Favorite/best/most powerful opening lines from songs?

Funniest, saddest, what have you....

A scattershot from me:


When you're down in Juarez and it's Easter time too

and

Lookout Mamma there's a wide boat coming up the river

and

In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey

and, finally, of course

Some velvet morning when I'm straight

and deep beneath the rolling waves, in labyrinths of coral caves
the echoes of a distant tide come billowing upon the air

I recall some classic rock band did a version...

the word "albatross" may have thrown you off.
The song is "Echoes" by Pink Floyd.

Haven't heard Echoes in ages. Now off to find out who did a hard rock version of Ancient Mariner

clocks in at an epic 13:45

Did it yesterday too; must be brushing right click on new laptop

LSD, a blizzard and Floyd - Ahhhh the 70s....

Baby, you just sorta
Stepped on my aorta.
;-)

Good pick, LH !!!!


:hi:

They've given me a mission
I don't really know the game yet
I'm bent on submission
Religion is to blame
I'm the new messiah
Death angel with gun
Dangerous in my silence
Deadly to my cause
CHORUS
Speak to me the pain you feel

Mother, mother, there's too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother, there's far too many of you dying
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today, hey

Father, father, we don't need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer, for only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today, oh

From "One Hundred Years" by The Cure.

I was very young and in the middle of my first bout of serious depression, and when I heard this it was the first time I ever felt like I wasn't alone in my despair. It still gives me chills when I hear it.

And through the wire I hear your voice


It's only water in a stranger's tear


Suffocated by mirrors, stained by dreams


I'm on a huge PG kick today!

I CAUGHT this morning morning’s minion, king-
dom of daylight’s dauphin, dapple-dawn-drawn Falcon, in his riding
Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing
In his ecstasy! then off, off forth on swing,
As a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding
Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding
Stirred for a bird,—the achieve of; the mastery of the thing!

Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
Buckle! AND the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!

No wonder of it: shéer plód makes plough down sillion
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,
Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.

Your style to my style, you can't hold a candle to it.

Opening line to "Mesopotamia" by the B-52's.
I find that song haunting, ever since we invaded Iraq.

:spank:

Someone had to go there....

Billy Corgan might be an asshat but he's a brilliant songwriter.

Chasing shadows moonlight mystery.
Headed for the overload,
Splattered on the dirty road,
Kick me like you've kicked before,
I can't even feel the pain no more.

Rolling Stones, Rocks Off, not the opening line but great nonetheless

thanks for the smile

:toast:

With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone

You think we look pretty good together
You think my shoes are made of leather

But I'm a substitute for another guy
I look pretty tall but my heels are high
The simple things you see are all complicated
I look pretty young, but I'm just back-dated, yeah

Substitute your lies for fact
I can see right through your plastic mac
I look all white, but my dad was black
My fine looking suit is really made out of sack

I was born with a plastic spoon in my mouth
The north side of my town faced east, and the east was facing south
And now you dare to look me in the eye
Those crocodile tears are what you cry
It's a genuine problem, you won't try
To work it out at all you just pass it by, pass it by

Substitute, by The Who

Brava/o !!!

:toast:

..."I thought I would go to the sea and shrink down very tiny
And slide inside the telephone wire that runs under the briny
Till I found there is a way of crawling to the u.s.a."


Crawling to the U. S. A.
Elvis Costello & the Attractions...

By Bruce Springsteen.

I got my finger on the trigger,
I don't know who to trust
I look into thier eyes
All I see is Devils and Dust
Where a long long way from home bobbie
Homes a long long way from us
There's a dirty wind blowin'
It's just devils and dust

I got god on my side
Where just tryin to survive
But what you do to survive
Kills the thing you love
Fears a powerful thing
It turns a heart black to dust
And you Dont know who to trust
You take a god filled soul
And Filled it with Devils and Dust

Well I dreamed of you last night
In a field of blood and bone
The blood began to dry
The smell began to raise
Well I dreammed of you last night
In a field of blood and bone
The blood began to dry
And the smell begna to rise

We got god on our side
Were just trying to survive
What if we do to survive
Kills the thing we love
Fears a powerful thing
It turns your heart black to dust
You dont know who to trust
You take a god filled soul and
fill it with devils and dust

Well every women and every man
Want to take a righteous stand
Find the loves god wills
And the faith that he commands
I got my finger on my trigger
And tonights faith is not enough
I look into my heart
it's just Devils and Dust

Well I've got god on my side
Where just trying to survive
What you do to survive
kills the thing you love
fears a powerful thing
It turns your heart black and to dust
you dont know who to trust
I will take a god filled soul
And fill it with devils and dust.

when you say you don't care, well darlin' your stronger than me...."

Love you Patsy!

All right stop. Collaberate and Listen...

One Two Three Faah - (I Saw Her Standing There)

If I ventured in the slipstream

She was a Girl from Birmingham, She just had an abortion

Jesus Died for somebody's sins, but not mine

Imagine there's no heaven

They're selling postcards of the Hanging

Gabba gabba We

I read the news today, oh boy.....

the Patti Smith is still a grabber to this day, aint it?

then there's the surreal-but-so-close-to-the-truth of Dylan.

But one that really jarred me was Day in the Life. I was 8-9 when that came out, and that opening line was something. Looking back it was that emotional distance, I guess, the "selling" of death much like the opener in the Dylan above.

Anyhow, thanks for those,new_beawr.

Oh, yeah, the slipstream line is Van Morrison, right (foggy old memory)?

and don't forget: Dark Star Crashes......

:toast:

Toy Matinee

"I used to be so fucking optimistic / Till you said goodbye".

It's not one I would have come up w/ on my own, that for sure.

That's what I think is cool about these, I guess, i.e., stipped away from from musical intros and melody in isolation, they have a power all there own.


Thanks a bunch LaraMN !

:toast:

:shrug:

- Patti Smith, Gloria
(and she's never sounded better.)

Something completely different:

"Sunday morning,
Brings the dawn in,
It's just a restless feeling by my side."

- Velvet Underground, Sunday Morning

And I'd give up forever to touch you
Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now

And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
Cause sooner or later it's over
I just don't want to miss you tonight

And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything seems like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know your alive

And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am

Amazingly powerful song.

"I'm Lester the Nightfly, hello Baton rouge . . .

Rickie Lee Jones:

"Eddie's got this one crazy eye that turns him into a cartoon when a pretty girl walks by"