A man can tell a thousand lies/
I learned my lesson well…

Madonna’s “Live to Tell” is strong lyrically and musically and her vocals are impeccable. The song is about the narrator losing her innocence. Perhaps she was a child, perhaps this is a relationship she experienced when she was fairly young.  She doesn’t get into details.

We do know that a man deceived her and that she carries that secret within her. She anticipates that a time will come when she will be able to release herself of this burden. Until then, she must survive, in part, so as to see the truth come out. She must “live to tell”.

The mystery behind the secret is part of the allure of the song. We can imagine all sorts of unimaginable things that a child might have to endure and what a burden it would be to keep that inside. A child who only desires to live so that one day her trauma can some day be told is quite a powerful story. The fact that this narrator is (partially) revealing their secret is captivating. This is Madonna’s best writing.

The bridge is especially good (If I ran away, I’d never have the strength/To go very far…). It addresses a question that the listener must be asking, “Why haven’t you left?” The answer is not completely satisfactory, but by addressing it she acknowledges that she, too, is looking at this problem logically and trying to solve it in any way she can. It also suggests that she is still very much involved in the relationship that caused the trauma. She has not yet escaped.

While the story and lyrics are fantastic, it is Madonna’s vocals that make this song great. She sings the song with the proper emotion that such a story deserves. In the 1980s, producers had a bad habit adding bizarre keyboard sounds, but the keyboards here sound great…with the bizarre sounds.

In “Live to Tell” the keyboards supplement Madonna’s voice. The keyboards also have a nice intro that really adds to the song. It is also a rare occasion in which a song uses various modes on a keyboard and it doesn’t sound gimmicky. That is a credit to production.

Live To Tell Lyrics

I have a tale to tell
Sometimes it gets so hard to hide it well
I was not ready for the fall
Too blind to see the writing on the wall

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned, ’til then
It will burn inside of me

I know where beauty lives
I’ve seen it once, I know the warm she gives
The light that you could never see
It shines inside, you can’t take that from me

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned, ’til then
It will burn inside of me

The truth is never far behind
You kept it hidden well
If I live to tell
The secret I knew then
Will I ever have the chance again

If I ran away, I’d never have the strength
To go very far
How would they hear the beating of my heart
Will it grow cold
The secret that I hide, will I grow old
How will they hear
When will they learn
How will they know

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned, ’til then
It will burn inside of me

The truth is never far behind
You kept it hidden well
If I live to tell
The secret I knew then
Will I ever have the chance again

A man can tell a thousand lies
I’ve learned my lesson well
Hope I live to tell
The secret I have learned, ’til then
It will burn inside of me

Songwriters: Madonna Ciccone / Patrick Leonard

Oh, it’s funny how/
The warning signs can feel like they’re butterflies..

In “Graveyard”, Halsey’s partner is physically abusive. She realizes this, yet it does not hinder her love for him. She says she will “follow him down to the graveyard”. This comes across as a powerful line, rather than a trite cliché, because there is a good chance that her relationship could lead to her harm or death. It is a song about abuse that contains a great use of extended metaphor.

Yet Halsey stays. Due to her upbringing, her genes, her misplaced attraction or devotion, to her, warning signs are indistinguishable from butterflies. Intellectually, she knows this. But sometimes our logic and our emotions don’t align. So, what then? Too often, we follow our emotions to our detriment. Halsey says it may lead her to the graveyard, but the excitement from the relationship is too good to give up.

If there is any solace to be taken from the song, it is that the author is singing in the past tense: “I would’ve followed you down to the graveyard.” Somehow she escaped the abuse, yet she admits to herself she probably would go down the same path again—regardless where the path leads.

The sound is at times both tender and urgent. She has an extremely unique voice, which is a plus for any artist. Like Sia, she is able to produce different versions of her song that make for great acoustic mixes and dance mixes. Often they sound quite different and can provide different experiences.

Halsey is one of the most talented performers of her generation. If she is lacking anything, it is that stand-out, iconic, sing-along hit. “Graveyard” is not a singalong, but it might be her best song.

Graveyard Lyrics

It’s crazy when
The thing you love the most is the detriment
Let that sink in
You can think again
When the hand you wanna hold is a weapon and
You’re nothin’ but skin

Oh, ’cause I keep diggin’ myself down deeper
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
I keep running, I keep running, I keep running

They say I may be making a mistake
I would’ve followed all the way, no matter how far
I know when you go down all your darkest roads
I would’ve followed all the way to the graveyard

Oh, ’cause I keep diggin’ myself down deeper
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
I keep running when both my feet hurt
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
Oh, when you go down all your darkest roads
I would’ve followed all the way to the graveyard (no, oh)

You look at me (look at me)
With eyes so dark, don’t know how you even see
You push right through me (push right through me)
It’s gettin’ real
You lock the door, you’re drunk at the steering wheel
And I can’t conceal

Oh, ’cause I’ve been diggin’ myself down deeper
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
I keep running, I keep running, I keep running

They say I may be making a mistake
I would’ve followed all the way, no matter how far
I know when you go down all your darkest roads
I would’ve followed all the way to the graveyard

Oh, ’cause I keep diggin’ myself down deeper
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
I keep running when both my feet hurt
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
Oh, when you go down all your darkest roads
I would’ve followed all the way to the graveyard

Oh, it’s funny how
The warning signs can feel like they’re butterflies

Oh, ’cause I keep diggin’ myself down deeper
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
I keep running when both my feet hurt
I won’t stop ’til I get where you are
Oh, when you go down all your darkest roads
I would’ve followed all the way to the graveyard

Songwriters: Amy Allen / Ashley Frangipane / Jonathan Bellion / Jordan K Johnson / Louis Bell / Mark Williams / Stefan Johnson

I don’t want to to wait for our lives to be over/
I want to know right now what will it be.

Paula Cole’s “I Don’t Wanna Wait” is a super popular song that gets a somewhat bad reputation because it was the theme song of Dawson’s Creek. (Even though Dawson’s Creek was awesome, it was not for everyone.) So you won’t find this song on other top 500 lists.

This song is about a young mother whose husband is away in world war two. She worries whether her kids will ever meet their father. Luckily, the husband eventually returns home, but he is a mess-both physically and mentally. It takes a toll on the marriage, but they do persevere to the later stages of their marriage (“and now he has granddaughters”).

The main issue with their marriage seems to be that he carries a lot of mental anguish from the war-still after all this time. It manifests itself in anger, and the woman fears it may ruin the relationship. She wants to break the cycle of anger and anguish that runs in the family and tells him to look at her and breath deeply. But ultimately, she doesn’t want to wait forever, will they overcome this?

“I Don’t Wanna Wait” is a great song about the anguish of war and couples relying on each other. The melody is super catchy and Paula Cole’s voice is superb throughout.

I Don’t Wanna Wait Lyrics

So open up your morning light,
And say a little prayer for I.
You know that if we are to stay alive,
And see the peace in every eye.

She had two babies,
One was six months one was three,
In the war of ’44.
Every telephone ring,
Every heartbeat stinging,
When she thought it was God calling her.
Oh, would her son grow to know his father?

I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
I want to know right now,
What will it be.
I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
Will it be yes or will it be sorry?

He showed up all wet,
On the rainy front step,
Wearing shrapnel in his skin.
And the war he saw,
Lives inside him still
It’s so hard to be gentle and warm.
The years passed by and now
He has a granddaughter.

I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
I want to know right now,
What will it be?
I don’t want to wait,
For our lives to be over,
Will it be yes or will it be…

Oh, so you look at me
From across the room.
You’re wearing your anguish again.
Believe me I know the feeling,
It sucks you into the jaws of anger.
Oh, so breathe a little more deeply my love,
All we have is this very moment.
And I don’t want to do what
His father and his father and his father did,
I want to be here now.

So open up your morning light,
And say a little prayer for I.
You know that if we are to stay alive,
And see the peace in every eye.

I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
I want to know right now,
What will it be?
I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
Will it be yes or will it be…

I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
I want to know right now,
What will it be?
I don’t want to wait
For our lives to be over,
Will it be yes or will it be sorry?

So open up your morning light,
And say a little prayer for I.
You know that if we are to stay alive,
And see the love in every eye.

written by: Paula Cole