Music and Lyrics to songs

[fourgrtkidos]

What do you remember singing along to as a kid? Did the lyrics subconsciously affect you (looking back), even if you didn't quite know what they meant?? I am struggling with being a prude on one hand and simply protecting my pre-teen from harmful lyrics while her character is forming...... any input?? I do think the words affect your view of the world and how to act in it. Any good role models out there in the rock-n-roll world?? Any suggestions for girl (empowering) bands?? Good music??
Thanks,
Michelle

[UUMom]

double

[UUMom]

The songs that I recall from my eary childhood (different from my teen hood) affected me a lot. I can't remember all the words, but I do remember a war song from when I was like 4, "Billy, don't be a hero, don't be a fool with your life...something something...come back and make me your wiiiiiife" and "We had joy we had fun, we had seasons in the sun, but the stars we could reach were just starfish on the beach". And yes, they did affect me, I still tend towards morose thoughts of death at times.

ETA-- I just looked up the Billy song and it says it came out in '74, and I was older than 4. lol Anyway, it used to worry me and make me upset.

I also just looked up Seasons in the Sun, and it was also from 1974. When I recall my childhood, those are the songs I remember and it makes me feel sad. I can't think of anything bad that happened to me personally in '74, but the words to these songs can still make me feel wonky and upset.

[terrordactyl]

i dont remember realizing what the words said that much until i got older like my middle teens.
how old is your daughter and what is she listening to that you dont like maybe i can give you some names of good bands if i knew what she liked

[nalo]

This is such a tough one for me and one I'm not looking forward to dealing with (DD is still a baby). Growing up I listened to all kinds of music with terrible lyrics - lots of gansta rap and whatnot. I mean, I love hip hop along with all types of music really but I think I would not be happy for my daughter to listen to what I listened to even though I don't think it impacted me really. I just love hip hop beats and while I didn't agree with many of the lyrics (bitch, ho, n word, etc.) I still loved listening. Nowadays I hate pretty much all the new rap and such but still love old school hip hop. It's funny because even though I feel that music had no lasting impact on me I still cringe at the thought of DD listening to the same stuff. Hmmm...

[UUMom]

Originally Posted by DoulaMary

This is such a tough one for me and one I'm not looking forward to dealing with (DD is still a baby). Growing up I listened to all kinds of music with terrible lyrics - lots of gansta rap and whatnot. I mean, I love hip hop along with all types of music really but I think I would not be happy for my daughter to listen to what I listened to even though I don't think it impacted me really. I just love hip hop beats and while I didn't agree with many of the lyrics (bitch, ho, n word, etc.) I still loved listening. Nowadays I hate pretty much all the new rap and such but still love old school hip hop. It's funny because even though I feel that music had no lasting impact on me I still cringe at the thought of DD listening to the same stuff. Hmmm...

So...Billy Don't Be Hero, and Seasons in the Sun would be your Mama's music. Did the music you liten to make you feel upset as little kid?

I remember feeling really upset wrt music I heard on the radio? I remember being scared and asking my mother if I would die soon. I think I freaked her a lot throughout my childhood.

[nextcommercial]

Nearly anything from Queen. Remember "Fat Bottom girl"?


Hotel California. (o.K, not that bad)

"On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air"
Colitas is the small buds from a marajuana plant.

Undercover angel. My Mom was deeply appalled by the lyrics to that song.

"Janie's got a gun"


I LOVED The Pina Colada song. They both cheat, but it turns out O.K. LOL How does that work?

[nextcommercial]

Does anybody remember the one hit wonder called

Hey Baby I'm your telephone man? This was popular the summer between my 7th and 8th grade.

I went to my apartment on a Monday at one
A-singin' do lolly, lolly shicky bum, shicky bum
Started movin' in it on a Tuesday at two
A-singin' do lolly, lolly shicky do, shicky do
Wednesday at three I called the phone company, singin':
"Hey baby, put a phone in for me"
Thursday at four he came a-knockin' at my door, singin':

"Hey, baby, I'm your telephone man
You just show me where you want it and I'll put it where I can
I can put it in the bedroom, I can put it in the hall
I can put it in the bathroom, I can hang it on the wall
You can have it with a buzz, you can have it with a ring
And if you really want it you can have a ding-a-ling
Because-a hey baby, I'm your telephone man"

Can you believe that? And then he says:

"Now when other fellas call ya tell 'em how it all began"

Well...can you imagine?

My heart began a-thumpin' and my mind began to fly
And I knew I wasn't dealin' with no ordinary guy
So while he was a-talking I was thinkin' up my plan
Then my fingers did the walkin' on the telephone man

Singin' hey lolly, lolly
Hey lolly, lolly
Hey lolly, lolly
Get it any way you can
Right? Ha ha ha, so...

I got it in the bedroom, and I got it in the hall
And I got it in the bathroom, and he hung it on the wall
I got it with a buzz, and I got it with a ring
And when he told me what my number was I got a ding-a-ling

A-singin' hey lolly, lolly
Hey lolly, lolly
Hey lolly, lolly
Just-a doin' my thing

[Sage.Naissance]

I grew up listening to the stones and Tom Waits... I dont think thats normal....
Ive never been much of a lyric person though but I was probably the only 13 yr old whos favourite song was 'Christmas card from a Hooker in Mineappolis'... he he

[UnschoolnMa]

Music was so important when I was younger, and it still is. My kids love it as well, and we often discuss lyrics.

Music helped me feel like other people understood and "got it"...what I was going through. It was a great comfort and a lot of fun.

[PancakeGoddess]

I stressed about lyrics a few years ago when my son first really started listening to his own music, but I really feel fine about it now. We discuss lyrics a lot, and I find that if I'm not hysterical about any of them, and laugh or appreciate the good ones, we can keep open lines of communication about it. This way, I know how he's feeling about it (many times he thinks they're terrible but loves the music).

To be honest, to answer the actual question in the OP, I honestly don't think the lyrics to music actually affected my choices that much as a teen. I paid attention to them, but didn't base decisions on them or try to model myself after them.

[cmhotzler]

How funny! I was thinking about this the other day myself. I remember standing in my living room at 7ish yrs.old, and singing all the words from "Grease" soundtrack...have you ever listened to those words??!! I would die if I heard my little ones singing those! So I guess I shouldn't be so worried. I turned out fine...But we are also talking about how some lyrics sound like one thing but when put in the context of the whole song, are actually about something else...Case in point, "Linkin Park" song "In the End". I guess I mean to say that kids probably don't even pay attention to the words, they just like singing them. And thanks to the mama who posted the song from the Eagles!! I never knew what that meant! Brings insight into the song now...

[fourgrtkidos]

Hmmmm..... I don't know. I guess I'll just figure it out as we go. Speciafically, I was upset after our girl scout camporree when at the dance party "Girlfriend" by Avril L was played. Now, I am sorta a prude, but about different things than you might think.
It was inappropriate 1. because of the "mothaf**k*n" princess line..... but that isn't what upsets me.
It is this song about totally dissing a fellow woman- and taking her boyfriend, calling her stupid, humiliating her..... I just do not want my girls hurting other people (women). Women have enough to deal with without worrying about each other. We chould be empowering each other and helping each other out.... kwim???
So, I couldn't say much because.... MY GIRLS KNEW EVERY WORD TO THE SONG!!..... their cousin downloaded onto my oldest dd ipod........

I felt like such a bad mom. Although if you talk to them they say they would never treat another girl like that. However, it was THE MOST REQUESTED SONG AT THE PARTY!!! I just feel like, as a society, what are we teaching our kids through songs.......

Michelle

[UnschoolnMa]

Well, my Dd (14) has "Girlfriend" on her MP3 player. I even know every word to the song. It's catchy and kind of gets stuck in your head a bit. Plus, the kids and I only need to hear a song once or twice to know all the words.

Honestly, I don't care much for the lyrics of the song either. I think the message is pretty mean spirited and juvenile. The "motha___ princess" line is the least offensive part of the song, IMO. I told my kids what I thought. Ds would rather rip his ears off than listen to it, but Dd likes it.

The video has Avril playing the role of both girls (the girlfriend being picked on and the girl being a bully) so that was an interesting take. I think all we can do is share why we do or don't value what a song has to say.

[nalo]

So...Billy Don't Be Hero, and Seasons in the Sun would be your Mama's music. Did the music you liten to make you feel upset as little kid?

I remember feeling really upset wrt music I heard on the radio? I remember being scared and asking my mother if I would die soon. I think I freaked her a lot throughout my childhood.

Well I certainly wasn't listening to gansta rap as a child - more high school age (I'm 30). Perhaps I misinterpreted the OP because as a child I listened to kids music, John Denver and other inocuous stuff like that (I LOVE John Denver to this day). I have zero memories of ever being scared or confused really about any music.

[UUMom]

Originally Posted by DoulaMary

Well I certainly wasn't listening to gansta rap as a child - more high school age (I'm 30). Perhaps I misinterpreted the OP because as a child I listened to kids music, John Denver and other inocuous stuff like that (I LOVE John Denver to this day). I have zero memories of ever being scared or confused really about any music.

How funny, as when I get all tense inside, I go right to Rocky Mountian High....lol Seriously. John Denver, as lame ass some folks think he is, I think "The radio reminded me of my home far away...Take me home, country roads...." He was a little later in my childhood, but I think those country/natural living songs are why I live in the country today. They really spoke to me.

I also am a peacenik from way back, in part, because of the of the music of John Lennon and others.

The music and lyrics from my 'youth' lol absolutely affected me. Oh, my father enjoyd jazz and musicals, and he had and played 'albums' of it. I married a man whose father was a musician and who loves Jazz. I am not sure if it was a coincidence or not. I do think music can affect our emotions & our lives profoundly
Cool thread.

[Arduinna]

I owned the 45 of Seasons in the Sun, I bought myself and I listened to it a lot although I know I didn't get what it was about at the time. I was 10 when it came out. My first record albums I purchased were Goodbye Yellow Brick Road by Elton John and Queen A Night at the Opera.

While of course music effects us, I think that we are drawn to specific genres or styles or sounds and lyrics for a reason and I don't think that limiting access to certain music changes that.

I listened to tons of Depeche Mode when I was pregnant with dd and when she was little. My absolute favorite song by them Stripped from Black Celebration. I'd never think of censoring the lyrics, even if they are graphic.

[iriaS]

A friend of DD gave her the Curtain Call, an old CD of Eminem and another burned CD with other Eminem songs fro her birthday
Ok, his lyrics are dirty and gross, but i talked with DD about it(she's 9) she says that she doesnt care what the lyrics say and that sometiems she didn't even understands what they're saying, that they speak to fast and bla bla bla., she likes John Lennon and the Beatles, we're big fans in this household...
She also likes Avril Lavigne, but the old songs except for the song "Hot" she likes the way it sounds and she plays it so well in the guitar.
It doesn't make me feel like a bad mother for the music my dd's listen to
My Chemical Romance, Evanescence(she loves them), Within Temptation, Relient K, Nightwish, The Beatles are her favourite bands, and she idolizes John Lennon.

[Arduinna]

I'm the one listening to My Chemical Romance in the house.

[allgirls]

Billy Don't be a Hero..made me a pacifist..I was so deeply moved by the horror of a boy going off to war and leaving his love...it made me see how wrong that was....it's one of my all time favourite songs. Music can change your life, inspire you, make you change direction.

Another song I remember was The night Chicago died..I still love that song...they don't write that kind of music anymore..brings tears to my eyes..when his dad is still alive...it was disturbing at the time but it made me think..it made me empathetic to some degree. I wasn't very old back then.

1974 I was 8.