Ongoing History of New Music

Ongoing History Daily: The most-used word in rock lyrics

Here’s a fun bit of trivia. What is the most-used word in rock lyrics? There are people who study such things. First, a couple of rules. We’ll leave out articles like “a” and “the.” Then we’ll dump “I” and “you.” What’s left?

The most-used word is “love.” No real surprise there. “Down” comes in second followed by “Oh.”

Let’s go a little deeper. What about metal lyrics? The most-used words are “life,” “never,” and “die.”

And let’s spin that a little. Which genre do you think uses the word “death” the most? Metal. Not even close.

Friday’s post was on everyone who played drums in Nirvana.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 38005 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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