Clever Lyricists and Examples of Clever Lyric Writing (in terms of rhymes)- Page 2

[jasonf]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 8:01pm

How about this one:

"When a person's personality is personable
He should not sit like a lump
It's harder than a matador coercin' a bull
To try to get you off of your rump
So single and attentive and attractive a man
Is everything a person could wish
But turning off a person is the act of a man
Who likes to pull the hooks out of fish"

Or even better from the same show:

"Go can't you go
Look you know I adore you all
But why watch me die
Like Eliza on the ice
Look perhaps
I'll collapse
In the apse right before you all
So take back the cake
Burn the shoes and boil the rice"

Great rhymes and a literary allusion thrown in to boot!

[TheEnchantedHunter]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 8:03pm

"She'll be hopelessly shattered/
by Saturday night."

It's all downhill from there.


Desiree Armfeldt
Malmo, Sweden (on tour)

[GovernorSlaton]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 8:05pm

Uptown/Downtown - Follies

She sits at the Ritz with her splits of Mumm's
And starts to pine for a stein with her village chums
But with her Schlitz in her mits down in Fitzroy's Bar
She thinks of the Ritz, oh, it's so schizo

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 8:53pm

Lucy is juicy
But terribly drab.
Jessie is dressy
But cold as a slab.
Lucy wants to be dressy.
Jessie wants to be juicy.
Lucy wants to be Jessie
And Jessie Lucy.
You see, Jessie is racy
But hard as a rock.
Lucy is lacy
But dull as a smock.
Jessie wants to be lacy,
Lucy wants to be Jessie.
That's the sorrowful précis.
It's very messy.
Poor sad souls,
Itching to be switching roles.
Lucy wants to do what Jessie does,
Jessie want: to be what Lucy was.

Oh man, the whole song is nuts. I love it.

[Radioactiveduck]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 8:59pm

...'till our wedding date,
until then I master
my own faith" - Altar Boyz

Just brilliant.

[jasonf]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 9:21pm

Roninjoey -- that song proves that Sondheim has a sadistic streak - to make ANYONE try to get through that! I love it too. :)

[MrBungee7]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 9:38pm

Sondheim is beautiful but absolutely no one beats out Howard Ashman. He is perfection and actually inspired me to be a lyricist.

[thez914]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 9:41pm

The specials today
(though not many are especially good)
First, the fish of the day:
CALAMARI!
Which isn't a fish
but lives in the sea
as set in the dish
it happens to be
the fish...of the day.
...OK...
Next there's Ziti
with a sauce that's meaty
It's fun! (Fun?)
-and there's a lot-
and that's the Specials!
-----------------------
I love Mr. Bungee!
Yes, indeedee! - Here's your Ziti!
I love Mr. Bungee
when he makes a scene (Whee!)
I love Mr. Bung-
did someone order Scalapini?
I love Mr. Bungee!
Here's your diet coke
and here's your greens!
I love Mr. Bungee!
I love Mr. Bungee!

Oh Mr. Finn, you are a clever one (indeedee->Ziti=BRILLIANT). I also enjoy how the rhymes are there, but the way it's written doesn't allow the material to get repetitive (It took me forever to realize that "scene" and "greens" were coupled, but I may just be an idiot)

I also enjoy "Bi*ch, Bi*ch, Bi*ch" from the concept disc of Jekyll and Hyde, and I second "The Cop Song" from Urinetown.

[Labashier]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 9:55pm

"Once upon a time in a shack by the lake
lived a boy and his mama so broke they break"
- Caroline, or Change

I agree about the last verse of "Something About You" from Altar Boyz... Scott Porter's timing is absolutely PERFECT on the last line.

And the runner-up prize goes to...
"F****! Suck! Duck!"
-In My Life

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 10:45pm

TheEnchantedHunter, that's actually Charlotte's lyric.

JasonF, try singing Now. It's freakin' impossible! I mean... at least the fast parts of Getting Married Today don't rhyme.

Howard Ashman was clever, but mostly when it came to food songs :)

[TheEnchantedHunter]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 11:36pm

"TheEnchantedHunter, that's actually Charlotte's lyric"

Oh, my God! Not really! You don't say! What was I thinking?


Desiree Armfeldt
Malmo, Sweden (on tour)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 11:41pm

You continue to crack me up, Hunter.

"Michigan water taste like cherry wine
But Mississippi water taste like turpentine..."

-Jelly's Last Jam

[clarkstallings]

Posted: 1/4/06 at 11:47pm

MrBungee7,

Agreed. I have a bit of a litmus test for determining good lyrics and it's really hard to quantify but basically the less silly sounding the lyric is and the more natural it is to deliver, the better it is in my book. Howard's work passes it everytime. Sondheim is great but Ashman's lyrics are so natural and they sound like normal conversation in song, you almost forget you are listening to musical theatre. Any lingering absurdity that exists disappears. Schwartz on the otherhand bends the rules for his convenience. In all honesty, some of his lyrics, especially those in Wicked, sound like a child came up with them and had to manipulate and bend words to make them work. Oddly enough, I remember reading a thing Schwartz had written about the song Beauty and the Beast. He was complaining about Howard improperly placing the stress on the -ly syllable of the line "then somebody bends, unexpectedly." Howard's misplaced stress is minor when compared to what Schwartz has done to words "Nessa, i've got something to confess-a reason." Now off my soapbox.

[justme2]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:01am

dang you jasonf! I was all set to type out "It Needs Work!" from City of Angels...

There's no sun up in the sky...
and the birds forgot to sing
but you're headed for a cell,
then to die and rot in hell...
So it might as well be spring!

I'll be singing like a bird
when the jury sets the date.
at this capital event,
whose revenge is heaven sent...
all you have to do is wait!

and so on!

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:22am

Oap, sorry, Hunter. Although it's fairly clear that writing "Desiree Armfeldt" after a set of lyrics from A Little Night Music in a thread quoting song lyrics might lead someone to accidentally believe you were attributing the lyrics to that character, I see now that it was your inexplicable signature. I try not to pay too much attention to you since you're usually so unnecessarily nasty when nobody is provoking you. I'm glad ghostlight2 finds you funny though. Childish nastiness is that sort of thing anybody can get into.


Justme2 is "It might as well be spring" the only reference to other songs in that lyric? Or is it just plays on phrases?

[justme2]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:26am

just a play on the phrase. It's really about a Hispanic cop happy as hell to finally collar the former partner "gone bad" and looking forward to his execution.

[Alex LaVelle]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 12:44am

I'm fond of the chorus of Both Sides of the Coin from Drood:

Ha'penny, one penny, tupenny, thrupenny
Twelve to a shilling, twice that to a florin
Wouldn't you fancy the currency foreign
To find the same face on both sides of the coin?

Bob is your uncle from pennies to guineas
The two sided mint is the rule, not exception
And wouldn't you feel quite the fool of deception
To find the same face on both sides of the coin?

My personal favorite pair of words to rhyme comes from Sondheim's The Frogs, Sexy and Apoplexy

[jimmirae]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:09am

From Noel Coward:

I went to a marvelous party

With Nounou and Nada and Nell,

It was in the fresh air

And we went as we were

And we stayed as we were

Which was Hell.

Poor Grace started singing at midnight

And didn't stop singing till four;

We knew the excitement was bound to begin

When Laura got blind on Dubonnet and gin

And scratched her veneer with a Cartier pin,

I couldn't have liked it more.

[sidwich]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:17am

I am absolutely stunned that in a thread on clever lyricists, nobody has mentioned either Lorenz Hart or Ira Gershwin.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 1:54am

Heh, Jimmi, I was gonna quote that before but I decided not to.

Somebody mentioned Hart I think. If you like them so much quote us some of their cleverness!

[ally_kay_on_broadway]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 2:01am

'i am the perfect model of a modern major general
i've information vegetable, animal, and mineral
i know the kings of England, and I quote the fights historical
from Marathon to Waterloo, in order categorical'

-gilbert and sullivan

its SUCH a song to sing while you're cleaning. I always find myself singing this while i'm cleaning...

[Theatreboy49]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 2:04am

Kander and Ebb's Kiss of the spider Woman

Dressing Them Up
Dressing them up
I love the dressing them up
The subtle tilt of a hat
Touches like that
Makes me the best of the lot
At dressing them up
I was the cream of the crop
The way I buckled the belt
Folded the felt
Helped me to get where I got
Before I got where I got!
I was the absolute top
For example:
Once I asked for a Balenciaga scarf
To stuff in a mannequin's purse
They told me, no one on earth will see!
I answered, no one on earth but me!
I stood my ground as no other dresser does
And darling guess what? Balenciaga, it was!
Dressing them up,
I was the creme de la creme
As I adjusted each hem
I keep on dazzling them
At my particular store
Which was the best in the town
You'd never catch them wearing a frown
Or catch them dressing me down
For my finesse at dressing them up
Raise that skirt, just an inch or two
Add some rouge, just a pinch or two
Start the fan
No, much gustier
Stuff that gauze
Make her bustier
Ooh! That frock, too much red in it!
I would not be caught dead in it
Well, they start out like hell
But I make them sell by
Dressing them up
From earrings down to their boots
In evening dresses or suits
Unlike some second rate fruits
At other second rate stores
Which can't compare to my own
You'll never catch them wearin a frown
Or catch them dressing me down
For my finesse at dressing them up!
I had the touch...
Thank you very much!

I adore the lyrics to that song, its genius and I also adore Where you Are as well:

When you feel you've gone to hell in a hand basket
And the world in which you dwell's no paradise
I've some counsel I can give
You need but ask it
I'm so very glad to share this good advice
You've got to learn how not to be
Where you are
The more you face reality, the more you scar
So close your eyes and you'll become a movie star
Why must you stay where you are?
You've got to learn how not to see
What you've seen
The slice of hell you call your life
Is harsh and mean
So why not lie beside me on a movie screen
Why must you see what you've seen?
And if you find that you land in jail
A little fantasy will not fail
It's just as simple as ABC
Come up here, play with me, play with me!
You've got to learn how not to do
What you've done
The pistol shot can't kill if you unload the gun
So build a place where you're the shah
And we'll embrace in that Shangri-La
If you run away, some matinee
From where you are

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 2:48am

Sorry, roninjoey, I find Hunter's signature signatures amusing & rather clever - nothing personal or childish about it. I think we're talking simple misunderstanding here.

Kander and Ebb?

"Come on, babe, we're gonna brush the sky
I bet ya Lucky Lindy never flew so high
'Cause in the stratosphere
How could he lend an ear
To all
That jazz?"

Updated On: 1/5/06 at 02:48 AM

[PJ]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 2:56am

"We have so much in common. It's a phenomenon."


- "Small World" from Gypsy

[gumbo2]

Posted: 1/5/06 at 3:39am

I also like me some William Finn, though it seems that hes always either dead on or kinda...misses.
"Debate us,
with our chronic congestion
underrate us,
That's a stupid suggestion"
Not exactly my favorite lyrics, it just sounds sort of awkward. But CALAMARI, which was quoted earlier is great, and I love just about everything in A New Brain...Can't remember the exact lyrics but something like, "Unless you give your virginity/to someone with whom you have no afinity" or something along those lines.

Also Jonathon Larson, I mean...just listen to La Vie Boheme.