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Terrible Neil Peart lyrics?


StellarJetman
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None of those are even close to his worst. Dog Years is immediately what I think of when it comes to that.

 

The line from TSOR fits the song perfectly. The words written on the studio walls I always thought referred to a wall that rocks stars signed while visiting a radio station studio. Or possibly autographed pictures of them hanging up on a wall in the studio.

 

The line "echoes with the sounds of salesmen" makes perfect sense because it's referring to advertisements on the radio. And since it's a song about radio what's the big deal?

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QUOTE (J2112YYZ @ Mar 6 2011, 08:15 PM)
The line from TSOR fits the song perfectly. The words written on the studio walls I always thought referred to a wall that rocks stars signed while visiting a radio station studio. Or possibly autographed pictures of them hanging up on a wall in the studio.

The line "echoes with the sounds of salesmen" makes perfect sense because it's referring to advertisements on the radio. And since it's a song about radio what's the big deal?

Oh, I get the lyrics. I just think that the way that they're written is really cheesy, especially in combination with Geddy's delivery.

 

Similarly, it's easy to see the message behind "Dog Years", but it's articulated laughably.

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QUOTE (StellarJetman @ Mar 6 2011, 09:21 PM)
QUOTE (J2112YYZ @ Mar 6 2011, 08:15 PM)
The line from TSOR fits the song perfectly. The words written on the studio walls I always thought referred to a wall that rocks stars signed while visiting a radio station studio. Or possibly autographed pictures of them hanging up on a wall in the studio.

The line "echoes with the sounds of salesmen" makes perfect sense because it's referring to advertisements on the radio. And since it's a song about radio what's the big deal?

Oh, I get the lyrics. I just think that the way that they're written is really cheesy, especially in combination with Geddy's delivery.

 

Similarly, it's easy to see the message behind "Dog Years", but it's articulated laughably.

I don't agree with the take on "The Spirit of Radio". The lyrics are obviously an ode to "The Sound of Silence". I think the lyrics work perfectly.

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These lyrics make me cringe every time:

 

What can this strange device be?

When I touch it, it gives forth a sound

It's got wires that vibrate, and give music

What can this thing be that I found?

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QUOTE (ReRushed @ Mar 6 2011, 08:58 PM)
These lyrics make me cringe every time:

What can this strange device be?
When I touch it, it gives forth a sound
It's got wires that vibrate, and give music
What can this thing be that I found?

I understand the significance and love the idea behind it, but..

Yeah. The first time I heard "Discovery" I was laughing my butt off.

I don't think it's terrible, it's just.. a little oddly worded, perhaps?

If I ever listen to 2112 and my dad's in the room during Presentation, he starts making little mocking, whiny-sounding comments like, "Don't yelll at meee!!" The back-and-forth between the Priests and the Protagonist is interesting, but kind of amusing.

 

I once saw someone comment that they found many of the lyrics to "Red Barchetta" rather "Middle-school" is what they used to describe them. What do you guys think? Yea or nay for "Red Barchetta"?

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QUOTE (CMWriter @ Mar 6 2011, 09:12 PM)
I once saw someone comment that they found many of the lyrics to "Red Barchetta" rather "Middle-school" is what they used to describe them. What do you guys think? Yea or nay for "Red Barchetta"?

Some of them are good, but there are phrases, especially "before the Motor Law" and "better-managed time", that really don't do it for me.

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QUOTE (CMWriter @ Mar 6 2011, 10:12 PM)
QUOTE (ReRushed @ Mar 6 2011, 08:58 PM)
These lyrics make me cringe every time:

What can this strange device be?
When I touch it, it gives forth a sound
It's got wires that vibrate, and give music
What can this thing be that I found?

I understand the significance and love the idea behind it, but..

Yeah. The first time I heard "Discovery" I was laughing my butt off.

I don't think it's terrible, it's just.. a little oddly worded, perhaps?

If I ever listen to 2112 and my dad's in the room during Presentation, he starts making little mocking, whiny-sounding comments like, "Don't yelll at meee!!" The back-and-forth between the Priests and the Protagonist is interesting, but kind of amusing.

 

I once saw someone comment that they found many of the lyrics to "Red Barchetta" rather "Middle-school" is what they used to describe them. What do you guys think? Yea or nay for "Red Barchetta"?

Red barchetta lyrics blow my mind, only because of the imagery and vocabulary, so I say it's a win. Totally dorky to describe a car that way, instead of as in highway star or something like that, so I can see why people can say it fails.

 

 

But to me, epic win.

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In a dog's life

A year is really more like seven

And all too soon a canine

Will be chasing cars in doggie heaven

 

It seems to me

As we make our own few circles 'round the sun

We get it backwards

And our seven years go by like one

 

Dog years -- It's the season of the itch

Dog years -- With every scratch it reappears

 

In the dog days

People look to Sirius

Dogs cry for the moon

But these connections are mysterious

 

It seems to me

While it's true that every dog will have his day

When all the bones are buried

There is barely time to go outside and play

 

Dog years -- It's the season of the itch

Dog years -- With every scratch it reappears

Dog years -- For every sad son of a bitch

Dog years -- With his tail between his ears

 

I'd rather be a tortoise from Galapagos

Or a span of geological time

Than be living in these dog years

 

In a dog's brain

A constant buzz of low-level static

One sniff at the hydrant

And the answer is automatic

 

It seems to me

As well make our own few circles 'round the block

We've lost our senses

For the higher-level static of talk

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High on the sacred mountain

Up the seven thousand stairs

In the golden light of autumn

There was magic in the air

 

The clouds surrounded the summit

The wind blew strong and cold

Among the silent temples

And the writing carved in gold

 

Somewhere in my instincts

The primitive took hold.

 

I stood at the top of the mountain

And China sang to me

In the peaceful haze of harvest time

A song of eternity

 

If you raise your hands to heaven

You will live a hundred years

I stood there like a mystic

Lost in the atmosphere

 

The clouds were suddenly parted

For a moment I could see

The patterns of the landscape

Reaching to the eastern sea

 

I looked upon a presence

Spanning forty centuries.

 

I stood at the top of the mountain

And China sang to me

In the peaceful haze of harvest time

A song of eternity

 

I thought of time and distance

The hardships of history

I heard the hope and the hunger

When China sang to me...

When China sang to me.

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To me, Tai Shan lyrics are mature and poetic. They are not cheesy. These, however, are:

 

everybody got to reverse polarity

 

from the power train, to the glory game, thy kingdoms will be done

 

making arrows out of pointed words, giant-killers at the call

 

the hypocrites are slandering the sacred hall of Truth

 

love is born with solar flares from two magnetic poles

 

driven to the margin of error / driven to the margin of terror

 

the most endangered species, the honest man, will still survive annihilation

 

Let's face it, most Rush songs will contain some kind of lyric considered "cheesy" by your average, non-Rush troglodyte. <== Yes, the same people who think Lil Wayne or Avenged Sevenfold are not cheesy. One person's cheese is another's whine.

 

YMMV

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QUOTE (psionic11 @ Mar 6 2011, 10:17 PM)
To me, Tai Shan lyrics are mature and poetic. They are not cheesy. These, however, are:

everybody got to reverse polarity

from the power train, to the glory game, thy kingdoms will be done

making arrows out of pointed words, giant-killers at the call

the hypocrites are slandering the sacred hall of Truth

love is born with solar flares from two magnetic poles

driven to the margin of error / driven to the margin of terror

the most endangered species, the honest man, will still survive annihilation

Let's face it, most Rush songs will contain some kind of lyric considered "cheesy" by your average, non-Rush troglodyte. <== Yes, the same people who think Lil Wayne or Avenged Sevenfold are not cheesy. One person's cheese is another's whine.

YMMV

Oh man.. Some of those lines I love... Especially that NatSci one.

And the "making arrows out of pointed words" has always sent shivers up my spine.

Maybe at times he takes the whole metaphor thing a little too far... but I can't say I totally agree with your picks. I see where you're coming from, but there's worse...

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QUOTE (Good,bad,andrush @ Mar 6 2011, 11:25 PM)
The most endangered species, the honest man...that's cheesy?
That is by far one of the top three deepest things Neil has written.

agreed - i love the lyrics to Natural Science

 

 

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QUOTE (evilsugar25 @ Mar 6 2011, 11:34 PM)
QUOTE (Good @ bad,andrush,Mar 6 2011, 11:25 PM)
The most endangered species, the honest man...that's cheesy?
That is by far one of the top three deepest things Neil has written.

agreed - i love the lyrics to Natural Science

trink39.gif

 

Natural science is a lyrical masterpiece, and in my top five best lyrics of all time. Actually, three rush songs are laugh.gif

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Okay, I just know someone's going to try and extradite me from TRF, call me a horrible person, or something along those lines, but the first line of "Nobody's Hero" (which I ADORE as a whole) has always, always bugged me:

"I knew he was different in his sexuality.."

I get it. I get what he's trying to say here. But the execution, to me, kind of.. falls... flat.

It's a very "what?" way to start what turns out to be what I think is a great song with neat lyrics. In fact, the whole first verse is a little awkward, in a lyrical sense. I don't feel it flows as well as the following verses or the chorus.

 

I've found that sometimes it's a case of "great idea, not-so-great execution". Which is a shame.

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QUOTE (CMWriter @ Mar 6 2011, 10:51 PM)
"I knew he was different in his sexuality.."
I get it. I get what he's trying to say here. But the execution, to me, kind of.. falls... flat.

Maybe it's the fact that he says it in such a weird, roundabout fashion, one which is highlighted by the way that the following line gets right to the point with "straight minority"?

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QUOTE (J2112YYZ @ Mar 6 2011, 07:15 PM)
None of those are even close to his worst. Dog Years is immediately what I think of when it comes to that.

The line from TSOR fits the song perfectly. The words written on the studio walls I always thought referred to a wall that rocks stars signed while visiting a radio station studio. Or possibly autographed pictures of them hanging up on a wall in the studio.

The line "echoes with the sounds of salesmen" makes perfect sense because it's referring to advertisements on the radio. And since it's a song about radio what's the big deal?

DITTO!

 

Pure "dog shite" next to the "Net Boy Net Girl" rubbish.

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