Favorite Christine Lyric

[jbrownsjr]

I was thinking of a great thread for this forum. Since Christine writes some great one liners. You can post tunes she didn't write, for example ,Calumny was written by Dan Perfect would be ok.

Here is one of mine:


Now I know how the sun must feel
Every time it shines

[applebucked]

Great idea! :thumbsup:

Here are a couple of mine

You make me feel, I just can't carry on
But I know I won't always be that way

She didn't write this, but...

I'm not your doctor, baby, I'm not your psychiatrist
But you keep comin' back again

[seekerj]

I was thinking of a great thread for this forum. Since Christine writes some great one liners.

"Great"? Nah. Talk about somebody not being Bob Dylan! I like the one Stevie gave her ... "and I can't walk away from you, baby, if I try"...

[michelej1]

I'll tell you, for some reason, Christine's simpler lyrics, combined with her voice, are the ones that get to me. I sing Over My Head and SYLM to myself on an almost daily basis. And for SYLM I think my favorite line is very bare, "you woo me until the sun comes up."

I don't know ... I think it's just lovely to imagine someone knowing they're being lied to and not saying anything, just commenting on what's going on on the surface, but keeping the betrayal inside.

The lyric is his lie and the song title is her hope or request that he say it and mean it. Anyway, I love that.

Dan's Northern Star has some great lyrics throughout. As one cohesive thing it can't be beat, but these lines stand out: I'm falling down inside myself.

Casting stone. Throwing bones.

Michele

[jbrownsjr]

"Great"? Nah. Talk about somebody not being Bob Dylan! I like the one Stevie gave her ... "and I can't walk away from you, baby, if I try"...

I do love that line. I know it's definitely subjective, and never have I thought of Christine as Bob Dylan, but she does have some great lyrics from time to time in my opinion.

[applebucked]

She isn't the most brilliant in the lyrics department by any stretch (and she would admit to this herself), but IMO the beauty in her lyrics lies in its simplicity. Combine that with her vocals which can take even the most pedestrian of words and make it mean something deep and you've got magic.

[jbrownsjr]

We both knew,
beyond the shadow of doubt.
What loving somebody,
was really all about!

[GypsySorcerer]

Well my heart will rise up with the morning sun, and the hurt I feel will simply melt away

If there's been a fool around, It's got to be me.

I may not mean everything, but I'm happy to have your love.

[aleuzzi]

"Great"? Nah. Talk about somebody not being Bob Dylan! I like the one Stevie gave her ... "and I can't walk away from you, baby, if I try"...

Like this line, but it's ungrammatical. Typical Stevieism there.

The correct grammar would be either

"And I can't walk away from you, baby though I've tried"

Or

"And I couldn't walk away from you, baby if I tried."


My favorite Christine lyric moments. Hmmm....it's the beauty of her voice combined with those simple lyric sentiments that have power. On the page, those great lyric moments aren't as fabulous. But here are a few:

"They say I'm a silly girl / But I'm not a fool"

"If I were you, I would hold on tight / Even do wrong just to make it right. /
You treat him badly, and you better not. / you oughtta make the best of what you've got."

"There's no step for you to dance to / So slip your hand inside of my glove."

"What a wonderful night to be. / Stars must be my friends to shine for me."

[nicepace]

I think that Christine writes lyrics that are just right for the type of music she creates. You can always tell what she is talking about in her songs. She doesn't write fake "poetry" that leaves you scratching your head wondering what the meaning is -- something that Dylan is sometimes guilty of.

This is popular music we're talking about, not classical, opera, literature or poetry. If the lyrics evoke a feeling or an emotion, describe a situation, or tell a story, that is just what the music needs.

[jbrownsjr]

I think that Christine writes lyrics that are just right for the type of music she creates. You can always tell what she is talking about in her songs. She doesn't write fake "poetry" that leaves you scratching your head wondering what the meaning is -- something that Dylan is sometimes guilty of.

This is popular music we're talking about, not classical, opera, literature or poetry. If the lyrics evoke a feeling or an emotion, describe a situation, or tell a story, that is just what the music needs.

So what's your very fav??

[HomerMcvie]

She doesn't write fake "poetry" that leaves you scratching your head wondering what the meaning is -- something that Dylan is sometimes guilty of.

Would you say that to Stevie Nicks???;)


:lol::lol::lol:

[nicepace]

Would you say that to Stevie Nicks???


I decline to answer. <insert smiley of your choice>

[HomerMcvie]

I decline to answer. <insert smiley of your choice>

Well played....:lol:

Dear Stevie Nicks, you madame, are no Bob Dylan, and your lyrics are confusing!:lol:;)

[jbrownsjr]

Well played....:lol:

Dear Stevie Nicks, you madame, are no Bob Dylan, and your lyrics are confusing!:lol:;)

Quit obsessing on Le Nicks and post a fav lyric!!! ;)

[aleuzzi]

Quit obsessing on Le Nicks and post a fav lyric!!! ;)

While they're smiley facing, I'll go again for you, jbrownsjr...

"No road is the right road./ I've gotta change my plans. / You're walking up a one-way street / when you only love one man."

[michelej1]

I don't like Temporary One as a song, but I like these lines:


Where are you darling, when my Moon is rising, and your Sun is shining down?

What are you doing, are you missing me, the way that I'm missing you now.

The river goes on and on and the Sea that divides us is a temporary one.

[Mr Scarrott]

It's got to be Brown Eyes for me

When you look at me with those brown eyes
What do you want to do
Do you have to have me
The way that I want you
I want you

When you look at me with those brown eyes
What do you want to say
And are you just another liar
Will you take me all the way
All the way.


Utterly simple, but taken with the melody, the sha-la-las, the production, the mysterious bassline, and Peter Green's fleeting appearance at the end, I don't think there's a more sensuos song in the canon.

[nicepace]

Such a good thread. In all the time I've been a Christine McVie fan (38 years, yikes!) I have never much thought about her lyric-writing as a whole.

She has many songs in which longing is the main emotion. She doesn't have many in which unbridled joy is present (although there are a few - YMLF for instance). Her longing is for her love to be trustworthy, or to return her love; her longing is to be able to recover from hurt; her longing is to return home; her longing is for security. Here is one example (there are many, many more):

I want to be inside your heart
That's the place, the place for me
But I could understand, it won't be easy
You've got to prove, prove your love to me

Such uncertainty, combined with such strong longing. I think this is a key element to explain why her songs are so easy to like (besides the obvious musical elements, her fantastic voice, the accessible melodies, etc.). Her songs touch a place inside each of us where that uncertainty and that longing reside. We all have those emotions; they are part of what makes us human.

[FutureGames71]

I know it's a Bob Welch penned tune but I've always loved it as if it were Chris'

"For a little peace in any season
I'd give up anything but your love
I don't want to trade just to be happy
That's only playin' anyway

But if I dream about it, it makes me wonder
For every good thing, must you get bad?
But I won't worry, 'cause if I'm living on borrowed time
I'm just gonna keep on, the way I'm going
Keep on the way I'm going"

[michelej1]

Such uncertainty, combined with such strong longing. I think this is a key element to explain why her songs are so easy to like (besides the obvious musical elements, her fantastic voice, the accessible melodies, etc.). Her songs touch a place inside each of us where that uncertainty and that longing reside. We all have those emotions; they are part of what makes us human.

Yes, the longing is universal and then her voice injects a vulnerability that goes even beyond the words. I mean, sometimes the words are very raw and plain as in Why.

But sometimes it's her voice alone that conveys how open to pain you can be. I mean on the surface being Over My Head might sure feel nice, but it's the way she sings it that brings the feeling home that it's almost not worth being taken to paradise, if it's going to feel as awful as it does coming down. I mean, with her, even the good parts hurt a little. And I think people who don't think her songs are any deeper than, say, Neil Sedaka's, maybe don't ever pay attention to the bitter beneath the sweet.

Who else sings "you hurt my pride" in a way where you would sense that, even if you didn't understand the words? And the phrasing of the songs, the way a sentence is broken up illogically like so that she sings "if you think you might" and then there's a pause and she says "love me baby" so that it's not one line, but two messages. She's asking for something, just not in the form of a question. Hope, hesitancy, fear or rejection, a request all in a few syllables. And that's the way most of her songs are.

Michele

[michelej1]

Your love is like a circus wheel.

Is one of my favorites. Although, I admit I may be attracted to it because of the language difference. We would say "Ferris wheel" and I don't know if that would turn me on.

I also find something poetic in "Isn't it Midnight." I mean, it's no big deal to say, "aren't you guys 8 hours ahead of us," but the term "isn't it midnight" makes me think of magical things, like Cinderella losing her slipper or things coming to a peak or end at that meaningful hour in time.

Michele

[FutureGames71]

One of my favorites:

You're never too old to learn
You're never too young to pray
It's never too late to learn
And hope for better days


I think the lyrics in general to "Heart of Stone" are so simplistic and sweet, and the McVie/Quintela composition just wrap around them perfectly.

[holidayroad]

From 'Prove Your Love':

'So if you can't see me right where you are...then why don't you send for me, baby, by the nearest star.'

[jbrownsjr]

Your love is like a circus wheel.

Is one of my favorites. Although, I admit I may be attracted to it because of the language difference. We would say "Ferris wheel" and I don't know if that would turn me on.

I also find something poetic in "Isn't it Midnight." I mean, it's no big deal to say, "aren't you guys 8 hours ahead of us," but the term "isn't it midnight" makes me think of magical things, like Cinderella losing her slipper or things coming to a peak or end at that meaningful hour in time.

Michele

I've always felt something really mysterious and magical about the Midnight concept as well. It has such a Tango In The Night feel to it.. very romantic

[aleuzzi]

I've always felt something really mysterious and magical about the Midnight concept as well. It has such a Tango In The Night feel to it.. very romantic

The something's-happening-a-world-away theme is pretty prominent in Christine's songs. Isn't it Midnight and Temporary One, obviously. But also in Hollywood--that, I-miss-the-old-life thing. What makes Friend such a moving testimony is how it shows that Christine's decision to reconnect with the world across the ocean has, ironically, made her wistful for that which she was clamoring to leave for years and years.

[jbrownsjr]

I felt for so long,
Cracks appearing on your loving face!
I saw them then, I can see them now..............

[jbrownsjr]

The something's-happening-a-world-away theme is pretty prominent in Christine's songs. Isn't it Midnight and Temporary One, obviously. But also in Hollywood--that, I-miss-the-old-life thing. What makes Friend such a moving testimony is how it shows that Christine's decision to reconnect with the world across the ocean has, ironically, made her wistful for that which she was clamoring to leave for years and years.

Night in Estoril, too.

[aleuzzi]

Night in Estoril, too.

Good example. Love that song, too.

[nicepace]

From 'Prove Your Love':

'So if you can't see me right where you are...then why don't you send for me, baby, by the nearest star.'

If I had a couple of hours with nothing to do I'd compile a list of all Christine's celestial references. Her songs mention the stars, moon, sun and sky quite often.

[jbrownsjr]

She calls everyone darling, baby or daddy too.

[michelej1]

She calls everyone darling, baby or daddy too.

Well, that's one of the reasons Sleeping Around the Corner reminds me of Christine, because Lindsey says "darling." Also, his lover is not an American and she says "red rover'. His lover in that song seems British to me. Although, he talks about meeting him at the border and you don't necessarily think of Brits on the American border. But SATC has a style about it that says Christine, especially when I combine it with Come Out to Play.

I don't like the "daddy" references in songs.

Another line I like is: You can make the darkness mean more.

Michele

[elle]

Well, that's one of the reasons Sleeping Around the Corner reminds me of Christine, because Lindsey says "darling." Also, his lover is not an American and she says "red rover'. His lover in that song seems British to me. Although, he talks about meeting him at the border and you don't necessarily think of Brits on the American border. But SATC has a style about it that says Christine, especially when I combine it with Come Out to Play.

yes, definitely British. she says "round" the corner too.

[goldustsongbird]

If I had a couple of hours with nothing to do I'd compile a list of all Christine's celestial references. Her songs mention the stars, moon, sun and sky quite often.

You can start with Northern Star and Gone Into The Sun. :thumbsup:

[David]

"Great"? Nah. Talk about somebody not being Bob Dylan! Nobody in Fleetwood Mac is Bob Dylan. And Bob Dylan isn't Percy Shelley.

I always liked:
There's no step for you to dance to
So slip your hand inside my glove

You hold the percentage
But I'm the fool paying the dues

[TerraRhiannon]

I live my life through one simple line from World Turning:

Maybe I'm wrong, but whos to say what's right?

:cool:

[jbrownsjr]

And if I need a little whiskey, he could serve it to me neat.

[PenguinHead]

Would you say that to Stevie Nicks???;)


:lol::lol::lol:

Would you say that to Bob Dylan! (referencing the Say You Will documentary).

[PenguinHead]

If we can't be lovers, then we really can't be friends.
I've got some pretty little ways to get my sweet revenge.


Some of her best lyrics reside on the albums In The Meantime, and the much-loathed Time album.

[SpyNote]

"Homeward Bound" is one of my all-time favorite songs from Christine. I just love how blunt and confessional it is, and, of course, how it foreshadows her plans to come.

I want to sit at home in my rockin' chair
I don't want to travel the world
As far as I'm concerned I've had my share
But time's more precious than gold
I don't wanna see another airplane seat
Or another hotel room
The home life to me seems really neat
I just wanna unpack for good

[Johnny Stew]

Some favorites that I don't think have already been mentioned:


"And the sun went down... never seemed to rise. Ah, but now you're here -- with the light shining in your eyes."

"I remember the coming storm. Oh, and you, my love -- and how you kept me warm."

"Oh, I don't mind -- you can do anything. You can love me night and day."

[jbrownsjr]

I was thinkin...
Well you could be my number 1.
Then I woke up darling,
To an entirely different song....

[MoonSister75]

I've been searching for a pot of gold
The kind you find at the end of a rainbow

I just heard this in the car, and was reminded of how much I like the lyrics to As Long As You Follow.

[goldustsongbird]

I've been searching for a pot of gold
The kind you find at the end of a rainbow

I just heard this in the car, and was reminded of how much I like the lyrics to As Long As You Follow.

I love the whole song, video included.

[MoonSister75]

I love the whole song, video included.

Yes it is wonderful isn't it :nod::nod:

I also love a youtube video that someone has put together for this song. Its so simple, but fits the song beautifully.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zfc1awuiS0w

[PenguinHead]

She isn't the most brilliant in the lyrics department by any stretch (and she would admit to this herself), but IMO the beauty in her lyrics lies in its simplicity. Combine that with her vocals which can take even the most pedestrian of words and make it mean something deep and you've got magic.

A very astute and accurate assessment. Her voice is so plaintively smooth and smokey, she really does give a soul to the most simple and insipid lyric lines/themes. But there is integrity in the direct simplicity.

I was rather surprised by the songs she wrote for In The Meantime. Those songs displayed an evolved sophistication in the lyrics. There was more meat in them, as compared to very thin treatments (ex. Honey Hi).

[jbrownsjr]

A very astute and accurate assessment. Her voice is so plaintively smooth and smokey, she really does give a soul to the most simple and insipid lyric lines/themes. But there is integrity in the direct simplicity.

I was rather surprised by the songs she wrote for In The Meantime. Those songs displayed an evolved sophistication in the lyrics. There was more meat in them, as compared to very thin treatments (ex. Honey Hi).

I agree. It's like she had more time to write and less pressure. Lindsey's FM lyrics are the same way sometimes. Can't go Back, for example.

[michelej1]

I agree. It's like she had more time to write and less pressure.

I disagree. I thought Dan's songs were the ones that contained lyrical sophistication. Also, I would say Honey Hi is not a good exemplar. Love the song, but for the musical construction. The lyrics were meant to be sparse and simplistic, in my mind, similar to Don't Worry Be Happy.

Michele

[jbrownsjr]

I disagree. I thought Dan's songs were the ones that contained lyrical sophistication. Also, I would say Honey Hi is not a good exemplar. Love the song, but for the musical construction. The lyrics were meant to be sparse and simplistic, in my mind, similar to Don't Worry Be Happy.

Michele

To me, songs on ITM have more story. Like Forgiveness or Sweet Revenge. I guess because she is running all the lyrics over the same subject but with the progression of a relationship cycle. Seems more coherent to me than ever before.

[MoonSister75]

Honey Hi is one of my favourite FM songs. It really grew on me until I loved it. Very simple with the most beautiful harmonies.

[jbrownsjr]

Honey Hi is one of my favourite FM songs. It really grew on me until I loved it. Very simple with the most beautiful harmonies.

The vocal arrangement for Honey Hi is amazing!!

[MoonSister75]

The vocal arrangement for Honey Hi is amazing!!

It really is! Heavenly harmonies. :angel: I remember playing it when I was demonstrating my new lap-top speakers to my parents, it sounded gorgeous and they loved it.

[jbrownsjr]

It really is! Heavenly harmonies. :angel: I remember playing it when I was demonstrating my new lap-top speakers to my parents, it sounded gorgeous and they loved it.

I love the nuances like... "Don't... Don't take the love light away... "

[nicepace]

According to the album credits, the only song on 'In the Meantime' that Christine wrote by herself is "You Are." All the others were co-written by Christine and other writers, or they were written by Dan Perfect alone.

Therefore, it's hard to tell what lyrics Chris actually wrote, and which ones were written by her co-writers. There are some lyrics on that album that don't seem very "Christine like." Those could be the product of her co-writers, or they could be the result, as was suggested earlier in this thread, of Christine having some time to write, and a lack of pressure to come up with something.

When I see a song is co-written by two or more writers, I am always curious to know who came up with what elements of the song. Sometimes one writer does the lyrics and the other does the music. I wonder if this may have been the case with any of the 'In the Meantime' songs. Co-writer writes the lyrics, Christine writes the music. I don't have an opinion on this, I'm just speculating.

[michelej1]

When I see a song is co-written by two or more writers, I am always curious to know who came up with what elements of the song. Sometimes one writer does the lyrics and the other does the music. I wonder if this may have been the case with any of the 'In the Meantime' songs. Co-writer writes the lyrics, Christine writes the music. I don't have an opinion on this, I'm just speculating.

I know what you mean. Christine explained that she and Lindsey did this for TITN. That she did the lyrics to one song and he did the music and it was vice versa on another song.

Michele

[mitzo]

I love these from "Mystified":

The light that shines around you
It blinds my eyes
There's a magic surrounds you
Tell me where does your secret lie

The whole song to me is beautiful and, if I ignore the "pretty darling" lyric, just about perfect.

[whitewingdove]

As a fan of Christine I would say I'm more a fan of her melodies than lyrics so this is a difficult decision for me... but I would have to say the "I'm The One" song. For me, I see it being VERY underrated. It's so catchy and written very well. The message that it sends out is tremendously accurate! So my favourite lyrics is probably

"I'm not your doctor, baby
I'm not your psychiatrist"

I also love the "Oh Daddy" lyrics. It's probably one of my least favourite songs but I do like the lyrics.

One of my top fav Christine songs is also "Isn't It Midnight" I love the dark eery feeling to it and how well the lyrics go with the melody. I pretty much love all the lyrics in it as well, especially when she sings this

"You had a knack,
a knack of making women know."

[singertobe]

On and on it will always be
Rhythm rhyme and harmony

[singertobe]

I'll tell you, for some reason, Christine's simpler lyrics, combined with her voice, are the ones that get to me. I sing Over My Head and SYLM to myself on an almost daily basis. And for SYLM I think my favorite line is very bare, "you woo me until the sun comes up."

I don't know ... I think it's just lovely to imagine someone knowing they're being lied to and not saying anything, just commenting on what's going on on the surface, but keeping the betrayal inside.

The lyric is his lie and the song title is her hope or request that he say it and mean it. Anyway, I love that.

Dan's Northern Star has some great lyrics throughout. As one cohesive thing it can't be beat, but these lines stand out: I'm falling down inside myself.

Casting stone. Throwing bones.

Michele

I never realized Say You Love Me is about being cheated on! I'm an idiot!

[whitewingdove]

Neither had I until now...
Very precise observations there

[thinkaboutme90]

"And the sun went down, never seemed to rise. Oh but now you're here, with the light shining in your eyes."

"He's a devil and an angel, oh the combination's driving me wild, drives me wild."

"You're the cool nights of the desert
And the hot kisses of the sun
Why is it that I don't believe you
When you say I'm the only one?
I know I'm the lonely one" - love love love this one!

"If I could turn the page, a time that I'd rearrange just a day or two."

"No matter what you do, love is a challenge."

"On and on, it will always be, rhythm, rhyme and harmony."

"Did you know your love shines, love shines so bright?"

[jbrownsjr]

So I have another drink and a cigarette, just to console myself somehow.

[Villavic]

So go and do what you want
I know that you have the need

And if I needed whisky
He could serve it to me neat

[HomerMcvie]

So go and do what you want
I know that you have the need

And if I needed whisky
He could serve it to me neat

Are you drunk? :woohoo:

[jbrownsjr]

Are you drunk? :woohoo:

The brits were! haha

[HomerMcvie]

The brits were! haha

Takes one to know one! :D

[Macfan4life]

Slip your hand inside my glove

You made me a woman tonight

She's not sleeping alone

They say I'm a silly girl but I'm not a fool

All I know is the way that I feel whenever you're around