting to keep
As you give up the ghost as you sink into sleep
Maybe her face in the morning, maybe his in the evening
Maybe words never spoken, aren’t they the ones worth hearing ?
Say I remember that

Nothing sounds as good as "i remember that"
Like a bolt out from the blue, did you feel it too ?
- I remember that
Nothing sounds as good as "i remember that"
Like a bolt out from the blue, did you feel it too ?
- I remember that

’cos that’s all we can have, yes it’s all we can trust
It’s a hell of a ride but a journey to dust
And there’s nothing pathetic listing clothes she’d wear
If it proves that I had you, if it proves I was there
Say I remember that

Nothing sounds as good as "i remember that"
Like a bolt out from the blue, did you feel it too ?
- I remember that
Nothing sounds as good as "i remember that"
Like a bolt out from the blue, did you feel it too ?
- I remember that

Did you feel it too ? ... I remember that
Did you feel it too ? ... I remember that...
 

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#43
Good thread!

Some of my favourites, in no particular order are

Jeff Tweedy - Wilco
Justin Currie - Del Amitri
Glenn Richards - Augie March
Billy Bragg
Elvis Costello
Nick Cave
Andy Cox - The Fauves
Stephen Malkmus
Morrissey
Darren Hanlon
Neil Finn
Greg Macainsh - Skyhooks
Bob Dylan
Bruce Springsteen
Bon Scott
 

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#48
The invisible mullet said:
Last 30 years - Shane MacGowan
So many brilliant writers, really impossible to pick one but yeah MacGowan would have to be right up there. Not just good or great, a true genius.
 
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