Lyric of the Week 
Alison Krauss, “Paper Airplane”(1)
May 31, 2011
“Paper Airplane” carries all the hallmarks of a Robert Lee Castleman composition.
Jessica Lea Mayfield, “Our Hearts Are Wrong”
Mayfield said the song almost didn’t make it on the album.
Derek & The Dominos, “Bell Bottom Blues”
“Bell Bottom Blues” is a portrait of a man on the brink of collapse.
The Band, “Katie’s Been Gone”
Greil Marcus called this Basement Tapes classic “the kind of love song only Richard Manuel can pull off.”
More in this category:
- Waylon Jennings, “Good Hearted Woman”
- “Something’s Gonna Happen,” Marshall Crenshaw
- “Stroke It Noel,” Big Star
- Bright Eyes, “One For You, One For Me”
- KORT, “Incredibly Lonely”
- “Go-Go Boots,” The Drive-By Truckers
- “The Trapeze Swinger,” Iron & Wine
- “Drunken Poet’s Dream,” Hayes Carll
- “Golden,” My Morning Jacket
- “We Belong Together,” Randy Newman
- “Junior’s Farm,” Paul McCartney
- “Maggie’s Farm,” Bob Dylan
- Mavis Staples, “In Christ There Is No East Or West”
- Loretta Lynn, “Portland, Oregon”
- Patti Smith, “Free Money”
- Behind The Lyric: Led Zeppelin, “Battle Of Evermore”
- Behind The Lyric: Chrissie Hynde, “Boots Of Chinese Plastic”
- Behind The Lyric: Neil Young, “Hitchhiker”
- Willie Nelson, “The Party’s Over”
- Joan Baez, “The Cherry-Tree Carol”
- The Band Perry, “If I Die Young”
- Little Feat, “Rock And Roll Doctor”
- Wanda Jackson, “Dust On The Bible”
- Bruce Springsteen, “Racing In The Street”
- Hank Cochran, “Miami, My Amy”
- Lucinda Williams, “Drunken Angel”
- Beck, “Beautiful Way”
- Bob Dylan, “Ballad In Plain D”
- The Band, “Stage Fright”
- Shawn Mullins “Light You Up”
- Tom Waits “Alice”
- Tony Joe White “Even Trolls Love Rock ‘n’ Roll”
- Jenny and Johnny “Switchblade”
- Elizabeth Cook “Mama’s Funeral”
- Joey + Rory feat. Zac Brown Band “This Song’s For You”
- Otis Redding “These Arms of Mine”
- Marty Stuart “Branded”
- Allen Toussaint “On Your Way Down”
- The Black Keys “Unknown Brother”
- Tift Merritt “Mixtape”
- Darrell Scott “The Day Before Thanksgiving”
- Phoenix “Armistice”
- John Boutte “The Treme Song”
- Indigo Girls: “Second Time Around”
- Sarah Jarosz: “Song Up In Her Head”
- Stevie Wonder: “Higher Ground”