One thing I'm surprised about in these forums is that there is not much discussion of lyrics.  My opinion is that good lyrics are necessary (except for instrumentals, of course) for any good song, prog or not.  While I love Eddie Van Halen's guitar playing, for example, I'm not a VH fan because their lyrics are generally lame.

I'm not a big fan of "fantasy" type lyrics, such as Yes or Glass Hammer.  The lyrics need to touch me in some way, either emotionally or politically.

My favorite lyricist, bar none, is Fish.  His lyrics hit home with me during a tough time in my life, and the emotion he has put in many of his songs has made him a regular purchase of mine.  Unfortunately, IMO, his music has not always matched his lyrics.

Among my favorites, from Marillion's "Warm Wet Circles": "She faithfully traces his name/With quick bitten fingernails/Through the tears of condensation/That will cry through the night/As the glancing headlights of the last bus/Kiss adolecense goodbye". 

What other lyricists strike peoples' fancies, and why? 

Fish is indeed a great lyricist. No musician I have ever heard matches his mastery of the English Language

Peter Gabriel is also great. I love his eccentricity

Peter Sinfeild was also a great Lyricist

and my favorite is Peter Hammill. he is not as articulate as fish, but I prefer his style over Fish's

Roy Harper:

Locked, in mortal combat, where the future's shadows loom,

The gaurdian of my spirit fights its way across the room,

To where the sick majority infests the myths of doom,

and the lanterns of children hold fast, in full bloom.

John Wetton has come up with a few - the story unfolding in UK's Waterloo 6.02, (Danger Money) leaves a chill  - ironically I got the point driving down Park Lane. The opening verse of Todd Rundgren's A Real Man, i.e. first track of Initiation, is derived from the words of Jesus (I'm a very lapsed Christian), makes me think.

Roy Harper:

Hey Mr Wilson! Hey mr Heath!

Can't you pull your pants up boys, I'm standing underneath!

There's a whole lot of threads here about this Lobster.. you just need to look a little.  My favorite will always be Greg Lake....

THE SAGE

I carry the dust of a journey
that cannot be shaken away
It lives deep within me
for I breathed it every day

You and I are yesterday's answers
the earth of the past come to flesh
Eroded by time's rivers
to the shapes we now possess

Come share of my breath and my substance
and mingle our streams and our times
In bright infinite moments
our reasons are lost in our eyes

Fish

Peter Hammill

Peter Gabriel

Geoff Mann

Thom Yorke

Here are a few of my favorites...

• Thom Yorke
• Fish
• Peter Gabriel
• Tony Banks
• Steve Hackett
• John Palumbo
• John Lennon
• Greg Lake
• Jon Anderson
• Neil Peart
• Steve Hogarth
• John Wetton
• Modest Mouse lead singer(can't remember his name right now)

Fish for the intense poetry of his work.

Peart (No mention, shame on you guys!) for his intense intellect.

I mentioned him!

Anyway, glad to see another Neil fan. The guy is incredibly articulate and creative with the words he writes. He also can really beat on those drums.  

Reed Lover wrote: Fish for the intense poetry of his work. Peart (No mention, shame on you guys!) for his intense intellect.

Agreed. Why no mention for Peart?? He has been criticised for not being emotional enough, or being too scientific. I think he has written some very moving lyrics over the years, 'Ghost of a chance' and 'The pass' to name but a few from the 80's and 90's.

With regard to Fish, I think I've had this discussion before. I had not listerned to Marillion for a long time until recently. I seem to remember some of his lyrics being a little too 'arty farty' for my liking. But, I concede I was wrong. The lyrcis to songs like 'Incubus' and 'Cinderella search' are masterfull. Not forgetting 'Script for a jesters tear'

Also Peter Gabriel, Peter Hammil, Bob Calvert, Nick Drake, Roger Waters..

ProgRocker wrote: I mentioned him! Anyway, glad to see another Neil fan. The guy is incredibly articulate and creative with the words he writes. He also can really beat on those drums.

Jesus,ProggyBoy! I dozed off after the first 100 names!

Blacksword wrote: Reed Lover wrote: Fish for the intense poetry of his work. Peart (No mention, shame on you guys!) for his intense intellect. Agreed. Why no mention for Peart?? He has been criticised for not being emotional enough, or being too scientific. I think he has written some very moving lyrics over the years, 'Ghost of a chance' and 'The pass' to name but a few from the 80's and 90's. With regard to Fish, I think I've had this discussion before. I had not listerned to Marillion for a long time until recently. I seem to remember some of his lyrics being a little too 'arty farty' for my liking. But, I concede I was wrong. The lyrcis to songs like 'Incubus' and 'Cinderella search' are masterfull. Not forgetting 'Script for a jesters tear' Also Peter Gabriel, Peter Hammil, Bob Calvert, Nick Drake, Roger Waters..

I think Cinderella Search is a triumph! Some of the most wonderful lyrics ever, and not even an official album release!

My favorite lyricists:

Roger Waters (realistic, no-frills political lyrics which got me into prog in the first place)

Ian Anderson (social commentary, biting but hidden behind a wall of poetry. sort of like Roger Waters and Jon Anderson mixed)

Jon Anderson (purely poetic, almost impenetrable but beautiful lyrics. hard to figure out what they are on occaision, but when you know what they mean it's better)

Peter Gabriel (less political than Ian's or Roger's stuff, but has a sort of hidden theme...a bit harder to figure out than Ian's, but easier to figure than Jon's)

And that's the top four on my list.

My favourites consist of most mentioned by the others being.

1. Fish, farout the best lyricist I know.

Neil Peart, I like the futuristic and (pseudo-)scientific theme's

Gabriel, though I find him hard to follow sometimes (did he wrote all lyrics for Genesis????)

Clive Nolan, it's not brilliant, but it does connect well to his music (Moviedrome, and Sirens, music and lyrics in perfect harmonie)

Jon Anderson, Survival is great,

              If we were flours we would worship the sun (later work).

for non-prog I like Tim Rice, Bernie Taupin (I'm a great Elton John Afficionado) and Neil Young

My favorites are

1. Peter Gabriel: His lyrics are always intelligent stories that can be followed, sometimes weird, but always make some sense. Great cultural background, sings about almost everything.
2. Ian Anderson: Great lyrics, really funny but always intelligent.
3. Roger Waters: Love his sharp political edge.

The worst lyricist IMO is Jon Anderson, tries to be esoteric and iluminated but with no philosophical support. But most of the time sounds great with Yes music, even when he says nothing.

Iván

Threefates wrote:

Actually Ivan, Jon Anderson just writes in code... once you decipher what he's saying... and you break the code... you start to get everything he says...

Then I'll need the Enigma code machine or something to get high, then maybe I'll understand him.

Now seriously,it's better for mental health to only worry for how the words sound in the context of the song than about the meaning of what he says.

Iván

Hi:

I should add David Cousins, from Strawbs. His poetry can easyly be read on its own:

  Here in the windchill years of our lives
We dwell in the shade of evergreen
Stirring the last of the slow burning embers
Counting our way through a year of Decembers.

I love the last line. Very sad, though. He is also famous among fans for the... ehem.., particular images he sometimes uses:

Her breasts are gentle snowdrifts
In an open field
The supple fingered winter wind
The grass concealed
And though the winter wind may be deceiving
I feel her breathing
At my fingertips.

An many more examples. In his early records, he also has several story-like songs, something I quite like: The Battle, The Vision of the Lady in the Lake, The Man Who Called Himself Jesus...

emdiar wrote: Roy Harper: Hey Mr Wilson! Hey mr Heath! Can't you pull your pants up boys, I'm standing underneath!

Also check the name check on George Harrison's Taxman (Beatles' Revolver) - I noticed Tom Petty sang the line which included these former senior British politicians in Taxman, during the recent  Royal Albert Hall tribute to the life of Harrison. However, BOA (on Ain't Life Grand) made the effort to drop in the names of a couple of American politicians of the period for their rendition of Taxman .

The lyrics, songwriting, is as somebody pointed out, pretty hard when discussing Prog Rock. Some dislike lyrics mostly because they want their Prog to be instrumental, and those with an ear for more pop-prog will prefer lyrics as the human element is in the eletronic musical output.

My favorite is beyond any doubt ROGER WATERS. His deep down insight of the human nature has been there from day one, and still is present. I know some of you will say: Hey dude, you dont consider Pink Floyd Prog Rock, so what is this now ! Ok since some of you do consider, and I agree that some PF material is indeed prog rock, most of it is rythm 'n blues disguised in prog format. (and thats ok too...) The power of Mr. Waters lyrics are outstanding not only from a Geopolitical point of view but with a vast knowledge of psychiatry, the choosen words stabs where they should. If you've noticed, many of the hurting, painful sentences are followed up by beautiful saxophone - The highway to the the heart and mind.

Jon Anderson is my second choise, beautiful clean fantasy poetry from imaginary scenescapes, futuristic and yet brilliant.

Robert Calvert of Hawkwind, Peter Gabriel of Genesis and Greg Lake are other great songwriters that makes my music listening experience worth.

_________

Lunar from Rainy Rio de Janeiro !

I'm listening to "Goodbye yellow brick road"by Elton John.

Still in love with his melodic tunes

your mission bells were wrought by ancient men

The roots were formed by twisted roots, your roots were twisted then

I was re-born before all life could die

The phoenix bird will leave this world to fly

If the phoenix bird can fly then so can I

don't know what it means but I love the way it goes

Right now, Peter Hammill is one of my favourites. His lyrics are so existential, and poetic at the same time...

Anyway, other than him, Peart is one of the greatest, as well as Waters, and many others.

Lunarscape wrote: The lyrics, songwriting, is as somebody pointed out, pretty hard when discussing Prog Rock. Some dislike lyrics mostly because they want their Prog to be instrumental, and those with an ear for more pop-prog will prefer lyrics as the human element is in the eletronic musical output.

Lyrics and verses are as much part of the song as the music itself. the good singers contribute with their voice as much as the guitarist, bassist, drummer or the keyboardplayer. but their contibution can be easaly understanded for it is a language we readelly understand. So we might be underestimating their influence on the sound of the recorded work.

So it's not the human element you reffer to, but it's our acknollegement of the lyrics and the vocals to be part of the music,

for example, Im listening to tales of topographic oceans right now, and the words don't have much meaning to me ( if the lyrics have any meaning please let me now???).But I consider the singing to be a part of the musical experience, and I can't Imagine this album, without Jon's vocal.

PETER HAMMILL!!!  -  so full of variety, lucid intelligence, (almost) always searching and meandering like a thinker who loves to leave things inconclusive in order to avoid dogmatism and easy answers... and let the listener come to their own conclusions

IAN ANDERSON!!! - so funny in his most witty lyrics and so solemn in his most melancholy ones

PETER GABRIEL!!! - at times concise, at times more explicit and ellaborating, always with a fine poetic sharp

NEIL PEART - as intellectually driven as HAMMILL and most of the time as politcally concerned as GABRIEL

PETER NICHOLLS is a lyricist who has gotten better with time. GEOFF MANN is a classic suburbian poet from the arly neo-prog scene, and so used to be FISH. Another great lyricist who should bementioned more often is Happy the Man's FRANK WYATT, and let's not forget the metaphysical and romantic warrior visionary PETER SINFIELD. 

1.Jon Anderon

2. Peter Hammill

3. Peter Gabriel

4. Fish

5 My Dad . John McGuigan

In my opinion, Daniel Gildenlow is the God of lyrics. Heh. I talk about Pain of Salvation WAY to much.

Roger Waters is also one of the best too.

The best is my mother language poet Ivan Strpka

English writing libretists: Neil Peart, Jon Anderson, Peter Hammill, Fish, Genesis (have no idea who did what); but honestly, my mother language is closer to my heart.

ps. there are legendary great lyrics within Tubular bells: 'grand piano.......tubular bells'

or tangerine dream's exit: 'afrika amerika australia azia jevropa, eta zemlja....

Unlike a lot of people on here I can't say that many prog lyricists really do it for me. Robert Wyatt and Peter Blegvad both write superb lyrics, but for me most of the best lyricists are outside the prog canon - Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, Morrissey, Shane MacGowan, Dylan and Neil Young all spring to mind. In terms of mainstream prog, Peter Gabriel and Peter Hammill bith write some excellent stuff, more as solo artists than in bands for some reason. Ian Anderson has written some great lyrics as well, although in the early to mid 70s (up to Minstrel...) he had a tendency to over write which could get a bit tiresome. King Crimson, my second favourite prog band after Magma, have consistently had some of the worst lyrics in history supplied by a variety of different but equally trite wordsmiths, which must be some kind of record.

Damo Suzuki of Can and Magma's Christian Vander avoided the lyrics issue by writing in languages they invented themselves, a fine example more recently followed by Sigur Ros and Ruins.

john lennon

peter sinfield

adrian belew

peter gabriel

peter hamill

thom yorke

david bowie

tom waits

lou reed

bob dylan

leonard cohen

Yeah, Peter Sinfield is definitely one of the best. No denying it.

Geoff Mann is my nr. 1. Tracks like We Are Sane and The Collector...

And yeah, Gabriel, Hammill, Reid, I always liked Lake as well... 

And Morrissey, e.g. "The Queen Is Dead"!

Never loved Dylan, by the way...

Neil Peart

Jon Anderson

Peter Sinfield

• Ian Anderson
• Jon Anderson
• Steven Wilson
• Thom Yorke
• John Lennon
• PJ Harvey
• Patti Smith
• Joni Mitchell

Tupac Shakur - his lyrics come from the heart.

Neil Young - reminds me of a candian bob dylan in a way.

Ozzy - He's the prince of f**king darkness.

Not exactly "Prog" but they are great lyricists.

And why is peter Gabriel being mentioned in this thread? 3 words;"Shock The Monkey" Hes a joke!!

"It's better to burn out, than to fade away" - Neil Young 

Roger Waters

Peter Gabrial

Adrain Belew

Ian Anderson

altered_states wrote: And why is peter Gabriel being mentioned in this thread? 3 words;"Shock The Monkey" Hes a joke!!

6 words:

The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.

Syzygy wrote: Unlike a lot of people on here I can't say that many prog lyricists really do it for me. Robert Wyatt and Peter Blegvad both write superb lyrics, but for me most of the best lyricists are outside the prog canon - Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, Morrissey, Shane MacGowan, Dylan and Neil Young all spring to mind. In terms of mainstream prog, Peter Gabriel and Peter Hammill bith write some excellent stuff, more as solo artists than in bands for some reason. Ian Anderson has written some great lyrics as well, although in the early to mid 70s (up to Minstrel...) he had a tendency to over write which could get a bit tiresome. King Crimson, my second favourite prog band after Magma, have consistently had some of the worst lyrics in history supplied by a variety of different but equally trite wordsmiths, which must be some kind of record. Damo Suzuki of Can and Magma's Christian Vander avoided the lyrics issue by writing in languages they invented themselves, a fine example more recently followed by Sigur Ros and Ruins.

It's rare that I disagree with you on an issue, but I would NOT call Peter Hammill "mainstream prog". His oeuvre is far too varied for that. Examples of him which are definitely NOT mainstream:

Loops and Reels
The Fall of the House of Usher
Sonix
The Appointed Hour (with Roger Eno)
Spur of the Moment (with Guy Evans)
The Union Chapel Concert (with Guy Evans)

An example of Peter Hammill lyrics which always gets me.

The stars in the heavens still shine
up above me: 
how lovely they'd seem
if you were with me
but you're gone through the looking-glass
and I am left to pass these nights alone.
         
I'm lost, I'm dumb, I'm blind,
I am drunk with sadness,
sunk by madness,
the wave overwhelms me,
the mirror repels me,
the echo of your laugh
drifts through the looking-glass
and I am alone.
         
No friendship, no comfort, no future, no home,
the past lingers with me:
you're all the love I've ever known
and without you I'm nothing
but empty and silent,
reflecting on all that I've lost.
I let you slip away so soon.
         
Can you hear me? This is my song:
I am dying; you are gone.
         
These words are not enough to save my soul,
they just mock me from the mirror.
I'm cold and I'm yearning,
I've told you I'm burning,
my eyes can't stand the light...
like a stray dog in the night
I'll shuffle off alone.
         
We all make our futures
but I have lost mine;
I'm hoping for a miracle
but finding no sign....
         
The stars in their constellations,
each one just sadly flickers and falls...
without you they mean nothing at all.

To understand these lyrics fully one has to know Hammill had just broken up with his long time lover Alice, and title and lyrics of the song are a play on the title of the 2nd of the Alice books, "Through the Looking Glass and what Alice Found there" by Lewis Carroll.

penguindf12 wrote: My favorite lyricists: Roger Waters (realistic, no-frills political lyrics which got me into prog in the first place) Ian Anderson (social commentary, biting but hidden behind a wall of poetry. sort of like Roger Waters and Jon Anderson mixed) Jon Anderson (purely poetic, almost impenetrable but beautiful lyrics. hard to figure out what they are on occaision, but when you know what they mean it's better) Peter Gabriel (less political than Ian's or Roger's stuff, but has a sort of hidden theme...a bit harder to figure out than Ian's, but easier to figure than Jon's) And that's the top four on my list.

Hurrah!  My top four as well!  My undisputed favorite, though, is Jon.  His lyrics are pretty much impenetrable, but as 3fates said, there is meaning, if you first decipher it.

For example, A seasoned witch (God) could call you from the depths of your disgrace (could "redeem your soul") and rearrange your liver (your liver is a cleansing device) to the solid mental grace (the way he wants it)

Very clever.

Daniel Gildenlow most definitely: here are some:

The Perfect Element

Yesterday found him today
Caught him at his last breath
These walls built to stand come-what-may
Lie shattered in the ashes
His skin against this dirty floor
Eyes fixed on the ceiling
He has stretched those chains of sin
Far beyond all feelings
Still, so still...

In his head a thunderous
Cry of desperation
Tearing voices from his past
Scream for his attention
Behind those eyes a world explodes
No one there to save him
All pain that he's been passing on
Answers to his craving
Once more

I will never leave this shame...

Falling beyond the point of no return
Nothing to become and nothing left to burn

Stealing meaning from this child
We took away his reason
His soul put under lock and key
His heart blackened from treason
But if you take from those you fear
Everything they value
You have bred the perfect beast
Drained enough to kill you

Falling beyond the point of no return
Nothing to become and nothing left to burn

Watching unseen untouched bleeding
Empty exposed dying eyes closed

Once he had forests and mountains
That were only his - listening to him
Once he would run through the summer days
Catching memories for ages to come
Now he is dressing this naked floor
With his flesh and blood, and times passes by
His trade of pain might just have lead him
To deal with consequence
For some change as time passes by

I am the waking child
(Lingering, climbing, clinging, clutching
Craving, clawing, hurting, falling down)
I, the wayward son of a mountain lake
(Of icy liquor tears, of a silent Earth)
(Of a rusty lid, of a wingless wind)
(Of an eyeless storm, of fallen gods,
who lost their way)
I set myself on fire
To breed the Perfect Element

Will I ever walk again?

Falling far beyond the point of no return
Nothing to become and nothing left to burn

(This is the end)

Nothing left to say,
The pain will go away
Now you must surely see,
That you are killing me
You are killing me
Now you are killing me
(You must never leave this shame!)
Now you are killing me
(You must never leave this shame!)
Now you are killing me
(You must never leave this shame!)

Is this more than you want?