Category Archives: 1960s songs

The top 500 best music and songs from the 1960s. Song meanings, lyrics and interpretations from your favorite artists. The Beatles, Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, Dylan. See who rates the highest!

#55 Light My Fire- The Doors

You know that I would be a liar/
If I was to say to you/
Girl we couldn’t get much higher…

The Doors’ “Light My Fire” is a very distinctive sound. One reason is due to Jim Morrison’s voice.  Morrison’s has one of the manliest and sexiest male voices. Another reason The Doors sound so distinct is that they rely on keyboards and don’t use a bass guitar. Does any other band not use a bass? None that I know of. It obviously creates a tinny sound. I do wonder if this song would have been enhanced with a bass part. Though, it apparently does fine without.

Light My Fire Meaning
The Doors

If you like keyboards The Doors “Light My Fire” is the song for you. I cannot think of any song that utilizes keyboard solos to the extent that “Light My Fire” does. And they are great solos. The lyrics were extremely risqué at the time, but now they seem relatively tame by today’s standard.

“Light My Fire” references sex and drugs in a roundabout way…it doesn’t use those words anyways. This is a good way to write about risqué topics. Hint at the topic, rather than say it directly. Current musicians could look to Morrison for inspiration in this regard. At the time of release, The Doors “Light My Fire” wasn’t considered so circumspect.

Another great Doors song on this list is Break on Through.

Lyrics Light My Fire

You know that it would be untrue
You know that I would be a liar
If I was to say to you
Girl we couldn’t get much higher

Come on baby light my fire
Come on baby light my fire
Try to set the night on fire

The time hesitate is through
No time to wallow in the mire
Try now we can only lose
And our love become a funeral pyre

Come on baby light my fire
Come on baby light my fire
Try to set the night on fire

You know that it would be untrue
You know that I would be a liar
If I was to say to you
Girl we couldn’t get much higher

Come on baby light my fire
Come on baby light my fire
Try to set the night on fire

written by Jim Morrison

#54 Ask Me No Questions- Bridget St John

Ask me no questions, tell me no lies if you don’t mind, and come with me.

“Ask Me No Questions” by Bridget St. John is not a song you will hear on the radio, but it is one of the most tender, loving songs about love-well, making love—sung by an amazing artist. The song is a classic folk song: just the singer and a guitar and little else.

Bridget St. John talks about sex in a very direct way (that is what the song is about) but she uses poetic language to make it seem mystical and important. She asks her partner to surrender to her, leave everything behind, and they can go to a place of bliss. Together. In the morning they will both agree to forget everything and keep it a secret.

Ask Me No Questions Meaning
Bridget St. John

It is interesting that the title of the song is “Ask Me No Questions” as the theme of the song is really more about two people coming together. But in her mind, in order for it to happen they must both temporarily set everything behind by not asking each other questions about their pasts or promising things about the future. Only then, will they be able to completely belong to each other in that moment.

Perhaps the past can get in the way of enjoying the present if we let it. You might also like another Bridget St John song on this list:  Song to keep you Company.

Ask Me No Questions Lyrics

Ask me no questions,
Tell me no lies if you don’t mind, and come with me.
There, where the sun flies.
There, where the sky is bluer still is where we’ll be.
Take nothing with you.
I’ll give you everything I can, have no fear.
For if you stumble, or should you fall down on the way, I’ll be there.
Close your eyes, my love.
Close your eyes, gently, come.
And in the morning,
Don’t tell a soul of what you saw, it’s just for you.
Keep this a secret, make me a promise that you will.
I’ll make one too.
Close your eyes, my love.
Close your eyes, gently, come.
Ask me no questions,
Tell me no lies if you don’t mind, and come with me.
There, where the sun flies.
There, where the sky is bluer still is where we’ll be.

written by Bridget st John

#47 Good Vibrations- The Beach Boys

I’m pickin’ up good vibrations
She’s giving me excitations.

There are a few songs on this list that seem to transcend the rock genre: The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations” is bigger than labels like “Rock”, “Pop”, or “Folk”. Court of the Crimson King and Funeral for a Friend are two other examples of songs that are closer to symphonies than rock songs.

I mean, who uses a Theremin—and productively? This is Brian Wilson just about at the peak of his powers.

Good Vibrations Meaning
Brian Wilson & Mike Love in studio

The lyrics in “Good Vibrations” are straightforward. They tell a story about getting a great vibe from a girl–and pursuing her. We know exactly what he’s talking about, and he describes his feelings in a colorful way, because when you are first attracted to someone you start to feel a little different. Maybe even happy. Also notice the experimentation with words like “excitations”…we don’t hear that word often in music. (Is it even a word?)

As with every Beach Boys song the harmonizing is amazing, so I am going to try and not concentrate on that too much. The call and response effect works sounds really good in this song, it is a tried and true technique.

Note the difference between the sounds of the chorus, verse and the two bridges.  They sound great together, but if you look at them individually, they are quite different. This is a feature of psychedelic rock. We usually don’t think Beach Boys when we think psychedelic rock but all the characteristics are here: dreamy or surreal lyrics, experimentation with new instruments and song structure and usually from 1965-70.

Good Vibrations Lyrics

I-I love the colorful clothes she wears/
And the way the sunlight plays upon her hair.
I hear the sound of a gentle word/
On the wind that lifts her perfume through the air.

I’m pickin’ up good vibrations/
She’s giving me the excitations (oom bop bop)/
I’m pickin’ up good vibrations (good vibrations, oom bop bop)/
She’s giving me the excitations (excitations, oom bop bop)/
I’m pickin’ up good vibrations (oom bop bop)/
She’s giving me the excitations (excitations, oom bop bop)/
I’m pickin’ up good vibrations (oom bop bop)/
She’s giving me the excitations (excitations)/
Close my eyes, she’s somehow closer now/
Softly smile, I know she must be kind/
When I look in her eyes/
She goes with me to a blossom world.
I’m pickin’ up good vibrations/
She’s giving me excitations (oom bop bop).
I’m pickin’ up good vibrations (good vibrations, oom bop bop)/
She’s giving me excitations (excitations, oom bop bop).
Good, good, good, good vibrations (oom bop bop).
She’s giving me excitations (excitations, oom bop bop)/
Good, good, good, good vibrations (oom bop bop).
She’s giving me excitations (excitations).
Ah, ah, my my, what elation/
I don’t know where but she sends me there.
Oh, my my, what a sensation.
Oh, my my, what elation/
Oh, my my, what/
Gotta keep those lovin’ good vibrations a-happenin’ with her.
Gotta keep those lovin’ good vibrations a-happenin’ with her.
Gotta keep those lovin’ good vibrations a-happenin’.
Good, good, good, good vibrations (oom bop bop).
She’s giving me the excitations (excitations, oom bop bop).
I’m pickin’ up good vibrations.
written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love