Your favorite song that tells a story (narrative ballad) (1 Viewer)

[st dude]

Growing up, I have always loved songs that told stories. Here are a few, vote for one or list your own:

El Paso by Marty Robbins: This was one of my early favorites, the story of a cowboy who falls for a Mexican girl, Felina. When it would come on the radio I would turn it up and sing the whole song, which drove my kids nuts. it dint take them long to be sucked into the story, though, and my fifteen year old's ipod now has El Paso on it mixed in with his red hot chili peppers and black eyed peas.

Out in the West Texas town of El Paso
I fell in love with a Mexican girl.
Night-time would find me in Rosa's cantina;
Music would play and Felina would whirl.

Blacker than night were the eyes of Felina,
Wicked and evil while casting a spell.
My love was deep for this Mexican maiden;
I was in love but in vain, I could tell.

B:
One night a wild young cowboy came in,
Wild as the West Texas wind.
Dashing and daring,
A drink he was sharing
With wicked Felina,
The girl that I loved.

So in anger I

Challenged his right for the love of this maiden.
Down went his hand for the gun that he wore.
My challenge was answered in less than a heart-beat;
The handsome young stranger lay dead on the floor.

Just for a moment I stood there in silence,
Shocked by the bountiful deed I had done.
Many thoughts raced through my mind as I stood there;
I had but one chance and that was to run.

B:
Out through the back door of Rosa's I ran,
Out where the horses were tied.
I caught a good one.
It looked like it could run.
Up on its back
And away I did ride,

Just as fast as I

Could from the West Texas town of El Paso
Out to the bad-lands of New Mexico.

Back in El Paso my life would be worthless.
Everything's gone in life; nothing is left.
It's been so long since I've seen the young maiden
My love is stronger than my fear of death.

B:
I saddled up and away I did go,
Riding alone in the dark.
Maybe tomorrow
A bullet may find me.
Tonight nothing's worse than this
Pain in my heart.

And at last here I

Am on the hill overlooking El Paso;
I can see Rosa's cantina below.
My love is strong and it pushes me onward.
Down off the hill to Felina I go.

Off to my right I see five mounted cowboys;
Off to my left ride a dozen or more.
Shouting and shooting I can't let them catch me.
I have to make it to Rosa's back door.

B:
Something is dreadfully wrong for I feel
A deep burning pain in my side.
Though I am trying
To stay in the saddle,
I'm getting weary,
Unable to ride.

But my love for

Felina is strong and I rise where I've fallen,
Though I am weary I can't stop to rest.
I see the white puff of smoke from the rifle.
I feel the bullet go deep in my chest.

From out of nowhere Felina has found me,
Kissing my cheek as she kneels by my side.
Cradled by two loving arms that I'll die for,
One little kiss and Felina, good-bye.

Big John by Tennessee Ernie Ford: This came on the radio a few months ago and I gave it the fifteen yr old test as well as I asked my boy to listen closely to the story which, after rolling his eyes, he reluctantly did. Its the story of a big man who sacrifices himself to save fellow workers in a mine collapse. If you teared up when ole yeller died you had to get misty eyed when Big John passed. My son gave it a surprising thumbs up.

Big John
Big John

Every morning at the mine you could see him arrive
He stood six-foot-six and weighed two-forty-five
Kinda broad at the shoulder and narrow at the hip
Everybody knew you didn't give no lip to Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

Nobody seemed to know where John called home
He just drifted into town and stayed all alone
He didn't say much, kinda quiet and shy
If ya spoke at all, ya just said hi to Big John
Somebody said he came from New Orleans
Where he got in a fight o'er a cajun queen
And a crashin' blow from a huge right hand
Sent a Lousianna fella to the promised land, Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

Then came the day at the bottom of the mine
When a timber cracked and men started cryin'
Miners were prayin' and hearts beat fast
And everybody thought they'd breathed their last, 'cept John
Through the dust and the smoke of this man-made hell
Walked a giant of a man that the miners knew well
Grabbed the saggin' timber and gave out with a groan
And like a giant oak tree, just stood there alone, Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

And with all of his strength he gave a mighty shove
Then a miner yelled out, there's a light up above
And twenty men scrambled from a would-be grave
now there's only one left down there to save, Big John
With jacks and timbers they started back down
Then came that rumble way down in the ground
As smoke and gas belched outta the mine
Everybody knew it was the end of the line for Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

Taxi by Harry Chapin: Chapin did a number of these type songs including the ultra depressing Cats in the Cradle which didnt make my list because its such a downer. Taxi is awesome. Its a great story from the get go, has great lyrics and a fabulous melody. I fly high, so highhhh, when I'm stoned.

It was raining hard in 'Frisco,
I needed one more fare to make my night.
A lady up ahead waved to flag me down,
She got in at the light.
Oh, where you going to, my lady blue,
It's a shame you ruined your gown in the rain.
She just looked out the window, and said
"Sixteen Parkside Lane".
Something about her was familiar
I could swear I'd seen her face before,
But she said, "I'm sure you're mistaken"
And she didn't say anything more.
It took a while, but she looked in the mirror,
And she glanced at the license for my name.
A smile seemed to come to her slowly,
It was a sad smile, just the same.
And she said, "How are you Harry?"
I said, "How are you Sue?
Through the too many miles
and the too little smiles
I still remember you."
It was somewhere in a fairy tale,
I used to take her home in my car.
We learned about love in the back of the Dodge,
The lesson hadn't gone too far.
You see, she was gonna be an actress,
And I was gonna learn to fly.
She took off to find the footlights,
And I took off to find the sky.
Oh, I've got something inside me,
To drive a princess blind.
There's a wild man, wizard,
He's hiding in me, illuminating my mind.
Oh, I've got something inside me,
Not what my life's about,
Cause I've been letting my outside tide me,
Over 'till my time, runs out.
Baby's so high that she's skying,
Yes she's flying, afraid to fall.
I'll tell you why baby's crying,
Cause she's dying, aren't we all.
There was not much more for us to talk about,
Whatever we had once was gone.
So I turned my cab into the driveway,
Past the gate and the fine trimmed lawns.
And she said we must get together,
But I knew it'd never be arranged.
And she handed me twenty dollars,
For a two fifty fare, she said
"Harry, keep the change."
Well another man might have been angry,
And another man might have been hurt,
But another man never would have let her go...
I stashed the bill in my shirt.
And she walked away in silence,
It's strange, how you never know,
But we'd both gotten what we'd asked for,
Such a long, long time ago.
You see, she was gonna be an actress
And I was gonna learn to fly.
She took off to find the footlights,
And I took off for the sky.
And here, she's acting happy,
Inside her handsome home.
And me, I'm flying in my taxi,
Taking tips, and getting stoned,
I go flying so high, when I'm stoned.

Boy named Sue by Johnny Cash: Okay, I will be the first to admit Boy Named Sue doesnt belong with classics like El Paso. Its much more of a novelty song and doesnt have the sadness and pathos of the others listed. Still, it was a funny story and wonderfully sung by Johnny Cash. The lyrics describing the fight with his old man are great.

Well, my daddy left home when I was three,
and he didn't leave much to ma and me,
Just this ole guitar and an empty bottle of booze.

Now I don't blame him 'cause he run and hid,
But the meanest thing that he ever did,
Was before he left he went and named me Sue.

Well, he musta thought that it was quite a joke,
An' it got a lot of laughs from lots a folks,
Seems I had to fight my whole life through.

Some gal would giggle and I'd get red,
And some guy'd laugh and I'd bust his head,
I'll tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named Sue.

I grew up fast and I grew up mean,
My fist got hard and my wis got keen,
I roamed from town to town to hid my shame.

But I made me a vow to the moon and stars,
I'd search the honky-tonks and bars,
And kill that man that gave me that awful name.

Well, it was Gatlandburg in mid-July,
I'd just hit town and my throat was dry,
thought I'd stop and have myself a brew.

In and old saloon on a street of mud,
There at a table dealin' stud,
Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me Sue.

Well I knew that snake was my own sweet dad,
from a worn out picture that my mother had,
& I knew that scar on his cheek & his evil eye.

He was big and bent and grey and old,
And I looked at him and my blood ran cold, and I said,
"My name is Sue! how do you do! Now you gonna die!"
Yeah that's what I told him.

Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes,
And he went down but to my surprise,
Come up with a knife a cut off a piece o' my ear.

I busted a chair right across his teeth,
And we crashed through the wall and into the street,
Kickin' and a gougin' in the the mud and the blood and the beer.

I tell you I've fought tougher men,
but I really can't remember when,
he kicked like a mule & bit like a crocodile.

Well I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss,
He went for his gun but I pulled mine first,
He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him smile.

And he said, "Son, this world is rough,
And if a man's gonna make it he's gotta be tough,
And I know I wouldn't be there to help you along.

So I gave that name and I said goodbye,
I knew you'd have to get tough or die,
And it's that name what helped to make you strong.

Now you just fought one hell of a fight,
And I know you hate me and ya got the right,
To kill me now and I wouldn't blame you if you do.

But you oughtta thank me before I die,
For the gravel in your gut and the spit in your eye,
'Cause I'm the ------- that named you Sue."

Well, what could I do, what COULD I do?
Well I got a choked up and threw down my gun,
Called him a pa and he called me a son,
And I come away with a different point of view.

I think about him now and then,
Every time I try and every time I win,
And if I ever have a son,
I think I'm gonna name him,
Bill or George anything but Sue!
I still hate that name

Camp Grenada by Allan Sherman: Now I know this doesnt belong with the classics but I stuck it in because it came out when I was going to camps and catching poison ivy. the lead in line, hello muddah, hello faddah, is awesome. Its not a classic and I dont know why I included it, but I did.

Hello muddah, hello faddah
Here I am at Camp Granada
Camp is very entertaining
And they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining.

I went hiking with Joe Spivy
He developed poison ivy
You remember Leonard Skinner
He got ptomaine poison last night after dinner.

All the counselors hate the waiters
And the lake has alligators
And the head coach wants no sissies
So he reads to us from something called Ulysses.

How I don't want this to scare ya
But my bunkmate has malaria
You remember Jeffrey Hardy
They're about to organize a searching party.

Take me home, oh muddah, faddah
Take me home, I hate Granada
Don't leave me out in the forest where
I might get eaten by a bear.
Take me home I promise I will not make noise
Or mess the house with other boys.
Oh please don't make me stay
I've been here one whole day.

Dearest faddah, darling muddah,
How's my precious little bruddah
Let me come home, if you miss me
I would even let Aunt Bertha hug and kiss me.

Wait a minute, it's stopped hailing.
Guys are swimming, gals are sailing
Playing baseball, gee that's better
Muddah, faddah kindly disregard this letter.

The Boxer by Simon and Garfunkle: One of my favorite all times. My favorite verse is "In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his trade and he carries the reminder of every glove that laid him down or cut him 'til he cried out in his anger and his shame I am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains". Great song.

I am just a poor boy, though my story's seldom told

I have squandered my resistance for a pocketful of mumbles, such are promises

All lies and jest, still a man hears what he wants to hear

And disregards the rest (hmmmm....mmmm......)



When I left my home and my family, I was no more than a boy

In the company of strangers.....

In the quiet of the railway station, runnin' scared

Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters, where the ragged people go

Looking for the places only they would know



(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(La la la la li...)



Seeking only workman's wages, I come looking for a job, but I get no offers.....

Just a come-on from the whores on Seventh Avenue

I do declare, there were times when I was so lonesome

I took some comfort there (li la la, la, la la)



Now the years are rolling by me, they are rockin' even me

I am older than I once was, and younger than I'll be, that's not unusual

No it isn't strange, after changes upon changes, we are more or less the same

After changes we are more or less the same ...



(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(La la la la li...)



And I'm laying out my winter clothes, wishing I was gone, goin' home

Where the New York city winters aren't bleedin' me, leadin' me to go home



In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his trade

And he carries the reminder of every glove that laid him down or cut him

'Til he cried out in his anger and his shame

I am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains

Yes, he still remains ...



(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia by Vickie Lawrence: Some may not know this song but it listens like a mystery story. It has great lyrics, a wonderful melody and the requisite sad ending mixed in with a dash of irony. Good song. For those who care about music trivia the words and music were by Lawrence's husband, Bobby Russel.

He was on his way home from Candletop
Been two weeks gone and he thought he'd stop
At William's and have him a drink 'fore he went home to her
Andy Wolloe said "Hello"
And he said "Hi, what's doin', Wo?"
"Seth, sit down, I got some bad news, it's gonna hurt"
He said "I'm your best friend and you know that's right"
"But your young bride ain't home tonight"
"Since you been gone she's been seein' that Amos boy, Seth "
Well, he got mad 'n' he saw red and Andy said "Boy, don'tcha lose your head"
" 'cause to tell ya the truth, I been with her myself"

That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia
That's the night that they hung an innocent man
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer
'cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Well, Andy got scared and left the bar
Walkin' on home 'cause he didn't live far
See, Andy didn't have many friends and he'd just lost him one
Brother thought his wife musta left town
So he went home and finally found
The only thing Papa had left him, that was a gun

And he went off to Andy's house
A'skippin' through the backwoods quiet as a mouse
Came upon some tracks too small for Andy to make
He looked through the screen at the back-porch door
And he saw Andy lyin' on the floor
In a puddle of blood and he started to shake

Well, the Georgia Patrol was a'makin' their rounds
So he fired a shot just to flag 'em down
And a big-bellied sheriff got his gun and said "why'dya do it?"
And the judge said "Guilty" in a make-believe trial
And slapped the sheriff on the back with a smile
Said' supper's waitin' at home and I gotta get to it"

That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia
That's the night that they hung an innocent man
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer
'cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Well, they hung my brother before I could say
The tracks he saw while on his way
To Andy's house and back that night were mine
And his cheatin' wife had never left town
And that's one body that'll never be found
See, little sister don't miss when she aims her gun

That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia, oh-oh-aah
That's the night that they hung an innocent man, ah-huh-unh
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer

FADE
'cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Ode To Billie Joe by Bobby Gentry: I threw this one in for Joe Okc. Its kind of in the same genre as Lights went Out in Georgia. The words flowed so well in the song and I guess the line that stands out for me is "And now Billie Joe MacAllister's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge".

It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day
I was out choppin' cotton and my brother was balin' hay
And at dinner time we stopped and walked back to the house to eat
And Mama hollered out the back door "Y'all remember to wipe your feet"
And then she said "I got some news this mornin' from Choctaw Ridge"
"Today Billie Joe MacAllister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge"

And Papa said to Mama as he passed around the blackeyed peas
"Well, Billie Joe never had a lick of sense, pass the biscuits, please"
"There's five more acres in the lower forty I've got to plow"
And Mama said it was shame about Billie Joe, anyhow
Seems like nothin' ever comes to no good up on Choctaw Ridge
And now Billie Joe MacAllister's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge

And Brother said he recollected when he and Tom and Billie Joe
Put a frog down my back at the Carroll County picture show
And wasn't I talkin' to him after church last Sunday night?
"I'll have another piece of apple pie, you know it don't seem right"
"I saw him at the sawmill yesterday on Choctaw Ridge"
"And now you tell me Billie Joe's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge"

And Mama said to me "Child, what's happened to your appetite?"
"I've been cookin' all morning and you haven't touched a single bite"
"That nice young preacher, Brother Taylor, dropped by today"
"Said he'd be pleased to have dinner on Sunday, oh, by the way"
"He said he saw a girl that looked a lot like you up on Choctaw Ridge"
"And she and Billie Joe was throwing somethin' off the Tallahatchie Bridge"

A year has come 'n' gone since we heard the news 'bout Billie Joe
And Brother married Becky Thompson, they bought a store in Tupelo
There was a virus going 'round, Papa caught it and he died last Spring
And now Mama doesn't seem to wanna do much of anything
And me, I spend a lot of time pickin' flowers up on Choctaw Ridge
And drop them into the muddy water off the Tallahatchie Bridge

Operator by Jim Croce: The list wouldnt be complete without a Jim Croce song. Operator was my favorite, there were many more.

Operator, well could you help me place this call?
See, the number on the matchbook is old and faded.
She's living in L. A. with my best old ex-friend Ray,
A guy she said she knew well and sometimes hated.

Isn't that the way they say it goes? Well, let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it,
So I can call just to tell 'em Im fine and to show
I've overcome the blow, Ive learned to take it well --
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real, but that's not the way it feels.

Operator, well could you help me place this call?
Well, I can't read the number that you just gave me.
There's something in my eyes, you know it happens every time --
I think about a love that I thought would save me.

Isn't that the way they say it goes? Well, let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it,
So I can call just to tell 'em Im fine and to show
I've overcome the blow, Ive learned to take it well --
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real, but that's not the way it feels.
No, no, no, no -- that's not the way it feels.

Operator, well let's forget about this call --
There's no one there I really wanted to talk to.
Thank you for your time, ah, you've been so much more than kind.
And you can keep the dime.

Isn't that the way they say it goes? Well, let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it,
So I can call just to tell 'em Im fine and to show
I've overcome the blow, Ive learned to take it well --
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real, but that's not the way it feels.
No, no, no, no -- that's not the way it feels.

 

[Taurus]

I always loved "Big John" and you gotta make a place for Tom T. Hall in there. But my favorite has to be this one by Blue Oyster Cult:

Raise your can of beer on high
And seal your fate forever
Our best years have past us by
The golden age of leather

This was the night not long to come
In the year of our lord a.d.
Where in a desert way-house poised on the brink of eternity
Four and ninety studded horsemen closed the knot of honor
As only drunken soldiers can

And passed from man to man
A wanton child to dead to care
That each would find his pleasure as he might
For this fantastic night was billed
As nothing less than the end of an age
A last crusade
A final outrage
In this day of flaccid plumage

And there was worn no cloth but leather
Made supple by years of stinging cinders
And here were seen the scars of age
For age had been the common call for one last night together

Dawn colored the sky......the ritual ceased
Some had died.............they were buried with their bikes
Each grabbed a rag........from a man with a sack
Torn strips of color......the red and the black

I cam here willingly
And I will go down valiantly
We made a vow
To give it all we had to give
We made a vow
To die as we had lived

They flew the colors they began to fight
They flailed at each other like bugs at a light
Bodies and bikes beyond repair
Smell of oil and gas in the air

Then the wind whipped the desert with a giant hand
And the humans and the harleys caught the shifting sand
The old ranger weathered the storm
And he topped the rise by the middle of morn
He saw rippled dunes
Calm and surreal
And a glint of a solitary shaft of chromium steel

 

[bclemms]

Eminem's "As the world turns" is the first song I thought about when reading this thread. The terms of service limits me from posting the lyrics.

In fact Eminem does this in a lot of his songs.

 

[RebSaint]

Lyrics Jungle Love Morris Day & The Time

{"Oh-wee-oh-wee-oh" will repeat in BG of song}

I - I've been watching U
I think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Said I, I'm a little dangerous
Girl, I'd love 2 show ya (show ya)

My jungle love, yeah
I think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Jungle love
Girl, I'd love 2 show ya (show ya)

U - U've got a pretty car
I think I wanna drive it (drive it)
I ain't playin', said I drive a little dangerous
Take U 2 my crib, rip U off ... huh! (Jungle love)

Look out, oh!
I think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Oh, jungle love, yeah
Girl, I'd love 2 show ya (show ya)

Come on baby, where's your guts?
U wanna make love or what?

I wanna take U 2 my cage
Lock U up and hide the key
U on..only get water, baby
Cuz if U're hungry, take a bite of me

Oh, jungle love, yes
Think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Hey, jungle love, mmm
Girl, I'd love 2 show ya (show ya)

Yeah, yeah, yeah, jungle love, oh!
I think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Jungle love
Girl, I... I think I wanna, I think I wanna file my nails (Show ya)

Hey Jesse
N..now Jerome, yes!
Check it out!

Jungle love, yeah
I think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Oh, jungle love, yes
Mmm, girl, I'd love 2 show ya (show ya)

Oh, my jungle love, well
Mmm, I think I wanna, I think I wanna (know ya)
Jellybean, uh!
Yeah!

Jesse, gimme one of them sexy solos right here
Break it down, uh!
Yes! Huh
Whoa, eh, hah!
Get..get outta the way
Move over
Yeah

Oh, jungle love, that's right
Can't nobody **** with me, uh
I got a bearskin rug
I got a fireplace 2
And I'm all the way wild, baby
Oh, the things I could do 2 U

Hey!
Jungle love Jungle love Jungle love
Yes, yes!

Ha ha!
Aah, that's it, that's it
Hold on
Ha ha ha ha ha!
Sh! Ha ha!

 

[Jazzbo]

I'm not sure if Jungle Love qualifies for "narrative ballad."

 

[RebSaint]

I'm not sure if Jungle Love qualifies for "narrative ballad."

It tells a story.

 

[pancho]

The Ballad of Jed Clampett by Paul Henning - Beverly Hillbillies Lyrics


Come and listen to a story about a man named Jed
A poor mountaineer, barely kept his family fed,
Then one day he was shootin at some food,
And up through the ground came a bubblin crude.

Oil that is, black gold, Texas tea.

Well the first thing you know ol Jed's a millionaire,
Kinfolk said "Jed move away from there"
Said "Californy is the place you ought to be"
So they loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly.

Hills, that is. Swimmin pools, movie stars.


Well now its time to say good by to Jed and all his kin.
And they would like to thank you folks fer kindly droppin in.
You're all invited back a gain to this locality
To have a heapin helpin of their hospitality

Hillybilly that is. Set a spell, Take your shoes off.

Y'all come back now, y'hear?.

 

[Saint by the Bay]

Hurricane by Bob Dylan

Once Upon a Time in the Projects and Good Day by Ice Cube

 

[nigel]

Darling Nikki - Prince

I knew a girl named nikki
I guess u could say she was a sex fiend
I met her in a hotel lobby
Masturbating with a magazine
She said howd u like 2 waste some time
And I could not resist when I saw little nikki grind

She took me 2 her castle
And I just couldnt believe my eyes
She had so many devices
Everything that money could buy
She said sign your name on the dotted line
The lights went out
And nikki started 2 grind

Nikki

The castle started spinning
Or maybe it was my brain
I cant tell u what she did 2 me
But my body will never be the same
Her lovin will kick your behind
Oh, shell show u no mercy
But shell shonuff shonuff show u how 2 grind

Darlin nikki

Woke up the next morning
Nikki wasnt there
I looked all over and all I found
Was a phone unmber on the stairs
It said thank u 4 a funky time
Call me up whenever u want 2 grind

Oh, nikki, ohhhh

Come back nikki, come back
Your dirty little prince
Wanna grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind grind

The Cool - Lupe Fiasco

Yeah...
Yeah...
The cool.

Turn me up
Uh-huh..
Yeah..

He came back
In the same suit that he was buried in
Similar to the one his grand father was married in
Yes... he was still fresh to death
Bling, two ear-rings, a chain laying on his chest
He still had it cuz they couldn't find it
And the bullets from his enemies sat like two inches behind it
Smelled the Hennesy from when his *****s got reminded
And poured out liquor in his memory, he didn't mind it, But...
He couldn't sip it fast enough
So the liquor was just filling the casket up
Floating down by his feet was the letter from his sister
Second Grade hand-writing simply read "I miss ya"
Suit jacket pocket held his baby daughter's picture
Right next to it one of his man's stuck a swisher
He had a notion as he laid there soaking
Saw that the latch was broken, he kicked his casket open
And he...

[Chorus]

This life goes passing you by
It might go fast if you lie
You go and you live then you die...

O-oh-oh-ohh

If life goes passing you by
Don't cry
If you breaking the rules
Making your moves
Paying your dues...
Chasing the cool

Not at all nervous as he dug to the surface
Tarnished gold chain is what he loosened up the earth with
He used his mouth as a shovel to try and hollow it
And when he couldn't dirt spit... swollowed it
Working like a.. hmm.. reverse archaeologist
Except.. his buried treasure was sunshine
So when some shined through a hole that he had drove
It reflected off the gold and almost made son blind
He grabbed on to some grass, he climbed
Pulled himself up out of his own grave and looked at the time
On the watch that had stopped six months after the shots
That had got him in the box wringing Henny out his socks
Figured it was hours because he wasn't older
Used some flowers to brush the dirt up off his shoulders - so..
With a right hand that was all bones and no reason to stay
Decided to walk home
So he..

[Chorus]
This life goes passing you by
It might go fast if you lie
You go and you live then you die...

O-oh-oh-ohh

If life goes passing you by
Don't cry
If you breaking the rules
Making your moves
Paying your dues...
Chasing the cool

He begged for some change to get him on a train
"Damn that ***** stank", is what they complained
Tried to light the blunt but it burst into flames
Caught the reflection in the window of what he became
A long look... Wasn't shook, wasn't ashamed
Matter fact only thing on his brain was brains.. yeah
And getting back in his lane, doing his thang
First he had to find something to slang
Next stop was his block
It had the same cops
Walked right past the same spot where he was shot
Shocked that some lil' *****s tried to sell him rocks
It just felt weird being on the opposite
They figured that he wasn't from there
So they pulled out and robbed him
With the same gun they shot him with
Put it to his head and said "You scared ain't ya?"
He said: "Hustler for death. No heaven for a gangsta."

[Chorus]
This life goes passing you by
It might go fast if you lie
You go and you live then you die...

O-oh-oh-ohh

If life goes passing you by
Don't cry
If you breaking the rules
Making your moves
Paying your dues...
Chasing the cool

 

[zmonbobbo]

A Boy Named Sue, and does Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen count? Kind of a nonsensical story, but a story nonetheless...

Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide, No escape from reality
Open your eyes, Look up to the skies and see,
I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy
Because I'm easy come, easy go, Little high, little low
Any way the wind blows doesn't really matter to me, to me

Mama, just killed a man, Put a gun against his head
Pulled my trigger, now he's dead
Mama, life had just begun
But now I've gone and thrown it all away
Mama, ooh, Didn't mean to make you cry
If I'm not back again this time tomorrow
carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters

Too late, my time has come
Sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all the time
Goodbye, ev'rybody, I've got to go
Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth
Mama, ooh, I don't want to die
I sometimes wish I'd never been born at all

I see a little silhouetto of a man
Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango
Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very fright'ning me
(Galileo.) Galileo. (Galileo.) Galileo, Galileo figaro
Magnifico. I'm just a poor boy and nobody loves me
He's just a poor boy from a poor family
Spare him his life from this monstrosity
Easy come, easy go, will you let me go
Bismillah! No, we will not let you go
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go
(Let him go!) Bismillah! We will not let you go
(Let me go.) Will not let you go
(Let me go.) Will not let you go. (Let me go.) Ah
No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
(Oh mama mia, mama mia.) Mama mia, let me go
Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me, for me, for me

So you think you can stone me and spit in my eye
So you think you can love me and leave me to die
Oh, baby, can't do this to me, baby
Just gotta get out, just gotta get right outta here

Nothing really matters, Anyone can see
Nothing really matters
Nothing really matters to me

Any way the wind blows

 

[Ozark Mountain Saint]

Lyrics Jungle Love Morris Day & The Time

{"Oh-wee-oh-wee-oh" will repeat in BG of song}

I - I've been watching U
I think I wanna know ya (know ya)
Said I, I'm a little dangerous
Girl, I'd love 2 show ya (show ya)

I bought that album back in the day. No music collection is complete without a little Morris Day and the Time.

How did you find them? You were just a pup when they experienced their little bit of mainstream popularity during the Purple Rain days of Prince..........

 

[Sabine]

st dude, many of those would make my list too. I'll add:

The Killing of Georgie - Rod Stewart
One Tin Soldier - Original Caste / Coven
The Lady of Shallot - Alfred, Lord Tennyson / Loreena McKinnett
And of course:
The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald - Gordon Lightfoot

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The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
of the big lake they called "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 twenty-six thousand 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 Wisconsin.
As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most
with a crew and good 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 ship's bell rang,
could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?

The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
and a wave broke over the railing.
And ev'ry man knew, as the captain did too
'twas the witch of November come stealin'.
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
when the Gales of November came slashin'.
When afternoon came it was freezin' rain
in the face of a hurricane west wind.

When suppertime came the old cook came on deck sayin'.
"Fellas, it's too rough t'feed ya."
At seven P.M. a main hatchway caved in; he said,
"Fellas, it's bin good t'know ya!"
The captain wired in he had water comin' in
and the good ship and crew was in peril.
And later that night when 'is lights went outta sight
came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

Does any one know where the love of God goes
when the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
if they'd put fifteen more miles behind 'er.
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 rooms 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 twenty-nine 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 said, "never gives up her dead
when the gales of November come early!"

 

[Ozark Mountain Saint]

What about "Cats in the Cradle"?

 

[DavidM]

The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald - Gordon Lightfoot

Yes. One of my favorites as well.

 

[st dude]

Of those mentioned I would have to say Hurricane and Wreck of The Edmond Fitzgerald would make my list as well, especially if it was a top ten or twenty list.

But if anyone lists Copacabana by Barry Manilow, posts the lyrics and gets that tune stuck in my head I will hunt you down, I swear.

What about Pinball Wizard? I thought the story about the deaf, dumb and blind kid with his disciples leading him in to play pinball was a cool song as was the whole rock opera, Tommy.