Can you remember song lyrics?

[Happy Jack]

 

[Dad3353]

I'd usually ...

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...

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What was the question again..? 

Edited December 21, 2020 by Dad3353

[martthebass]

Nope, useless with lyrics

[TheLowDown]

I don't tend to listen to lyrics much nowadays.

[hiram.k.hackenbacker]

Prima was batting way over his average with Maione. Great voice and beautiful to boot. Left her penniless.

[Bolo]

As Vox/bass in my band I write 99% of my lyrics. I have great difficulty reciting any line of my own hand without hearing or playing the bit of music it's supposed to go to.

[ead]

4 hours ago, Bolo said:

As Vox/bass in my band I write 99% of my lyrics. I have great difficulty reciting any line of my own hand without hearing or playing the bit of music it's supposed to go to.

Me too.  It has to be in the moment.

[Nail Soup]

Eventually, yes. But has to be learned via a method. I start by learning from a full lyric sheet.

then I write it out with a few key words per line - like this pic. After that I go to one word per line.

And then eventually nothing (in most cases) - might have the odd word on the set list.

[seashell]

I'm really good at remembering lyrics!

 

But unfortunately a bit rubbish at remembering bass lines 😁

[Lozz196]

I’m ok but in my old punk covers band the singer was dreadful. And it used to make me laugh that when we played Gangsters by The Specials inevitably he’d scream at me:

”Whats the first word”.

So I’d shout “Why”.

And then he’d shout “Cos I’ve forgotten it”.

So I’d shout back”Why IS the first word”.

And so on......

[StickyDBRmf]

Really bad. The thing is, I write poetry, and song lyrics. I just can't remember them. It's a bit of an embarrassment. I mean they're MY WORDS. I'll say to someone, "I wrote a poem/lyrics about that. But I can't remember how it goes. But it's really good." How bad is THAT. They go, "Sure, sure, Marty."  I can remember music well. So, I don't get it. It's sad.

[el borracho]

I'm terrible. I even started out in my first band as the singer & I used to often repeat verses or make them up as I just couldn't remember them. Nobody noticed until we got a second singer & she couldn't follow what I was singing!

Although I don't sing these days I still regularly have problems associating song titles with how the song goes. 

[LeftyP]

15 hours ago, StickyDBRmf said:

Really bad. The thing is, I write poetry, and song lyrics. I just can't remember them. It's a bit of an embarrassment. I mean they're MY WORDS. I'll say to someone, "I wrote a poem/lyrics about that. But I can't remember how it goes. But it's really good." How bad is THAT. They go, "Sure, sure, Marty."  I can remember music well. So, I don't get it. It's sad.

Same here.  I have written many poems/songs over the years and can't remember any of the words!  I can also sing along to loads of songs but ask me to sing them without the record and I'm stumped.  There is one song that I know all he way through and that's "King of the Road" by Roger Miller.

[TheLowDown]

So what differentiates someone who can recall lyrics from someone who can't so easily?

[DaytonaRik]

Repetition and knowing both vocal lines and bass lines inside.  One of the tongue twister tracks I used to play in Think Lizzy was Do Anything You Wanna do which has a lot of similar sounding words...

e.g.

There are people that will investigate you
They'll insinuate, intimidate and complicate you
Don't ever wait or hesitate to state the fate that awaits those who
Try to shake or take you
Don't let them break you

People that despise you will analyse then criticise you
They'll scandalise and tell lies until they realize
You are someone they should have apologised to
Don't let these people compromise you
Be wise too

And Phil Lynott had a strange style where he sung slightly behind the beat live...tricky!  I really had to just go with it...if you though for one second about what word or what note was next it was too late so those lyrics and bass line are burned into my brain!

Edited December 23, 2020 by DaytonaRik

[StickyDBRmf]

Those are really good lyrics! Wish I could remember them...

[Dad3353]

Remember what..? 

[mikel]

Never a problem. I need to know the lyrics to a song to play it properly. Even when drumming I sing the song to myself. It means I also know exactly where I am in any song regardless of the instrument I am playing.

[Stub Mandrel]

I get really whizzed off with singers who can't remember words.

If they can't remember their words they aren't learning their parts. Everyone else has to.

[StickyDBRmf]

11 hours ago, mikel said:

Never a problem. I need to know the lyrics to a song to play it properly. Even when drumming I sing the song to myself. It means I also know exactly where I am in any song regardless of the instrument I am playing.

You lucky devil. And for me this is not something that has developed as I've gotten older (or the result of drinking and drugs, which were in play). And I did well in school in tests. Like, I could "cram" the night before, or, usually, the study period before the test. Ahhh

[Monk]

Quote

Eventually, yes. But has to be learned via a method. I start by learning from a full lyric sheet.

then I write it out with a few key words per line - like this pic. After that I go to one word per line.

I have a similar system.  I have a hard time remembering lyrics until I type them out and then create similar cheat-sheets.  

I sing a lot of lead and backing vocals, but I have a really hard time improvising or adding to vocal lines while playing bass.  I have to remember where in the bass line each phrase starts, which is limiting.  I would love to be able to perform as freely as a vocals-only singer, but I feel naked when singing onstage without my bass (and no one wants to see me naked...).

[Bobthedog]

I have no problem remembering lyrics and can recall the lyrics to songs I have not heard from many years ago. I genuinely do not remember bass lines unless I play them regularly.

[mikel]

9 hours ago, StickyDBRmf said:

You lucky devil. And for me this is not something that has developed as I've gotten older (or the result of drinking and drugs, which were in play). And I did well in school in tests. Like, I could "cram" the night before, or, usually, the study period before the test. Ahhh

It must be selective. I have a shocking memory for almost anything but music and especially lyrics. I can be introduced to someone, and by the end of the conversation you could torture me for their name and I would be incapable of producing it.