Friday, May 4, 2012

Do Lyrics Matter?



What matters more to you - lyrics or instrumentation?  I once had a boyfriend who pronounced during a leisurely drive, "The lyrics just don't matter as long the actual music is good."  Something in me went off, and I realized he might not be the one for me.  He is now an ex.

Hey, I certainly value instrumentation.  The composition of a song, whether it has lyrics or not, is one of my favorite things to analyze.  Lyrics aren't all important - but they are important  If there are words over that beat I believe they should be factored into the quality of that song.

Note that it is also in my opinion that if it is in the nature of a song to be silly, the lyrics can be a bit silly too.  For different genres there are different types of lyrics, and that is perfectly respectable.  Lady Gaga, for instance, is one of my favorite artists.  She has written various verses and choruses with odd phrases - remember "bluffin' with my muffin?"  It works for her.  It helps that she's written some great lyrics with substance as well - "Speechless," for example.

Check out musician and YouTuber Alex Day analyzing Lady Gaga's lyrics for "Telephone."



To those who say lyrics today are worse than in the past, I beg to differ.  Many of them simply mean pop music lyrics are worse than they were in the past.  We have more options in what we listen to today.  You can't complain about the quality of our lyrics if all you're listening to are the current charters.  You may have to go looking for the well-written choruses, but they're there.  What's more is you don't have to rule out Top 40 radio either!  Gotye and Adele lyrics will tear your heart out, in a good way.

So keep in mind the genre you are listening to when you get discouraged by less than stellar wording.  We haven't lost our talented singer-songwriters.  Great lyrics are still alive; lyrics that resonate with you, lyrics you can belt out and cry to, lyrics that change you.  And if you're having difficulty finding them in today's music...well, there's always the classics to restore your spirit.

Who knows?  Perhaps you'll even write some yourself. 



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