More than you cared to know
Against my better judgment in letting these types of antics get noticed, I approved the above comment in case anyone wants to read the article. I read a few of the entries, and quite honestly, Blender is just trying to gain clicks.
While yes, Sting sucks… and I can see his point with some of Neil’s lyrics… honestly, you can say the same thing about virtually anyone who’s ever written lyrics. There are bound to be duds in everyone’s portfolio of music.
Any list like this that features Peter Gabriel needs to be stricken from the annals of history and its author burned at the stake!
I cant believe the anger I felt when I read that Neil Peart was ranked #2 on the worst lyricist list and Sting was #1. First off, Sting is a musical icon that doesn’t deserve criticism by some small minded, feeble witted writer who makes his living spewing crap onto the pages of some two bit magazine. Okay maybe some of the lyrics are a bit cheesy but this is a man who created his own style of music. White Reggae(Reggatta de Blanc) was a Police original.
Moving on to what really irks me is criticizing Neil Peart. This is a man who’s lyrics tell stories that evoke thought and emotion far greater than most lyricist’s even attempt to conquer. Just because you don’t understand them or don’t care to understand them, don’t be critical of them because it sends up a glaring red flare that says, “I am not bright enough to figure this out, so let me mock it in the hopes that nobody realizes it”. The old saying “We mock what we don’t understand” rings true in this case.
Neil has borrowed stories and lyrics from literary greats as Samuel Taylor Coleridge(Kubla Khan) and Ayn Ryand (Entre Nous). He has even taken stories from classic Car and Driver excerpts and turned them into songs that are great stories like Red Barchetta. Those who follow Rush know that all their albums have a theme and that mostly all songs have some type of deep rooted meaning. The true beauty in these songs is listening to a song like Red Sector A and thinking it was a story about some type bleak, apocalyptic future and then discovering that the basis of the song comes directly from a story Geddy Lee’s mother told him about the day she was liberated from a concentration camp. Lyrics like “Are we the last ones left alive, Are we the only human beings to survive” come directly from Lee’s mom who had no idea there was life left on earth. They thought that the camp they lived in was it. Can you imagine that. Can you imagine the horror. I have listened to that song hundreds of times and I get chills every time I hear those lyrics.
I had a friend who was a big fan of Kiss. I am a big Kiss fan as well. I tried many times to get him to appreciate Rush and his comment to me was that he would rather listen to someone sing about sex, drugs and Rock and Roll than someone singing about Oak trees. While he appreciated the quality of the music, it just wasn’t for him. I can certainly appreciate that. Rush is not for everyone but for those who want to absorb what Rush produces, it is truly a wonderful experience.
Well, the thing I found funny was the complaints about fantasy lyrics. Kids, this album was written in the heyday of fantasy-inspired rock and roll. Even bands you know and love at one time delved into comic books. It was fertile ground at one time.
The complaint about 2112 was completely off base, though. Talk about nit-picking: It’s part of the frickin’ story, people. That’s like bitching about Tolkein’s work because it’s set in a D&D-like universe.
Again, I think this is just a pathetic attempt to rip on a few beloved artists just so they can get some attention. It’s the kid who rips off a fart in church and sits contentedly smirking while everyone stares at him.
I didn’t even read as far as the Gabriel section of the article. That completely blows all credence to the article completely out of the water. Did they bitch about The Sisters of Mercy / Andrew Eldridge too?
And while I think Jim Morrison is overrated, he didn’t need to get slagged like this. While “The Doors” is an apt description of what I run for whenever their music is played, I know some people really like their music.
More examples of the author’s disconnect with reality:
Henry Rollins at #34
Queensÿche at #19
Pete Gabriel, Mike Ruthefod, Tony Banks, Steve Hackett and Phil Collins at #13
At least he had one moment of sanity by listing Fred Durst, but since he’s not in the top 10 I still call shennanigans.
Rollins: Yeah, right. I think he’s written more and spoken more than all of those twerps put together.
Queensryche: Some of the early stuff has some painful lyrics, but they more than made up for it with Operation: Mindcrime. Total forgiveness.
Genesis et. al: Give me a break.
Where was Saliva? Their current song “Ladies and Gentlemen” was a tour-de-force of bad lyrics. Yet, it’s harder to get people riled up because they haven’t hit an iconic state like Sting, Peart, Rollins, Queensryche, and Genesis.
I still think they’re click-whoring. Either that or they think they’re taking the piss out of these “rock institutions”. I do hope it completely backfires on them.
If Blender wanted to rip into someone whose lyrics are off the boil now, all they needed to do was check out ‘Bertie’ off Kate Bush’s ‘Aerial’. This woman’s got 10 O levels and all she can write of late is self-indulgent toss like ‘Lovely lovely lovely lovely Bertie!’ I kniow it’s about her son, but if I want to hear about blinkered adults besotted with their kids, I’ll talk to my sister!
Ok, so I actually read the entire article and my opinion is that they are certainly drawing out publicity. Neil Peart is possibly one of the most intellectual lyricists of all time. His work transcends the norm of Rock lyrics. He isn’t writing love songs he’s writing thoughts about life. Jim Morrison also is in this category which just makes me sick that they could write such garbage and get any credibility at all.
Echoes…
I found the Blender list online! Check it out…All 40!
http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?ID=2886&src=tst127:MKd
Sting rules!!!