Line, Line, Everywhere a Line ...

Tea: Mandarin Orange with Honey

Music: Lots and lots of first lines ...

Time: Night.

So I was shooting pool at church tonight (You didn't know Baptists could do that, did you?) and one of my friends Brian (I have several) and I migrated to the topic of great opening lines to rock and roll songs.

We came up with:

"I met her in a bar (naturally), and naturally she wanted to dance ..." (The Rainmakers, "Another Guitar")

"I saw the Werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand ..." (Warren Zevon, "Werewolves of London")

"Well, I used to be disgusted, but now I try to be amused ..." (Elvis Costello & the Attractions, "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes")

Then we ran out of time, or we likely could have gone on for hours.

We're both Rainmakers fans, so I'm sure the list would have included several more from their canon. If I had to limit it to five, not counting "Another Guitar," I'd pick:

"Somewhere under this moon tonight, my lover is holding my shadow tight ..." ("Width of a Line")

"Older than I used to be, younger than I'm gonna be ..." ("Long Gone Long")

"Thirty days have September, April, June and county jails ..." ("Thirty Days")

"I was prayin' last night when an angel broke the line ..." ("The Wages of Sin")

"Moses went up to the mountain high, to find out from God 'Why did you make us? Why?' ..." ("Let My People Go-Go")

Moving on, we have ... oh, let's go for another (baker's) dozen, in no particular order, over the years:

"I met a gin-soaked barroom queen in Memphis ..." (the Rolling Stones, "Honky Tonk Women")

"When I think back on all the crap I learned in high school, it's a wonder I can think at all ..." (Paul Simon, "Kodachrome")

"Some people call me the Space Cowboy, yeah, some call me the Gangster of Love ..." (Steve Miller, "The Joker")

"And the sign said, 'Long Haired Freaky People Need Not Apply' ..." (Five Man Electrical Band, "Signs")

"She never mentions the word 'addiction' in certain company ..." (Black Crowes, "She Talks to Angels")

"In the day we sweat it out in the streets of a runaway American dream ..." (Bruce Springsteen, "Born to Run")

"Well, tell me d'you think it'd be all right if I could just crash here tonight? ..." (Gin Blossoms, "Hey Jealousy")

"Do you have the time to listen to me whine about nothing and everything all at once? ..." (Green Day, "Basket Case")

"Saturday night I was downtown, working for the FBI ..." (the Hollies, "Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress")

"Sitting on a park bench, eying little girls with bad intent ..." (Jethro Tull, "Aqualung")

"Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waitin' for a train ..." (Janis Joplin, "Me and Bobby McGee")

"You say you want a revolution, well you know, we all want to change the world ..." (the Beatles, "Revolution")

"People try to put us d-d-d-down ..." (the Who, "My Generation")

Yeah, I know. I left out your favorite or included a song you hate. I never said it was an objective list.

Now I just need to make my exit. So here's one more, just for fun:

"'There must be some way out of here,' said the joker to the thief ..." (Bob Dylan, "All Along the Watchtower")

And that's my cue ...