Entertainment For Lively Minds
What's your favourite example of foul language in Rock?
Posted by Retro Man on 17 September 2010 - 4:35pm.
I was just listening to one of my favourite tracks "Ugly" by The Stranglers - I've never grown out of the thrill of when you get to the bit where the music suddenly stops and J.J. yells "It's only the children of the fucking wealthy who tend to be good looking!".
Got me thinking, have you got any other examples of great swearing in Rock, or indeed, Pop?
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Plaistow Patricia...
Obviously
Obviously.
My second favourite is the Pistols' 'Bodies' - "fuck this and fuck that, fuck it all and fuck the fucking brat..."
The Man Don't Give A Fuck
by Super Furry Animals
Aye, I know it's a (yawn) Steely Dan sample, but, I don't give a fuck...
Kick Out The Jams...
... Futha Muckers!
(naturally I will not deface the hallowed Word messageboard with anything other than politeness)
Discreet language
No, I'm sorry, it has much more power when it's subtle. Doubtless these are trad.arr but ..
Chris Wood with The Imagined Village - The Handloom Weaver and the Factory Girl "She and I'll keep our shuttles in play" Priceless.
Or Bellowhead "Those Windward girls are hard to beat / When they tug on your main sheet"
That said, I do appreciate Old Scrotum on Sir Henry at Rawlinson End sneaking in the odd 'shite'.
I'd like to dedicate
my favourite swearing song - Hi How Are You by Brakes - to all The Fuckwits out there who attend gigs.
Hi, how are you?
What do you do?
What do you listen to?
Where do you go?
Are you with them or are you with us?
How do you dress?
Who are your friends?
Won't you shut the fuck up? I'm just trying to watch the band.
Hi, how are you?
What do you do?
What do you listen to?
Where do you go?
Are you with them or are you with us?
How do you dress?
Who are your friends?
Won't you shut the fuck up? I'm just trying to watch the band
Jayne County
Fuck Off!
What a Waster
By The Libertines
I don't believe you.....
.....you're a liar.
*turns to band*
PLAY FUCKING LOUD!
Being a Beatle fundamentalist
I have to go for the "oh, fucking ´ell" about three minutes into Hey Jude. It´s said in the background, of course, rather than a part of the lyrics.
Would also like to mention Wilmer X and their song Ah Du, Hur Fan Ser Du Ut? which is one of their great Chuck Berry homages.
A fine use of the C word
A fine use of the C word here:
and another unambiguous statement:
Fuckin' 'Ell!
It's Fred Titmus!
The Stranglers
I went to see the Stranglers in about 1992, when they had a new singer. It was the most depressing gig I'd ever been to, full of tubby old guys in leather jackets that no longer fitted them. the singer twisted every lyric into pitiful double-entendres -'Who'll get the job/of sucking our knobs'. Etc. That's when I realised punk was dead..
Evidently...
Genesis - Invisible Touch
The first ever compact disc I bought with my own money, just after Christmas 1992, was the Genesis live album, The Way We Walk Volume One. I know, I was clearly the coolest 11-year-old at Bury Church of England High School.
My dad had never really got on with Genesis after Steve Hackett left. As our relationship has grown over the years, A Trick of the Tail has become a firm favourite for both of us, but on arriving back from Vibes that morning he was surprised to see my purchase and so gave it a whirl on my new 'ghetto blaster.'
What does Phil sing in the version of this song in the disc? "And though she will FUCK UP your life/You want her just the same"
Beacon cheeks all round.
I've never known why they chose this to feature on Now 24 too, complete with an eff-sound, then a bleep, then a cuh- sound. "Oh, it's alright mum, he said 'flock.'"
Don't marry her
fuck me!
Amy
What kind of fuckery is this?
Always loved that line. Though it has me almost caused me to crash when I realised the kids were in the car with me..,
I raise your Chickentown
with my twat!
misheard
Dave Mustaine of (the mighty [please, indulge me]) Megadeth on their cover of Anarchy in the UK, had no idea what a "Another council Tenancy" was so sang/snarled "And other cunt like tendencies".
I actually prefer it.
Goth, Speed Metal, Michael Nyman, smilies etc... I sometimes feel I'm on the meringue forum
Mr Mustaine doesn´t get name checked nearly enough
Well done and have an arrow up, James!
Bless You!
Mr. C
consider a 'titfer' duly doffed :D
Uncle James, what is a titfer?
Doesn´t even sound like something I have the guts to google.
Rhyming slang
'Tit for tat' = hat.
Thanks Nigel!
Titfer = hat. It´s so obvious now. Twelve years of School English and not a single reference to a titfer.
Having seen Spies Like Us at least I know what the cockfor is.
A pleasure, Ola
And might I say your English is considerably better than my Swedish 8-)
Although I find I'm understanding more and more, thanks to Wallander on Saturday nights on BBC4 and a reasonable working knowledge of German...
Are they showing the Swedish Wallander in England?
I didn´t know that. Is it the one with Krister Henriksson or the slightly older - and for my money slightly better - with Rolf Lassgård?
The English version with Branagh was actually showed on Swedish tv.
I once talked to an Englishman in Berlin. He laughed at a joke I made to a friend (in Swedish) in an elevator, so I thought he was Swedish. Turned out he had worked in Norway for about a year and could understand my Swedish, which was really impressive.
I suppose if you speak English and know you way around German you can probably understand Swedish pretty well.
One day your Swedish will match my English and then we´ll swap life for a year, just for a laugh.
Swapping lives
Ola, hej!
We've been getting the KH version. Not the last series (they showed that last time around), but the one before last - shown, I believe, by popular demand since viewers loved so much what they'd seen last year. So in this series we've seen Linda turning up in Ystad as a newly-qualified police officer and then Stefan's arrival and their growing relationship.
I've learned - bought a paper between posting earlier and now - that it won't be on tonight (boo!), since the BBC's busy commemorating the Battle of Britain, but have just checked on Wikipedia and discovered there's another five episodes to look forward to in this series (hooray!). It's the television I've enjoyed most since the Sopranos finished - I watch very little, but make a point of seeing Kurt, Nyberg and the gang every week. So accept my thanks, Ola, as a representative of the Swedish nation.
What did you think of Branagh as Kurt? I enjoyed the stories (hadn't at this point seen any of the 'real' ones), but felt as if I was being acted into a corner of the room by Kenneth B's rather heavy-handed approach. I find Henrikson's more subtle portrayal a good deal more digestible.
As to a possible future life-swap...well, I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for my Swedish to catch up, Ola, and even if it did I think I'd be having the bigger laugh - I quite enjoy my life these days, but I can sense people thinking "Is that all you do?" when I outline a typical day's activities for them...
EDIT: To return (almost) to the theme of this thread, I find I have the good people at Yellow Bird (makers of Wallander, for anyone else in on this conversation) to thank for the fact that I now understand a certain amount of Swedish swearing, though I've no idea how to spell any of it 8-D
God dag!
It´s been a while since I really followed Wallander. In my mid teens I was something of a fan, I guess. This was the version with Rolf Lassgård. But if you think the KH one is the best drama show since The Sopranos - which is my all time favourite - maybe I should give it another chance. You don´t have to thank me though. You gave us The Beatles, The Kinks, The Who, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Nick Drake, Iron Maiden, Joy Division, Kate Bush, Radiohead, Charlie Chaplin, Petter Sellers, Monty Python, The Office, Eddie Izzard, Julian Barnes, Nick Hornby, Alfred Hitchcock, Samantha Morton (alright, alright - he´s got it).
I don´t want to pass judgement on Branagh version. To be fair I only gave it one go. I´m a fan of his, even if I usually don´t like that on-the-verge-of-being-too-theatrical approach to acting. Perhaps what you call "heavy-handed approach". It´s that acting-is-really-a-struggle-can-you-see-how-good-I-am-to-pull-this-off thing. Henriksson is perhaps a bit more effortless. But Wallander in English seemed a bit of a detour for me, for obvious reasons.
I´m quite happy with my life too. "Is that all you do?" is something I get asked as well. Sometimes I even worry myself. Maybe I should work harder...
Let me know if you ever need help with your Swedish swearing. I know a few. :)
My favourites in English are "for fuck´s sake" with a Scottish accent. It was used in a commercial when I was in my early teens and I used t A LOT. Also "feck" which I picked up in The Commitments, The Snapper and The Van. I even got away with that one in school. My teacher probably didn´t know Irish, bless him.
I might just take you up
on your offer of Swedish swearing tuition. My grand-daughter complains no end* if I say something as innocuous as "I'm crap at that", so it would be good to have something more up my sleeve to confuse her.
Yes, "acting-is-really-a-struggle..." was exactly what I meant. But I'm grateful in that the Branagh series led me to some proper Swedish Wallander.
And may I take this opportunity to apologise on behalf of these isles for Iron Maiden ;-)
*12-year-old girls can be so self-righteous...
Although Swedish swearing is rather lame
Most words are different words for the devil or hell, but I´m sure it could impress a twelve year old. Danish swearing sounds better though, if you happen to know a Dane.
Have now laid my hands on the first CH Wallander. If I´m correct it´s called Innan Frosten/Before The Frost. Will give it a chance and see if it lives up to your hype. If this weather continues I will know by this time tomorrow.
RE Iron Maiden - if you´re not with me, you´re against me.
I used to know some Danes
when at University in the late 80s, but that window of opportunity closed long ago.
As for the Wallander, I hope you won't be disappointed after my whole-hearted endorsement. We're enjoying some lovely late summer weather (slight return) here at the mo, but will be getting some more autumn later in the week, it seems.
Maiden? De gustibus non est disputandum... Against you - if you must - only in that respect.
Best wishes, Nigel.
The Wallander verdict is in
I´ve now watched Before The Frost. It wasn´t as good as The Sopranos, which I didn´t really think it would be, but better than expected.
Two things, though.
There are too many coincidences that work out slightly too smooth. The first one being when Linda is out on a bike ride in the forest and just happens to spot the woman who is reported missing. I do realise that the movie would be ten hours without these things, but still. There are too many of them crammed in. This works in stuff like Bond and Tintin (who can´t go to the toilet without bumping in to someone who is planning something) but not here. Sorry.
We now move on to my major issue with Swedish drama - the dialogue. It is, 90 per cent of the time, horribly hamfisted in any given movie/drama show. People just don´t talk like that. It´s too square (which is NOT hip). I do realise this probably isn´t a problem for you. I guess the subtitles aren´t word-for-word.
Also, when it comes to detective stories, one can´t help but wonder how all these sleepy small towns (Ystad´s population is slighlty below 20,000) can carry all these crimes. Do people move there just to keep the crime rate up?
I didn´t mean to make such a major fuzz about the things I didn´t like. All in all I would give it 3 out of 5. The actors are generally very good and I can surely understand the attraction of the surroundings. Sweden is a beautiful country.
The for/against Maiden thing was meant as a joke. Didn´t mean to be offensive. I´ll keep on listening to them and you´ll keep on listening to something you like, I hope.
Have you seen the Sjöwall/Wahlöö based Man On The Roof? Best Swedish police movie ever, from 1976. Seriously. Try to locate it. Almost up there with Iron Maiden´s best work.
We get Wallander subtitled,
and the English dialogue hasn't struck me as particularly unrealistic.
I take your point about coincidence - both that's it's necessary and unlikely. And if you think the murder rate's high in Ystad, you should see Midsomer Murders. I'm lying, actually - you should avoid it at all costs, 'cause it's crap*. Huge body count for somewhere that isn't South Central LA.
I realise that a great deal of what I like about Wallander is the sense of otherness I get from it - Sweden's clearly very different from England, geographically, socially... attitudinally, I think too. So the series gives me a view into a part of the world I'm unlikely ever to experience firsthand. Though there's always the lottery ;-)
You've reminded me - as a teenager I read a lot of Sjöwall and Wahlöö in the form of my Mum's library books. I must see if they're in the library here in Norwich...
And lastly, Ola, I recognised the Iron Maiden joke as just that - not offended at all. Wouldn't it be boring if we all liked the same stuff?
*Fuck me, it's shown in Sweden! (Well this is a thread about swearing...) The sentence advocating avoidance was on the assumption that you wouldn't need to try too hard. [Never take anything for granted, Nigel...]
Oh dear, The Midsomer Murders
That really is awful, isn´t it? Not only is it shown in Sweden - it´s huge! It´s shown every bloody summer and people really like it.
Personally I can´t stand that Agatha Christie thing (well, I know she didn´t write Midsomer, but you get the point) where murder is mainly a past time for the upper class in order to give the family something to discuss while having afternoon tea. It also seems like most of the victims are in their eighties.
I saw one episode almost the whole way through - ues, I know, I´m on meds - and it was someone who worked in a retirement home and killed people who lived there, nca´t remember why. In one scene she was sneaking her way towards a victim´s room - the old lady was asleep, walking like people do when sneaking Tom And Jerry style. You work there! Walk normal! Don´t draw attention to yourself by walking like an idiot, you idiot!
Where´s the remote? Crap telly upsets me, which is silly, but I can´t help it.
You write that part of the attraction with Wallander is "attitudinally" insight. If that´s a proper word, I have a new favourite. Having been to England, even if not as much as I would like to, I can´t tell that much difference between the two people. English people are maybe a bit more polite, at least to me. Ha!
You should go to Sweden sometime, it´s not that expensive. A weekend (like Thursday-Sunday) gives a great opportunity to see Stockholm. If you want to see Ystad, I´m sure 5 hours would be enough. Firsthand opportunity knocks!
I feel the same about British shows, btw. Even if, say, Cracker hadn´t been half as good as it was, I would still have watched it. Can´t help but love the environment. Are there any good shows taking place in Liverpool? Have been there twice, both times with a silly grin from landing to leaving. Currently planning a third trip. Big fan of Mel C...
Your mum clearly knows a good detective story (it´s also about Sweden´s political development between 65-75 and the characters are beautifully written). You should start with Roseanna.
It would be boring if we all liked the same stuff, yes. But I wouldn´t be able to sleep if I knew I had upset Eddie. Neither should you.
Now, time to avoid Midsomer Murders. Thanks for the warning!
The Midnight Rant was presented to you by Sir I-Need-A-Drink.
Eddie
He's not real, you know, Ola.
:-)
You'll get a more considered reply when I'm not just off to bed. (Made that mistake last night, and today have had a physically busy day - though in lovely summery weather, at least.)
A summer visit to Sweden would be lovely,
but would require a new passport and considerably more spare cash than I can muster right now. Haven't checked last night's lottery results, mind. (Not holding my breath.)
As I said, Wallander opens doors for me that would otherwise remain closed - like you, I love that vicarious immersion in an alien environment. Regarding your Liverpool query, have you seen Boys From The Black Stuff? It's not set in L'pool, but revolves around a group of Liverpudlians off working in the North-East - brilliant stuff, which may *cough* be available somewhere on the internet. Who knows?
My Mum clearly had her finger on the Swedish detective fiction pulse, as she was reading S&W in the early 70s, my early teenage years. I shall try and track down Roseanna. The title certainly rings a bell...
PS attitudinally: relating to, based on, or expressive of personal attitudes or feelings (Merriam-Webster)
I´ve spent many summers in Sweden and highly recommend it :)
So get a new passport and wait for the numbers.
Did your love for Sweden start with Wallander? The previous version of Sweden was black-and-white, moved very slow and was ridden with anxiety. Based on Bergman, of course. When you listen closer to some of Abba´s stuff, they were pretty dark too.
They (not Abba) now seem to make movies/tv dramas with a bit more awareness of the look-at-the-lovely-scenery aspect, which I´m not sure about. Although obviously it´s easier to sell to other countries and thus it makes more money. I understand why people respond to it, but make the script work first, then find locations. The scripts are often the weak link in Swedish movies. We have great actors and directors, but the writers often seems to be rushed for some reason.
Maybe I should watch the Branagh Wallander without hoovering at the same time. Then I could compare the two. Obviously my English isn´t as good as my Swedish, but I would like to know which one I like the best.
Haven´t seen Boys From The Black Stuff, but will try to track it down. Thanks for the advice!
Roseanna is the first of the ten Beck novels and thus makes a nice place to start. They should be read in their release/writing order - when they are, they kind of turn into one big story, you see.
Maybe you could start right here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/nov/22/crime-thriller-maj-sjowall-s...
Attitudinally. Attitudinally. Not even Dylan could squeeze that into a song.
"Eddie is not real, you know"? Famous last words, that.
Nice, edit, Ola
(Suddenly a link appeared as I was preparing to answer! Thank you.)
You've made me realise that my definition should have read: "in a manner relating to, based on, or expressive of personal attitudes or feelings". Clearly I shouldn't post too soon after getting up, either.
You're right - Sweden was formerly in black and white. Must have been great for you natives when the country was redecorated.
Hoovering and viewing don't mix. Even in one's first language.
Famous last words? There must be a bit of a time lag, as I've uttered and typed one or two since then. But having been tip-toeing around others' views in the God thread, the least I can do is say this: If you want to believe in Eddie, that's your prerogative. Just don't burn me at the stake for thinking differently, please.
Oh, and I fear the passport may have to wait for the numbers, too...
EDIT: Ola, thanks again for the link. I've read the Guardian piece now, which was fascinating. I knew nothing of the authors previously, and remember virtually nothing about the books - it was almost forty years ago - but I'll definitely be revisiting them.
Double post, in which this was the first
It dawned on me that the Guardian piece could have contained
A spoiler or two, but I hope it didn´t.
I do remember when Sweden was redecorated. We were given the day off from school, which was always the best days. Remember being disappointed about the snow still being white, though.
Famous last words wasn´t meant to be a I´m-gonna-kill-you-if-you-don´t-think-the-way-I-do. I just thought your line "Eddie isn´t real" sounded like the line that appears in horror movies just before people get killed/eaten/disappears without a trace, and that kind of thing was what I was referring to.
After having worn heavy metal t-shirts during my teens I´ve experienced my share of "it´s the devil´s music, you know" from religious people. The amount of Christians in this country who "knows" Iron Maiden are devil´s worshippers seems to outnumber the people who go to church, which is fascinating.
Maybe you should build a Sweden Fantasy Camp in England? Sweden is trendy at the moment, with Wallander and Stieg Larsson and what have you.
I claim 10 per cent of all income for the idea, btw. I will appear as the Swedish Chef for another 5 per cent.
I´ve now watched two Branagh´s Wallander
We´ve already discussed the fact that the grass is always greener on the other side, and yes, I think I prefer the English version.
The photo is far superior. Not only do they make better use of the scenery, they also shoot it (and edit it) in a better way. The use of light and shadow gives it an atmosphere not present in the Swedish version. Swedish directors are usually not very interested in making things look good, which is a shame. A great exception is of course Thomas Alfredson. Let The Right One In looks stunning, thanks to director of photography Hoyte van Hoytema.
The dialogue also runs more smoothly here, as far I can tell. Maybe because the scriptwriters didn´t try to write in the style of Henning Mankell (who, sorry for saying this, must be one of the most boring people Sweden has ever produced). The dialogue is quicker and sounds more modern.
Also, even if I don´t have anything against CH I prefer Kenneth Branagh. He gives a great performance as Lloyd Coyle on elephant tranquilizers, even if he and the other British actors trying to pronounce Swedish names sometimes sound a bit like, well, someone from Britain trying to pronounce Swedish names/cities/whatever.
Liked the fact that he types in Swedish on the screen when he´s net dating. The scenes about his personal life is btw almost more interesting than the murder cases. The relation between him and Linda feels more believeable than in the Swedish version.
You´ve got me hooked here, Nigel. Will also give CH a couple of more chances. A friend´s father is a big fan. Have been promised to borrow
the box set on DVD.
Glad you've enjoyed KB, Ola
This cultural exchange business is working well, it seems: you like ours and I like yours. And as for your "Lloyd Cole on elephant tranquilisers" line, I'm using that (attributed, of course) at the first possible opportunity.
I agree that the Branagh series was stunningly shot. I enjoyed it greatly, even with the lead's over-acting...but it didn't have quite that sense of 'other' that I get from the Swedish version. Could just be the language - I even found myself annoyed at the way the British actors made no attempt to pronounce the main character's name correctly.
Dialogue
I always found the dialogue, even subtitled, to be very good in Wallander and the acting knocks spots off everything of a similar nature we produce over here.
As for crime in sleepy hamlets - have you seen "Morse", probably the closest overseas cousin to Wallander. Take it from me, Oxford is not that dangerous in reality.
And then we come to "Midsommer Murders", I'm sitting at my window close to the River Thames overlooking a picturesque High Street adorned with flower baskets and lined with Tudor houses and open-topped tourist buses pass by. But apparently this is a crime filled hot-spot with John Nettles chasing criminals up and down every day!
Nope, I had to manhandle a drunk the other day and a friend got her bike nicked when the Fairground was in town, but trust me, it is not a bit dodgy in the slightest!
*edit* sorry Nigel, I just noticed your bit about "Midsomer Murders" being shown in Sweden, yep, it's true and I have rocknroll friends there who love it, even to the extent that they wanted me to take them around some of the locations - and yet they have the nerve to take the piss out of me for loving Wallander!
Midsomer/Wallander
Seems the grass is always greener on the other side.
Truly there's no accounting for taste...
Have seen two or three Morse
A bit sleepy, but Oxford is beautiful. Rock´n´roll friends who love Midsomer Murders? Please don´t let it be TSOOL. Please!
But just like Midsomer, Wallander has low cultural status. It´s not something that gets the critics going. It´s nowhere near as hip as The Sopranos or Mad Men. It´s nowhere near as good either, according to me. So fair enough. Slightly more subtle, perhaps (the plot and development of characters, that is, the violence is The Sopranos is not exactly subtle).
As for the Wallander dialogue - I think it´s got to do with Bergman. His characters often spoke very correct and, well, stiff. To this day a lot of writers seem to think this is the proper way to write a script, even if it doesn´t really come out the way people talk. Maybe the subtitles are a bit more relaxed.
*Currently listening to A Present From The Past. CD 1 is great so far.*
Agreed,
Wallander isn't as good as the antics of Tony S and co, but a series can fall short of the brilliance of The Sopranos and still be damn good. And as I said in my other reply this morning, the Swedish 'otherness' helps a great deal for this English viewer of W.
As to the dialogue, all I can say is the subtitles don't come across as stiff. It seems that the Swedish viewer is handicapped in his enjoyment by familiarity with Sweden and by speaking the language...
;-)
Good point!
When I watch German movies - which I seem to do a lot - I become more aware of the tone of the voices and the body language. At least when I´m not trying to keep up with the subtitles. This goes for Danish series as well. Danish for me is nigh on impossible to understand if they don´t talk really slow, which they never do.
"A series can fall short of the brilliance of The Sopranos and still be damn good." Absolutely. For me that sums up every other series. Even beauties like The Wire and Mad Men.
"A bit sleepy,
but Oxford is beautiful. Rock´n´roll friends who love Midsomer Murders? Please don´t let it be TSOOL. Please!"
- Nope, not them, well not that I know of anyway, don't worry, their cedibility is still intact!
I was kind of worried there for a while
Double post
What´s brown and sound like a bell?
Dung!
Aye thangyew, here all week...
Well done, sir!
Have been listening to Megadeth this week during my walks, possibly thanks to your name check. It had been a while, really.
Death or Glory..
For the current visit thats in it :)
" He who fucks nuns will later join the church"
That!
is one of my most favourite lyrics, I guess Joe stole it?
Let's not forget Mick Jones...
"When you lot get out
we're gonna hit the town
we'll burn it fuckin' down
to a cinder"
.........."Stay Free"
Slip one in
I caught parts of Pudstock in Ramsbottom last week; - local bands playing off a wagon behind the pub which was hosting the Official World Black Pudding Throwing Championship
First up was a most enjoyable set from a Bury band called The Sugar Bullets, a classic punk juke box from 3 blokes old enough to know better. Great stuff throughout, including a spot-on version of Blitzkreig Bop, where I just about withstood the urge to shout "Tune!" and point out that they don't write them like that any more
When they started I wondered whether they'd pay tribute to punk band swearing but decided that they probably wouldn't as it was early afternoon with a family audience present. Anyway about 4 numbers into the set they played Eton Rifles and yer man quite clearly sang the opening line "Fuck off your beer and collect your fags"
Nicely done, I thought
here are some more suggestions
:-)
http://www.wordmagazine.co.uk/content/good-swearing-tracks
"Nimrod's Son" - Pixies
One night upon my motorcycle through the desert sped,
And smashed my body so that all my friends thought I was dead;
My sister held me close and whispered to my bleeding head,
"You are the son of a motherfucker."
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Fuck the war and bring our brothers home . Moratorium off She Used To Wanna Be A Ballerina
Sex Pistols on that evening show
Was it Reg Grundy? "What a fuckin' rotter..." etc
It blew my tiny mind.
It was Bill Grundy...
... and it was Steve Jones who called him a "fucking rotter" after Grundy said something salacious about Siouxsie Sioux.
Thanks for the info Billybob.
I recall they were goaded into swearing, which they happily did, by the Grundy fella, who looked completely out of his depth.
Young Man's Blues
on Live at Leeds
"Ain't got nothing...nothing...ain't got SWEEEEEEET FUCK ALL"
Also, there's a very obvious "Who the fuck are you" in "Who are you" which never gets censored when it's on the radio, for some reason.
My parents were in earshot the first time I played Aladdin Sane, needless to say none of us anticipated
"Time, he flexes like a whore
falls wanking to the floor"
Nothing will ever recreate the thrill...
...of dropping the needle on "Appetite For Destruction" and a minute or so into track 2, "It's So Easy", getting:
I see you standin' there.
You think you're so cool.
Whyn't you just FUCK OFF?
But as much as I still love that, my favourite swear comes a little later in the album when Axl's whiny snarl combines with the force of nature that was Guns 'N' Roses in 1987, on "Out Ta Get Me":
'Cos I got somethin' that's been buildin' up inside
For so fuckin' long....
It's very ordinary without the music. People underestimate what a primal, visceral adrenaline machine Guns 'N' Roses used to be, and that song is pretty much the apotheosis for me.
Shut you're f*cling mouth
'till you know the truth. Burn It Down. Dexys.
Ben Folds
has quite a number of foul-mouthed outbursts on record, particularly for one so quiet and innocent-looking, and while the massive multitracked "MOTHER****ER" at the end of "Fired" is quite an epic moment, my vote has to go to his cover of Dr. Dre's "Bitches Ain' Shit", for putting such relentless four-letter-wordery to such a sweet, Magic-FM musical accompaniment.
A little-known example of terrific rock swearing occurs in the second chorus (and recurs later) of The Specials' "Pearl's Cafe". Top swearing. (Roughly 1:30 and 2:25 into the video).
Finally, while I'm on a roll, my song of the summer is the coproriphic "F*** You" by Cee-lo Green, as originally flagged up here not long ago:
I'll vote for Ben Folds as well.
Song For The Dumped. "Fuck you, too!"
Said with huge venom by a very angry and embittered man.
Along with the Give Me My Money Back You Bitch bit.
And the Hidden Track on the album.. "Ben Folds is a fuckin' asshole!!"
Jeremy ~ Pearl Jam
is my hearing meringue or does he not sing "Seemed a harmless little fuck"?
things went a bit bonkers (Fraser!) so last line of above, is below (quite poetic that)
Jeremy ~ Pearl Jam rev. 2.0
played on daytime radio and telly all over the shop
Ween
I love the song Baby Bitch by Ween, it's a really good post-break-up song and contains the double whammy of
"I'm better now please fuck off" and "Fuck you, you stinking asshole"
Magic!!
This one's for you, daddy
Foul mouthed Fish
5.34 in.
Ray
Hmmmm, yes, but the trick is to do it on really huge selling singles that get played everywhere throughout the world with MOR DJs not having a clue as to the true lyric.
'Hey Jude' has been mentioned but what about 'Apeman' by The Kinks; 'the evolution is a-'fogging' up my eyes'.
More Sex Pistols
Mischievous buffoonery ahoy on the B side of Holidays in the Sun, Friggin' in the Rigging. A stream of profanity from start to end. Disgraceful.
Sexy MF
Not really rock, but Prince's funked up lyrics had to be cleaned up to get airplay and by doing so totally missed the point. The lyrics also contain the line "a long leggy five foot eight" which still make me laugh. I suppose that is tall if you're just over five foot.
Honourable (!) mention
Also available with music.
See above...
...for musical version.
Oh aye...
...how did I miss that ?!? Durr...
Always found this amusing.
Mr Pete Townsends swears first, thinks later.
Paul Weller
'Time For Truth' on The Jam's debut album.
I loved the was he said 'Fuck Off' on that one.
Made me think swearing was totally cool. I've been using such phrases ever since...
No
.
Mr Lennon's "Working Class Hero"
More Specials..
It's all a load of bollocks is what they sing although the title is another. Nice.
Mention in dispatches for The Crass and Owe Us A Living
Fuck the politically minded, here's something I want to say,
About the state of nation, the way it treats us today.
At school they give you shit, drop you in the pit,
You try, you try, you try to get out, but you can't because they've fucked you about.
Then you're a prime example of how they must not be,
This is just a sample of what they've done to you and me.
Do they owe us a living?
Of course they do, of course they do.
Owe us a living?
Of course they do, of course they do.
Owe us a living?
OF COURSE THEY FUCKING DO.
stopped short of adding the lyrics to So What
though it still makes me laugh.
We Are The League
I'm glad you said that. Aged twelve, pretty nerdy, an Anti Nowhere League LP was my passport to acceptance with the cool blokes at school. Very odd, in retrospect. But "So What" is a corker. Marking English A Level scripts a year or two back, I would reward myself for finishing off some student's essay on Othello with a blast of that marvellous anthem from Tunbridge Wells' finest.
The Darkness
Most of Permission to Land. Especially Black Shuck, probably the only Metal Sweary Folk Song.
Disgusting
Des O'Connor - Dick-A-Dum-Dum
I see even Glenn Tilbrook has stooped low enough to cover this rude song.
Slightly crowbarred into the topic, I know...
as it's not really rock, but in honour of our esteemed weekend visitor, I feel the need to share this with all and sundry:
Tim Minchin - The Pope Song
Jam - Mr Clean
"If you see me in the street, look away,
Cos I don't ever want to catch you looking at me Mr Clean,
Cos I hate you
And your wife
And if I get the chance
I'll FUCK UP YOUR LIFE"
more Dury
Fuckin Ada, from the very fine Laugher LP.
Seem to remember a parental advisory all over side 2 of that one..
my trip down memory lane
inspired by http://www.wordmagazine.co.uk/content/the-song-fits-your-mood-right-now reminded me of the first album I had with an sweary word - Brain Capers by the Mott The Hooples, track 1 side 1 Death May Be Your Santa Claus, "We ain't bleeding you, we're feeding you. But you're too fuckin' slow"!
Not Bad!
Not rock & roll
But an entertaining lesson in a proper english word
The Streets
and his fine lament for the lovelorn "Dry Your Eyes"
Fuck Off Noddy
Another Ian Dury moment that was taken off his 4000 Weeks Holiday album due to WHSmith refusing to stock it with that song on it. Can't imagine that happening today.
Also a mention for Bring On The Nubiles from No More Heroes by The Stranglers.
Nilsonn
B side of a 1972 single "Spaceman"
Without you it isnt.
D'Abgelo Sh*t Damn MF
Works because of the subject matter: -
Nick Cave's Stagger Lee
I've always thought that Nick Cave's Stagger Lee has got some fantastic swearing on it.
e.g. -
"I'm a bad motherfucker, don't you know
And I'll crawl over fifty good pussies just to get one fat boy's asshole"
Can't believe I've said that out loud!
Nicked Cave
I remember Cave saying that he stole that line off an old blues record. Can't remember which one though.
N Cave - Stagger Lee
He may have got it from "The Great Stack-a-Lee" a version from The Johnny Otis Show's "Snatch & the Poontangs - For Adults Only" album. Lots of verbal filth on that one. Not so old, mind you...
Here's something very rude indeed from 1935.
The Police - Dead End Job
Somewhere after the main body of the song, Sting is heard to shout:
You can stick your fuckin' dead end job, cunts!
Always rather marvellous to hear.
Rehumanise Yourself
Billy's joined the National Front
He always was a little runt
Got his hands in the air
With the other cunts
You've gotta humanise yourself.
Another Sting cuss, written by Copeland I believe.
A novel approach
Do all your swearing in a language the majority of your audience don't speak and airplay is no longer a problem. Hence "Wat Pomp", by South Africa's Die Antwoord, switches back and forth between English and Afrikaans, and features this verse about halfway through the song:
Fok jou ek dink jys n poes [f**k you, I think you're a c*nt]
Wat jou vir n poes want jy klink soos n poes [treat you like a c*nt cause you sound like a c*nt]
Jy rap soos n poes en jy sing soos n poes [you rap like a c*nt and you sing like a c*nt]
Vars want jy stink soos n poes [fresh cause you stink like a c*nt]
Audience bating.
The Cult's early eighties live disc "Dreamtime:Live At The Lyceum" is uniquely fascinating as a live album i think. Having seen them a few times in those years, Ian Astbury always tended to goad the audience a little. But to have your live album complete with drunken heckles, and then comebacks from the band is i think refreshingly 'warts and all'. Early in the gig he says, 'I can't fucking hear you at all, i mean why d'you bother coming, is this an alternative Sunday night out or what?.....we're enjoying it if nothing else! Then later to rapturous applause....."We played our fucking hearts out for you tonight,....at least you can show some appreciation!" All rather wonderful i think.
Is it a bit obvious?
Fuck you I won't do what you tell me!
is this swearing?
Hunt (I Said Hunt) this one out
The track 'Bob George' on Prince's Black album. Just to hear the little man sing in his best gansta baritone "Prince? that skinny muthafucker with the high voice! Damn, i'll fuck you up"
Also an honourable live mention for the mighty Pixies getting away with performing Planet of Sound live on TOTP (This ain't no fucking around, it's a planet of sound) - not a battering of an eyelid by the presenter who was clearly not listening.
Cambridge Folk Festival
On comes Chumbawamba...much to the bemusement of some, the opening song goes, "Shut up your mouthful of shit...do something about it!"
Neil Young's "Fucking Up"
Caravan "Cunning Stunts" (think about it carefully...)
New Order
Your Silent Face
"You caught me at a bad time, so why don't you piss off?"
Pearl Jam
or Jism as I prefer to call them seemed to slip "Harmless little fuck" under the radar of most radio stations on Jeremy
It was all over in less than 12 parsecs
A band called Organ Grinder have apparently recorded a song titled: Fucked Up The Arse With A Lego Millennium Falcon. I’ve scoured the internet for a clip of the track to no avail, so we’ll have to imagine the deft turn of phrase and sonnet-like structure that lies behind this magnificent heading.
I’ve seen a Lego Millennium Falcon in the flesh (brick?). It’s massive and (unlike the many sleek, aerodynamic sex toys, fashioned from space-aged materials and available from all good shops) awkwardly shaped for the purpose proposed by the band. I’ll concede that with a bit of effort you might achieve minimal penetration with one of the wedge-shaped prongs at the front. Even then there is the issue of structural integrity; the tendency for large chunks of Lego models to break off when subjected to even minimal levels of physical stress.
Repeat offenders, Anal Cunt, are too busy insulting minorities and singing the glories of The Village People (“Jacques Morali wrote the heaviest music ever, Glenn Hughes had a deeper voice than Will from Mortician, He wore chains before Slayer and Venom, Jacques Morali was portrayed by Steve Guttenberg...”) to swear all that much in their songs. They do still manage it occasionally. In You (Fill In The Blank) they admit:
The chorus continues:
The Wildhearts
"I wanna be where the cunts like me are buried six feet underground"
Outstanding!
The Fall
The Classical:
"Throw out the obligatory niggers / hey there fuckface,hey there fuckface".
sweary AND racist. (MES would claim he was channeling a character)
And...
there is a story that this line apparently cost them a deal with Motown.
Limp Bizkit
The song "Rollin'" is definitely not one to lullaby children with!
End of verse one in particular. I don't need to type such filth, but I'm sure you all know where to find google if the need takes you.
Mr Badger..
The thread title refers to one's favourite sweary songy bits..
Either you do some swift editing or we'll all gang up and laugh at you for liking Limp Bizkit.
Wot!
it's not all about Wallander then?
pshaw....
Speaking of which
I will watch the first Branagh Wallander before the weekend is over.
Say it out loud, I´m Swedish and I´m proud!
24...
I was a teenager when it came out. Please cut me some slack accordingly, although the rebellious young man in me still has a minor thrill at the following couplet:
So where the fuck you at punk' Shut the fuck up
And back the fuck up While we fuck this track up
Obviously
David Ford
I was listening to his 'I Sincerely Apologise..' album last night, which as some fine swearing:
Cheer up, you miserable fuck
This has gone on long enough
And I don't want to hear anymore
and
Katie, will you say to me?
Will you just laugh and tell me that I've got it wrong?
Katie, will you say to me?
Will you just tell me please what the fuck is going on?
Miles Hunt
A poet for the, ahem, grebo generation sang this beautiful verse with venom on the sweary bits:
Well the singers frowning cos he's quoting a phrase
From a shit book by some wanker that says
Education that won't get you by cos it's crime that pays
Another Two...
Hamell On Trail - "Go Fuck Yourself/Choochtown
When Oysterband play "When I'm Up, I Can't Get Down"
"They say the world would be my oyster/You can put your trust in me."
The audience responds by saying "Like fuck" in an immediate and instant response. Unfortunately at Ely Folk Festival 2004 I said that out loud, much to my embarrassment I was the only person who said it!
In more innocent times
as a young Bowie fan me and mates shared the excitement of hearing him sing 'time falls wanking to the floor' and on Please Mr Gravedigger mentioning dogshit. Later on David Live he alters Changes to 'and these children that you SHIT on'. We thought this was amazing. Seems a bit naff now with one son very into grime.
Now the kids will hear me singing along to The Yayhoos - Baby I love you just leave me the fuck alone.
Alright, now that's enough swearing!
It's not big and it's not clever, and nobody's laughing. You just sound ignorant and silly. Any more of this and you'll all stay in through break time. I mean it, Hepworth! Wipe that filthy look off your face this instant.
and all this
Wallandering is distrubeing me
For sheer gratuitous swearing,
my vote goes to "The Yobs", and 12 days of christmas off their seminal Christmas Album.
played to death along with Frigin in the Riggin (mentioned above) on our campus radio station. Mostly by me, in a very juvenile phase that has yet to cease almost 30 years later.
The Ruts
last song on The Crack Lp is a live version of Human Punk
spoken intro by malcolm something like- "we've been playing like a bunch of fucking wankers all evening.....etc ...but this time we're gonna FUCKING do it...."
love it
Rockin' the Suburbs
The excellent Ben Folds is namechecked earlier on this thread, but I'm surprised to see not for Rockin' the Suburbs. Besides the conversational cuss in each chorus, and the phased coda-intro "You'd better look out because I'm gonna say...", it has quite the best bellowed f-word it's been my pleasure to encounter.
Video below amusingly "cleaned" for distribution, but you get the point - and do check Spotify etc for that bellow at the four-minute mark.
Ben Folds - Rockin' The Suburbs (Official Music Video) - Watch a funny movie here
My favourite
surely it has to be....
The Libertines - I Get Along
I get along
Just singing my song
People tell me I'm wrong
........FUCK 'EM
I missed this thread
Working away, etc.
Gentlemen I give you, Dove @ 7
0o
well...