Song titles have always been a source of amazement to me. Sometimes I have to wonder, did the writer base the entire song off the idea of a title? Or, did they choose something from the song that represented it the best?
Or, just maybe, it's something completely random?
The songs that seem to reside in this last category sometimes rile me up a little bit. I often consider myself pretty good at picking out, or at least getting a good idea of the title of a song after listening to it, but give me one of these on the radio, and it can be a pain in the rear to identify if I've never heard it before.
Really, there seem to be four main categories these things fall into. Let me outline them with some examples:
The Two-Parter:
The first example that comes to mind, and which really spurred me into this post, is Train In Vain (Stand By Me) by The Clash. True, the words "Stand by me" do appear in the lyrics, but "Train In Vain"? It's definitely no where to be found.
Other Examples:
Cat People (Putting Out Fire) by David Bowie
The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy) by Simon & Garfunkel
The Synonym:
Sometimes the message of a song seems to be represented by its title when the lyrics have little connection to it. Take a look at Kids by MGMT. It mentions a child and a baby in the lyrics, and seems to emulate the lifestyle of children, but the word kid itself is nowhere to be found.
Other Examples:
Basket Case by Green Day
D'yer Maker by Led Zeppelin
Life During Wartime by The Talking Heads
The Condenser:
There are also the songs that have a part of the lyrics in their title, but in a form completely different from the reality of the words. For example, M.I.A.'s Paper Planes. Sure it mentions "paper" and "planes" over the course of the song, but would you really make that connection out of the lyrics?
Other Examples:
Ode to Billie Joe by Bobby Gentry
Mountain Song by Jane's Addiction
The Left Field:
A real ball out of left field is The First Single by The Format. It may be descriptive of the song's status, but if you don't follow the band closely, you're going to draw no conclusions about what the song could be like from its title. The fact that it's the first song the band has released has nothing to do with its meaning.
Other Examples:
Our Lawyers Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued by Fall out Boy
Baba O'Riley by The Who
Pop Song `89 by REM
Nice post Herr Professor!
ReplyDeleteInteresting, I note that you tag the original artist for "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)" and not Harpers Bizarre, the band who arguably took it further.
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