Lyrics... inspiration... who's your macdaddy?

I thought, considering my (apparent) rudness in the Tupac thread, that it might be interesting to make a music thread. Lines, stanza, or whole songs… poetry, or whatever. Anything that’s inspired you in some way, is welcome here.

This is not a place to poke fun at other’s choices and you wont find me making a single disparaging comment. (I listen to folk music after all, so what they hell do I know about taste?)

first submission:

I think, I think I am, therefore I am, I think.

Of course you are my bright little star,
I’ve miles
And miles
Of files
Pretty files of your forefather’s fruit
and now to suit our
great computer,
You’re magnetic ink.

I’m more than that, I know I am, at least, I think I must be.

There you go man, keep as cool as you can.
Face piles
And piles
Of trials
With smiles.
It riles them to believe
that you perceive
the web they weave
And keep on thinking free.

“The Night: Nights In White Satin”

Nights in white satin,
Never reaching the end,
Letters I’ve written,
Never meaning to send.

Beauty I’d always missed
With these eyes before,
Just what the truth is
I can’t say anymore.

'Cause I love you,
Yes, I love you,
Oh, how, I love you.

Gazing at people,
Some hand in hand,
Just what I’m going thru
They can understand.

Some try to tell me
Thoughts they cannot defend,
Just what you want to be
You will be in the end,

And I love you,
Yes, I love you,
Oh, how, I love you.
Oh, how, I love you.

Nights in white satin,
Never reaching the end,
Letters I’ve written,
Never meaning to send.

Beauty I’d always missed
With these eyes before,
Just what the truth is
I can’t say anymore.

'Cause I love you,
Yes, I love you,
Oh, how, I love you.
Oh, how, I love you.

'Cause I love you,
Yes, I love you,
Oh, how, I love you.
Oh, how, I love you.

“Question”

Why do we never get an answer
When we’re knocking at the door?
With a thousand million questions
About hate and death and war.

It’s where we stop and look around us
There is nothing that we need.
In a world of persecution
That is burning in it’s greed.

Why do we never get an answer
When we’re knocking at the door?
Because the truth is hard to swallow
That’s what the wall of love is for.

It’s not the way that you say it
When you do those things to me.
It’s more the way that you mean it
When you tell me what will be.

And when you stop and think about it
You won’t believe it’s true.
That all the love you’ve been giving
Has all been meant for you.

I’m looking for someone to change my life.
I’m looking for a miracle in my life.
And if you could see what it’s done to me
To lose the the love I knew
Could safely lead me through.

Between the silence of the mountains
And the crashing of the sea
There lies a land I once lived in
And she’s waiting there for me.

But in the grey of the morning
My mind becomes confused
Between the dead and the sleeping
And the road that I must choose.

I’m looking for someone to change my life.
I’m looking for a miracle in my life.
And if you could see what it’s done to me
To lose the the love I knew
Could safely lead me to
The land that I once knew.
To learn as we grow old
The secrets of our souls.

It’s not the way that you say it
When you do those things to me.
It’s more the way you really mean it
When you tell me what will be.

Why do we never get an answer
When we’re knocking at the door?
With a thousand million questions
About hate and death and war.

It’s where we stop and look around us
There is nothing that we need.
In a world of persecution
That is burning in it’s greed.

Why do we never get an answer
When we’re knocking at the door?

since I was a child I’ve been a big fan of Billy Joel. This particular song from Billy never got the airing it deserved. Perhaps the song itself was never one of his best, but the message is clear. Don’t drink and drive. I think that people often fail to realize the true genius behind songs like this one. To associate a drunk driver with one of the most notorious and nefarious of our wild west killers is simply an amazingly simple, yet eliquent way of getting a message across.

Ballad of Billy the Kid.

From a town known as Wheeling, West Virginia
Rode a boy with a six-gun in his hand
And his daring life of crime
Made him a legend in his time
East and west of the Rio Grande

Well, he started with a bank in Colorado
In the pocket of his vest, a Colt he hid
And his age and his size
Took the teller by surprise
And the word spread of Billy the Kid

Well, he never traveled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
And he never had a sweetheart
And he never had a home
But the cowboy and the rancher knew his name

Well, he robbed his way from Utah to Oklahoma
And the law just could not seem to track him down
And it served his legend well
For the folks, they’d love to tell
'Bout when Billy the Kid came to town

Well, one cold day a posse captured Billy
And the judge said, “String 'im up for what he did!”
And the cowboys and their kin
Like the sea came pourin’ in
To watch the hangin’ of Billy the Kid

Well, he never traveled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
And he never had a sweetheart
But he finally found a home
Underneath the boothill grave that bears his name

From a town known as Oyster Bay, Long Island
Rode a boy with a six-pack in his hand
And his daring life of crime
Made him a legend in his time
East and west of the Rio Grande

No one has a song that they really really like?? That’s pretty sad. :slight_smile:

Too many…loads and loads really…

Waiting in vain > Bob Marley
Have I told you lately & Brown Eyed Girl > Van Morrisson
Sweet Fanta Djiallo > Alpha Blondy
Summer of 69 > Brian Adams
Dancing in the Dark > the boss (Springsteen)
The Cross & Doves Cry & many others > Prince
Storm the Embassy > Stray Cats
Just like Heaven & most songs by > the Cure
Every Breath you take & all songs by > the Police
Hotel California > Eagles

…and the beat goes on…

Tupac Amaru Shakur: “Only God Can Judge Me”

Perhaps I was blind to the facts, stabbed in the back
I couldn’t trust my own homies just a bunch a dirty rats
Will I, succeed, paranoid from the weed
And hocus pocus try to focus but I can’t see
And in my mind I’ma blind man doin time
Look to my future cause my past, is all behind me
Is it a crime, to fight, for what is mine?
Everybody’s dyin tell me what’s the use of tryin
I’ve been Trapped since birth, cautious, cause I’m cursed
And fantasies of my family, in a hearse
And they say it’s the white man I should fear
But, it’s my own kind doin all the killin here
I can’t lie, ain’t no love for the other side
Jealousy inside, make em wish I died
Oh my Lord, tell me what I’m livin for
Everybody’s droppin got me knockin on heaven’s door
And all my memories, of seein brothers bleed
And everybody grieves, but still nobody sees
Recollect your thoughts don’t get caught up in the mix
Cause the media is full of dirty tricks
Only God can judge me

**That which does not kill me can only make me stronger
and I don’t see why everybody feel as though
that they gotta tell me how to live my life
Let me live baby, let me live
**

Tupac Amaru Shakur: “Dear Mama”

You are appreciated

When I was young me and my mama had beef
Seventeen years old kicked out on the streets
Though back at the time, I never thought I’d see her face
Ain’t a woman alive that could take my mama’s place
Suspended from school; and scared to go home, I was a fool
with the big boys, breakin all the rules
I shed tears with my baby sister
Over the years we was poorer than the other little kids
And even though we had different daddy’s, the same drama
When things went wrong we’d blame mama
I reminice on the stress I caused, it was hell
Huggin on my mama from a jail cell
And who’d think in elementary?
Heeey! I see the penitentiary, one day
And runnin from the police, that’s right
Mama catch me, put a whoopin to my backside
And even as a crack fiend, mama
You always was a black queen, mama
I finally understand
for a woman it ain’t easy tryin to raise a man
You always was committed
A poor single mother on welfare, tell me how ya did it
There’s no way I can pay you back
But the plan is to show you that I understand
You are appreciated

Now ain’t nobody tell us it was fair
No love from my daddy cause the coward wasn’t there
He passed away and I didn’t cry, cause my anger
wouldn’t let me feel for a stranger
They say I’m wrong and I’m heartless, but all along
I was lookin for a father he was gone
I hung around with the Thugs, and even though they sold drugs
They showed a young brother love
I moved out and started really hangin
I needed money of my own so I started slangin
I ain’t guilty cause, even though I sell rocks
It feels good puttin money in your mailbox
I love payin rent when the rent’s due
I hope ya got the diamond necklace that I sent to you
Cause when I was low you was there for me
And never left me alone because you cared for me
And I could see you comin home after work late
You’re in the kitchen tryin to fix us a hot plate
Ya just workin with the scraps you was given
And mama made miracles every Thanksgivin
But now the road got rough, you’re alone
You’re tryin to raise two bad kids on your own
And there’s no way I can pay you back
But my plan is to show you that I understand
You are appreciated

Pour out some liquor and I reminsce, cause through the drama
I can always depend on my mama
And when it seems that I’m hopeless
You say the words that can get me back in focus
When I was sick as a little kid
To keep me happy there’s no limit to the things you did
And all my childhood memories
Are full of all the sweet things you did for me
And even though I act craaazy
I gotta thank the Lord that you made me
There are no words that can express how I feel
You never kept a secret, always stayed real
And I appreciate, how you raised me
And all the extra love that you gave me
I wish I could take the pain away
If you can make it through the night there’s a brighter day
Everything will be alright if ya hold on
It’s a struggle everyday, gotta roll on
And there’s no way I can pay you back
But my plan is to show you that I understand
You are appreciated

Just a few of the Pac lyrics from his first few CD’s.

Poems by Tupac Amaru Shakur:

In The Event Of My Demise

In the event of my Demise
when my heart can beat no more
I Hope I Die For A Principle
or A Belief that I had Lived 4
I will die Before My Time
Because I feel the shadow’s Depth
so much I wanted 2 accomplish
before I reached my Death
I have come 2 grips with the possibility
and wiped the last tear from My eyes
I Loved All who were Positive
In the event of my Demise

I Cry

Sometimes when I’m alone
I Cry,
Cause I am on my own.
The tears I cry are bitter and warm.
They flow with life but take no form
I Cry because my heart is torn.
I find it difficult to carry on.
If I had an ear to confiding,
I would cry among my treasured friend,
but who do you know that stops that long,
to help another carry on.
The world moves fast and it would rather pass by.
Then to stop and see what makes one cry,
so painful and sad.
And sometimes…
I Cry
and no one cares about why.

The Rose That Grew From Concrete

Did you hear about the rose that grew from a crack in the concrete?
Proving nature’s law is wrong it learned to walk with out having feet.
Funny it seems, but by keeping it’s dreams, it learned to breathe fresh air.
Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else ever cared.

And Tomorrow

Today is filled with anger, fueled with hidden hate.
Scared of being outkast, afraid of common fate.
Today is build on tragedies which no one want’s to face.
Nightmares to humanity and morally disgraced.
Tonight is filled with Rage, violence in the air.
Children bred with ruthlessness cause no one at home cares.
Tonight I lay my head down but the pressure never stops,
knowing that my sanity content when I’m droped.
But tomorrow I see change, a chance to build a new,
build on spirit intent of heart and ideas based on truth.
Tomorrow I wake with second wind and strong because of pride.
I know I fought with all my heart to keep the dream alive.

Fallen Star

They could never understand
what u set out 2 do
instead they chose 2
ridicule u
when u got weak
they loved the sight
of your dimming
and flickering starlight
How could they understand what was so intricate
2 be loved by so many, so intimate
they wanted 2 c your lifeless corpse
this way u could not alter the course
of ignorance that they have set
2 make my people forget
what they have done for much 2 long
2 just forget and carry on
I had loved u forever because of who u r
and now I mourn our fallen star

A young heart with an old soul

How can there be peace?
How can I be in the depths of solitude
When there are two inside of me?
This duo in me causes the perfect opportunity
To learn and live twice as fast
As those who accept simplicity…

<B><U>Chevelle - Mia</U></B>
Watch me heap up what I’ve sown
I’m made of peanuts, not of shells
God spares a quality of himself
Uniquely designed but we can’t help ourselves

So – Why, I made the face that bugs you
I won’t design the conversation around you
I made the face that bugs you

Spyglass scans the fields
Hold my hand, feel a chill in here
Tired of looking through you
I’ve found myself, can you find you

WHY- I’ve made the face that bugs you
I won’t design the conversation around you
I made the face that bugs you
I wont design

Spyglass scanned the field
Hold my hand, I feel a chill in here
Tired of looking through you
I’ve found myself can you find you

Why - I made the face
I won’t design


That song is about being yourself and how you are who you are and how you should never try to be what other people want you to be.

Those are a couple of really good ones. Some great words spoken there.

Stereophonics
Word Gets Around (1997)
A Thousand Trees

standing at the bus stop with my shopping
in my hands when i’m overhearing elder
ladies as the rumours start to fly you can
hear them in the school yard scrap yard
chip shop phone box in the pool hall at
the shoe stall every corner turned around

it started with a school girl who was
running running home to her mam and
dad told them she was playing in the
change room of her local football side they
said tell us again so she told them again
they said tell us the truth they found it hard
to believe cause he taught our steve he
even trained me taught uncle john who’s
father of three

but it only takes one tree to make
a thousand matches
only takes one match to burn
a thousand trees

you see it in the class room in the
swimming pool where the matchstick men
are made at the scouts hall at the football
where the wise we trust are paid they all
honour his name he did a lot for the game
he got his name knocked up above the
sports ground gates but now they are
ripping them down stamping the ground
picture gathers dust behind the bar in the
lounge

it takes one tree to make
a thousand matches
only takes one match to burn
a thousand trees

wake up and smell the rain shake up he’s
back to stay he hasn’t been on a holiday
his growing seeds don’t believe why he’s
been away in the school yard change room
playing fields bathroom phone box office
blocks corner turned around they keep
doubting the flame tossing the blame got
his name knocked up above the sports
ground gates but now they’re
ripping them down stamping the ground
picture gathers dust in the bar in the
lounge

it takes one tree to make
a thousand matches
it only takes one match to burn
a thousand trees

Stereophonics
Performance and Cocktails (1999)
She Takes Her Clothes Off

she’s got another fantasy
she lives in flat number twenty three
picked first prize for carnival queen
and now she takes her clothes off
collects the covers off her magazines
she longs to be another teenage dream
the problem is she’s turning forty three
she still takes her clothes off
she got the nick name porta bubble joan
they found her dead dead as nails at home
and she said i’m gonna be another marilyn
bleach my hair and get real thin
and everybody’s gonna wanna dance with me
she loved to have her little fantasies
she longed to be the wife of jimmy dean
but jimmys head sits in jimmys knees
she loves to take her clothes off
police are looking around at twenty three
they found her hanging from her swollen
feet they saw her dance last in woolworth
street
she loved to take her clothes off
she got the nick name porta bubble joan
they found her dead dead as nails at home
and she said i’m gonna be another marilyn
bleach my hair and get real thin
and everybody’s gonna wanna dance with me
everybody wants to be the carnival queen
everybody wants to be the carnival
king or queen
we all read the books
she takes her clothes off one by one
off again

Bee Gees


This Is Where I Came In

I’ve seen the story
I’ve read it over once or twice
I said that you say
A little bit of bad advice
I’ve been in trouble
Happened to me all of my life
I’ve lied and you lie
And who would get the sharpest knife

You know I couldn’t be somebody like that
I’m not the kind of man to throw his hat
into the ring and
Go down without following through
The day turns into night
Go down following through
The day turns into night

Ohhh, ohhh, ohhh,
This is just where I came in

Hope rides on
But I’ll go anywhere
Yes, I’ll go anywhere with you
Time has gone
But I’ll go anywhere
Yes, I’ll go anywhere with you

**This is the danger zone
This is where I came in
They know not what they do
Forgive them all their sins
They know they cannot take away
What you have given me **

Ohhh, ohhh, ohhh,
This is just where I came in

Fade into color
Color into black and white
Under the bedclothes
Everything will be alright
I know that you know
Nothing ever stays the same
Said so, I said so
The love will never speak its name

Never gonna find somebody like you
Beauty with a brain and a body too
I could never make a move on a woman that leads me on
She’s got a little bit of something for everyone
It’s a little too late and the wolf is on the run

Hope rides on
But I’ll go anywhere
Yes, I’ll go anywhere with you
Time has gone
But I’ll go anywhere
Yes, I’ll go anywhere with you

I always told myself
I would regret this day
That I would fall apart
And watch you walk away
That you would cry out loud
And I would stand aside

Ohhh, ohhh, ohhh,
This is just where I came in

I can’t lie
But I’ll go anywhere
Yes, I’ll go anywhere with you

This is the danger zone
This is where I came in
They know not what they do
Forgive them of their sins
They know they cannot take away
What you have given me

I’ll try to find a few more and put it up =)

Cheers!
Kirupa :rambo:

mine has no words at all…

hunger strike by Estradasphere

and i love Squarepusher

Is there room for originals? If so, here we go …

////_/

She thought herself convincing
The world was at her feet
She thought her sassy disposition
Made her life complete
She could beat you in a shoot out
If it came to being mean
But for all the brains she seems to have
She’s tearing at the seams …

Natasha’s torn between what to do
Her life is etched with attitude
She hides the pain inside her heart
Sifted, vain and torn apart
Her soul keeps reaching for the light
But the darkness holds her tight
Until she gives this fear away
… Natasha’s torn today