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Your thoughts on ad libbed nonsense lyrics


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My all-time favorite nonsense lyric has to be "Let It All Hang Out" by The Hombres (1966):

 

I preach my dear friends you're about to receive

on John Barleycorn, nicotine and

The tempations of Eve.

No parkin' by the sui-sign,

Hot-dog! My razor broke,

Water dribblin' up the spout,

But I don't care, LET IT ALL HANG OUT.

Hangin' from a pine tree by m'knees

Sunshine through the shades,

Nobody knows what it's all about,

It's too much, man, LET IT ALL HANG OUT.

Saw a man walkin' upside-down,

My TV's on the blink,

Made Galileo look like a boy scout.

Sorry 'bout that, LET IT ALL HANG OUT.

Sleep all day, drive all night,

Brain my numb, cain't stop now

Fo' sho' ain't no doubt,

Keep an open mind, LET IT ALL HANG OUT.

It's rainin' inside a big brown moon.

How does that mess your baby up, Leg?

Eatin a reuben sandwich with sauerkraut,

Don't stop now, baby, LET IT ALL HANG OUT.

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Actually when I write songs I usually come up with the riff first then play it over and over until it's almost a trance. Then I just sing what ever comes out, it's usually about the phrasing of the words thats important. From there I'll listen back and pick up on a few key phrases of words and build outward from those few words.

 

I can understand how the process happens. I can always hear myself asking my writing partner "what did you just sing there?" and he'd be "I'm not sure"...

 

ahhh the creative process...

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Sorry I just have to: :freak:

 

Supercalifragilistic

 

Um diddle diddle, um diddle ay

 

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

 

Even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious

 

If you say it loud enough, you'll always sound precocious.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidociuos!

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Chim Chim Cher-ee has some of that as well and that won an Oscar.

 

I think I see a connection with traditional songs and nonsense lyrics. There is a line in traditional forms that is called a "burden" (or burdon or burthen - it goes back a ways).

 

who can forget:

Keedle up a keedle up a turp turp tay, Tum a lum a do, castle on my nay

 

Really, there should be a TimeLife collection of these.

 

here's some links

http://www.bluegrassmessengers.com/master/kemokimo1.html

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=18292

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Actually when I write songs I usually come up with the riff first then play it over and over until it's almost a trance. Then I just sing what ever comes out, it's usually about the phrasing of the words thats important. From there I'll listen back and pick up on a few key phrases of words and build outward from those few words.

 

 

I do the same, Doug. That's my process as well. Sounds first, coalescing (hopefully) into semi-coherent syllables and words.

 

- Jeff

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I don`t know about you guys but I often mishear a lyric as well...

 

Two of my more embarrassing moments singing along to tunes and having someone point out my mistakes...

 

1. Last night I dreamt of some bagels (from a Madonna song, not sure which one)

 

2. Guilty feet have got no rhythm. (George Michael actually wrote "give 2 feet, I`ve got no rhythm") Personally, I think my lyric is better. :D

 

Oh well...

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Think about the middle section of the Doors' "Roadhouse Blues"...


You gotta roll, roll, roll

You gotta thrill my soul, all right

Roll, roll, roll, roll

Thrill my soul

You gotta beep a gunk a chucha

Honk konk konk

You gotta each you puna

Each ya bop a luba

Each yall bump a kechonk

Ease sum konk

Ya, ride


...


These parts are every bit as memorable and singable as any with actual words. I'm saying that we need more utter nonsense in music. Who's with me!?!?!?!?


- Jeff

 

 

Dude, get the Doors Perception box set.

 

Among the extras are about six work versions of Roadhouse Blues. Apparently, Jim came into the sessions with the first two lines and nothing else, and the lyrics were built around his improvisations. It's fascinating to hear the process, and to hear what stuff that started as nonsense made the cut, and what didn't.

 

Listen to the Shins new album. The lyrics to me are poetic nonsense, but they fit and they flow. They were probably not improvised, but fussed-over.

 

Meaning is highly overrated.

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I once read an interview with the guy from Def Leppard, and he called his lyrics "deep and meaningless"
:D

 

:) Hehe, I also seem to recall reading an interview with someone from Def Leppard saying something like they always felt reticent to include lyric sheets with their albums because they reckoned they were too dumb! (Big Def Leppard fan BTW)

 

No-one's mentioned Underworld? Karl Hyde apparently generated a lot of his early lyrical content while "under the influence of alcohol". They had a major hit in the mid-90s with "Born Slippy". All gibberish, but the way it's pieced together is remarkable and evokes emotions one wouldn't associate with such a random string of words and phrases - bit like Cocteau Twins in that regard (who I also love!).

 

Pearl's Girl:

 

"white room. sun room. shadow room. night transmitting cars across the room. these things sent to dance across the room. eye watching from your bed. returning to you. rioja. rioja. reverend al green. deep blue morocco. the water on stone. the water on concrete. the water on sand. the water on fire. smoke. the wind. the salt. the bride boat coming. dave in the water. old man. einstein on top of his house. white deep blue andalusia red yellow red yellow black car. red light. far. black place. walls. blue chair. morocco. hamburg. paris. the pieces of the puzzle are waiting. the water of the dark boats gliding. the bride boats gone out to sea and dave is floating. dave is floating. and old man einstein crazy in his attic. crazy."

 

Sing along with Underworld at: ;)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__WJa_Y_5HE

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My band, The Seething Brunswicks uses wordless vocals only. You can hear some examples at http://www.oranj.com/seethingbruns.htm

One reason is that I didn't like the way our singer sings words, although I think he's a good singer overall.

 

The older I get the less interested I am in the "deep" insights and emotional ups and downs of lovestruck people in their early twenties, so I mostly listen to instrumental music or lyrics in foreign languages.

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I don`t know about you guys but I often mishear a lyric as well...

Semi-folklorists call those "Montegreens" after "They have slain the Earl of Murray and laid him on the green" became "Theh have slain the Earl of Murray and Lady Montegreen."

 

Of course there's the famous "'Scuse me while I kiss this guy."

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Even the Chairman of the board did it. And he used top flight songwriters.

"Doobie doobie doo la da da dee da"

 

If he only knew what a doobie was.:D

 

doobie doobie doo indeed.

 

Of course the most famous nonsense phrase is spoken not sung.

 

Yabba dabba doo.

 

Now combining these two I believe you get something like:

 

Doobie doobie doo

Yabba dabba do

 

Now we've got something with some real meaning.;)

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Actually, I just remembered something related in a funny way...

 

A student's cover band long ago had a guy that was a great singer, technically, but he was basically a stereotypical frat-boy didn't really care attitude kind of guy....

 

He tended to forget lyrics.

 

But at loud frat parties, with an inch of beer on the floor, it's probably not *that* big of a deal. Particularly when you absolutely have to play freaking Louie Louie as a closer...

 

One time they made a board tape; but *just of a send off the vocal channel...*

 

This guy was ad libbing phonemes to maybe 50% of the lyrics...

 

"In a free house ahhh leetel bit onnnnnnnn... I saw a inhuhhhh, a fraiiiiiin on.... Driver 8, take a break, you can reee out that estiahhh shun..."

 

"calling oww, innaaa anza, calling oww, inana assa, radio free europe, radioooo..."

 

"I would allkk you anah theirrr just to get you off of my mind angu aaa ah nevuhr, ohahhh... I would try ooo afffff ungghabut, ingggnny mind... iwould talk uhhhhhbuhhhhgahhhit, beee fuhhh tears in my eye, because boys don't cry..."

 

 

That was such a classic tape...

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Don't forget this classic from Trout Mask Replica:

 

...Bubbles pop big

And a lipstick kleenex hung on a pointed forked twig

Reminds me of the bobby girls

Never was my hobby girls

Hand full of worms and a pole fishing

Cork bobbing like a hot red bulb

And a blue jay squeaks

His beak open an inch above a creek...

 

More here

 

Best,

 

Geoff

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In the sixties we had a band called 'Shocking Blue', they had a number one hit in the US of A with 'Venus'.

 

The very beautiful lady singer passed away recently.

 

Here's one of their other songs:

Shocking Blue

 

Inkpot

 

Put some love in your heart

like you put the ink in the inkpot.

Learn it and you will enjoy it baby

to put the ink in the inkpot.

Shu-bi-do-ah

shu-bi-do-ah

 

shu-bi-do-ah

shu-bi-do-ah.

 

Notice that the last four lines are just brilliant.

 

shocking_blue_1.JPG

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