Nothing Rhymed

About Nothing Rhymed

"Nothing Rhymed" is a song by the Irish singer-songwriter Gilbert O'Sullivan, written and recorded in 1970. It was released in October 1970. It peaked at number 8 in the UK Singles Chart, number 2 in Ireland, and number 1 in the Netherlands. It was his debut hit single in the UK. "Nothing Rhymed" subsequently appeared on his 1971 album, Himself. O'Sullivan has said seeing film of starving children in Africa on television for the first time prompted him to write the song. Renowned session bassist Herbie Flowers features on the original recording. Pop historian Paul Gambaccini described it as "one of the great songs of all time" in the 2007 BBC documentary Kings of 70s Romance. In 2012, Paul Weller declared "Nothing Rhymed" and "Alone Again (Naturally)" as "two of my favourite songs, great lyrics, great tunes". The song is among O'Sullivan's most covered. Tom Jones who, like O'Sullivan, was managed by Gordon Mills, covered it on his 1971 album She's A Lady. That same year, a faithful rendering of the song but with new Italian lyrics was released by I Profeti as the title track of their second album Era Bella. Yvonne Elliman covered it on her 1972 debut album. It was also covered by The Guess Who frontman Burton Cummings on his self-titled first solo album released in 1976. Canadian singer-songwriter Emm Gryner covered the song on her 2005 album Songs of Love and Death. Since 2002, Morrissey has occasionally covered Nothing Rhymed in concert. It has been noted that Morrissey's song "Yes I Am Blind" bears a musical resemblance to the song. more »

Year:

2001

3:23

215 Views

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If I give up the seat I've been saving
To some elderly lady or man
Am I being a good boy
Am I your pride and joy
Mother please if your pleased say I am
And if while in the course of my duty
I perform an unfortunate take
Would you punish me so, unbelievably so

Never again will I make that mistake
This feeling inside me could never deny me
The right to be wrong if I choose
And this pleasure I get
From say winning a bet
Is to lose

When I'm drinking my Bonaparte Shandy
Eating more than enough apple pies
Will I glance at my screen and see real human beings starve to death
Right in front of my eyes

Nothing old, nothing new, nothing ventured
Nothing gained, nothing still-born or lost,
Nothing further than proof nothing wilder than youth
Nothing older than time, nothing sweeter than wine
Nothing physically, recklessly, hopelessly blind
Nothing I couldn't say
Nothing why 'cause today
Nothing rhymed

This feeling inside me could never deny me
The right to be wrong if I choose,
And this pleasure I get
From say winning a bet
Is to lose

Nothing good, nothing bad, nothing ventured
Nothing gained, nothing still-born or lost,
Nothing further than proof nothing wilder than youth
Nothing older than time, nothing sweeter than wine
Nothing physically, recklessly, hopelessly blind
Nothing I couldn't say
Nothing why 'cause today
Nothing rhymed

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Gilbert O'Sullivan

Gilbert O'Sullivan (born 1 December 1946) is an Irish-English singer-songwriter, best known for his early 1970s hits "Alone Again (Naturally)", "Clair" and "Get Down". The music magazine Record Mirror voted him the No. 1 UK male singer of 1972. more »

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