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Friday, April 20, 2007

Difford on duff lyrics- I’d like to teach the world to cringe


So what do you think are the world's worst pop lyrics?...



Well Life by Des'ree must feature in pip's personal top ten..


" When there's no one else around
Oh I get the shivers
I don't wanna see a ghost
It's the sight that I fear most
I'd rather have a piece of toast"

Erm... yeah!



Anyway Mr Difford features in an online article that talks about those lyrics that you'd quite happily throw in the nearest river (weighted down and padlocked in a safe for good measure!)

I'd Like To Teach The World To Cringe (The Times)

A snippet:
"
Squeeze’s Chris Difford knows a thing or two about separating good lyrics from bad. Revered by Lily Allen and Jamie T for Up the Junction and Pulling Mussels (From the Shell) , Difford has also hosted a string of songwriting get-togethers that have attracted the likes of Cathy Dennis and Suggs. “There’s a difference between choosing a bad lyric and a bad melody,” Difford argues. “I think most of us would agree what constitutes a poor tune and, as a result, they tend not to stick in the mind too long. But a lot of good tunes with bad lyrics end up becoming successful.”

Difford couldn’t possibly be pushed to name examples. Oh, all right then, just a couple. He endeavours to keep a straight face when a couple of Sting clunkers are thrown his way, in particular the Police’s Don’t Stand so Close to Me : “He starts to shake and cough/ Just like the old man in/ That book by Nabokov.”

“Well, it’s very Sting, isn’t it?” smiles Difford. “He’s not always the greatest lyricist — although, in fairness, you can’t knock a song like Message in a Bottle ."

Mr D, you are a gent!


The Official Chris Difford Website

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1 Comments:

Blogger bitterspice said...

i agree with one of the commenters in that article. the worst lyric ever is "if I were a sculptor, but then again, no." right up there with "So excuse me forgetting but these things I do/You see I've forgotten if they're green or they're blue/
Anyway the thing is what I really mean/
Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen." I keep thinking, "what is this, a first draft?"

20 April, 2007 18:38  

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