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| Readers recommend: chicken-and-egg songs | Readers recommend: chicken-and-egg songs |
| (4 days later) | |
| In the beginning was the word, and the word ... was egg. But who made that egg? Perhaps the word was chicken. But what made the chicken? Another egg? Or was the word ... God? Or the universe? But what created the universe? The big bang? Or a very big chicken? Or, as has been theorised by science recently, nothing created any of these – because the universe has always existed? At Easter time, it is hard to tell which word comes first – eggs, chicken or God, or indeed chocolate, but if we peel back the silver foil wrapper, there are chicken-and-egg songs. | |
| This topic could be as broadly interpreted as say, celebrating how a man was crucified and reborn 2,000 years ago with a confectionery binge in the shape of bunnies and chicks. But let’s start with some specifics. Your songs could be about eggs, or chickens, or both, and, for example, there has even been a famous song inspired by the writer eating a chicken-and-egg dish in a Chinese restaurant. But even more treasures still lie deep inside the shell of this topic. Songs that, in their lyrics, focus on cause and effect and say such things as: Who started this? Who is to blame? How did we get to this point? How did things get so bad, or good? What are the causes and consequences, and the chain of events of my choices? Their lyrics might switch back and and forth in thought and perspective and time, and in musical form as well as lyrics the song might have a circularity, a loop. | This topic could be as broadly interpreted as say, celebrating how a man was crucified and reborn 2,000 years ago with a confectionery binge in the shape of bunnies and chicks. But let’s start with some specifics. Your songs could be about eggs, or chickens, or both, and, for example, there has even been a famous song inspired by the writer eating a chicken-and-egg dish in a Chinese restaurant. But even more treasures still lie deep inside the shell of this topic. Songs that, in their lyrics, focus on cause and effect and say such things as: Who started this? Who is to blame? How did we get to this point? How did things get so bad, or good? What are the causes and consequences, and the chain of events of my choices? Their lyrics might switch back and and forth in thought and perspective and time, and in musical form as well as lyrics the song might have a circularity, a loop. |
| The chicken-and-egg dilemma was first theorised by Aristotle at least as long ago as 322BC. He wondered how it might be possible for an egg, chicken or man to born without a parent. But three centuries later the Jesus story expressed very similar themes - a man born from immaculate conception who later becomes a saviour to others, but can only save others by not saving himself, but can then be resurrected. Many songs muse on this dilemma and exact story. So another big theme here is the vicious circle (or virtuous circle) in which the argument goes round and round, and with it is expressed a paradox. | The chicken-and-egg dilemma was first theorised by Aristotle at least as long ago as 322BC. He wondered how it might be possible for an egg, chicken or man to born without a parent. But three centuries later the Jesus story expressed very similar themes - a man born from immaculate conception who later becomes a saviour to others, but can only save others by not saving himself, but can then be resurrected. Many songs muse on this dilemma and exact story. So another big theme here is the vicious circle (or virtuous circle) in which the argument goes round and round, and with it is expressed a paradox. |
| Paradoxes come in all sorts of forms. The classic in literature is Joseph Heller’s Catch-22, in which Yossarian tries to get out of the army by pleading insanity from shell shock, but simply by doing this he is proving he is is sane – only a madman would want continue military duties. In film, especially sci-fi, there is a rich tradition for characters to only exist because they have gone back in time, possibly met their own grandmother and conceived their own fathers - or variants on this - in cause and effect. We find such fascinating problems in The Terminator (1984) or Back to the Future (1985) plus sequels, and Looper (2012) in which criminal assassins are hired go back in time to kill rivals, but are also ordered to go back and kill their younger self to “close the loop”. Unsurprisingly complications ensure. | Paradoxes come in all sorts of forms. The classic in literature is Joseph Heller’s Catch-22, in which Yossarian tries to get out of the army by pleading insanity from shell shock, but simply by doing this he is proving he is is sane – only a madman would want continue military duties. In film, especially sci-fi, there is a rich tradition for characters to only exist because they have gone back in time, possibly met their own grandmother and conceived their own fathers - or variants on this - in cause and effect. We find such fascinating problems in The Terminator (1984) or Back to the Future (1985) plus sequels, and Looper (2012) in which criminal assassins are hired go back in time to kill rivals, but are also ordered to go back and kill their younger self to “close the loop”. Unsurprisingly complications ensure. |
| But paradoxes and circular dilemmas appear in everyday life as much as in fantasy films, and so naturally are they contained in the tension and emotion of song. because people are by nature, contradictory. And how many songs say something on the lines of: “I want to tell you that I love you, but I won’t in case you reject me.” Many a songwriter faces another dilemma - if I do the song the way I want it, no one will get to hear it. If I do it the way others want it, then it will get heard, but it won’t be my song. So how does a songwriter project themselves? As that deep philosopher Eddie Van Halen put it: “It’s always a catch-22 situation. They hate you if you’re the same, and they hate you if you’re different.” | |
| Among many forms of paradox, the mathematician and logician Philip Jourdain conceived of the liar paradox, of a card on which on one side “the sentence on the back of this card is false”, but on the reverse says “the sentence of the back of this card is true”. This may sound like a purely conceptual idea, but it happens every day. What if someone tells you that they always lie? Does that mean they are telling the truth? And as we are likely to see on TV debates before the UK general election, the ongoing paradox of the idea of voting for a party that you don’t agree with, or think are liars, in order to stop another party of liars that you don’t agree with.But time to lighten up. I’m not a bit user of Twitter, but there is one feed that constantly brings up some of the amusing paradoxical absurdities of life, on a daily basis - the wonderful @_youhadonejob. Here are some examples. First a perhaps dubious edition that could allude to this week’s Easter setting: | Among many forms of paradox, the mathematician and logician Philip Jourdain conceived of the liar paradox, of a card on which on one side “the sentence on the back of this card is false”, but on the reverse says “the sentence of the back of this card is true”. This may sound like a purely conceptual idea, but it happens every day. What if someone tells you that they always lie? Does that mean they are telling the truth? And as we are likely to see on TV debates before the UK general election, the ongoing paradox of the idea of voting for a party that you don’t agree with, or think are liars, in order to stop another party of liars that you don’t agree with.But time to lighten up. I’m not a bit user of Twitter, but there is one feed that constantly brings up some of the amusing paradoxical absurdities of life, on a daily basis - the wonderful @_youhadonejob. Here are some examples. First a perhaps dubious edition that could allude to this week’s Easter setting: |
| Seems legit. pic.twitter.com/mg5YE2GQyF | Seems legit. pic.twitter.com/mg5YE2GQyF |
| Then the rather more cutting (or not) paradox: | Then the rather more cutting (or not) paradox: |
| Damn it. pic.twitter.com/l29m9NFJ6y | Damn it. pic.twitter.com/l29m9NFJ6y |
| And finally, a timeless memorial to truth (or maybe not): | And finally, a timeless memorial to truth (or maybe not): |
| The irony. pic.twitter.com/V3j5WTZHhZ | The irony. pic.twitter.com/V3j5WTZHhZ |
| So then, please place your chicken-and-egg song nominations in the boxes provided below, and optionally in the Spotify playlist, by last orders 11pm UK time on Monday 6 April, for publication next Thursday 9 April. This week your very deft deliverer of discerning choices, from all that you offer, is that great arbiter of taste, takeitawayGuru. Have fun, and happy Easter all! | |
| To increase the likelihood of your nomination being considered, please: | To increase the likelihood of your nomination being considered, please: |
| • Tell us why it’s a worthy contender.• Quote lyrics if helpful, but for copyright reasons no more than a third of a song’s words.• Provide a link to the song. We prefer Muzu or YouTube, but Spotify, SoundCloud or Grooveshark are fine.• Listen to others people’s suggestions and add yours to a collaborative Spotify playlist.• If you have a good theme for Readers recommend, or if you’d like to volunteer to compile a playlist, please email peter.kimpton@theguardian.com• There’s a wealth of data on RR, including the songs that are “zedded”, at the Marconium. It also tells you the meaning of “zedded”, “donds” and other strange words used by RR regulars.• Many RR regulars also congregate at the ‘Spill blog. | • Tell us why it’s a worthy contender.• Quote lyrics if helpful, but for copyright reasons no more than a third of a song’s words.• Provide a link to the song. We prefer Muzu or YouTube, but Spotify, SoundCloud or Grooveshark are fine.• Listen to others people’s suggestions and add yours to a collaborative Spotify playlist.• If you have a good theme for Readers recommend, or if you’d like to volunteer to compile a playlist, please email peter.kimpton@theguardian.com• There’s a wealth of data on RR, including the songs that are “zedded”, at the Marconium. It also tells you the meaning of “zedded”, “donds” and other strange words used by RR regulars.• Many RR regulars also congregate at the ‘Spill blog. |
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