Songs with the best opening lines

I saw the other day that this in what kris Kristopherson wanted on his grave stone;

‘‘Like a bird on a way, like a drunk in a midnight choir,
I have tried in my own way to be free’’

Leonard Cohen ‘‘Bird on a Wire’’. To me, the song says it all

I’ve always loved that song.

Also;

‘‘A screen door slams, Mary’s dress sways
Like a vision she walks across the porch while the radio plays
Roy Orbison singing for the lonely
That’s me and I want you only’’

Springsteen ‘‘Thunder Road.’’ The first two lines are like a movie script direction.

2 Likes

You have so many relationships in this life
Only one or two will last
You go through all the pain and strife
Then you turn your back and they’re gone so fast

When they kick at your front door
How you gonna come?
With your hands on your head
Or on the trigger of your gun

Guns of Brixton - The Clash

4 Likes

I wish I was a neutron bomb for once I could go off
I wish I was a sacrifice but somehow still lived on
I wish I was a sentimental ornament you hung on

The Christmas tree I wish I was the star that went on top
I wish I was the evidence I wish I was the grounds
For fifty million hands upraised and open toward the sky

Wishlist, Pearl Jam

1 Like

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends
We’re so glad you could attend,
come inside, come inside
There behind a glass stands a real blade of grass
Be careful as you pass, move along, move along

Karn Evil 9 - ELP

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Here I lie in my hospital bed
Tell me, Sister Morphine, when are you coming round again?
Oh, I don’t think I can wait that long
Oh, you see that I’m not that strong

The scream of the ambulance is sounding in my ears
Tell me, Sister Morphine, how long have I been lying here?
What am I doing in this place?
Why does the doctor have no face?

~ Faithful, Jagger, and Richards

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A long, long time ago
I can still remember how
That music used to make me smile…

American Pie

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Back in Black
I hit the sack
I’ve been too long, I’m glad to be back
Yes, I’m let loose
From the noose
That’s kept me hanging about

….y’all know the rest

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“I’ve been working on a cocktail called Grounds for Divorce”

I can’t stand it, I know you planned it
I’ma set it straight, this Watergate
I can’t stand rockin’ when I’m in here
‘Cause your crystal ball ain’t so crystal clear
So while you sit back and wonder why
I got this fuckin’ thorn in my side
Oh my god, it’s a mirage
I’m tellin’ y’all, it’s sabotage

Beastie Boys

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Well it’s been ten years and a thousand tears
And look at the mess I’m in
A broken nose and a broken heart
An empty bottle of gin
Well I sit and I pray
In my broken down Chevrolet
While I’m singing to myself
There’s got to be another way

“Ball & Chain” Social Distortion

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“You were the first thing that I thought of, when I thought I’d drink you off my mind”

Also, if we’re including rap,
“I got a letter from the government, the other day, I opened and read it, it said they were suckers.”

Oooo - great thread idea! [Sidenote: anyone else have trouble remembering lines while listening to different songs? Dammit, I hate that…]

I went stumbling through the fog trying to find a reason for the things I told her
She woke up sunny side down and I was still thinking I was too proud to flip her over
Between the champagne hand jobs and the kissin’ ass by everyone involved
Cocaine rich comes quick and that’s why the small dicks have it all

  • Gravity’s Gone - Drive-By Truckers

Great one!

While there is time, let’s go out and feel everything.

-Steve Winwood

What a beautiful piece of heartache
This has all turned out to be
Latter Days, by Over the Rhine

I could die here tonight
Your beautiful words in my soul
I could die here tonight
And you wouldn’t even notice
You wouldn’t even protest

We could lie here together
Pulling the stars from the sky
Maybe things will get better
Maybe not, I don’t know why

Do you feel scared like I do?
Do you feel lower than angels?
Do you feel scared like I do?
Do you feel love so high?
Low, by The Violet Burning

Is there something wrong with your body?
One of Those Things, by Luxury

The Devil went down to Georgia,

He was lookin’ for a soul to steal…

He was in a bind,

He was way behind,

And he was willing to make a deal.

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Tonight there’s gonna be a jailbreak
Somewhere in this town
See me and the boys we don’t like it
So we’re getting up and going down

Thin Lizzy, it certainly sets the scene.

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Jesus died for somebody’s sins, but not mine

“Gloria” Patti Smith

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Hello darkness, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence

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