Hating on Neil's lyrics

[Geddy's Soul Patch]

There a few songs that seem to get an undeserved amount of hate from a lyrical standpoint. Tai Shan, War Paint, Totem, Half the World etc... I feel like there's not much to complain about though. People say "oh, they're cheesy!" Or something like that, but what does that really even mean?!?! Let's take Tai Shan and War Paint as examples, they get bashed a lot. From a phonetics standpoint, they both SOUND fine to the ear I think. And Neil is communicating some really beautiful and pure ideas. What more can you ask for from lyrics?

[The Analog Grownup]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

[The Analog Cub]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

 

Lyrics and their meaning be damned, that "BOYS AND GIRLS TOGEEEEETHA!" drives me bonkers.

[goose]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

The lyrics aren't bad, actually, when read as a poem...

 

High on the sacred mountain

Up the seven thousand stairs

In the golden light of autumn

There was magic in the air

 

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 thought of time and distance

The hardships of history

I heard the hope and the hunger

When China sang to me...

[The Analog Grownup]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

 

Lyrics and their meaning be damned, that "BOYS AND GIRLS TOGEEEEETHA!" drives me bonkers.

 

I never pay that much attention to lyrics after all. I'm a musician so the instruments is my focus. I think 90 percent of the songs I listen to I don't know the lyrics even after a year or two. I can see it must be different for someone who is quicker to pick up the language of the songs :)

[The Analog Cub]

Quite honestly I think people are putting way too much importance on the lyrics over the music. I especially notice this when people talk about Test For Echo or Snakes And Arrows. Musically I find both T4E and Snakes pretty good, with some songs in particular having great music, like Test For Echo and Totem, or Armor And Sword. Sure I think those two have some cringe-worthy music (Dog Years, Bravest Face), but for the most part I like them.

 

Can some words in a song really be that big a detriment to the musical experience?

 

Just my opinion, take it for what you will.

[The Analog Grownup]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

The lyrics aren't bad, actually, when read as a poem...

 

High on the sacred mountain

Up the seven thousand stairs

In the golden light of autumn

There was magic in the air

 

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 thought of time and distance

The hardships of history

I heard the hope and the hunger

When China sang to me...

 

No, they're quite good. It's definitely the music of song that puts me off.

[The Analog Cub]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

 

Lyrics and their meaning be damned, that "BOYS AND GIRLS TOGEEEEETHA!" drives me bonkers.

 

I never pay that much attention to lyrics after all. I'm a musician so the instruments is my focus. I think 90 percent of the songs I listen to I don't know the lyrics even after a year or two. I can see it must be different for someone who is quicker to pick up the language of the songs :)

 

You're in good company, I don't ever care about the lyrics either. I was talking from a musical standpoint. That vocal line is almost as bad as "Superconductor, Superconductor" or "Looking for luurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrv"

[The Analog Grownup]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

 

Lyrics and their meaning be damned, that "BOYS AND GIRLS TOGEEEEETHA!" drives me bonkers.

 

I never pay that much attention to lyrics after all. I'm a musician so the instruments is my focus. I think 90 percent of the songs I listen to I don't know the lyrics even after a year or two. I can see it must be different for someone who is quicker to pick up the language of the songs :)

 

You're in good company, I don't ever care about the lyrics either. I was talking from a musical standpoint. That vocal line is almost as bad as "Superconductor, Superconductor" or "Looking for luurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrv"

 

If the music is great the lyrics gets a hall pass :P

[Empty Mindless Spectre]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

The lyrics aren't bad, actually, when read as a poem...

 

High on the sacred mountain

Up the seven thousand stairs

In the golden light of autumn

There was magic in the air

 

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 thought of time and distance

The hardships of history

I heard the hope and the hunger

When China sang to me...

 

Too many "I's". In my opinion, Neil's best lyrics are about more universal thoughts and observations that others can identify with and that are written in a less personal manner.

[goose]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

The lyrics aren't bad, actually, when read as a poem...

 

High on the sacred mountain

Up the seven thousand stairs

In the golden light of autumn

There was magic in the air

 

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 thought of time and distance

The hardships of history

I heard the hope and the hunger

When China sang to me...

 

Too many "I's". In my opinion, Neil's best lyrics are about more universal thoughts and observations that others can identify with and that are written in a less personal manner.

I'm not sure i agree with that.

[x1yyz]

Quite honestly I think people are putting way too much importance on the lyrics over the music. I especially notice this when people talk about Test For Echo or Snakes And Arrows. Musically I find both T4E and Snakes pretty good, with some songs in particular having great music, like Test For Echo and Totem, or Armor And Sword. Sure I think those two have some cringe-worthy music (Dog Years, Bravest Face), but for the most part I like them.

 

Can some words in a song really be that big a detriment to the musical experience?

 

Just my opinion, take it for what you will.

 

To me, vocals and the lyrics behind them are like another instrument in the song. So when I am listening to a song I listen to all the instruments, all the components it contains, and therefore the vocals and lyrics can be either a detriment or a real plus.

[presto123]

War Paint are some of the best lyrics Peart ever penned. The double meanings, symbolism, and metaphors is pure brilliance. I love Peart's lyrics back then during his "introspection" period. Songs like Double Agent, Enemy Within, Between Sun and Moon, War Paint, Neurotica, Face Up, Stick It Out. I really think Neil was doing some self analysis back then based on a lot of these lyrics. Some fascinating stuff if you read between the lines. Edited September 3, 2014 by presto123

[pip65]

To me, the music is way more important than the lyrics. I can happily listen to great music with cheesy lyrics but not to profound, poetic words set to lousy music. Having said that, it takes good music and lyrics to give a really great song.

[Aikenrooster]

I must admit that I've never heard Tai Shan in its entirety so I don't know about those lyrics and how they work. War Paint I know and love so why someone would say it's cheesy I don't know.

 

Lyrics and their meaning be damned, that "BOYS AND GIRLS TOGEEEEETHA!" drives me bonkers.

 

I never pay that much attention to lyrics after all. I'm a musician so the instruments is my focus. I think 90 percent of the songs I listen to I don't know the lyrics even after a year or two. I can see it must be different for someone who is quicker to pick up the language of the songs :)

 

You're in good company, I don't ever care about the lyrics either. I was talking from a musical standpoint. That vocal line is almost as bad as "Superconductor, Superconductor" or "Looking for luurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrv"

 

If the music is great the lyrics gets a hall pass :P

Yeah, I know a lot of people who hated the lyrics of Rage Against The Machine, but loved the music.

 

But, most music doesn't contain the subject matter that Rush's lyrics contain. Personally, I love Rush because of the lyrics. The music just happens to kick ass, too.

[Rod in Toronto]

I guess ignorance IS bliss after all. As a non-native English speaker, it´s a lot harder for me to pick up certain subtleties and harder to realize certain lyrics actually suck. The only Rush lyric that stands out as really bad for me is Dog Years.

[JARG]

Neil used to write some fine poetry -- cleverly crafted. Sometimes it was, imo, a bit too flowery to fit in with a hard-rocking band. I haven't paid attention to his lyrics since about VT (and only then because I was interested to see how the tragedies in his life would affect his lyric writing). I generally prefer Roger Water's lyrics to Neil's...I like Waters' caustic, irreverent style. But like some of my fellow musicians, lyrics are somewhat of an afterthought with me.

[tx_rush]

War Paint has some great lyrics, I can see how the lyrics of Tai Shan in of themselves have something to offer. I think dog years even gets a bad rap.

 

The one that deserves every bit of criticism is Half the world

[JARG]

War Paint has some great lyrics, I can see how the lyrics of Tai Shan in of themselves have something to offer. I think dog years even gets a bad rap.

 

The one that deserves every bit of criticism is Half the world

 

Half the World and Big Money follow the same general pattern: repeat the song title in the lyrics over and over again during the verses.

[Aikenrooster]

War Paint has some great lyrics, I can see how the lyrics of Tai Shan in of themselves have something to offer. I think dog years even gets a bad rap.

 

The one that deserves every bit of criticism is Half the world

Why?

[len(songs)]

War Paint has some great lyrics, I can see how the lyrics of Tai Shan in of themselves have something to offer. I think dog years even gets a bad rap.

 

The one that deserves every bit of criticism is Half the world

Why?

It's insanely repetitive throughout the song (verses and chorus), without any redeeming features whatsoever.

[Geddy's Soul Patch]

War Paint has some great lyrics, I can see how the lyrics of Tai Shan in of themselves have something to offer. I think dog years even gets a bad rap.

 

The one that deserves every bit of criticism is Half the world

Why?

It's insanely repetitive throughout the song (verses and chorus), without any redeeming features whatsoever.

Big Money is equally repetitive. Also, I think Half the World has quite a lot to offer from a musical standpoint

[troutman]

Quite honestly I think people are putting way too much importance on the lyrics over the music. I especially notice this when people talk about Test For Echo or Snakes And Arrows. Musically I find both T4E and Snakes pretty good, with some songs in particular having great music, like Test For Echo and Totem, or Armor And Sword. Sure I think those two have some cringe-worthy music (Dog Years, Bravest Face), but for the most part I like them.

 

Can some words in a song really be that big a detriment to the musical experience?

 

Just my opinion, take it for what you will.

 

To me, vocals and the lyrics behind them are like another instrument in the song. So when I am listening to a song I listen to all the instruments, all the components it contains, and therefore the vocals and lyrics can be either a detriment or a real plus.

 

:goodone:

[tx_rush]

War Paint has some great lyrics, I can see how the lyrics of Tai Shan in of themselves have something to offer. I think dog years even gets a bad rap.

 

The one that deserves every bit of criticism is Half the world

Why?

 

Its just seems really elementary. The theme is simple enough, and there is some truth to it, but its very repetitive. Half the world does A, and the other half does the oppisate of A. Musically its bland by Rush standards IMO

[GrandDesigner]

My biggest issue with Neil's lyrics is the constant need to rhyme. Sometimes the lyrics come out really cheesy because he's trying too hard to make them rhyme. If he just loosened up and didn't worry about rhyming so much then he'd really be at the top. I think a lot of his individual lines are brilliant.