The Best Lyricist In Music, Right Now, Is.......

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.....Sheryl Cr - oh, OK, no. But who is it?

― Tom, Tuesday, 9 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Jobbie out of Arab Strap writes some of the best stories, but lyrics - hmm. Does this exclude rap?

― Pete, Tuesday, 9 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Whomever writes the material for the Backstreet Boys, N*Sync, Britney, Christina, 98 degrees, Destiny's Child...

Rich gits.

― JM, Tuesday, 9 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

i'm including rap, and therefore - Paul Barman. The thinking man's Eminem, with both the plus and minus implications of that :) Del Tha Funky Homosapien comes a close second, esp. on the Deltron album.

― h0l, Tuesday, 9 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Stephen Merrit, Jeff Mangum, Scott Walker, Jarvis Cocker, Rivers Cuomo, in that order.

― Otis Wheeler, Tuesday, 9 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Lil' Kim, Scott Miller (of The Loud Family) and Stephin Merrit.

― Tim, Wednesday, 10 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Cee-Lo from the Goodie Mob is number 1, and Big Gipp ain't too far behind, GhostFace Killah, Lyrics Born, Andre Benjamin when he actually bothers to rap these days (and Big Boi has gotten a lot better too), E-40, Jay Z, Xhibit, Boots Riley, Eminem writes good words but I don't like hearing him say them much, whoever writes the Dixie Chicks songs, Captain Poon from Gluecifer writes good words but the band now sounds like a 37 year old cruiserweight who was maybe once a champ at welter but now makes his living getting knocked out in the middle rounds for spare change on ESPN2 friday night fights, the guy from the White Stripes is terrific, who- or whatever translates Max Martin's lyrics into english is the real artist there, the guy from Les Savy Fav is a wonder, um, no actually Sheryl Crow ain't bad either. Oh yeah, Nelly too, gets bonus points for using so many baseball metaphors and nursery rhyme schemes. Some of my favortie bands write absolutely horrible lyrics (Weezer, the Hellacopters) so maybe it's not really that important.

― Kris, Wednesday, 10 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

It's a very "indie rock" choice (which is hopelessly uncool on Freaky Trigger), but my vote would be David Berman of the Silver Jews.

― Mark Richardson, Friday, 12 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Actually David Berman is a really good lyricist. And a good songwriter too. See, we don't hate indie rock *really*, we're just selective, ho ho.

― Tom, Friday, 12 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

David Berman does indeed rule. Isn't he collaborating with kris kristoferson now? now HE is under-rated, the silver tongue devil & i is a work of monolithic genuis. Anyway anyway, David Berman & Aidan Moffat certainly dominate the sad end of the lyrical spectrum.

― cw, Friday, 12 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

dickon, dickon, dickon. *SIGH* it simply has to be dickon edwards. one of the greatest of our genaration, if not *the*. his words are - and you dont know how loathe i am to use this word in a "pop" context - poetry. poetry that doesn't bog down the music or seem weightedly pretentious in the way that stephin merrit's can. dickon's words simply flllllloooooooooow. they seem so honest and pure -like a 1000 megawatt heavenstarhalo, right on par with holland-dozier- holland - only razor sharp to the point of "keep out of reach of children" shall i lob forth another "genius"? yes. i shall.

― Stephen, Friday, 12 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

dickon's diary is better than his lyrics are. rosie pram is the best. thom yorkje is the worst, magnet poetry.

― keith, Saturday, 13 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

ummm, did i hear bill callahan-from-smog's name not being mentioned? for all the riddles he has subjected my brain to, for all the ambiguities he has spread over his records, even accepting that he sounds like a fuckhead and the last album wasn't all that good, he is still the number one forever and ever amen.

― joel, Saturday, 13 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Revenge of Rockism: Dylan's "Time Out Of Mind" contains great great lyrics. So there. Also Lou Reed's "Ectasy" mixes lyrics which rhyme dumb and thumb with the very affecting lyrics to Baton Rouge, and Reed probably the most distinctive lyricist around. Not the current Sleater Kinney album, but the previous two were great. "Not What You Want" ranks as one of the great kiss offs ever "You think you wanna watch/I think you better not" and then there's Joe Jackson who if he's still writing songs up to the par of his early stuff (is he? I don't know) would be tops and then Elvis Costello's stuff on Painted From Memory is tops, and the slighly earlier stuff (Spike et al) is also great lyrically (just overly complex musically)

― Sterling Clover, Saturday, 13 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

E from eels. very interessting lyrics.

also Joe Jackson, he just released his new album and it's very good.

Ludo

― Ludo, Sunday, 14 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Stephin Merritt, probably (pathetic covers-all-bases answer). Though MC Paul Barman comes rapidly closer.

― Robin Carmody, Monday, 15 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

The Genius/GZA, Method Man, Ghostface Killah, Outkast and Mobb Deep. And against those titans of Hip Hop I can only come up with Jason Pierce oh so elegant dope hymns and I have a inexplicable weakness for those smart-ass but moving Stuart Murdoch lyrics.

― o.munoz, Friday, 19 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

someone else mentioned it & i'll 2nd it cos it's untouchable in terms of "rock writing" or "lyrics" as you call em (there's a difference betwixt rock song writ & poetry, duh.) dylan's "time out of mind". unbelievable not in it's elaborations or variety/depth of language (tho there's bits of all that in there), but in the manner of his breathing, phrasing, flow & the content the words & delivery work & dance to illuminate. mortality, indeed....

― eric s gregory, Friday, 26 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

singer/songwriters unite : Peter Blegvad (ex Slapp Happy) still writes wittily and intelligently - if you like Merritt then you'll like PB.

― philT, Friday, 26 January 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

three weeks pass...

S/A/W

― Jiz, Friday, 16 February 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

in no particular order, and only of those i consider to be in their prime right now (i.e. no krs, no slick rick):

aceyalone eminem pharoahe monch ras kass common gza e-swift mos def prince poetry sticky fingaz

there are a lot of mcs i like better than those on this list, but only because of better DELIVERY, not better lyrics (method man, jay-z, lyrics born, odb, guru, etc.)

and i hate paul barman.

― ethan padgett, Saturday, 17 February 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

Ask Ally C96. He probably has an idea.

― the pinefox, Thursday, 22 February 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

At the risk of sounding like some kind of nepotistic, wankerish publicity machine, I honestly think it might be The Pinefox himself. No, really. I hope you weren't fishing for that one sonny, I was going to say it anyway.

― Ally C, Tuesday, 27 February 2001 01:00 (twenty-three years ago) link

nine months pass...

Van Dyke Parks Graeme Downes Robert Forster

― odyshape, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Bruce Springsteen.

Always was.

― dave q, Thursday, 29 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

I would've said Beyonce but that "smelling good" in 'Bootylicious' kills everything. So it's the Boss!

― dave q, Thursday, 29 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Scott Miller.

― dan, Thursday, 29 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Toby Keith!

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 29 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

what the fuck, e-swift?

― ethan, Thursday, 29 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Well, hey - at least the Boss beats Tom Waits.

― the pinefox, Thursday, 29 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

three months pass...

err ahhh Mmmm maybe... Stephen Malkus or Tom Mcrae

― kiwi, Thursday, 14 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

Couldn't it be Ryan Adams? Definitely the most prolific songwriter today. And what is this fishy thing about the Pinefox? How does the equation go? The Pinefox = Ally C = Lloyd Cole or what? If the Pinefox is the best lyricist where are his lyrics and songs?

― alex in mainhattan, Thursday, 14 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

If we're talking "right now" the correct answer is Mike Skinner of the Streets.

"You say everything sounds the same/Then you go buy them!"

― Marcello Carlin, Thursday, 14 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

four weeks pass...

gotta second the streets. he's beer-larious! (and i think he says that in Dont Mug Yourself or perhaps I dont understand english accents.) the big sobby track on the album, which is quite ace, "its too late" has the lyric "she loved me and i did too."

― Maggie, Thursday, 11 April 2002 00:00 (twenty-two years ago) link

four years pass...

"i'm including rap, and therefore - Paul Barman. The thinking man's Eminem......."

best post evah?

― timmy tannin (pompous), Friday, 3 November 2006 07:22 (seventeen years ago) link

the answer is JANDEK.

― calvin johnson has ruined rock for an entire generation (orion), Friday, 3 November 2006 08:18 (seventeen years ago) link

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