Wilson Phillips, Brad Paisley, Barbara Lewis – The Best Song Lyrics of Modern America – Part 7
Blog No 96
April 10, 2019
The Best Song Lyrics of Modern America- Part 7
– The Poetry of Modern America –
By Mack W. Borgen
Author, National Award-Winning Dead Serious and Lighthearted – The Memorable Words of Modern America – Volume I (1957-1976), Volume II (1977-1993), and Volume III (1994-2015) (Published 2018-2019); The Relevance of Reason – The Hard Facts and Real Data about the State of Current America – Volume I (Business and Politics) and Volume II (Society and Culture) (2013-2014).
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The Best Song Lyrics of Modern America- Part 7
– The Poetry of Modern America –
Introduction and Background
Song lyrics are the real poetry of Modern America. The lyrics of our favorite songs roll around in our heads for decades. Almost unconsciously, every day we honor the words of America’s songwriters who said something in that perfect, poetic, or clever way.
Here is Part 7 of my assembled list — assembled over the years in conjunction with my research for my last series of books, Dead Serious and Lighthearted – The Memorable Words of Modern America. For an explanation about the background of this Best Lyrics project, see below.
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But, now, … The Best Lyrics of Modern America – – From 1957 through 2015 –
Enjoy.
The Sixties
Baby, I’m Yours (1965) (Barbara Lewis )(B: 1943, Salem, MI).
“Baby I’m yours
And I’ll be yours until the sun no longer shines,
Yours until the poets run out of rhyme
In other words, until the end of time.” …
“(U)ntil the mountain crumbles to the sea.” …
“‘Till the stars fall from the sky.” …
“’Till the rivers all run dry.” …
“’Till the poets run out of rhyme.”
Fire (1968)
(Arthur Brown) (B: 1942, Yorkshire, England)
“I am the god of Hell Fire and I bring you
Fire…” …
“Fire, to destroy all you’ve done.
Fire, to end all you’ve become.”
The Seventies
Walk Away from Love (1976)
(David Ruffin) (B: 1941, Whynot, MS – D: 1991 (Age 50), Philadelphia, PA).
“But those arms you’ve got around me
Will let me go someday
And I’d rather leave you holding on
Than pushing me away
So I’m leaving, yes I am
This time I’m playing it smart
I’m gonna walk away from love
Before love breaks my heart.”
Grease (1978) (Frankie Valli)(B: 1934, Newark, NJ).
“There ain’t no danger we can go too far,
We start believing now that we can be who we are” …
“They think our love is just a growing pain
Why don’t they understand, it’s just a crying shame.” …
“We take the pressure and we throw away
Conventionality belongs to yesterday.” …
“This is the life of illusion
Wrapped up in trouble … faced with confusion.”
The Nineties
Hold On (1990) (Wilson Phillips (Group)) (Years Active: 1989-1993, 2004, 2010-Present).
“Don’t you know things can change
Things’ll go your way,
If you hold on for one more day.”
Vogue (1990) (Madonna) (B: 1958, Bay City, MI).
“What are you looking at
Strike a pose, Strike a pose …
Vogue, vogue, vogue.” …
“All you need is your own imagination
So use it – that’s what it’s there for …
Go inside, for your finest inspiration
Your dreams will open the door….”
Country Western
He Didn’t Have To Be” (Brad Paisley) (B: 1972, Glen Dale, WV).
“I met the man I call my dad when I was five years old
He took my mom out to the movie, and for once I got to go,
A few months later I remember lying there in bed
I overheard him pop the question
And I prayed that she say yes.” …
“And then all of a sudden, oh it seemed so strange to me
How we went from something’s missing to a family
Looking back all I can say about all the things he did for me
Is that I hope I’m at least half the dad he didn’t have to be.”
Explanation and Background of These
“The Best Lyrics of Modern America” Blogs
Song lyrics are the real poetry of Modern America. The lyrics of our favorite songs roll around in our heads for decades. Almost unconsciously, every day we honor the words of America’s songwriters who said something in that perfect, poetic, or clever way.
About nine years ago, in 2010, when I started my research for my books, Dead Serious and Lighthearted – The Memorable Words of Modern America. I spent much of the initial year assembling, sorting, and selecting those “memorable” song lyrics to be included in my books.
However, I eventually decided that it was necessary to exclude song lyrics from my books. This was done partly in deference to the needs of book brevity and in bowing recognition to the unavoidable subjectivity of making such selections. But it was also done because most songs are almost definitionally “intra-generational” in that they remain the separate and proud province of each generation. They are a part of each generation’s formative and collective memory – but not beyond that.
Nevertheless, as a result of that year of research, I assembled a relatively massive collection of what may be, by some measures of broad consensus, the greatest song lyrics of Modern America.
I have decided to start presenting them here for your remembrance and enjoyment. I confess that this is partly triggered by the fact that I have already done the fun, but painstaking, work of such assemblage. However, these lyrics blogs are also triggered by the fact that America needs – maybe now more than ever — to reach back and enjoy something or, as best said in 1967 by the Beatles in their song A Day in the Life” — “I read the news today, oh boy.”
Thus, starting on October 9, 2018 with Blog No. 83, I have started posting some excerpts of this author’s humble suggestions of The Best Lyrics of Modern America.
Get Copies of My Books
Multiple National Book Awards.
Dead Serious and Lighthearted – The Memorable Words of Modern America
Volume I (1957-1976) (508 pp) ; Volume II (1977-1993) (400 pp) ‘ Volume III (1994-2015) (570 pp)
The Relevance of Reason – The Hard Facts and Real Data about the State of Current America
Volume I – Business and Politics (408 pp); Volume II – Society and Culture (438 pp).
Best prices. Just go to http://mackwborgen.com/shop/ . All books will be signed by the author and will be shipped within five business days. My books are, of course, available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. and at select independent book stores.
