I agree that good lyrics, to me, are an important aspect of a song. That said, I can forgive poorly written lyrics more easily than I can forgive poorly written music but the songs I end up liking best are all works of prose as much as they are works of music.
X-rated Bob wrote:
I think that people tend to find what they want to in lyrics. I think that's OK in many cases, but if the lyric is a straight, unambiguous narrative then maybe not.
And that's how I like them. There's this concept in art (I've mostly heard of it in reference to poetry, prose and painting) of "showing" vs. "telling". Generally, it is held that "showing" is superior to "telling" and requires more skill. "Telling", is giving the audience the full story while "showing" is giving them just enough so that they can fill in the blanks themselves, draw their own conclusions, make their own discoveries and find their own meanings.
It seems very simple but it was an eye opener to me the first time someone drew my attention to this concept. I strive to employ "showing" in my writing more than "telling" but I suck at it. At least now I know why my lyrics suck - I "tell" too much and "show" too little.
X-rated Bob wrote:
Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA" has been widely misinterpreted - or a large number of people have interpreted the song differently than Springsteen himself does (take your pick).
Not always sure how I feel about that post-modernistic approach but many would argue that Springsteen did indeed mean what their interpretation is - even if he didn't know it :? I suppose there might be a certain element of truth in that but I've seen that argument being applied in the most ridiculous ways.
