How Socially Responsible Do Song Lyrics Have to Be?

:cool: I recently finished recording a song I wrote initially for acoustic guitar and it has grown a bit beyond that. I wanted to get an oppinion about the lyrics from you guys about something I get from those who listened to it so far.

A friend of mine listened and commented that "this was a very nice sounding song; The lyric has a nice flow and the use of metaphor and simile offered a very vivid picture of the subject." Then he said "but you better not try to market that song because you might get sued. Remember what happened to Judas Priest?"

Now 2 things will have to happen for you to understand what he meant: 1. You have to listen to the song and 2. You have to read the lyric. Here's the lyric:

Die Away Easy-by Archie McLeod III

Sometimes it's hard
And I feel like I wanna' give up
And I'm down to the last drop of coffee
In this big old coffe cup
Called life..........

And sometimes life just ain't fair
People walking all around you
Like you're not even there

And I ain't never felt
Like I really belonged
Folks standing there listening but they never hear your song
And the more you cry out, the more they run and hide
They don't ever want to feel the pain and the hurt that you feel inside

Chorus:

That's why I wanna' lay down
And die away easy
The damage done and it's all that I can do.
The fight ain't worth the battle and a change for me is due
I wanna' die easy

Verse 2

Somewhere along the way
I lost touch with myself
Givin' way to the whims and the whines
Of everybody else
That I Love

But sometimes that love is not returned
Seems that after so long that's a lesson that I should have learned

Chorus

Verse 3

You say I sound like a cowardly man
Well maybe that's true
You've got your oppinions
(And I've got mine too)
But I've got the power to control my destiny
There ain't nothng you can do about it
It's All up to me

Chorus........

Now as you read this, remember all things are not as they seem and as readers respond, I'll explain the lyric in more detail. And now here's the link to the song:

Click On The Link To "Die Away Easy"

My question? Do you think the lyric here is socially irresponsible or socially unacceptable? Do you think this lyric may cause someone to harm themself? This song came from a personal experience, yes but I don't want the listener to get the wrong impression or interpretation of the song. :confused: Comments?

I liked it I think I understand the lyrics

why would you have any problems with it?

you ever heard of emo? that whole genre is based off of killmyself type lyrics that depress little 14 and 15 year old kids. none of them get any ****.....they get alot of underage poon....but not any lawsuits....unless one of them gets caught with said 15 year old girl.

if emo writers aren't held responsible, i see no reason why you would be.

oh yeah, and ozzy had worse charges against him with the whole suicide solution...they were saying he had subliminal messages. so i think you're pretty safe man.

edit: whoa, can't swear.......sorry. hmm....a non-freedom of speech board.....this'll be interesting.

It kinda depends on what's gonna eventually happen with the song.
If you're on a major label and want to be able to sell as many CD's as possible, ya have to keep in mind that to make money, your CD's have to be sold at places like Walmart etc...
If you write controversial lyrics, you'll end up limiting the outlets that'll carry your material.
Ultimately, it's your label that'll decide whether you can write controversial lyrics or not, cause they're the ones paying for it.
If you're signed to an indie label or marketing songs yourself, it's totally up to you what you write. Then all ya have to deal with is the public and the media.

Originally Posted by: tehplatypusedit: whoa, can't swear.......sorry. hmm....a non-freedom of speech board.....this'll be interesting.

Well, technically you can say whatever you want as long as it doesn't run the risk of getting this site ranked as pornographic due to explicit language, hence the editing.

Re. editing:

If you are in any doubt, read the GT rules at the top of the Open Discussion forum.

This forum is very tightly moderated not because we are all little nazis but because minors come here ! people who continuously upset people despite being given fare warning do get edited and even banned.

So yes, you do have the right to say it, but not to post it here.

Anyway that said welcome to the GT forum, I hope you enjoy it !

Originally Posted by: Dr_simonRe. editing:

If you are in any doubt, read the GT rules at the top of the Open Discussion forum.

This forum is very tightly moderated not because we are all little nazis but because minors come here ! people who continuously upset people despite being given fare warning do get edited and even banned.

So yes, you do have the right to say it, but not to post it here.

Anyway that said welcome to the GT forum, I hope you enjoy it !

noted.

nah, not here to cause problems....just that my vernacular is that of a sailor.....sorry bout that. i'll keep the lurid sex tales away from the board and in the tour stories with explicit warnings.

j/k.....i don't get any. :p

Dude their is no one who enjoys a really good swear as much as my good self, or a bad taste / filthy joke.

However, unfortunately, this is just not the place for it whether I like it or not ! And besides, all I need to do is to look at a war zone like the Home recording forum and all of a sudden Im not so sad !

Originally Posted by: Dr_simonDude their is no one who enjoys a really good swear as much as my good self, or a bad taste / filthy joke.

However, unfortunately, this is just not the place for it whether I like it or not ! And besides, all I need to do is to look at a war zone like the Home recording forum and all of a sudden Im not so sad !

it's cool.....i understand that some places need rules. just a big change from where i'm coming from.....that's all.

coming from a place where there are no boarders....they normally have beheading videos up first and celebrity death announcements and have made fun of other members' kids.

then again, that could be anywhere online.