Saturday, April 19, 2008

James Blunt is a lyrical marauder

OK, so it's been a long while since my last post, and I'm sure not many people noticed. But here's something that has been bothering me lately:

Traveling from Idaho to Oklahoma recently, my wife and I listened to XM Radio and endured many a James Blunt song.

I have concurred that James Blunt is fooling us all. He's a singer, but certainly not a songwriter. Allow me to illustrate.

In his song "You're Beautiful". By the way, I hate this song--and mostly for its inconsistencies.

Here's the first verse of that atrocity:

My life is brilliant.
My love is pure.
I saw an angel.
Of that I'm sure.
She smiled at me on the subway.
She was with another man.
But I won't lose no sleep on that,
'Cause I've got a plan.


OK, he says he has a plan. I'm curious now. I want to know what exactly his plan is. But I'm not quite sure why he mentions that his life is brilliant and his love is pure. Aside from that tangent, let's proceed to the next verse--the verse that logically ought to enlighten us with what Mr. Blunt's plan is.

Yeah, she caught my eye,
As we walked on by.
She could see from my face that I was,
Flying high, [ - video/radio edited version]
And I don't think that I'll see her again,
But we shared a moment that will last till the end.


Did I miss something, or does this verse just not make sense in relation to the previous? Basically, it's the same introductory verse as the first--just with different lyrics. And he still doesn't go back to his plan. So now I have to be left wondering, "Is he going to stalk her? Beat up her other man? Imagine she's with him while at the petting zoo?"

I'm getting sick thinking about it.

And if I search the chorus of the song, I still can't find anything. Look for yourself.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.
You're beautiful, it's true.
I saw your face in a crowded place,
And I don't know what to do,
'Cause I'll never be with you.


OK, really. How has this "love" song become popular? Is society just drawn to guys that play guitars and sing falsetto?

Let me know what you think.