The 20 Worst Lyrics Ever: No. 20
- Posted by Spinner Staff
- Comments (982)
Where have all the poets gone? To pop music, of course. However, judging from our list, some of these esteemed wordsmiths could use a new thesaurus. We'll take your complaints at the end.
(lyrics by Bernie Taupin)
Well, then stop bringing it up already! This line has been wasting our time for three decades.
"If I was a sculptor
But then again, no"
(lyrics by Bernie Taupin)
Well, then stop bringing it up already! This line has been wasting our time for three decades.
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Reader Comments(1 of 50)
David Altschulat 1-26-2008
WTF? No "Someone left the cake out in the rain"?
David Altschulat 1-26-2008
regarding post 865: the fantasy that MacArthurPark was written by Harris & Newley would be a big surprise to its actual writer, Jimmy Webb (see his Wikipedia entry)
yolandaat 2-03-2008
#11 track lyrics are really pathetic.My laffy taffy cant even withstand
Marge Holtat 2-13-2008
What about "Blinded by the light. Wrapped up like a .......in the ....of the night." Never could understand those last few words.
Boonerat 9-22-2009
"Blinded by the light! Wrapped up like a deuce in the runner in the night." Written by Bruce Springsteen, who was writing about illegal nighttime street racing.
BozakGuyat 9-27-2009
Springsteen's actual lyrics from the 1973 Greetings from Asbury Park LP are "Cut loose like a deuce another runner in the night." Manfred Mann's Earth Band took lots of liberties in its 1977 rendition. The original lyrics are amazing street poetry of restless young life on the Jersey shore.
Kaylaat 11-10-2009
It's actually "Revved up like a deuce another runner in the night."
Mitchat 2-18-2008
Be-bop-a-lula she's my baby..
Steve Allen used to do a routine making fun of rock and roll songs taken out of context. The joke was on him, because it's meaningless to do so. "You aint nothin' but a hound dog.." "But then again, no.."
These are great songs. But, yes... sometimes you hear something that's gonna make you cringe ("if you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with"- sorry, miss- my wife is out of town and I'm sure she'd understand.."). Hippie Macho!
aimeeat 3-11-2008
from "With You" by Jessica Simpson..."it's like a private joke, just meant for us to know."
As opposed to a private joke you let everyone know...otherwise known as a joke! But this song did come out during Newlyweds...so maybe she was just playing up that "I'm an idiot," thing...but I doubt it!
Robat 3-21-2008
March 27 2007? I thought this looked familiar.
Jamesat 3-21-2008
Oh, come ON!! John/Taupin's "Your Song" is really about "coming out" as a gay guy deeply in love. The line is part of a list of things the singer is contemplating to express his feelings for his new love. The joke is that Elton is singing, but the words are really by Taupin to EJ. He's imagining if he could create some impressive image of the other guy in the style of Michaelangelo. "But then, again, no..." is the thought that makes him reconsider that bad idea. You see, he's already SEEN the guy nude, which in Elton's case doesn't make this seem like such a good idea! It's a great line in a very great song which was Elton/Bernie's first big hit. ;-)
Brigat 3-22-2008
Move over #1! How about Kiss? "Let's put the "x" in sex. Love is a muscle and you make me want to flex."
fritz owensat 4-21-2008
Where did this come from?
Fish and rice
That's very nice
Whoa tide
Whoa tide
Foodalackasackey
Want some seafood mama
Fritz Owensat 4-21-2008
More words:
They swam and they swam
all over the dam
can't remember the title or the rest of the words
Lisaat 4-21-2008
I would have to say Spice Girls, Wannabe has one of the most meaningless lyrics ever.
"Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really really want,
So tell me what you want, what you really really want,
I'll tell you what I want, what I really really want,
So tell me what you want, what you really really want,
I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna really
really really wanna zigazig ha."
What is it that you want?
Dave Bat 4-28-2008
The lyrics can't be pulled out of context, the whole song is a rambling thought of love, the verse it is pulled from; "If I were a sculptor, but then again, no
Or a man who makes potions in a travelling show
I know it's not much but it's the best I can do
My gift is my song and this one's for you", demonstrates how insignificant the product is no matter who makes it, but rather the work and the gift. In detail, from the thought of a rambling poet/songwriter whether he was a sculptor or potion man, the 'but then again, no' was a walk through on how he couldn't sculpt, fancied making a potion, didn't do those things, but wrote a song.
echolynneshadow4at 7-22-2009
i agree. the lyrics are beautiful when their put together. when u take a single part it's not gonna sound right no matter what. it's like taking 1 part out of a beautiful story and judge the entire book based on 1 piece. take the time to look at the entire thing before making any type of decision... ^-^
Johnat 5-04-2008
Wow Michael Franks has gotta be right up there. How can a bright dude write such assinine lyrics? "Popsicle toes.
Popsicle toes are always froze" "Whenever I explore the land of Yen
I always take one on the chin
And now this lioness has almost made me tame.
I can't pronounce her name but Eggplant is her game." It has gotta be result of too much weed?
J-9at 5-06-2008
Here's a real "good" one-
"Oh, remember me, my darling, when Spring is in the air; When bald-headed birds are whispering everywhere; when you see them walking southward in their dirty underwear, it's the Tennessee Birdwalk (cheep,cheep!) :D
clarityat 5-09-2008
Guys,
How about actually commenting on the bad song lyrics that are really bad, rather than just ones you don't understand? Elton (or rather, Bernie) is using a poetic device above, creating the feeling that the singer is going through a list of ways to honour the love he feels - and just like you would if you were verbally listing stuff, he goes, 'well, if I was a painter I could paint her picture... if I was a really good cook I could bake her a cake... if I was a sculptor - ah, no, I'm crap at sculpting, and she doesn't like sculpture anyway...'
Yeesh, your market for this blog might be teenagers, but do you really have to write as though your audience is mentally retarded? Lyrics are poetry. They may not make literal sense. Accept it. There are millions of truly nonsensical or just stupid lyrics out there, yet you manage to miss most of them and hit right on ones that aren't, on the whole, too bad.
And for the Einsteins above, Sting and the Police were aping a dub sound for 'Walking on the Moon', hence their lack of grammar (copying Pidgin English); and U2 is talking about the belief that prayer will get you into heaven (and slipping a sexual connotation into it for the enjoyment of Catholics everywhere).