OT: An attempt to lighten the mood

Put away the opera CDs, my friend. That line, though humorous, is not even the best ever penned by the Excitable Boy himself. Pick up a copy of “Excitable Boy” (the album which “Werewolves” was originally released) and give “Lawyers, Guns & Money” a spin; or the title track. Zevon was a funny and twisted artiste, and when you’re in the right mood (say after another dose of relentless optimism following another less-than-optimal performance by our beloved bunch), I guarantee the lyrics’ll have you chuckling.

I’m going with Lennon and McCartney, Strawberry Fields:

Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see

for sheer wordsmithery:

“The chairman of this boredom is a compliment collector / I’d like to be his funeral director " – Opportunity

“All your troubles you confess to another faceless, backless dress " – Deportee

“She’s my soft touch typewriter / And I’m the great dictator " – Two Little Hitlers

But as an opening line to immediately set a mood, nothing beats Bowie’s “Diamond Dogs”:

“As they pulled you out of the oxygen tent, You asked for the latest party.
With your silicone hump and your ten inch stump.
Dressed like a priest you was, Tod Browning’s freak you was”

She looks like the real thing,
She tastes like the real thing,
But fake plastic love.

Radiohead

There’s something happening here
What it is ain’t exactly clear

Great lyrics:

“Na, na na na na, na na na na, na na na, na na na na”

Land of 1000 Dances
Cannibal & The Headhunters

And a song called “How Come I Can’t See You in My Mirror”

there’s something very funny going on here
yes there is something very strange that’s going down
i’ve got this real uneasy feelin’ in my stomach most of the time
and usually it gets worse when you’re around

now i know you are my ever-lovin’ baby
yes i know that you would never do me wrong
so i hope that you won’t take offense
but i’ve got to ask you some questions, darlin’
because there’s something most unusual goin’ on

for instance
how come i can’t see you in my mirror?
how come you never come around here ‘cept at night?
how come you won’t say where your family lives
and you always look so pale?
how come you’ve got that crazy look there in your eyes?

now lately babe, you smell just like a basement
and your wardrobe’s down to strictly black and red
sometimes at night i can see you down on the pavement sneakin’ around
come to think of it, when do you go to bed?

now i ain’t one to go and start no rumors
no i ain’t never used a poison pen
but i don’t much care for the way
you tend to pick your teeth out in public baby
or the way you’re always starin’ at my neck

so tell me
how come i can’t see you in my mirror?
how come you never come around here in the day?
how come you start to hiss when i say my prayers
and you wear those stupid capes
and every time you see a cross, you run away?
hey, what’d you say your name was anyway?

And the world did gaze
with deep amaze
at those loyal men but few
who bore the fight
so freedoms light
might shine through the foggy dew