There are many songs out there that have have a catchy riff accompanied with an upbeat tempo which makes them appear to be happy songs. However, when you go to analyse the lyrics you find that there are dark undertones to the song which will change your perspective on it. Here are 5 songs that I've picked out that are happy or *sigh* pumping songs that fall into this category.
5.) Green Day - Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)
Probably one of Green Day's most well known song. It regularly features on playlists at weddings or graduations. However, most people are unaware that the song is far from a love song and is about Billie Joe Armstrong coming to accept a very nasty breakup from his girlfriend at the time. The song was written during the Dookie sessions and an early demo of the song appears as a B-side on the Insomniac album. The girlfriend the song was written about would eventually end up marrying Billie Joe but at the time things looked bleak for the two. Rather than writing a nasty hate filled song, Armstrong wanted to wish his ex well for the future and to look at their time together with fond memories. In essence the song is about unrequited love which makes it antithetical for weddings in particular. Armstrong felt the song was not very punk so gave it the title 'Good Riddance'.
4.) The Killers - Jenny Was A Friend of Mine
The song that kicks off their excellent debut album has a thumping beat accompanied with one of my favourite bass riffs of all time. It's impossible to listen to the song and not at least tap your foot to it. The song appears to be about a breakup but on closer inspection of the lyrics it's about a brutal murder taking place with the killer (hey that's the name of the band) in a interrogation room, confident that he will walk free. The sinister tone of the song is shown with the ambiguous lyrics; perhaps the most poignant line being:
"She couldn't scream while I held her close, I swore I'd never let her go."
To listen to this casually, it would appear that the singer was simply hugging 'Jenny' and that he could not accept the inevitable breakup. However, the lines "I know my rights I've been here all day and it's time, for me to go so let me know if it's alright," show that the man in the story is being questioned by the police in relation to murder that took place. The song is unofficially the last part of a trilogy of songs that the band wrote. If you play 'Leave the Bourbon on the Shelf', 'Midnight Show' and 'Jenny was a Friend of Mine' in sequence, you will here the full story and conclusion of poor Jenny's demise.
3.) Terry Jacks - Seasons in the Sun
This song had a resurgence in popularity in the last decade due to the sonorous cover by the lads from Westlife. The song certainly has a catchy chorus and evoking childhood images of playing when it was sunny outside, it is easy to forget that this song is about a man accepting his pending premature death. The song goes through a brief history of the man's life as he says his goodbye to those who are the closest to him in life. The strained relationship with his father is examined as the man realises he was a difficult child for a parent to raise and acknowledges the efforts his father made with him to try and raise him right,
"Goodbye, Papa, please pray for me,
I was the black sheep of the family.
You tried to teach me right from wrong.
Too much wine and too much song,
wonder how I get along."
At the heart of the song is the toughest part about facing death, in the opinion of the dying man, is leaving behind the tranquility of nature itself with the line, "It's hard to die, when all the birds are singing in the sky" is repeated in the verses. Personally my favourite version of this song is Nirvana's. It seems fitting that it was one of the last songs that Kurt Cobain recorded as well, I recommend looking it up on Youtube.
2.) Nirvana - Polly
I debated about placing this song in this list because it is very somber in tone. In the end I decided that put it here due to the fact if you are not aware of the background to the song, then it plays out as a weird story of a man and his parrot. This could not be farther from the truth though as the song is based on a true story about a killer who is committing gruesome acts of torture on a woman who he kidnapped. As with most of Cobain's lyrics, they go largely unnoticed due to his mumbling style of singing. The clear lines that is repeated throughout the song is "Polly wants a cracker" which alludes to a stereotypical parrot saying that is widely acknowledged in the popular culture. It's when the listener goes to see the lyrics written on a page that they can decipher that the subject matter in this song is grotesque. The most chilling line from the song "I think she wants some water, to put out the blow torch".
1.) Manic Street Preachers - Your Love Alone Is Not Enough
The Manic Street Preachers had a late renaissance with their career in 2007 with this surprise hit single. This is the first A-side duet the band had done since their debut album Generation Terrorists in 1992. 'Your Love Alone is Not Enough' reached a high charting position of number 2 in the UK, narrowly missing out on the top spot due to Beyonce and Shakira's collaboration with the song 'Beautiful Liar'. Nina Persson provides female vocals for this summer soaked song that is revved up with screeching electric guitar and elegantly placed orchestra strings in the background. The song is not typical of Manic Street Preachers who are more well known for their somber music backed by politically subversive lyrics.
The song is written by the bands bass player Nicky Wire. To put simply, the song is a conversation between Wire and missing band member (presumed dead and officially declared dead in November 2008) Richey Edwards. Edwards went missing in 1994 and it is widely believed that he committed suicide. The title of the song is from the last line of a suicide note written by a close friend of the band. Edwards had battled clinical depression for most of his adult life and it began to grow worse when the band shot to popularity with their third album 'The Holy Bible'. Wire was the closest in terms of friendship with Edwards and witnessed the pain that Edwards was going through first hand and how he would try to hide it from the rest of the band, "Through all the pain your eyes stayed Blue they stayed Blue Baby Blue". Edwards wrote the majority of the bands lyrics for their first three albums, he found it difficult to cope with the popularity of the band as their fan base grew. This makes Wire's vocals more poignant on this song. Wire rarely sings because to his own admission he is not very good. However, his vocals come out of the blue at the last chorus of the song saying, "I could have written all your lines, I could have shown you, how to cry." This is Wire telling Edwards he would have taken the burden of writing the band's lyrics from him if it meant that he would have peace of mind. This is why I place this song on this list.
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