Songs with strange or incredibly abstract lyrics

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NoobSalad41

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How many songs can we think of containing strange or abstract lyrics? There’s probably an infinite number of 60s phychodelic songs, but I’ll start with:

The Trees-Rush
Trees are discontent, rebel and form unions. I’ll leave it at that. :confused:

Roundabout-Yes
If anybody can tell me what this song is about, I’ll be grateful.
:confused:

What else can we think of?
 
Well, I’m dating myself, but - at least half of what Bob Dylan wrote.

Ruthie
 
NoobSalad41 said:
How many songs can we think of containing strange or abstract lyrics? There’s probably an infinite number of 60s phychodelic songs, but I’ll start with:

The Trees-Rush
Trees are discontent, rebel and form unions. I’ll leave it at that. :confused:

Roundabout-Yes
If anybody can tell me what this song is about, I’ll be grateful.
:confused:

What else can we think of?
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Many of the songs by System of a Down are quite out there in terms of their lyrics. Some make sense, some don’t at all. But the band states that they do not tell people what the songs are supposed to mean in order to allow them to draw their own conclusions.
 
“Athena”, The Who

Example:

Consumed, there was a beautiful white horse I saw on a dream stage
He had a snake the size of a sewer pipe living in his rib cage
I felt like a pickled priest who was being flambed
You were requisitioned blondie
She’s just a girl - she’s a bomb :whacky:

“The Court of the Crimson King”, King Crimson

The “operatic bit” in “Bohemian Rhapsody”, Queen

I see a little silhouetto of a man,
Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango.
Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very fright’ning me.
(Galileo.) Galileo. (Galileo.) Galileo, Galileo figaro
Magnifico. I’m just a poor boy and nobody loves me.
He’s just a poor boy from a poor family,
Spare him his life from this monstrosity.
Easy come, easy go, will you let me go.
Bismillah! No, we will not let you go.
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go.
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go.
(Let me go.) Will not let you go.
(Let me go.) Will not let you go. (Let me go.) Ah.
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
(Oh mama mia, mama mia.) Mama mia, let me go.
Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me, for me.

I get the gist, but the whole “Bismillah”, “Scaramouche”, etc…

Yeah, I know, it’s just there as a sort of goof on opera, but, jeepers…

“More Than Words”, Extreme…What exactly is he trying to say here?

“I Am The Walrus”, The Beatles

Whaaaa…? :hypno:
 
I find the National Anthems make no sense.

I watched a hockey game once, they played the Canadian one (in French) and the American. Here are the lyrics. What is the composer trying to say here?

U.S.:

*Jose! Can you?
“¡Si!”
Buy the darn surly light!
Matzoh prob’ly inhaled,
Abbatoir listless cleaning.
Ooze bra-straps and rice tars
Rue the berry! Let’s fight!
Or their Ampere’s sweet Watts,
Worse, or gallons leak steamy.
End Iraq, it’s read clear,
The Pom’s first thing in Eire,
Gay frou-frou denied –
Fanny Flagg was still th’ heir.
Jose! Is that spar-spank’d
Cabana yet weighed
Overland or the breeze
Or the whole 'nother braid?
*

“O Canada”, French version with translation

*O Canada! Terreur de nos soyeux!
O Canada! Terror of our silky ones!
T’enfant est cinq!
Your child is five!
Lafleur est glorieux!
Guy is a great hockey player!
Gardons brasses, sports de le pays,
Let us guard that which is brewed, sports of the nation,
Île, c’est porté; l’accrois.
Island, it is carried; grow it.
Ton histoire est une poupée,
Your story is a puppet
de poubelle-lion (ex-loir)
of the trashcan-lion (formerly an edible dormouse)
Et ta fêleur
And your cracker
Deux fois trempée
Two times dipped,
Protégera nos foyers et nos doigts.
Protect our vestibules and fingers.
Some guy named Monty Greene was singing. I find the imagery a bit obscure… :hmmm:
 
I’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name . . .
 
Bob Dylan is the king of these lyrics:

*John the Baptist after torturing a thief
Looks up at his hero the Commander-in-Chief
Saying, “Tell me great hero, but please make it brief
Is there a hole for me to get sick in?”

The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly
Saying, “Death to all those who would whimper and cry”
And dropping a bar bell he points to the sky
Saving, “The sun’s not yellow it’s chicken”*

–Tombstone Blues by Bob Dylan.
 
After listening to Jethro Tull’s “Aqualung” (yes, more prog) I remembered the line, “Salvation a la mode, and a cup of tea.”

:confused:

Weird enough song anyway…
“Sitting on a park bench. Eying little girls with bad intents.” :bigyikes:

Iron Maiden’s “Revelations” is one of their few songs where I’m completely lost.

Still trying to decipher Dream Theater’s “Metropolis” (Pt. 1)
(I figured out the album. 😃 )

I was tempted to include soulja boy, but then I remembered this was a thread on music 😉
 
The most incomprehensible song of all time is the one hit wonder of the Kingsmen (1955) Louie, Louie. There are several versions of the lyrics around because no two people heard the song the same way because of the legendary bad singing. I am sure that CAFers who go back that far will confirm this.

CHORUS:

Louie Louie, oh no
Me gotta go
Aye-yi-yi-yi, I said
Louie Louie, oh baby
Me gotta go

Fine little girl waits for me
Catch a ship across the sea
Sail that ship about, all alone
Never know if I make it home

CHORUS

Three nights and days I sail the sea
Think of girl, constantly
On that ship, I dream she’s there
I smell the rose in her hair.

CHORUS

Okay, let’s give it to 'em, right now!

GUITAR SOLO

See Jamaica, the moon above
It won’t be long, me see me love
Take her in my arms again
Tell her I’ll never leave again

CHORUS

Let’s take it on outa here now
Let’s go!!
 
Manfred Mann’s “Blinded by the Light.” Could never figure out what the song means!

BTW - did you know that Bruce Springsteen wrote the song?
 
Yes I did. It was part of his awesome debut album “Greetings From Asbury Park”.

Then there’s “Iron Man”. I still have no idea what the heck that song’s about.
 
The danger of this thread, the dating of one’s self. 😊

Beck

Abstact and strange.
 
Oh revolution Number 9! A classic Though I’m not sure it should be considered a song. 🤷
 
AltarServer09 said:
Then there’s “Iron Man”.
Click to expand...
I think its about a guy who goes back in time to save humanity from some disaster, but he is turned to metal, and when people ignore him, he decides to kill them all. He becomes the disaster he was trying to avoid. Dun Dun Dun… :eek:
 
Ghoti said:
The “operatic bit” in “Bohemian Rhapsody”, Queen

I see a little silhouetto of a man,
Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango.
Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very fright’ning me.
(Galileo.) Galileo. (Galileo.) Galileo, Galileo figaro
Magnifico. I’m just a poor boy and nobody loves me.
He’s just a poor boy from a poor family,
Spare him his life from this monstrosity.
Easy come, easy go, will you let me go.
Bismillah! No, we will not let you go.
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go.
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go.
(Let me go.) Will not let you go.
(Let me go.) Will not let you go. (Let me go.) Ah.
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
(Oh mama mia, mama mia.) Mama mia, let me go.
Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me, for me.

I get the gist, but the whole “Bismillah”, “Scaramouche”, etc…

Yeah, I know, it’s just there as a sort of goof on opera, but, jeepers…
Click to expand...
Now you’ve done it … I’m gonna have this stuck in my head for the rest of the evening! 😛
Ghoti said:
“More Than Words”, Extreme…What exactly is he trying to say here?
Click to expand...
This one always seemed to me just another one of those “guy-trying-to-talk-a-girl-into-bed” songs. (“Don’t just tell me how you feel, baby, SHOW me”) :rolleyes: 🤷
Ghoti said:
“I Am The Walrus”, The Beatles

Whaaaa…? :hypno:
Click to expand...
For this one and some of the prog stuff posted earlier, I think we need look no further than the massive quantities of ‘substances’ which were being ingested during those times … 'nuff said 😛
 
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