Best opening lines of songs!

[Bennyboy]

Early one mornin' the sun was shinin',
I was layin' in bed
Wond'rin' if she'd changed at all
If her hair was still red.
---Tangled Up In Blue----Dylan

[SteppingRazor]

1. Weird. I was gonna post "Tangled Up in Blue."

How 'bout the first chorus and verse of Ryan Adams' "New York, New York?" That's pretty good stuff:

Well, I shuffled through the city on the 4th of July
I had a firecracker waiting to blow
Breakin' like a rocket makin' its way
To the cities of Mexico
Lived in an apartment out on Avenue A
I had a tar-hut on the corner of 10th
Had myself a lover who was finer than gold
But I've broken up and busted up since

And love don't play any games with me
Anymore like she did before
The world won't wait, so I better shake
That thing right out there through the door
Hell, I still love you, New York

[Richardo]

2. Funny, you can sing those lyrics to 'Tangled Up In Blue' also

:tinfoilhat:

[SteppingRazor]

5. Er ... you've seen me in concert?

:wow:

[pokerfan]

3. Johnnys in the basement

Johnny's in the basement
Mixing up the medicine
I'm on the pavement
Thinkin' 'bout the government

[skygazer]

4. The lunatic is on the grass

The lunatic is on the grass
Remembering days, and daisy chains and laughs
Got to keep the loonies on the path

[MissMillie]

6. "How 'bout getting off these antibiotics?"

Alannis Morrissette

[Inchworm]

7. Woke up this morning, put on my slippers, walked in the kitchen and died

And oh what a feeling
when my soul went through the ceiling

*dance*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsnWuidB7DA

Good Morning everyone!

:hi:

[datasuspect]

8. "right now, right now . . .

it's time to . . .

KICK OUT THE JAMS MOTHERFUCKAS!!!!!"

[Highway61]

9. Visions of Johanna

Ain't it just like the night to play tricks when you're tryin' to be so quiet?
We sit here stranded, though we're all doin' our best to deny it
And louise holds a handful of rain, temptin' you to defy it
Lights flicker from the opposite loft
In this room the heat pipes just cough
The country music station plays soft
But there's nothing, really nothing to turn off
Just louise and her lover so entwined
And these visions of johanna that conquer my mind

ahhh.... dylan

[Drum]

10. "I've got a good mind to give up living...And go shopping instead..."

BB King

(Followed by "And pick me out a tombstone...And be pronounced dead.")

I'm not sure of the song. Maybe "How Blue Can You Get"?

[kwassa]

16. Butterfield Blues Band does a version.

BB's is called "All Over Again"

Butterfield's is "I've Got A Mind To Give Up Living"

"How Blue Can You Get" has these great lyrics:

I gave you a brand new Ford
and you just said I want a Cadillac

I bought you a ten dollar dinner
You said Thanks for the snack

I let you live in my penthouse
You said it was just a shack

I gave you seven children
and now you wanna give 'em back

[Drum]

49. Oh, you're so right!

I'm traveling right now, and didn't have access to my "stuff". Thanks for that confirmation. My head is usually a sieve when it comes to lyrics, always been that way...I've always clicked into the other aspects of music, and can be really dumb about recalling the words, but this thread just woke up my grin when I heard BB sing those first bits, hence my joining in this thread.

Thanks for the clarification, and the words from the other song.

:hi:

[Initech]

11. "Thats right folks, just remember there is a big difference between kneeling down and bending over."

- The opening line of Frank Zappa's televangelist-trashing song "Heavenly Bank Account".

[rhino47]

12. Low Budget by The Kinks

Cheap is small and not too steep
But best of all cheap is cheap
Circumstance has forced my hand
To be a cut price person in a low budget land
Times are hard but well all survive
I just got to learn to economize

Im on a low budget
Im on a low budget
Im not cheap, you understand
Im just a cut price person in a low budget land
Excuse my shoes they dont quite fit
Theyre a special offer and they hurt me a bit
Even my trousers are giving me pain
They were reduced in a sale so I shouldnt complain
They squeeze me so tight so I cant take no more
Theyre size 28 but I take 34

Im on a low budget
What did you say
Im on a low budget
I thought you said that

Im on a low budget
Im a cut price person in a low budget land

Im shopping at woolworth and low discount stores
Im dropping my standards so that I can buy more

So Im giving up all of my expensive tastes.
Caviar and champagne are definite nos,
Im acquiring a taste for brown ale and cod roes ]

Low budget sure keeps me on my toes
I count every penny and I watch where it goes
Were all on our uppers were all going skint
I used to smoke cigars but now I suck polo mints

Im on a low budget
What did you say
Yea Im on a low budget
I thought you said that
Im on a low budget
Im a cut price person in a low budget land
Im on a low budget
Low budget
Low budget

Art takes time, time is money
Moneys scarce and that aint funny
Millionaires are things of the past
Were in a low budget film where nothing can last
Moneys rare theres none to be found
So dont think Im tight if I dont buy a round

Im on a low budget
What did you say
Yes Im on a low budget
I thought you said that
Im on a low budget
Im a cut price person in a low budget land
Im on a low budget
Say it again
Low budget
One more time
Low budget

Ill have you all know, I was once a tough
At least my hair is all mine, my teeth are my own,
But everything else is on permanent loan.
Once all my clothes were made by hand,
Now Im a cut price person in a low budget land.
Im on a low budget
Ill have you all know
Were on a low budget
Im on a low budget]

[puerco-bellies]

13. Sublime What I got

WHAT I GOT

Early in the mornin', risin' to the street, Light me up that cigarette and I strap shoes on my feet.
Got to find a reason, reason things went wrong. Got to find the reason why my money's all gone.
I got a dalmation and I can still get high. I can play the guitar like a mother fucking riot.

Life is (too short) so love the one you got cause you might get run over or you might get shot. Never start no static I just get it off my (chest). Never had to battle with no bulletproof (vest). Take a small example, take a tip from me.. take all of your money and give it up to charity. Lovin's what I got, It's within my reach (and the sublime style is still straight from Long Beach) It all comes back to you you're bound to get what you deserve. Try and test that, you're bound to get served. Love's what I got, don't start a riot, You feel it when the dance gets hot.

Lovin', is what I got, I said remember that. Lovin', is what I got, and remember that. Lovin', is what I got, I said remember that. Lovin', is what I got, I got, I got

Why I don't cry when my dog runs away. I don't get angry at the bills I have to pay. I don't get angry when my Mom smokes pot, hits that bottle and goes right to the rock. Fuckin and fighting, it's all the same. To live with Louie dog's the only way to stay sane. Let the lovin', let the lovin' come back to me

[Bennyboy]

14. Red and White, blue suede shoes,

I'm Uncle Sam, how do you do?

[Perry Logan]

15. "It's always raining over the border."

From "Feed the Enemy," by Magazine.

[kwassa]

17. You think we look pretty good together, you think my shoes are made of leather

But I'm a substitute for another guy
I look pretty tall but my heels are high
The simple things you see are all complicated
I look pretty young, but I'm just back-dated, yeah

Substitute your lies for fact
I can see right through your plastic mac
I look all white, but my dad was black
My fine looking suit is really made out of sack

I was born with a plastic spoon in my mouth
The north side of my town faced east, and the east was facing south
And now you dare to look me in the eye
Those crocodile tears are what you cry
It's a genuine problem, you won't try
To work it out at all you just pass it by, pass it by

Substitute me for him
Substitute my coke for gin
Substitute you for my mum
At least I'll get my washing done


-the Who "Substitute"

[KitchenWitch]

18. So you think you can tell

Heaven from Hell
Blue skies from pain
Can you tell a green field
From a cold steel rail
A smile from a veil
Do you think you can tell

[Drum]

50. Nice...thanks for the Floyd.

:)

[MrScorpio]

19. On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair...

[mzteris]

59. that's what I was thinking!

Great minds and all that. B-)

[Connonym]

20. 5 O'clock World

Up every mornin' just to keep my job
I gotta fight my way through the hustling mob
Sounds of the city poundin' in my brain
While another day goes down the drain (yeah, yeah)

But it's a five o'clock world when the whistle blows
No one owns a piece of my time
And there's a five o'clock me inside my clothes
Thinkin' that the world looks fine, yeah

[abq e streeter]

26. yeah, the best one the Vogues ever did

[benld74]

21. Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends,,,

[AnneD]

22. City of Angels-Angel Lyrics Sarah McLachlan.....

Spend all your time waiting for that second chance
For the break that will make it OK
There's always some reason to feel not good enough
And it's hard at the end of the day
I need some distraction or a beautiful release
Memories seep from my veins
Let me be empty and weightless and maybe
I'll find some peace tonight

In the arms of the Angel far away from here
From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie
You're in the arms of the Angel; may you find some comfort here

So tired of the straight line, and everywhere you turn
There's vultures and thieves at your back
The storm keeps on twisting, you keep on building the lies
That you make up for all that you lack
It don't make no difference, escaping one last time
It's easier to believe
In this sweet madness, oh this glorious sadness
That brings me to my knees

In the arms of the Angel far away from here
From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear
You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie
In the arms of the Angel; may you find some comfort here

You're in the arms of the Angel; may you find some comfort here

[Pendrench]

23. I've always like these...

OKAY, SO YOUR HEART IS BROKEN.

YOU`RE SITTIN` AROUND MOPING,

MOPING, MOPING, CRYING, CRYING.

YOU SAY YOU`RE EVEN THINKIN` ABOUT DYING.

WELL, BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING RASH, BABY,

AH LISTEN TO THIS.


EV`RYBODY PLAYS THE FOOL SOMETIMES.

THERE`S NO EXCEPTION TO THE RULE.

LISTEN, BABY.

IT MAY BE FACTUAL, IT MAY BE CRUEL.

I AIN`T LYIN`.

EV`RYBODY PLAYS THE FOOL.

[Va Lefty]

24. "Spinster" Joan Jett

Maybe I don't wanna, maybe I don't wanna wanna
Maybe I don't wanna fuck you!
I'm a spinster, I don't need no rules
I don't got no one telling me what to do
Tellin me what's cool? I'm no stupid fool


"Nowhere Man" The Beatles

He's a real nowhere man
Sitting in his nowhere land
Making all his nowhere plans for nobody
Doesn't have a point of view
Knows not where he's going to
Isn't he a bit like you and me?

[Bake]

25. The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down

Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Gordon Lightfoot


The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy.

With a load of iron ore - 26,000 tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early

The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconson
As the big freighters go it was bigger than most
With a crew and the Captain well seasoned.

Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ships bell rang
Could it be the North Wind they'd been feeling.

The wind in the wires made a tattletale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the Captain did, too,
T'was the witch of November come stealing.

The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashing
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane West Wind

When supper time came the old cook came on deck
Saying fellows it's too rough to feed ya
At 7PM a main hatchway caved in
He said fellas it's been good to know ya.

The Captain wired in he had water coming in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

(THIS is the best line ...)
Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the words turn the minutes to hours
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd fifteen more miles behind her.

They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the ruins of her ice water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams,
The islands and bays are for sportsmen.

And farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered.

In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they say, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early.


Bake

[abq e streeter]

29. never that big a Lightfoot fan, but this was a masterpiece-

grew up not far from the shore of lake Michigan and still get goosebumps when I hear this one.

[Jade Fox]

42. Yes, that's a great one. n/t

[abq e streeter]

27. If everybody had an ocean, across the USA...( for one)

Born down in a dead man's town, first kick I took was when I hit the ground............. I awakened in a pit of ashes( the Fugs; Comin Down).............What you gonna play? Bobby, I don't know, but whatever I play, its GOT to be FUNKY (who else but James Brown) and........I was born by the railroad track. Train whistle wailed and I wailed right back ----I Ain't Ever Satisfied, by Steve Earle

[SKKY]

28. Hey man, please don't make a sound...

take a look around.
Can't you see what's right in front of you.
Have a little taste, no more time to waste.
You don't wanna get left behind 'cause it's all coming down right now.
What is there to see? Put your faith in me.
I sure wouldn't want to be praying to the wrong piece of wood.

[taterguy]

30. Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street . . .

From my window I'm staring while my coffee goes cold.

From Joe Jackson's Is She Really Going Out With Him?

[Rabrrrrrr]

31. I met him in a swamp down in Dagoba

[darkstar]

32. In keeping with Dylan theme: God said to Abraham, "Kill me a son"

Abe said, "Man you must be putting me on"
God said, "No"
Abe said, "What?"

Highway 61. Makes me laugh almost every time.

[Mike03]

33. "Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine."

First lyrics off Patti Smith's first album.

[darkstar]

34. Man, you and I are on the same wavelength

Incredible opening salvo, statement of intent, huh? I gather you've heard that live recreation of horses from just a few years back? So rockin', so powerful, so epic.

:hi:

[hellbound-liberal]

35. I woke up this mornin' and none of the news was good

And death machines were rumblin' 'cross the ground where Jesus stood

from Jerusalem by Steve Earle. Here are the rest:

And the man on my TV told me that it had always been that way
And there was nothin' anyone could do or say
And I almost listened to him
Yeah, I almost lost my mind
Then I regained my senses again
And looked into my heart to find
That I believe that one fine day all the children of Abraham
Will lay down their swords forever in Jerusalem

Well maybe I'm only dreamin' and maybe I'm just a fool
But I don't remember learnin' how to hate in Sunday school
But somewhere along the way I strayed and I never looked back again
But I still find some comfort now and then
Then the storm comes rumblin' in
And I can't lay me down
And the drums are drummin' again
And I can't stand the sound
But I believe there'll come a day when the lion and the lamb
Will lie down in peace together in Jerusalem

And there'll be no barricades then
There'll be no wire or walls
And we can wash all this blood from our hands
And all this hatred from our souls
And I believe that on that day all the children of Abraham
Will lay down their swords forever in Jerusalem

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xBSZq5ZCQU

[Bennyboy]

36. Born down in a dead man's town

first kick I took was when I hit the ground
Like a dog that's been beat too much
spent all my life covering up.....

[abq e streeter]

41. Ha ---beat ya by 9 posts---your e street bud...

[mtnester]

37. Oh good heavens baby where's my medicine?

I must have left it outside with my etiquette

[alcibiades_mystery]

38. Today's agenda, got the suitcase up in the Sentra

- Biggie Smalls, "N*ggas Bleed"

[Bennyboy]

39. We can share the women, we can share the wine.....

We can share what we got of yours,
cause we done shared all of mine...

Jack Straw Grateful Dead

[Arugula Latte]

40. "Belligerent ghouls run Manchester schools"

Headmaster Ritual by the Smiths:

Belligerent ghouls
Run Manchester schools

Spineless swines
Cemented minds

Sir leads the troops
Jealous of youth
Same old suit since 1962

He does the military two-step
Down the nape of my neck ...


http://youtube.com/watch?v=D6hLtntEB4w

[abq e streeter]

43. Lights out tonight, trouble in the heartland

that's the last one, I promise (maybe)

[quip]

44. My mind is clearer now, at last, all too well, I can see, where we all, soon will be

Rest in peace, my friend.

[cloudbase]

45. I hear the train a comin'. n/t

[Bongo Prophet]

46. Within you, Without you (Harrison)

We were talking-about the space between us all
And the people-who hide themselves behind a wall of illusion
Never glimpse the truth-then it's far too late-when they pass away.


We were talking-about the love we all could share-when we find it
To try our best to hold it there-with our love
With our love-we could save the world-if they only knew.
Try to realise it's all within yourself
No-one else can make you change
And to see you're really only very small,
And life flows ON within you and without you.
We were talking-about the love that's gone so cold and the people,
Who gain the world and lose their soul-
They don't know-they can't see-are you one of them?
When you've seen beyond yourself-then you may find, peace of mind,
Is waiting there-
And the time will come when you see
we're all one, and life flows on within you and without you.

[mitchum]

47. "I'm an alligator"...sorry...I thought you said worst opening line of a song

[Richardo]

48. I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together...

See how they run like pigs from a gun, see how they fly.
I'm crying.

:smoke:

[Ghost in the Machine]

51. "When I Come To You"

"When I Come To You"
Johnny Lang

When I'm all alone
When I'm feelin' blue
No one understands me, baby
Nobody but you
Through all the sleepless nights
And the rainy day till' the sun is nowhere in view
The only way I make it through is when I come to you

And in my darkest hour, when the midnight shadows fall
Baby you got the power to make the angels come to call
I just hold you in my arms
And let the music in my heart play the whole night through
Baby I feel so brand new, yeah, when I come to you

When I come to you, you make make me feel alright again
When I come to you, you keep me from the howlin' wind
and I feel brand new, when I come to you

On Edit: Add link: http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/window/media/page/0,,240958-660773-WMLO,00.html

[Midlodemocrat]

52. The silicon chip inside her head Gets switched to overload

I don't like Mondays, Boomtown Rats.

[EstimatedProphet]

53. 'Snort' - Casey Jones

[kwassa]

54. Twenty-twenty-twenty-four hours to go, I wanna be sedated

Twenty-twenty-twenty-four hours to go
I wanna be sedated
Nothing to do, no where to go, oh
I wanna be sedated

Just get me to the airport, put me on a plane
Hurry hurry hurry, before I go insane
I can't control my fingers, I can't control my brain
Oh no oh oh oh oh

The Ramones

[kwassa]

55. God save the queen, the facist regime, they made you a moron

The Sex Pistols.

God save the queen
Her fascist regime
They made you a moron
Potential H-bomb

God save the queen
She ain't no human being
There is no future
In England's dreaming

Don't be told what you want
Don't be told what you need
There's no future, no future,
No future for you

God save the queen
We mean it man
We love our queen
God saves

God save the queen
'Cause tourists are money
And our figurehead
Is not what she seems

Oh God save history
God save your mad parade
Oh Lord God have mercy
All crimes are paid

When there's no future
How can there be sin
We're the flowers in the dustbin
We're the poison in your human machine
We're the future, your future

God save the queen
We mean it man
We love our queen
God saves

God save the queen
We mean it man
And there is no future
In England's dreaming

No future, no future,
No future for you
No future, no future,
No future for me

No future, no future,
No future for you
No future, no future
For you

[Burma Jones]

56. I met a Gin-soaked Barroom Queen in Memphis

Honk Tonk Woman - The Rolling Stones

[mitchum]

58. Mine would be "Gold Coast slave ship bound for cotton fields"

it's an American history lesson that rocks

[Bake]

57. I heard one this morning from Larry Sparks - bluegrasser

"The last suit you wear won't need no pockets,
You can't take it with you when you go."

That's a perfect line, and I wish I had written it!

Bake