[Justin Uthadude]

By definition you are asking, “do you like songs?”

A song requires lyrics (unless you’re a bird). Otherwise it’s music. I have played classical guitar all my life. I love the music, and I can ‘read’ into the music. But it’s still just music.

I also greatly appreciate words set to music; meaning I like songwriters. Great songwriters are poets. Crummy songwriters are musicians with nothing to say. Being a great musician can make up for lousy lyrics, but can never compete with a great songwriter who is a good musician. This is only my opinion.

I believe great music + great lyrics is better than great music alone. But greatness in either category prevails. People still listen to composers that have been dead for hundreds of years. People still cover great songs that were written long ago. (Heck, even I can play Stairway to Heaven, and I don’t rate the lyrics great). I can’t picture turning on the music stream (today’s radio) a hundred years from now and hearing___________ (fill in the blank with music you think has sucky lyrics).
.

 

[Ozric]

Quote:

Originally Posted by appophylite /img/forum/go_quote.gif I grew up in a family where the predominant choices of music played around the house were Marathi and Hindi, and this was before I was taught either language so I learned to appreciate the instrumentals and treat the vocals as just another instrument..... ...I appreciate vocals and in some cases, acknowledge that some songs would be useless without them, I can go quite well without them.

Me too. I grew up listening to mostly either Hindustani classical (my dad sings), which has vocals but no lyrics as such, and Western classical. So my ear really developed around melody but not lyrical content. It continued when I started playing guitar. I just couldn't care much for the lyrics, even while I played in a band. My tastes have continued along those lines, where most of my listening is instrumental works of diverse genres.

To this day, I doubt I could recite from memory even half a complete verse of any song I have heard countless times

 

[Meliboeus]

I don't care too much, but they can be a plus if particularly well written, or maybe convey some sort of message....

 

[logwed]

Lyrics are kinda nice, I guess. I don't understand how people memorize lyrics to all their songs, it must be all that they listen to. I don't focus on the lyrics, but more the voice as an instrument.

 

[muxenle]

Quote:

Originally Posted by logwed /img/forum/go_quote.gif Lyrics are kinda nice, I guess. I don't understand how people memorize lyrics to all their songs, it must be all that they listen to. I don't focus on the lyrics, but more the voice as an instrument.

if you listen to a song a lot you just start to pick up the lyrics, its the same with any kind of music; you get to know the cues and what happens next.

If you ask me ot start singing/reciting to lyrics to some of my favorite songs I probarly won't be able to give you much, but if I'm listing to the song I can usally sing along just fine

 

[HipHopScribe]

Interesting to see the different perspectives on this. Maybe it's because I'm a writer, but I just can't understand how lyrics could have no effect for some people. We're all different though, so whatever. I personally think it's all closely connected (for music that has lyrics): the music, the lyrics, and the vocal style used to deliver the lyrics. Sometimes there are lyrics that aren't at all impressive on the page, but are given great strength by the music and vocals. The opposite can also be true, where there may be some impressive poetry to lyrics when read, but they fall flat on the delivery, or clash with the music.

If I'm listening to music with lyrics, bad lyrics can just kill it for me, just as much as boring musical elements, or vocals that bore or irritate me. R.E.M., for example, delivers most musical elements I'd normally like, but their insipid lyrics pretty much kill them for me.

 

[Genelex]

some music yes and others no, more on the beat and rhythm

 

[Mystere9]

Quote:

Originally Posted by muxenle /img/forum/go_quote.gif if you listen to a song a lot you just start to pick up the lyrics, its the same with any kind of music; you get to know the cues and what happens next. If you ask me ot start singing/reciting to lyrics to some of my favorite songs I probarly won't be able to give you much, but if I'm listing to the song I can usally sing along just fine

There are songs I've listened to 30+ times that I still slip up on when singing along. I'm just terrible at remembering exact lyrics/number of repeats of each chorus and verse.

When I made this thread I was more in the 'lyrics don't matter' camp, but I think I've changed my stance slightly to 'If the lyrics are abysmal and stand for things that I don't believe in, A song can be much worse to me'. In most cases this has no bearing though, since most lyrics can be interpreted several ways. For the most part if a singer doesn't go out of his way to pronounce his words clearly when singing I just won't bother to look up the lyrics and hence will never know them. This applies to foreign music as well. As far as embarrassing lyrics go, if I truly like the music I'll force myself to get over it(A good example of this would be 'House of Cards' from Radiohead's In Rainbows). I don't believe that music at it's core is meant to be 'cool', I believe it's meant to be beautiful.

 

[krmathis]

I do indeed!
That said about 2/3 of what I listen to are electronic music with no or small amount of lyrics.

 

[apatN]

I memorize lyrics pretty fast. That said I don't listen to any lyric, just the ones I like in the songs I like.
Voice is an amazing instrument but lyrics are nice too.

 

[TheOtus]

Interesting thread! Well, to me this greatly varies... Well, if I understand the language and can hear what they say in the first place, I´m listening. Depending on the words, I might memorize them well, get my eyes flowing with liquid called tears, or just think "meh" and never think them again. In certain genres the lyrics also tend to be kinda "light". Some songs I listen to solely for lyrics at times.

But, lyrics are secondary to me, I listen to the rest more.

 

[mojorisin676]

Honestly, I care more about music than lyrics. However, I do recognize good lyrics when I hear them. But I listen to genres from trance to classic rock, obviously trance has some pretty terrible lyrics sometimes, and classic rock has great lyrics. I just don't really care which way it goes. Whether I'm listening to Bob Dylan or the latest club hit, it's the music that I pay more attention to.

 

[roebeet]

Generally, no I don't care. Even with albums I've heard any times over, the lyrics take backstage to the vocals as an instrument. It's sometimes shocking to read the lyrics later on to find out that what the singer was actually saying is very different than the feeling I had gotten.

One exception to that rule is music where the lyrics really take center-stage. Vocals like Sinatra, for example - you can't help but listen to what he's saying. Or, folk music where the singer is telling a story.

 

[logwed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by muxenle /img/forum/go_quote.gif if you listen to a song a lot you just start to pick up the lyrics, its the same with any kind of music; you get to know the cues and what happens next. If you ask me ot start singing/reciting to lyrics to some of my favorite songs I probarly won't be able to give you much, but if I'm listing to the song I can usally sing along just fine

EXACTLY! That's exactly how I am. If I try to remember lyrics off the top of my head, I'm at a loss, but I love singing along in my car.

 

[muxenle]

Quote:

Originally Posted by logwed /img/forum/go_quote.gif EXACTLY! That's exactly how I am. If I try to remember lyrics off the top of my head, I'm at a loss, but I love singing along in my car.

I can remember snipets off the top of my head that I really like:

Don't exuse your self from today on the pretense of your past

breakk the chains that hold you down and let yourself be filled with fire

Your mouth is like a grenade blowing everyone away

Can you hold the water responisble for your wayward beavior any more then it blames you for its gripping currents?

all of the album Consetlations(sp) by August Burns Red, I can't seem to get tired of that entire album....