Best Lyricists

[TSG]

So this thread is simple. Who are some of the best lyricists in music?

I am going to start off with a rapper. Lupe Fiasco is a very underrated artist who works wonders with words. He is like a poet, laying lyrics down on the beat that are enough to astonish a man. He can just put down sick rhymes like this:

[YOUTUBE]JyLLmByA6Y0[/YOUTUBE]

Those words are like poetry, I swear. He just drops ill stuff there. He can also tell a great story, as evidenced here.

[YOUTUBE]ZAR02dD_KMg[/YOUTUBE]

This guy is amazing with his lyrics and they deserve to be recognized. While maybe not one of the best all time, he is one of the best today and came to mind when making this thread. Next time I drop by I'll try to drop a rocker in.

 

[hatehabsforever]

I would select Neil Peart of Rush. Apart from being a superb drummer for my favorite band, he has written the lyrics for most, if not all, of their songs since their second album dating back to the mid '70's.

His lyrics are well thought out, cerebral, and cover a wide range of topics and issues. He has changed with the times over the four decades he has been writing lyrics, and continues to write well thought out lyrics to this day.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

Canibus is by far the best lyricist out there. Most people are too dumb to understand his lyrics sense he's not talking about money, guns, drugs, and how many women he's hooked up with.

He is so smart, probably one of the smartest rappers ever.

 

[lenguy]

I got two, first of is the front man of my favorite band. Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace. Maida was always particularly fond of creative writing as a child and it shows a lot in his work with the band, and it often transcend past his lyrics into the music itself. Maida has always managed to write lyrics that are full of deep meaning, heart, truth, delivered right up from the soul. They can be very cryptic and soothing. They can be simple and straight to the point or very complex. He is a very honest and sincere person and it carries into his lyrics as well. Here is just a taste of his lyrical grandeur

[YOUTUBE]6TlJa1VUoz4[/YOUTUBE]

Spoiler

She builds her own satellite
From an old rusted chair
She leaves this old world behind
And the things that she cares

Maybe she's gone
But it won't be for long
What do I know?
Maybe she's found
What we all dream about
What do I know?

She's beautiful and wonderful
I can't compare
It's not that fair

She builds a strong alibi
From the future that's here
She needs to know I'm alive
And that I'm flesh and I tear

Maybe she's wrong
But I won't mind my own
What do I know?
And their silicone
With a touch of her soul
What do I know?

She's beautiful and wonderful
I can't compare
It's not that fair

Another guy is Jesse Hasek from the band 10 Years. I don't know very much about him or the band but I do enjoy listening to them. I find Hasek's lyrics to range in complexity. Check out their earlier work. I don't know if he over does it sometimes but the lyrics can be a bit difficult to decipher sometimes. Here's a taste, A song called All Your Lies

[YOUTUBE]scSsKUbuGd4[/YOUTUBE]

Spoiler

Pay attention, pay attention, pay attention please.
He who lusts through life for excess in this world.
Dies a lonely man, careless of his soul.
Throwing caution to the wind with foolish ignorance.
You're full of pride.
Full of pride.
Full of pride.
And in arrogance you can't accept the nearing end of this short lived life.

Smile and give a toast, brag and boast.
Fool the world with all of your lies.
The parasite's host never even knows.
Pull the wool over our eyes.

Walk the line and pay the price.
A pound of flesh for paradise.
Wear the wounds of your demise.

Fail to mention your intentions, fail to mention why.
The actions of your life contradict your words...
The path in which you walk is a vice of no remorse.
Washing conscience from the skin, claiming innocence.
Ignore the signs.

Smile and give a toast, brag and boast.
Fool the world with all of your lies.
The parasite's host never even knows.
Pull the wool over our eyes.

Walk the line and pay the price.
A pound of flesh for paradise.
Wear the wounds of your demise.
A pound of flesh for paradise.

Bend the truth till you can't find it.
Find it.
Twist your lies till you don't mind them.
Mind them.

Walk the line and pay the price.
A pound of flesh for paradise.
Wear the wounds of your demise.
Demise.
From cradle to grave, you chose to trade.
A pound of flesh for paradise.
Wear the wounds of your demise.

 

[TSG]

Another man I want to bring up is Jim Morrison.

Morrison was the front man and main lyricist for The Doors, an American rock band from the 60's. many revered Morrison like Jesus, and The Doors were said by many to be the American equivalent of The Beatles. His lyrics were very wild and psychadelic, more than a few of them resulting from drug trips. But the man was really a master with words. He also wrote poetry and really incorporated that into his music. Some of his epic songs like Celebration of the Lizards and When The Music's Over really strung out the lyrics like a large novel condensed into a song and told so much story and meaning it's amazing. I just wanted to toss out Morrison's name in this thread, as he was truly a great lyricist.

 

[Fizzy]

I'm going to go with a guy who I really respect as both an artist and a human being. I may not be a huge fan of his music but he is a really inspirational and influential man. That man being Nine Inch Nail's frontman, Trent Reznor. Trent was named most vital artist in music by Spin Magazine, and he is a fantastic lyricist as well. His song "Hurt" is one of the most beautiful pieces of music I have ever heard. In fact, Johnny Cash chose to cover Hurt in one of his final covers in his life. The guy puts such emotion into his music, and you really feel what he went through when you listen to him.

 

[Cookie]

It's way too hard to talk about only one, so I'd have to go back and think about it. For now I've got a contribution: Elliott Smith. I swear there was a similar thread to this in here a long while ago and I mentioned Elliott then too. Posthumously, he may have become the poster boy for tortured artists everywhere but that's what makes his lyrics so haunting and powerful. Knowing the things he was going through in his life, his songs become a map to his early departure. He was able to capture emotion in his lyrics that still resonates with the people who listen to it. Affecting, heartbreaking and sometimes painful to listen to - if someone's writing can make you feel that intensely, I reckon it's much more than just words.

 

[wrestlingfan]

Nas is a good lyricist because he brought back the Old-School Hip-Hop and mixed it with the grungy Hardcore-Rap of the 90s, mixed it with some poetic justice, philosophy, cleverness, and religion, and you got yourself albums such as Illmatic.

 

[SorgFamily]

Dylan. Always go with Bob Dylan. The man may have not done much worthwhile since the mid-seventies (barring his latest trilogy and even they've been a bit lackluster) but "Hurricane" and "Tangled Up in Blue" are two of the best story songs ever. They flow so well, nothing is forced and his nasally voice actually works very well for both songs.

[YOUTUBE]YwSZvHqf9qM[/YOUTUBE]

And for some reason there's no version of Hurricane on YouTube. Seek it out, you won't be disappointed.

 

[Alex]

Richey Edwards of the Manic Street Preachers.

Similar to Bob Dylan, in the sense that he was an amazing lyricist but poor musician.

Arguably the Manic Street Preachers best album The Holy Bible, Edwards pretty much wrote all of the words to.

Songs like She Is Suffering, 4st 7Ibs, Faster, Yes and countless more have a highly poetic nature about them.

[YOUTUBE]OYNwr58V1Pg[/YOUTUBE]

 

[box5]

Dylan. Always go with Bob Dylan. The man may have not done much worthwhile since the mid-seventies (barring his latest trilogy and even they've been a bit lackluster) but "Hurricane" and "Tangled Up in Blue" are two of the best story songs ever. They flow so well, nothing is forced and his nasally voice actually works very well for both songs.

[YOUTUBE]YwSZvHqf9qM[/YOUTUBE]

And for some reason there's no version of Hurricane on YouTube. Seek it out, you won't be disappointed.

Thanks I have nothing to day now yell