Rock Town Hall - Latest comments on Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

epluribusgergely [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

epluribusgergely [Member] — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 16:11:41 +0000

The last couple of times I went to see Lou Reed, he opted to perform "Endlessly Jealous" from New Sensations. The song more or less reaches it's climax with the lines "Fighting, ending jealous fighting, I feel my fingers tightening, please don't break her arm."

The crowd usually winds itself into a state of near hysteria at the end of that little chunk of magic.

E. Pluribus

sourbob [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

sourbob [Member] — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:02:08 +0000

Actually, the bits about the Ford plant closing, NASA shutting down, etc., all place it in the 80s, too. Pretty sure, anyway.

Whether it's a valid artistic choice to update Reagan to Bush or not, the fact remains: the song goes one way on record, Hood changed it something else live to create a crowd-pleasing moment. It feels forced and corny every time I see him do it.

dr john [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

dr john [Member] — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 16:47:11 +0000

The only specific 80s reference in "Putting People on the Moon" I could find is "Reagan's in the White House."

So I think Hood was trying to say that nothing has really changed for the people in the song.

You may disagree with the artistic choice, but it does work in the context of the song. If it didn't, then I would agree that it was pandering to the audience.

2000 Man [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

2000 Man [Member] — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 16:05:56 +0000

Being a Stones fan, I've seen more than my share of these moments. They play a hit laden show, and everyone knows all the words to all the songs, but the "woo-woo's" in Sympathy for the Devil, "It's only rock n roll, but I LIKE IT!," not to mention the tour they played Some Girls on and the roar after the line about black girls was pretty loud.

I saw Supertramp long, long ago. During Bloody Well Right the sax player (who had nothing to do) held up a big, cheap megaphone that said, "Quite Right" on it, and that's what he yelled into it. The crowd loved it, and it also qualifies it for the cheap effect in an Arena thread. They had a movie of a train that was huge and almost IMAX like. That was really neat. I liked that show way more than I thought I would.

sourbob [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

sourbob [Member] — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:42:52 +0000

Ever been to see The Mountain Goats and seen them do "The Best Ever Death Metal Band in Denton"? When they get to the end ("when you punish a person for dreaming his dream/don't expect him to thank or forgive you/the best ever death metal band out of Denton/will in time both outpace and outlive you/HAIL SATAN!" people go nuts. Whole audiences of hipster folk people in their 20s and 30s throwing devil horns and shouting "HAIL SATAN!" It's great.

Rick Massimo [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

Rick Massimo [Member] — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 04:41:07 +0000

Oh, one more - What REM show would be complete without shouting "Leonard Bernstein!"

And for that matter, later in the same song, "RIGHT!"

So do you reckon that the bands notice these cheap applause/shout-along lines in the writing process? The recording process? Do they think these are good things to have? Do you think any ever get vetoed?

I'd love to think that some lunk-headed band put what they thought was a big cheap applause/shout-along line in a song, but no one cared, and the rest of the band gave the songwriter crap for it afterward.

I'm going to go to bed now, and if I'm lucky I will dream that scenario into existence.

saturnismine [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

saturnismine [Member] — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 03:43:10 +0000

rick asked:
"It [the kiss album cover throw] is usually Nielsen right after the "KISS records" line. Are you sure about the timing on this?"

you're right. when i said "that line" i was referring to "that line that refers to 'kiss records,'" not the line that dr. john had quoted right above my post.

sorry for being unclear!

sourbob [Member] in response to: Crowd-Pleasing Lines in Rock Songs

sourbob [Member] — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 22:44:55 +0000

It is not pandering to put a reference to Bush in a song that is about the breakdown of healthcare, no?

If you're name-dropping a 21st century president into a story-song set in the 80s, specifically because you know it'll get the crowd fired up, it's pretty much a perfect example of pandering from where I'm sitting.

I got no love for Bush, and Patterson Hood is on my good list, but he can lay it on a little thick sometimes on stage.