Comments on: A Question About Stevie Nicks’ ‘Dreams’

By: TonyConniff

TonyConniff — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 06:36:35 +0000

In reply to Peter Leslie. Me too, Peter! TC

By: Peter Leslie

Peter Leslie — Fri, 31 Jul 2020 10:16:25 +0000

Hi Tony,
A late comment, but I’m a newbie going through old posts!

For me, the ‘Dreams’ chorus works just fine, as it’s a great example of lyrics and melody caressing and entwining each other. The lovely melodic leap in “-shes” validates its extended pronunciation, replicating the same move in the second line and setting up for the resolution in “you’ll know”. If “-shes” didn’t have that leap I don’t think it would work. For me it’s a little flash of eccentric gold, lyrics and melody serving each other selflessly. I hope I can get it that wrong someday!

Cheers
Pete

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 03:22:27 +0000

In reply to Barrett Zinn. 'If it sings right, it is right.' Can I quote you, Barrett?

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Thu, 23 Oct 2014 03:21:41 +0000

In reply to S. Thanks, S, for the great link. So this was a very conscious choice! I'm not familiar with all of her songs, but from what I know, I think Alanis is a really good songwriter.

By: S

Wed, 22 Oct 2014 22:27:46 +0000

Toto’s “Africa” also changes the syllabic emphasis on the word “Serengeti.” SEH-ren-geh-ti, rather than Seh-ren-GEH-ti.

By: Barrett Zinn

Barrett Zinn — Sun, 19 Oct 2014 23:18:24 +0000

Tony, great blog post. The funny thing is, I always heard “rain water (with a silent “t”) shares” and wondered what the hell Stevie was singing.

I figure, and experience shows, that even if the pronunciation is “wrong,” if it sings right, it is right. A song in performance, if it is any good at all, is more than the sum of its’ parts. As Duke said, “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing.”

By: S

Sun, 19 Oct 2014 17:10:53 +0000

This very incident was talked about by Stevie herself in American Songwriter magazine, back in 2011: http://www.americansongwriter.com/2011/09/gold-dust-woman-a-qa-with-stevie-nicks/

Also, how do you feel about Alanis Morrisette, who has made quite a fine living off of frequent use of expanded syllabic pronounciation of words in her lyrics.

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Sun, 19 Oct 2014 16:44:33 +0000

In reply to michael paumgardhen. Thanks, Michael. Great to be in contact again! TC

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Sun, 19 Oct 2014 16:42:53 +0000

Thank you, Maura; both for the points you make and the personal reminiscences that support and accent them!
Best wishes,
Tony

By: michael paumgardhen

michael paumgardhen — Sun, 19 Oct 2014 09:14:34 +0000

In reply to Tony Conniff. Not at all. It is refreshing to think along these lines. I'm glad I know what the actual lyric is. I love your blog!

By: Maura

Maura — Sat, 18 Oct 2014 02:05:45 +0000

I agree with Jon that these quirks in songs can often become a point of connection, and even affection. (I heard Leslie in Groovin’, too. It even draws a stronger tie to memories because I recall a regular dancer on the Paul Revere & The Raiders show went by the name Leslie. How we loved to hate her!) Joni Mitchell songs veer toward perfection, but how many times did her Canadian accent leave me puzzling, even with her perfect diction? And it so happens that one of my favorite misheard lyrics is also in Dreams. As she trails off at the end she sings “dreams unwind, love’s a state of mind”, whereas I heard “drink some wine, love to spend the night”! It still makes me smile. Thanks for the article, Tony!

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Fri, 17 Oct 2014 04:48:24 +0000

In reply to Sarah.

Sarah,
Thanks for writing! As you probably know, good songwriting is a lot about nitpicking… or at least picking the right nits. You’re probably right that perfection is boring, but I’ve never found it, so I wouldn’t know for sure.
Best wishes,
Tony
‘From the crooked timber of humanity, nothing straight was ever made.’ – Immanuel Kant

By: Sarah

Sarah — Wed, 15 Oct 2014 01:19:37 +0000

Seems pretty nitpicky to me…It’s not like she sings “war-shes”. Never thought twice about it in this song which I just heard today. You must have a field day with Bruce Springsteen, Robert Plant, (both of whom are always just slightly flat on top of the enunciation issues), Gregg Allman, Steve Miller, Charlie Starr, etc, etc… Or Cher… Holy smokes. Talk about strange timing (like Turn back ti-yum, for instance). That’s the beauty of music. Imperfection is lovely; perfection is boring.

By: Sarah

Sarah — Wed, 15 Oct 2014 01:18:04 +0000

Seems pretty nitpicky to me…It’s not like she sings “war-shes”

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Mon, 13 Oct 2014 18:51:21 +0000

In reply to Michael Paumgardhen.

Michael,
That makes sense! See Jon’s comment above yours.
Hope I didn’t spoil it for you!
Thanks for writing,
Tony

By: Michael Paumgardhen

Michael Paumgardhen — Thu, 09 Oct 2014 21:17:29 +0000

T I thought the lyric was “..when the rainbow shares your dream you’ll know..”

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Mon, 06 Oct 2014 17:28:58 +0000

In reply to Jon Gordon.

Jon,
I agree with you. I’d just add that, when trying to write a good song, it might not be the best idea to count on these ‘happy accidents’. If they happen, great, but…
Thanks for writing!
TC

By: Jon Gordon

Jon Gordon — Mon, 06 Oct 2014 00:30:21 +0000

I like a lot of these mispronunciations, ambiguities and unintelligible words in songs. They are a gateway for the listener to get involved in deciphering and interpreting the song.
Remember the thrill of trying to figure out if the lyrics to “Louie Louie” were really dirty – or even what they were at all? Same for the last verse of “Satisfaction”. I think that those “Hey what was that?!?” moments in songs enrich the experience of being a listener by giving you an active, rather than a passive role in experiencing the song.
Sometimes the misheard lyric even becomes the official one: I am told that Jeff Lynne now sings “Don’t bring me down Bruce” instead of the original nonsense word “groose”. A big improvement in my opinion!

By: Tony Conniff

Tony Conniff — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 19:47:06 +0000

In reply to Christopher Gansky.

Actually, Chris… I’ve got an app for that!
Thanks,
TC

By: Christopher Gansky

Christopher Gansky — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 18:07:34 +0000

When the rainfall wipes you clean you’ll know