Haunting lyrics and/or songs that you dig

I am sitting at home tonight, watching hockey and trying to get out of my head. So I put on the Scrubs soundtrack because it helps me drift away.

While floating away, a couple lyrics grabbed me. The first is from Guided By Voices' Hold On Hope:

The other is from John Cale's Hallelujah:

Both lyrics are dark and vivid. And it got me to thinking: What are the haunting lyrics that you dig for an inexplicable reason?

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

Hank was the master of this, IMO:

My personal favorite:

I went down to the river to watch the fish swim by;
But I got to the river so lonesome I wanted to die..., oh lord!
And then I jumped in the river, but the doggone river was dry.
shes long gone, and now Im lonesome blue.

I had me a woman who couldnt be true.
She made me for my money and she made me blue.
A man needs a woman that he can lean on,
But my leanin post is done left and gone.
Shes long gone, and now Im lonesome blue.

Im gonna find me a river, one thats cold as ice.
And when I find me that river, lord Im gonna pay the price, oh lord!
Im goin down in it three times, but lord Im only comin up twice.
Shes long gone, and now Im lonesome blue.

She told me on sunday she was checkin me out;
Long about monday she was nowhere about.
And here it is tuesday, aint had no news.
I got them gone but not forgotten blues.
Shes long gone, and now Im lonesome blue.

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

Also, the main line to the chorus on "Whiskery Lullaby" is maybe the best ever written:

"He put the bottle to his head and pulled the trigger." Anyone who's ever dealth with alcoholism knows exactly what that line's describing.

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

From Moonshiner (by Bob Dylan):

let me eat when I'm hungry
let me drink when I'm dry
two dollars when I'm hard up
religion when I die
the whole world is a bottle
and life is but a dram
when the bottle gets empty
Lord, it sure ain't worth a damn

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

Jesus by Brand New gets me every time ...

Jesus Christ, that's a pretty face
The kind you'd find on someone that could save
If they don't put me away
Well, it'll be a miracle

Do you believe you're missing out
That everything good is happening somewhere else?
But with nobody in your bed
The night's hard to get through

And I will die all alone
And when I arrive I won't know anyone

Well, Jesus Christ, I'm alone again
So what did you do those three days you were dead?
Cause this problem's gonna last more than the weekend.

Well, Jesus Christ, I'm not scared to die,
I'm a little bit scared of what comes after
Do I get the gold chariot?
Do I float through the ceiling?

Do I divide and fall apart?
Cause my pride is too sly to hold back all my dark
And the ship went down in sight of land
And at the gates does Thomas ask to see my hands

I know you're coming in the night like a thief
But I've had some time, O Lord, to hone my lying technique
I know you think that I'm someone you can trust
But I'm scared I'll get scared and I swear I'll try to nail you back up

So do you think that we could work out a sign
So I'll know it's you and that it's over so I won't even try

I know you're coming for the people like me
But we all got wood and nails
And we turn out hate in factories
We all got wood and nails
And we turn out hate in factories
We all got wood and nails
And we sleep inside of this machine

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

As I get closer to 40, this line has way more meaning:

Strange how the night moves
With autumn closing in

A few others ...

"Oh My Brother," Eddie from Ohio:

Singing this song is no way to say goodbye
But it's the only way I know

"Roll Gypsy Roll," Lynyrd Skynyrd:

Made lots of money, just how much, well, I don't know
But most of the money I've done stuck up my nose

Speaking of addiction, "She Talks to Angels," The Black Crowes:

She gives a little smile when the pain comes
The pain's gonna make everything all right

The great Kris Kristofferson, "The Pilgrim: Chapter 33":

From the rockin' of the cradle to the rollin' of the hearse
The goin' up was worth the comin' down

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

The song I immediately thought of was "Hello" by Evanescense. The combination of Amy Lee's voice and the piano are just perfect.

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

Flash, Brand New is a stellar band. I've seen them twice, and they're amazing. The writing is by far the greatest part about them.

One of my favorite haunting lyrics are from Cursive's "Sierra." It's a culmination of 10 other pulsating songs off The Ugly Organ that lead to this one.

"In the desert, where the cities are made of gold,
There's a girl playing hopscotch with pink ribbon pigtails.
And her mom calls out from an apartment balcony,
"Come on, baby! Your bath is ready! It's almost time for sleep!"
And I wonder, who's the father? ...
And I wonder, what they call her - Sierra.

Does her mother smoke, or does she jog every morning?
Does she drink when she thinks about me?
Or doesn't she need to drink ...
Does she have a man who works a 9 to 5?
Does he come home to kiss our young Sierra, tuck her in and say goodnight?
(And an extra kiss for mama...)
I want that kiss, that kid, that apartment.

I'm ready to settle down now, so get that man out of my bed.
I want my daughter back now, I want to kiss her,
Tuck her in and say, "goodnight, my baby girl, Sierra."

Sierra, Sierra, Sierra, Sierra,

I'll never know who you are, and I don't deserve to.
My little girl, we would've been so ... oh, never mind.
But I'm ready to settle down now - yeah, I'm ready to leave that wrecking ball behind.
I could be your carpenter, and you could be my twinkling north star o'er the desert sky."

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

Memory will rust and erode into lists of all that you gave me:
some matches, a blanket, this pain in my chest,
the best parts of Lonely.

-- from "Left and Leaving," by the Weakerthans.

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

"Black Bock" - Melvins

"I cut the throat of the billy goat
And let it bleed
His frozen eyes were far more than I
It's kind of nice to know the things that make me happy
Just realize keep the dog away from me."

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

I may be forced to hand in my heterosexual male card following this pronouncement, but I like The Fray's How To Save A Life.

Step one you say we need to talk
He walks you say sit down it's just a talk
He smiles politely back at you
You stare politely right on through
Some sort of window to your right
As he goes left and you stay right
Between the lines of fear and blame
You begin to wonder why you came

Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

Let him know that you know best
Cause after all you do know best
Try to slip past his defense
Without granting innocence
Lay down a list of what is wrong
The things you've told him all along
And pray to God he hears you
And pray to God he hears you

Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
How To Save A Life Lyrics on http://www.lyricsmania.com
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

As he begins to raise his voice
You lower yours and grant him one last choice
Drive until you lose the road
Or break with the ones you've followed
He will do one of two things
He will admit to everything
Or he'll say he's just not the same
And you'll begin to wonder why you came

Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life
How to save a life
How to save a life

Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life

Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life
How to save a life

 

Re: Haunting lyrics that you dig

Almost anything she sings is haunting. Lithium gives me chills.