A long time ago, in a Florida far, far away, there was a young rapper who showed up on MTV and turned into an overnight star.
He didn’t really have other hit songs–the one from TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES does not count–and no, I’m not a giant fan of Vanilla Ice, who later became some kind of home improvement channel renovator and such, but not on the show with the two redheads in Indiana.
HOWEVER: the lyrics on this song are actually interesting, and worth going into, line-by-line.
I did so, using a keyboard, in a previous post. Now, I’m teaching myself how to use Adobe After Effects and such, and the new Evil Supercomputer happily renders videos. So here’s my first video, and yes, this is janky and terrible in spots. My video editing skills are small and young, but I will feed them small videos, then medium-sized ones, and one day, we will kill a Godzilla-sized film and feast upon it for days.
Next: I’m thinking of interpreting the lyrics to the classic song, ELECTRIC AVENUE, the first one I remember seeing on MTV, and no, I don’t care if some other video was officially first. This was way back, right after Spanish American War, and they played ELECTRIC AVENUE using telegrams and such. It was glorious.
Yes, this is a cover, so the original credit goes to Kate Bush–yet the Meg Myers version is hotter than a supernova. Take a listen.
And here’s the Kate Bush OG version, then we’ll talk.
The videos
Kate Bush took a risk here with the dancing, a risk that didn’t quite pay off, though anything is superior to the standard, “Watch the lead singer emote into the microphone for three minutes.” Only a few people can really pull that off, like Sinead O’Connor’s cover of NOTHING COMPARES 2U.
The video for Meg Myers is different and brilliant. Motion capture plus kids coloring each page? YES.
The music
Since the lyrics are identical, what matters for a cover is execution.
And this is where Meg Myers and her producer rock us like a hurricane. I heard the Meg version on the radio, fired up the Series of Tubes and went after “running up that hill.” Up popped the Kate Bush version, which sounded like the right song, and made me wonder if fumes in my car, my mood, or mind-control beams from Elon Musk satellites had made me simply enjoy that scratchy car-radio version more than a pristine cut on good headphones.
Which made me have a sad. Because my memory of the song on the radio was crazy good.
Then I stumbled on the Meg Myers version, and no longer believed the whole Elon Musk mind control theory AT ALL, and played her cover approximately 5,923 times in a row.
Her cover is that good.
The deeper meaning
Bad pop songs are like bad dialogue in a movie or novel: they’re on the nose, with no room for ambiguity, no hints at something more.
The lyrics here are interesting and deep. Here they are:
It doesn’t hurt me
Do you want to feel how it feels?
Do you want to know, know that it doesn’t hurt me?
Do you want to hear about the deal that I’m making?
You, it’s you and me
And if I only could
I’d make a deal with God
And I’d get him to swap our places
Be running up that road
Be running up that hill
Be running up that building
See if I only could, oh
You don’t want to hurt me
But see how deep the bullet lies
Unaware I’m tearing you asunder
Ooh, there is thunder in our hearts
Is there so much hate for the ones we love?
Tell me, we both matter, don’t we?
You, it’s you and me
It’s you and me, won’t be unhappy
And if I only could
I’d make a deal with God
And I’d get him to swap our places
Be running up that road
Be running up that hill
Be running up that building
Say, if I only could, oh
You
It’s you and me
It’s you and me, won’t be unhappy
Oh come on, baby
Oh come on, darling
Let me steal this moment from you now
Oh come on, angel
Come on, come on, darling
Let’s exchange the experience, oh
And if I only could
I’d make a deal with God
And I’d get him to swap our places
I’d be running up that road
Be running up that hill
With no problems
Say, if I only could
I’d make a deal with God
And I’d get him to swap our places
I’d be running up that road
Be running up that hill
With no problems
So if I only could
I’d make a deal with God
And I’d get him to swap our places
I’d be running up that road
Be running up that hill
With no problems
Say, if I only could
I’d be running up that hill
With no problems
I believe the lyrics hit a sweet spot between “completely on the nose” and “so obscure and esoteric that seven different MFA students have written papers about it, and they all disagree.”
Meg Myers explains this a little during her Tiny Desk Concert with NPR, which is worth a listen for an acoustic version of the song, and for what she says about her motivation for doing the cover.
Verdict
Thanks for the original, Kate Bush.
And give us more like this, Meg Myers–swing for the fences, knowing you won’t hit a home run every time. Just keeps swinging. Because this cover was amazing.
Bonus content: here’s how they made the video. Impressive.
As a huge fan of Khalid, and a medium-sized fan of Ed Sheeran, I was happy to find out the song I’ve been rocking out to in the car is by these two.
The lyrics are what really made me pay attention–they’re quite different. Gloriously, the music video snags those lyrics like a wobbly pass from Tom Brady (P.S. I hate you, kthxbai) and runs them 98 yards back for a thunderous touchdown.
Here, take a look and a listen.
Different, right? I love it.
There’s no shortage of pop and rap videos where the singer shows off, rolling around in piles of money or giving us long looks at their mansion, Lambo and swimming pool filled with supermodels.
Good on Ed Sheeran and Khalid for giving us a different take.
BAD GUY by Billie Eilish pulls off some neat tricks, doesn’t it?
Here’s my take on why this works so well.
SUBVERSIVE PUNK-POP
Don’t know what category that folks with doctorates in music would put this in. I’m gonna call it punk-pop, because it’s not as dark and industrial as NIN, or as grungy as Nirvana, but it’s got a subversive edge in the images and lyrics.
Yet the melody and beat is radio-friendly pop. And I think that’s brilliant.
UNAFRAID
With most artists, image is everything. Pop divas work hard to look perfect at all times. Rock stars and rappers work hard to look tough. Billie isn’t trying to look tough here.
Billie’s unafraid of coming off as weird and goofy. No pop star would dance like this, or let her eyebrows go off in their own fashion directions.
She’s not going full on theater-of-the-grotesque like Marilyn Manson, but she’s letting people see her as human, which makes her far more relatable than the stars who try to maintain a perfect, photoshopped image. It’s gritty and real.
LYRICS
The lyrics are clever, interesting and fun.
Most pop songs have terrible boring lyrics.
I mean, I’m not a giant fan of country or rap, but by God, country lyrics tell a story every time and rappers are absolute poets with lyrics you can do dissertations on.
For a popular song all over radio and YouTube, these lyrics are a win.
IMAGERY
It’s perfect. There’s a great intro, with Billie immediately showing she’s a real human by busting through the yellow paper wall, taking out her Invisalign and dancing in a way no boy band or diva would ever be caught dead doing.
Unlike 90 percent of music videos, the only repetition is there for a purpose. You get an echo of the beginning in the end, with reversed footage of her coming through the yellow paper wall. And in between the intro and the end, there’s a nice mix of images that fit the lyrics. It all works.
STINGER ENDING
Marvel movies became famous for putting stingers after the credits. This is the first stinger ending to a music video that I can remember, and it rocks.
You’re not sure how she’s levitating at first, then the words match the video in a nice revelation. Yes!
VERDICT
Well done, Billie the Eilish, well done. Give us more like this!
Most music videos are meh, and I say that as a huge fan of music and music videos who grew up watching this thing we called MTV, back when it played music videos instead of insipid reality shows.
It’s hard to find videos that truly stand out, ones that I remember and want to watch again. Even if I love the song itself.
It’s doubly tough for a country music video to hit me, for I do not speak twang.
So when I heard this song on the radio, it was a nice surprise. Then I saw the video, which is really a short film. Oh my.
Take a peek.
Haunting, isn’t it?
What stands out are the shots. Just beautiful cinematography, scenes I want to linger over. The acting is spot-on and the musicians make the smart choice of staying in the background.
What makes it truly work is telling an actual story with a beginning, middle and end.
There are all kinds of music videos that look impressive, paired with good songs. 30 Seconds to Mars is the king of these videos, with Jared Leto having the massive advantage of being a star actor who knows how to stage and shoot film. But you don’t see complete stories very often. You see themes and ideas, but not stories where people are in conflict and make decisions.
This music videos is full of conflict and choices. It’s a sweet love story, and it fills in missing pieces you don’t see in the lyrics (below).
Great job, Dan + Shay–I’m happy to have stumbled onto this.
WHEN I TASTE TEQUILA
I can still shut down a party
I can hang with anybody
I can drink whiskey and red wine
Champagne all night
Little Scotch on the rocks and I’m fine, I’m fine
But when I taste tequila, baby I still see ya
Cutting up the floor in a sorority t-shirt
The same one you wore when we were
Sky high in Colorado, your lips pressed against the bottle
Swearing on a bible, baby, I’d never leave ya
I remember how bad I need ya, when I taste Tequila
When I taste Tequila
I can kiss somebody brand new
And not even think about you
I can show up to the same bar
Hear the same songs in my car
Baby, your memory, it only hits me this hard
When I taste Tequila, baby I still see ya
Cutting up the floor in a sorority t-shirt
The same one you wore when we were
Sky high in Colorado, your lips pressed against the bottle
Swearing on a bible, baby, I’d never leave ya
I remember how bad I need ya, when I taste Tequila
When I taste Tequila
I ain’t even drunk, I ain’t even drunk
And I’m thinking
How I need your love, how I need your love
Yeah, it sinks in
When I taste Tequila, baby I still see ya
Sorority t-shirt, the same one you wore when we were
Sky high in Colorado, your lips pressed against the bottle
Swearing on a bible, baby, I’d never leave ya
I remember how bad I need ya, when I taste Tequila
When I taste Tequila
When I taste Tequila
When I taste Tequila
As part of my ongoing mission to explore all music, and go where MTV no longer goes anymore, here’s another video: I WANT YOU TO WANT ME by Cheap Trick.
Why show this old thing from 1879 or whatever, when they had to plug their guitars into steam engines?
Three reasons why:
IT.
IS.
AWESOME.
This is a case where simple and repetitive works, because there’s a nice little pattern here with the words: “I want you to want me. I need you to need me.” And so forth. Nothing fancy. Nothing complicated. But it is inspired, and it’s the kind of song a moderately talented punk band could learn to play, you know, the kind of band that knows four chords and forgets two of them in the middle of the show after they finish off two bottles of cheap vodka.
So in that way, this thing is genius. You don’t need a degree in music to play it. You don’t need a great voice to sing it. It’s the perfect cover song, which is why so many other bands have covered it.
Also, it’s one of the few songs that sounds good live versus all auto-tuned and cleaned up in the studio. A gritty garage band can play it and fudge notes without ruining the thing.
You — yes, you — could probably do a decent job singing this thing at a karaoke bar, even if you are TOO DRUNK TO SPELL KARAOKE.
Bottom line: a simple, study, lovable song. A punk-rock deal with interesting twists in the lyrics.
I like it, I love it, I want some more of it.
;
Special bonus: my favorite cover of I WANT YOU TO WANT ME by Letters to Cleo. (This cover doesn’t have a music video. Somebody made one with scenes from the show CHUCK, and they did alright. Here you go.)
The lyrics are way, way below, just for fun. Straight-forward stuff – no need to dissect or improve these. They’re perfect.
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I’d love you to love me.
I’m beggin’ you to beg me.
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I’d love you to love me.
I’ll shine up my old brown shoes.
I’ll put on a brand new shirt
I’ll get home early from work
if you say that you love me.
Didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin, cryin’).
Oh, Didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin, cryin’)
Feelin’ all alone without a friend
you know you feel like dyin’ (dyin’, dyin’).
Oh, didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin’, cryin’).
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I’d love you to love me.
I’m beggin’ you to beg me.
I’ll shine up my old brown shoes.
I’ll put on a brand new shirt
I’ll get home early from work
if you say that you love me.
Didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin, cryin’).
Oh, Didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin, cryin’)
Feelin’ all alone without a friend
you know you feel like dyin’ (dyin’, dyin’).
Oh, didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin’, cryin’).
Feelin’ all alone without a friend
you know you feel like dyin’ (dyin’, dyin’).
Oh, didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin’, cryin’).
Feelin’ all alone without a friend
you know you feel like dyin’ (dyin’, dyin’).
Oh, didn’t I, didn’t I, didn’t I,
see you cryin’ (cryin’, cryin’).
I want you to want me.
I need you to need me.
I’d love you to love me.
I’m beggin’ you to beg me.
Here is an interesting song, and I mean “interesting” in a tragic, train-wreck sort of way.
Because it’s a decent melody by a good band with some of the WORST LYRICS EVER.
And the music video itself isn’t horrible at all. It’s fine. The words, though, they hurt me.
And I say this as a fan of Train, a man who has some of their songs and believes MEET VIRGINIA has creative lyrics for a pop song.
First up: the video, which I hope the evil known as VEVO lets you watch.
See? The song isn’t bad. The video is fine.
It’s the stupid lyrics.
Let the red ink flow.
DRIVE BY by Train
On the other side of a street I knew
Stood a girl that looked like you
I guess thats deja vu
But I thought this can’t be true
Cause you moved to west L.A or New York or Santa Fe
Or where or ever to get away from me
(OK, so far, this is alright. Nothing great, nothing horrible. The horribleness is hiding and saving its strength for an ambush.)
Oh but that one night Was more than just right I didn’t leave you cause I was all through Oh I was overwhelmed and frankly scared as hell Because I really fell for you
Oh I swear to you I’ll be there for you This is not a drive by
(I believe the singer — or whoever wrote these lyrics — is trying to say, “This isn’t infatuation, or a one-night stand, but something longer lasting and meaningful, possibly leading up to a white dress, a white picket fence and three yearsof whitePampers.” Thisphrase means, “A gang murders that utilizes one driver and one or more shooters, who send a wall of lethal lead at the homicide victim while making a rolling getaway from the crime.” So the message is kinda-sorta mixed. People hear this and don’t think of happy love. They think of Glocks and funerals.)
Just a shy guy looking for a two ply Hefty bag to hold my love
(Because the only thing more romantic than a drive-by shooting is the leading national brand of garbage bags.)
When you move me everything is groovy
They don’t like it sue me
mmm the way you do me
(The bad pop trifecta: a word from the ’60s that needs to be retired, a reference to litigation and a crude reference to sex.)
Oh I swear to you
I’ll be there for you
This is not a drive by On the upside of a downward spiral
(If he were definitely referring to NINE INCH NAILS, he’d get bonus points, but he’s not, so he doesn’t.)
My love for you went viral
(A tiny bonus point for not completing the cliche by name-dropping Facebook or Twitter.)
And I loved you every mile you drove away But now here you are again So let’s skip the “how you been”And get down to the “more than friends” at last
(“You didn’t really like me before, and you drove far, far, away, but now that you’re back, please pay attention to me as a boyfriend instead of some man you don’t really care about.” I believe that sums it up.)
Oh but that one night Is still the highlight I didn’t need you until I came to and I was overwhelmed and frankly scared as hell Because I really fell for you
Oh I swear to you I’ll be there for you This is not a drive by Just a shy guy looking for a two ply Hefty bag to hold my love When you move me everything is groovy They don’t like it sue me mmm the way you do me Oh I swear to you I’ll be there for you This is not a drive by
(The songwriter got ALL the bad cliches and phrases of this song into one tidy package right there. Bam-bam-bam-bam-bam-bam! Kind of like a emptying the clip during a drive by shooting. No. Just no.)
Please believe that when I leave
There’s nothing up my sleeve but love for you
And a little time to get my head together too
(To woo somebody, it’s not overly bright to hint that you’re not quite right in the head.)
On the other side of a street I knew Stood a girl that looked like you I guess thats deja vu But I thought this can’t be true Cause
Oh I swear to you I’ll be there for you This is not a drive by Just a shy guy looking for a two ply Hefty bag to hold my love When you move me everything is groovy They don’t like it sue me mmm the way you do me Oh I swear to you I’ll be there for you This is not a drive by
(A repeat and recap of all the bad lines from before, in case we hadn’t heard them the first, second or third time.)
Bottom line
A successful band like Train probably hires songwriters for some — or a lot — of their stuff. Which is fine. You need to focus on touring, performing and shooting music videos. None of those are bad things.
The words, though, actually matter. They matter as much as the bass line, the lighting on the set and the type of leather jacket worn by the lead singer.
Spend a little more time and money on the words, because I used to hear “Train” and think of two good songs. Now, the first two things that pop into my head will be “drive-by shootings” and “Hefty bags.” Which is too bad.
Songs for kids like BABY SHARK can be relentlessly repetitive and deceptively deep, if you dig deep enough–or stay up all night writing a term paper about Nietzsche, who is harder to spell than understand.
BABY SHARK is a perfect example of this, a peppy, wholesome song viewed billions of times, and this is perhaps the first time I mean “billions” literally, since I usually say something like “2.84 bazillions” as a joke on the internets. No. People have watched and listened to versions of BABY SHARK more than a billion times.
Have a listen to the original, and if you’re feeling masochistic, or have a tiny one in your secret fortress, go ahead and watch the dance version, too.
Then we’ll dissect every line of lyrics through the eyes of a grown-up who understands the joke behind the Nihilist Arby’s twitter account. (What makes me an expert? I dissect music videos, movies and books on this silly blog. I also watched 5,823 hours of The Wiggles, Thomas the Trains and the Teletubbies when our pookie was small. Come at me, bro.)
Baby Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Small Shark, you are small now, like the small humans singing this song, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Baby Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(But little shark, you will eat and grow big, just as the tiny humans will grow, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Baby Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Big enough to become the feared apex predator of the ocean, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Baby Shark
(So all hail the baby shark, future king of the seas, and the tiny humans, future lords of the land)
Mummy Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Mother Sharks are loving and wise, except when they tear into a school of tuna with their razor teeth, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Mummy Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Mother Sharks are strong and powerful, and can take away our iPhones when we are bad, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Mummy Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(We thank you for not eating us, which you could easily do, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Mummy Shark
(All hail the Mother Sharks)
Daddy Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Father Sharks are the largest and scariest of them all, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Daddy Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Father Sharks can seem unreadable and mysterious, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Daddy Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Baby Sharks recognize the size and power of the Fathers, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Daddy Shark
(We also hope to grow as big, strong and silent as Father Shark, like Clint Eastwood in a Spaghetti western, though this will not happen if you eat us when there are no tuna around)
Grandma Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Grandma Sharks are still big but not scary at all, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Grandma Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Their age and infirmity is a sign that death comes for us all, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Grandma Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(So their time with us is limited and precious, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Grandma Shark
(We love you, Grandma Shark)
Grandpa Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Grandpa Shark is no longer a threatening predator, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Grandpa Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Like Grandma Shark, he is loving and kind, and spends his limited time on us, doom doom, doom doom doom doom))
Grandpa Shark doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Possibly because there is no Shark Golf Channel, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Grandpa Shark
(You’re a lovable goofball, Grandpa Shark)
Let’s go hunt doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Though we are small, we know that we must learn to be predators, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Let’s go hunt doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(As it is in the ocean, it is on land, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Let’s go hunt doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(The little fish gets eaten by the bigger fish, who gets munched by the biggest shark, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Let’s go hunt
(This is the real food pyramid, with predators on top, and thankfully we are predators)
Run away doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(But for right now, we are still small, and prey for anything larger, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Run away doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(We can’t stand and fight, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Run away doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Running is our only option, which is why young animals of all sorts chase each other, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Run away
(Running isn’t just a game, it’s essential practice for survival, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Safe at last doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Running and hiding can protect you, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Safe at last doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(But not forever, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Safe at last doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(Eventually, you need to grow big enough to chase and eat not just prey, but your competition, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
Safe at last
(Safety is temporary and elusive)
It’s the end doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(There are beginnings, middles and ends, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
It’s the end doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(We are all Baby Sharks, then Daddy Shark and Grandpa Shark–or Mommy Shark and Grandma Shark, you get the idea, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
It’s the end doo doo, doo doo doo doo
(And our existences will end, as everything must, doom doom, doom doom doom doom)
OK. Now we get all serious. Because I am using the lyrics to a country song, and I’m not making fun of it, despite my severe twang allergy.
Good music — and good writing — have the same patterns. Songs start slow, build up, bridge to the chorus, return to the melody and build to a crescendo. They bring the audience on a journey.
The greatest guitarist in the world would bore you into a coma if he repeated the same riffs.
Variety is good.
Repetition can be powerfully boring, or powerfully good, depending on how you use it. If you do use repetition, it must have a purpose.
Country songs like this are great study for writers. Why? Not because they’re all sad songs where your pickup truck died, your wife left you for your best friend and your dog hates you. They’re useful because country songs tell a story in about 200 words, a story you can understand and dissect. I can point out the setups and payoffs. You can see the heroes and villains, the reversals and the climax.
By contrast, most pop songs feature lyrics that don’t have any real structure or story.
Also, you can hear and understand country lyrics without a cheat sheet.
Three other good examples of country songs with great lyrics and minimal twang, if you are also allergic like me: LOVE STORY by Taylor Swift, Traveling Soldier by the Dixie Chicks and damn near anything by Lady Antebellum, who are flipping brilliant.
No matter what you write–novels or newspaper stories, screenplays or speeches–it’s worth remembering that writing needs to be like music. You need an interesting intro, a melody, a chorus and a crescendo. You need variety AND repetition.
So: watch this cheesy home-made music video. Listen to the lyrics, and read them on your magical screen that shows you words and moving pictures from anywhere on the planet.
See how Bucky the Covington has clear setups and payoff, and how he cleverly, and beautifully, uses repetition with a purpose.
The words in the chorus change slightly each time, yet the meaning is quite different. And while the writing itself is a tad clunky, my God, the structure, it is glorious. My only wish is that I owned a cowboy hat so I could take it off and salute you, Bucky.
I’LL WALK by Bucky Covington
We were 18, it was prom night.
We had our first big fight.
She said, Pull this car over.
I did and then I told her, I don’t know what you are crying for.
I grabbed her hand, as she reached for the door.
She said …
I’ll walk.
Let go of my hand.
Right now I’m hurt, and you don’t understand.
So just be quiet.
And later we will talk.
Just leave, don’t worry.
I’ll walk.
It was a dark night, a black dress.
Driver never saw her, around the bend.
I never will forget the call,
or driving to the hospital,
when they told me her legs still wouldn’t move.
I cried, when I walked into her room.
She said …
I’ll walk.
Please come and hold my hand.
Right now I’m hurt, and I don’t understand.
Lets just be quiet, and later we can talk.
Please stay, don’t worry.
I’ll walk.
I held her hand through everything.
The weeks and months of therapy.
And I held her hand and asked her to be my bride.
She’s dreamed from a little girl,
to have her daddy bring her down the isle.
So from her wheelchair, she looks up to him and smiles.
And says …
I’ll walk.
Please hold my hand.
I know that this will hurt, I know you understand.
OK. Now we get all serious. Because I am using the lyrics to a country song, and I’m not making fun of it, despite my severe twang allergy.
Good music — and good writing — have the same patterns. Songs start slow, build up, bridge to the chorus, return to the melody and build to a crescendo. They bring the audience on a journey.
The greatest guitarist in the world would bore you into a coma if he repeated the same riffs.
Variety is good.
Repetition can be powerfully boring, or powerfully good, depending on how you use it. If you do use repetition, it must have a purpose.
Country songs like this are great study for writers. Why? Not because they’re all sad songs where your pickup truck died, your wife left you for your best friend and your dog hates you. They’re useful because country songs tell a story in about 200 words, a story you can understand and dissect. I can point out the setups and payoffs. You can see the heroes and villains, the reversals and the climax.
By contrast, most pop songs feature lyrics that don’t have any real structure or story.
Also, you can hear and understand country lyrics without a cheat sheet.
Three other good examples of country songs with great lyrics and minimal twang, if you are also allergic like me: LOVE STORY by Taylor Swift, Traveling Soldier by the Dixie Chicks and damn near anything by Lady Antebellum, who are flipping brilliant.
No matter what you write–novels or newspaper stories, screenplays or speeches–it’s worth remembering that writing needs to be like music. You need an interesting intro, a melody, a chorus and a crescendo. You need variety AND repetition.
So: watch this cheesy home-made music video. Listen to the lyrics, and read them on your magical screen that shows you words and moving pictures from anywhere on the planet.
See how Bucky the Covington has clear setups and payoff, and how he cleverly, and beautifully, uses repetition with a purpose.
The words in the chorus change slightly each time, yet the meaning is quite different. And while the writing itself is a tad clunky, my God, the structure, it is glorious. My only wish is that I owned a cowboy hat so I could take it off and salute you, Bucky.
I’LL WALK by Bucky Covington
We were 18, it was prom night.
We had our first big fight.
She said, Pull this car over.
I did and then I told her, I don’t know what you are crying for.
I grabbed her hand, as she reached for the door.
She said …
I’ll walk.
Let go of my hand.
Right now I’m hurt, and you don’t understand.
So just be quiet.
And later we will talk.
Just leave, don’t worry.
I’ll walk.
It was a dark night, a black dress.
Driver never saw her, around the bend.
I never will forget the call,
or driving to the hospital,
when they told me her legs still wouldn’t move.
I cried, when I walked into her room.
She said …
I’ll walk.
Please come and hold my hand.
Right now I’m hurt, and I don’t understand.
Lets just be quiet, and later we can talk.
Please stay, don’t worry.
I’ll walk.
I held her hand through everything.
The weeks and months of therapy.
And I held her hand and asked her to be my bride.
She’s dreamed from a little girl,
to have her daddy bring her down the isle.
So from her wheelchair, she looks up to him and smiles.
And says …
I’ll walk.
Please hold my hand.
I know that this will hurt, I know you understand.
The Red Pen of Doom 