Catch - 22

Best Opening Lyrics

We all have favorite songs. We all have favorite lines in songs. Here are some of the best first lines of a song. One of the prerequisites for being a great opening line is it not only sets the tone for the entire song, you know the song as soon as you hear it and you already know what it's about.

"You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips"--The Righteous Brothers' 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'' DJs first thought Bill Medley's brooding vocals were playing at the wrong speed. The song became one of the most played in radio history anyway.

"Hello, Darkness, my old friend"--Simon and Garfunkel's 'The Sound of Silence' It reads like Dante's 'Inferno,' but it's forever linked to the equally sinister imagery of Dustin Hoffman floating in a pool.

"Well, I guess it would be nice if I could touch your body"--George Michael's 'Faith' Sing these words in a recording studio, and you win Album of the Year. Say them in a public bathroom, and you get busted.

"I was dreaming when I wrote this forgive me if it goes astray"--Prince's '1999' Sung in unison by backup ladies Wendy and Lisa, this trippy line foretold all of the Purple One's eccentricities.

"There must be some kind of way out of here, said the joker to the thief"--Jimi Hendrix's 'All Along the Watchtower' Dylan may have written these words, but even he agreed that Hendrix owned them.

"Well, it's one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, now go, cat, go!"--Carl Perkins' 'Blue Suede Shoes' A car accident prevented Perkins from belting out these iconic words on national TV. And, while he was laid up in a hospital, he had to watch Elvis do it.

"In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey"--Beck's 'Loser' And in the time of grunge devotees, he was real funky. Beck also proved that a song doesn't have to be about anything in order to be good.

"Why do birds suddenly appear every time you are near?"--The Carpenters' 'Close to You' Penned by Burt Bacharach's wordsmith Hal David, this line is still the envy of Hallmark scribes everywhere.

"Well, she was just seventeen -- you know what I mean"--The Beatles' 'I Saw Her Standing There' And with that, screaming girls across the globe had hope.

"Hey, ho, let's go!"--The Ramones' 'Blitzkrieg Bop' The four words that spark late-inning rallies at baseball stadium around the world are also the words that started punk rock.

"I was born in a cross-fire hurricane"--The Rolling Stones' 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' Don't know if they're referring to World War II England or if this is another drug reference. Either way, it's pretty tough.

"She's a very kinky girl the kind you don't take home to mother"--Rick James' 'Superfreak' And he was a very kinky dude: The funk legend would later go to prison for forcing a woman to be his sex slave.

"You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain"--Jerry Lee Lewis' 'Great Balls of Fire' So much so that it makes me want to run out and marry my 14 year old cousin.

"She's a good girl, loves her mama, loves Jesus and America, too"--Tom Petty's 'Free Fallin'' If you've ever seen Jerry McGuire you know the thing to do while listening to this song is ride in your car with the windows down. Warning: Stripping off your clothes as you do it is completely up to you.

"One pill makes you larger, and one pill makes you small"--Jefferson Airplane's 'White Rabbit' Acid rock at it's finest. Feed your head, indeed!

"Just take those old records off the shelf"--Bob Seger's 'Old Time Rock 'n' Roll' There is not one male over the age of 35 that has not slid across the floor in sunglasses and underwear while listening to this song.

"Sittin' in the morning sun, I'll be sittin' when the evening comes"--Otis Redding's '(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay' This song always makes me want to be near the ocean or a lake.

"On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair"--Eagles' 'Hotel California' Who really knows what this song is about, it really doesn't matter. It's still good, even if you sing it with a speech impediment. (inside joke)

"Well, I woke up Sunday morning with no way to hold my head that didn't hurt"--Kris Kristofferson's 'Sunday Morning Coming Down' Some say this is Johnny Cash's song, Kristofferson wrote it The Man in Black made it his own all I know is for the longest time I wanted to be where this guy was just once for just one day and Sunday would be the perfect day to do it, without the hangover of course. And not as depressed.

"You know the day destroys the night, night divides the day"--The Doors' 'Break on Through' Jim Morrison may have been ahead of his time. A great poet of the 60's and gone much too early. Too bad Val Kilmer had to play him in the movie. Still haven't seen it because of that.

"Wake up Maggie, I think I got something to say to you"--Rod Stewart's 'Maggie May' By now that morning sun must really be playing hell with her.

"If I leave here tomorrow, would you still remember me?"--Lynryd Skynyrd's 'Free Bird' Ahhh I remember long ago, late one night, me, this pretty young girl and a very fast motorcycle .... Oh! never mind...

"Jeremiah was a bullfrog"--Three Dog Night's 'Joy to the World' One of the greatest "feel good" songs of all time but it still begs the question; "Huh?"

"I like big butts and I cannot lie"--Sir Mix-A-Lot's 'Baby Got Back' Hardly can qualify as a song, however the first time you hear this song you have to laugh. And I gotta agree with him.

"Please allow me to introduce myself, I'm a man of wealth and taste"--The Rolling Stones' 'Sympathy for the Devil' Okay, but who are you, really?

"Nights in white satin never reaching the end letters I've written never meaning to send"--The Moody Blues' 'Nights In White Satin' Great song with a very depressing and, well, moody atmosphere. Well, what did you expect?

"Hey! Shut up."--Bonny Raitts' 'Have A Heart' Okay, technically this would be two lines, but she tells us to shut up right at the start. And my mommy looked like her back when this song first came out. I don't know what Bonny Raitt looks like now. Not sure what my mommy looks like now for that matter!

"Your mothers eyes look straight through me whenever we meet"--Elton Johns' "Too Young" This one is a very rare one, but it also happens to be my favorite Elton/Bernie opening lyric. A song about Elton falling in love with a teenage girl. Kinda creepy if you think about it too long, so don't!

Okay, that's enough I've hit the wall.