Blinded by the Lyrics (Paperback)

by Brent Mann (Author)
Key Phrases: one headlight, seaside arms, estate novelist, Los Angeles, Steely Dan, New York City (more...)

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Citadel (July 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806526955
• ISBN-13: 978-0806526959
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #76,398 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #37 in	Books > Entertainment > Music > Theory, Composition & Performance > Songwriting
  #96 in	Books > Entertainment > Music > Instruments & Performers > Voice

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Even a rock aficionado will learn a thing or two, February 3, 2006

By	Greg Brady "columbusboy" (Capital City) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

My wife characterized this, correctly, as a "great bathroom book". The chapters are all about 2-3 pages with a theme of a particular song's most "inscrutable" lyric but with lots of neat bunny trails along the way. For example, a section on Steely Dan's "Any Major Dude Will Tell You" also includes a tidbit on Genesis' "Squonk". Besides the parts on particular songs, there are portions that deal with decades in general from the 1970s to the 1990s.

If you don't know what a "fried out Kombi" is, what part Freddie Mercury's country of origin played in the writing of "Bohemian Rhapsody" or what the "pompitous of love" are, (to say nothing of a "cool water sandwich and a Sunday-go-to-meetin' bun") this book will clue you in.

Perhaps the best part is this book doesn't focus only on the oft analyzed Rolling Stones, Beatles, Led Zeppelin, et al., but it also finds time for tunes from Men At Work, The Fixx, Barenaked Ladies and Rickie Lee Jones.

PROS:
Mann's style is breezy and he's unafraid to inject his personal opinion even if he thinks it will be an unpopular one. (He fondly recalls the video for Huey Lewis and the News' "If This is It".)

CONS:
You'd probably not want to refer to this again and again and because of the diversions, it doesn't necessarily make a good "reference" book if you're a DJ or musicologist. It's not always easy to remember WHERE you learned, for example, how the Marshall Tucker Band got its name, since they don't have a chapter dedicated to them..just a bunny trail off the "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" entry. There's no index either.

BOTTOM LINE:
The BIGGEST lyrical mysteries (Who are the Queen and the Jester in "American Pie"? What got thrown off the Tallahatchie Bridge?) aren't solved, but I'd be willing to bet 98% of this book's readers will learn at least ONE thing they didn't know about a band or song and the casual rock listener will find it a treasure trove of information.

3 1/2 stars

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The pompatus of pop culture -- a terrific book, August 16, 2005

By	David (Marin County, California) - See all my reviews

It's seldom that I've read a book that left me both entertained and informed -- "Blinded by the Lyrics" is such a book. Brent Mann gives you the inside story behind hundreds of mysterious, fascinating rock & roll lyrics. What did the Grateful Dead mean by "Dallas got a soft machine" in Truckin'? What exactly is the enigmatic "pomatus of love" in "The Joker" by Steve Miller? "Blinded by the Lyrics" answers these sorts of questions with wit, style and exhaustive research.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A trip through some of my favorite tunes!, June 14, 2005

By	Leslie Doyle (Southboro, MA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is the fun summer book I'm sharing with all my friends.

A terrific read!! Mann unraveled the mysteries of some of my favorite tunes. If you ever said "hey, love that tune but what the heck is he/she talking about in that line?" pick up the book - It's a blast to read about some of the songs we all grew up with.

Plus you gotta love the insights into Steely Dan's lyrics--possibly the most perplexing of all time!

I was a fan of Brent Mann's from his first book, 99 Red Balloons (about one-hit wonders, only way more interesting than that insipid VH1 show). I liked this 2nd book even better, with more of Mann's trademark wit. A definite recommend!