Who wrote the best lyrics?

[BlobVanDam]

I say Myung, but only because of consistency.  I can't think of any duds.

KM at his best was great, but he had some clunkers too.

JP wrote the actual best lyrics, but his best stuff was long ago.

Not meaning to be persnickety, but what's an example of a KM "clunker"?

Lie. Only a Matter of Time.

[MoraWintersoul]

Only a Matter of Time.

Wow.

[wasteland]

Only a Matter of Time.

Wow.

OAMOT is good, but not anywhere near to his contributions on Images. 

[BlobVanDam]

Only a Matter of Time.

Wow.

Not so much the actual words themselves, so much as the disregard for a sense of phrasing or musicality to fit them to a song, resulting in the poorest vocal phrasing on the album (which is no small feat).
It's good and well to write nice poetic lyrics that work standalone, but actually fitting them to the music is just as important a step in the process of writing lyrics for a song, and in that regard, OAMOT really highlights the amateurish nature of the writing on WDADU.

Either that, or Kevin Moore was just trolling Charlie Dominici to make him pass out while singing it. If that was the case, I'd actually give KM bonus points.

You may disagree with how I am judging lyrics, which is fine, but I just thought I'd clarify my reasoning for that choice.

[MoraWintersoul]

It's good and well to write nice poetic lyrics that work standalone, but actually fitting them to the music is just as important a step in the process of writing lyrics for a song...

Oh that sounds reasonable. Some stuff on IAW, such as Take The Time, is equally bad in that respect... the "unbroken spirit - must turn to hope" verses seriously sound like they were pranking JLB just like KM could have hypothetically pranked Charlie in OAMOT.

Except for the fact JLB came out on top *obligatory fangirling*

[BlobVanDam]

It's good and well to write nice poetic lyrics that work standalone, but actually fitting them to the music is just as important a step in the process of writing lyrics for a song...

Oh that sounds reasonable. Some stuff on IAW, such as Take The Time, is equally bad in that respect... the "unbroken spirit - must turn to hope" verses seriously sound like they were pranking JLB just like KM could have hypothetically pranked Charlie in OAMOT.

Except for the fact JLB came out on top *obligatory fangirling*

Yes, the phrasing of that verse is quite brutal for a vocalist. Hey, maybe KM wrote that verse.
But in the case of TTT, the phrasing still fits a steady musical pattern, rather than feeling as randomly phrased as OAMOT, and the melody is amazing.
But it is indeed equally difficult on the vocalist. They're just lucky they got a vocalist who could nail it.

[MoraWintersoul]

Yes, the phrasing of that verse is quite brutal for a vocalist. Hey, maybe KM wrote that verse.

The only thing KM ever wrote post-89 that had that problem was Surrounded in my opinion, and it wasn't that bad, but it was still hard to sing. Afterwards, with the Awake and all the post DT lyrics he really shined in that department.

[?]

Hey, maybe KM wrote that verse.

No, apparently JP gets the blame for that one.

The only thing KM ever wrote post-89 that had that problem was Surrounded in my opinion, and it wasn't that bad, but it was still hard to sing. Afterwards, with the Awake and all the post DT lyrics he really shined in that department.

Yeah, but I think it's because of the tricky time signature. The "light to dark, dark to light" part is a real tongue-twister, though! I agree with you about the vocal phrasing on KM's Awake songs and post-DT stuff.

[hefdaddy42]

FWIW, I agree with Blob on his KM analysis.

[The Presence of Frenemies]

Dominici's staccato delivery certainly didn't help smooth any of the lyrics out, but yeah, it's a valid point that the words detracted from OAMOT. For the record, I actually enjoy Lie's lyrics a lot though.

[robwebster]

I find Only a Matter of Time works a lot better if you can train yourself to stop seeing it as a prog rock song, and think of it more as the world's first progressive rap.

Finally, the worlds have met. It's the halfway point. It's what you'd get if you mixed a concept album about wizards with a three-minute single about casual misogeny. Charlie Dominici, proving for the record books that he can be, well, maybe not quite "street," but he's definitely "yellow-brick road."

We can't begin to comprehend the level of innovation. Frankly, it belongs in a museum.

[Adami]

So I've given this topic a lot of thought, and realized I'd like to change my answer.



The person who wrote the best lyrics for DT is.............Desmond Child.

[MoraWintersoul]

I find Only a Matter of Time works a lot better if you can train yourself to stop seeing it as a prog rock song, and think of it more as the world's first progressive rap.

Finally, the worlds have met. It's the halfway point. It's what you'd get if you mixed a concept album about wizards with a three-minute single about casual misogeny. Charlie Dominici, proving for the record books that he can be, well, maybe not quite "street," but he's definitely "yellow-brick road."

We can't begin to comprehend the level of innovation. Frankly, it belongs in a museum.

So I've given this topic a lot of thought, and realized I'd like to change my answer.



The person who wrote the best lyrics for DT is.............Desmond Child.

Fuck it you guys I almost choked

[GasparXR]

It's easy to see where this is going

Really? Because I can't see where this is going.