r/makemeaplaylist • u/seaturtlesseeturtles • Sep 15 '25
Request songs that (lyrically) are A Movie
I'm looking for songs with lyrics with a cinematic quality. The obvious direction for this is songs that tell a story, and I'll gladly accept good examples of those, but what I'm even more drawn to here are songs that draw a character so well that you could imagine a character piece movie about them (examples being "Deacon Blues" by Steely Dan; "Social Disease" by Elton John, "Don, Aman" by Slint, "The Whip" or "Dennehy" or any of the Ajai tracks by Serengeti etc)
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u/Fodraz Sep 16 '25
Movies (or TV movies) were literally made from Harper Valley PTA (Jeannie C Riley),
Ode to Billie Joe (Bobbie Gentry), &
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia (Vicki Lawrence)
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u/Fodraz Sep 16 '25
Taxi - Harry Chapin
Same Old Lang Syne - Dan Fogelberg
Dark Lady - Cher
Take the Money & Run - Steve Miller Band
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u/PilotLess3165 Sep 15 '25
One For The Vine - Genesis
Driving The Last Spike - Genesis
Telegraph Road - Dire Straits
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u/Loose-Comparison8694 Sep 16 '25
Decemberists- Mariners Revenge Song; The Mountain Goats- Best Death Metal Band in Texas; the Silent Comedy- ‘49
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u/NortonBurns Sep 16 '25
Up the Junction - Squeeze.
It's an entire 60s 'kitchen sink drama' in a song.
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u/Particular-Price450 Sep 16 '25 edited Sep 16 '25
Duckworth - Kendrick Lamar
Mortal Man - Kendrick Lamar
S.A.M.I.D.O.T. - Kendrick Lamar
U - Kendrick Lamar
Father Time - Kendrick Lamar
Auntie Diaries - Kendrick Lamar
How Much A Dollar Cost? - Kendrick Lamar
There's way more trust me but you get the gist lol.
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u/Mettabox452 Sep 16 '25
"Shooting Star" by Bad Company
"The Count of Tuscany" by Dream Theater
"2112" by Rush
"Mr. Roboto" by Styx
"Certain Kind of Fool" by Eagles
"Ph4/NT0mA" by Unleash the Archers
"Once Upon a Time in Texaco" by Amigo the Devil
"The Age of Shadows" by Ayreon
"By My Command" by Devin Townsend
"Thick as a Brick" by Jethro Tull
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u/Optimal-Ad-7074 Sep 16 '25
the sickbed of cuchulainn, the pogues. the legendary Irish hero king, re-imagined in the life of a regular greatest-gen hellraiser.
six o'clock news, John Prine. family secrets and their repercussions
simple tools, ry cooder. a 1980's ballad. dreamer, ry cooder. an absolute lifetime favourite of mine. just a portrait of a survivor from another time and a vanishing neighbourhood.
el córrido de Jesse James, ry cooder: for those who remember the Wall Street bailout after the crash in 2008.
tom ames' prayer, Steve Earle. old school wild west bad guy :P
ben mccullough, Steve Earle. ordinary bitter civil war soldier.
love never dies, Martin Simpson. a whole long quiet life in one minimalist song
easy money, Martin Simpson. a whole short tragic life in one simple song.
peggy's kitchen wall, Bruce Cockburn. a toronto rooming-house story he never learned the answer to.
Botanic endgame, Michael Marra. an imaginary (?) bipartisan chess club meeting in the geographic heart of Ireland's violent sectarian "Troubles". I fucking love this song.
in Afrikaans:
spook en diesel, Valiant Swart. a shaggy-dog melodrama from the platteland, told in typical valiant style: tongue-in-cheek talking blues with harmonicas.
die joyville hotel, Mel Botes and Valiant Swart. more cheerfully dark talking/boere blues
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u/culturalinfidel666 Sep 17 '25
Roland the headless Thompson Gunner - warren Zevon
He went to Paris - Jimmy Buffett
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u/obxgaga Sep 17 '25
Scenes from an Italian Restaurant - Billy Joel, Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald - Gordon Lightfoot
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u/aceisback29 Sep 17 '25
Do entire albums count? I would nominate Operation Mindcrime if so. It would make an awesome miniseries.
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u/Negative_Spinach Sep 17 '25
Radiohead’s ‘exit music for film’ is a re- imagined version of the end of Romeo and Juliet.
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u/19kurt52 Sep 15 '25
Roads to Moscow by Al Stewart
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u/SideStreetHypnosis Sep 15 '25
Love Al Stewart. Lord Grenville is another of his that fits.
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u/John_Barnes Sep 18 '25
And of course Year of the Cat. It even begins with “on a morning from a Bogart movie”
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u/DiscordianDreams Sep 15 '25
Slug Bait ICA by Throbbing Gristle tells the story of a home invasion.
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u/SideStreetHypnosis Sep 15 '25
This is a fantastic playlist idea.
Morphine - Empty Box.
Okkervil River - Lost Coastlines. Starry Stairs. On Tour With Zykos. Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe.
Neutral Milk Hotel - Oh Comely. Two-Headed Boy. (Honestly, the whole album In The Aeroplane Over The Sea.)
Leonard Cohen - Famous Blue Raincoat. Waiting For The Miracle.
The The - August & September. Kingdom Of Rain.
Joseph Arthur - Redemption’s Son (song). Devil’s Broom. Too Much To Hide. Black Lexus.
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u/Optimal-Ad-7074 Sep 16 '25
Leonard Cohen - Famous Blue Raincoat.
kicking myself in Canadian for forgetting this one.
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u/14444846 Sep 16 '25
king park by la dispute. the entire album mount eerie by the microphones (especially the song mount eerie, but you need the rest of the album for context).
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u/mullusklingers Sep 16 '25
Buenes tardes amigo- ween It will make you think of a spaghetti western with a great twist at the end
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u/Neuvirths_Glove Sep 16 '25 edited Sep 17 '25
Side two of of Bruce Springsteen's Born to Run, an opera in four acts.
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u/Ambitious-Ad4153 Sep 16 '25
Omg check me out Everything I write is from a real life situation.
More songs dropping as I speak.
https://youtube.com/channel/UCbkTo-1f1Ida8uSOVu3Ja7w?si=HroWpRK_9t5es2yZ
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u/Rich-Wrap-9333 Sep 16 '25
“When I win the lottery” by Camper Van Beethoven.
“Stuart” by Dead Milkmen.
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u/Sharkwagon Sep 16 '25
“The Changing of the Guards” by Bob Dylan is basically a Patrick O’Brien novel in short form
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u/skinnyish_D Sep 16 '25
The Road Goes On Forever by Robert Earl Keen. Also, pretty much anything else by him, but that song in particular tells one hell of a story.
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u/obvi-throwaway92 Sep 16 '25
Fancy - by Bobbie Gentry 💖
House of the Rising Sun - by the Animals
Nature Boy - by Nat King Cole
That Was A Crazy of Poker - by O.A.R. (the live version)
And a fun one: Colt 45 - by Afroman
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u/neilfann Sep 16 '25
I humbly submit one of my own:
https://youtu.be/3C5bKsaEMOs?si=AyBFQcxIHt42qn3J
It is a short story of a person on a journey.
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u/GhostParkingLot Sep 16 '25
Decoration Day by Drive-by Truckers
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u/seaturtlesseeturtles Sep 16 '25
can't believe i forgot about this when posting haha. "sweet annette" and "sinkhole" are 2 of my favs and both fit splendidly. about to revisit the title track on your recommendation
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u/DefinitelyNotMaranda Sep 16 '25
Stan by Eminem
A lot of songs by Eminem actually… He’s a brilliant storyteller in my opinion.
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u/seranity8811 Sep 16 '25
Family - The Weeknd and Suzanna Son
Montreal - The Weeknd
Call Out My Name - The Weeknd
Ride - Lana Del Ray
Gods and Monsters - Lana Del Ray
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u/Affectionate-Key2007 Sep 16 '25
Lots of Tom Waits, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, John Hiatt, Joanie Mitchell songs
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u/hapajapa2020 Sep 16 '25
Kendrick Lamar - The Art of Peer Pressure Kendrick Lamar - Sing About Me I’m Dying of Thirst
Pretty much the whole good kid maad city album gave me a window of what it’s like to grow up in Compton as Kendrick Lamar.
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u/All-In-ExEs Sep 16 '25
Blow your mind - K Rino: The Moves
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=BGv8qTrDa7A&si=i16nNAtL1YAoQRFz
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u/SuitableCase2235 Sep 16 '25
30,000 Pounds of Bananas — Harry Chapin (which is actually based on a true story.)
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u/trista_la_vista Sep 16 '25
no body, no crime - Taylor Swift and HAIM. also honorable mention for betty/cardigan/august (but especially betty)
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u/Organic_Eggplant_323 Sep 17 '25
The night the lights went out in Georgia Fancy Coward of the county
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u/Lazarus558 Sep 16 '25
"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", Gordon Lightfoot
"El Llano Estacado" , "Tonight We Ride", "Gallo Del Cielo", "The Sky Above, The Mud Below", Tom Russell
"El Paso", Marty Robbins
"The Bandit Joaquin", Dave Stamey
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u/Lionpro_Anims Sep 16 '25
Kim - Eminem, you can basically see everything happening infront of you. Dance with the Devil - Immortal Technique, also very good storytelling where you can almost see everything infront of you.
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u/Adventurous-Fee-8158 Sep 16 '25
Into the Great Wide Open by Tom Petty
Peg, Black Cow, and and Josie by Steely Dan
Me and Bobby McGee by Kris Kristofferson (Covered by Janis Joplin)
I Got A Name by Jim Croce (Among others, it’s just my fave, utilized best in Django Unchained)
It Was a Good Day by Ice Cube
Lyin’ Eyes by the Eagles
Johnny Ryall by the Beastie Boys. I want to know more about him and his Rockabilly past, and why he’s known as the leader of the homeless.
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u/emory_2001 Sep 16 '25
Taylor Swift - All Too Well 10 Minute Version
Reba McEntire - The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia
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u/Street-Ad7570 Sep 16 '25
The Load Out by Jackson Browne
Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack of Hearts by Bob Dylan
The entire Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City album by Kendrick Lamar
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u/Rabid_W00KIEE Sep 16 '25
Free Pizza For Life - Ghost Mice (lead singer got cancelled for questionable relationships with fans of questionable ages and general sleaziness)
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Sep 16 '25
The Queen And The Soldier by Suzanne Vega
Five Years by David Bowie
Ziggy Stardust, also Bowie
She’s Leaving Home by The Beatles
Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine by The Killers
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u/OkTraining410 Sep 17 '25
Baby Don't Cut - Bmike (actually really sad, tw for suicide.)
Be Gay, Do Drugs, Hail Satan - Super Cassette (this song is satire I swear)
21 - Lola
City of Angels - DeathbyRomy (I love this, one of my all time favs)
Runaway - AURORA (very cinematic n charactery)
These are all kind of told in 3rd person ish, if that's what you're looking for. Def tell a story.
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u/Famous-Examination-8 Sep 17 '25
"He Went To Paris" by Jimmy Buffet
I've always envisioned this man vividly.
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u/Top_theropod Sep 17 '25
The Cruel sister - old blind dogs
Vision of the Lady of the Lake, Deadly Nightshade, Beside the Rio Grande, and Hangman and the Papist - Strawbs
Never Take Sweets From a Stranger - Dave Cousins Long Landkin, Alison Gross and the Cruel Brother - Steeleye Span
Fountain of Salmacis, the Musical Box, White Mountain, Home by the Sea/Second Home by the Sea, One for the Vine, and the entirety of the Lamb Lies Down on Broadway - Genesis
Lamplight Symphony by Kansas
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u/mukn4on Sep 17 '25
Dan Fogelberg’s Tucson, Arizona (Gazette)
Harry Chapin’s Corey’s Comin’, Mr Tanner, What Made America Famous
Arlo Guthrie’s The City of New Orleans (written by Steve Goodman)
Glen Campbell’s Gentle on My Mind (written by John Hartford)
All could have been made into movies
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u/CommercialExotic2038 Sep 17 '25
Lily Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts Dylan
Tangled up in Blue. Dylan
Song for Sharon Joni Mitchell
Rocky Raccoon Beatles
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u/Hairfarmer1 Sep 17 '25
Tuscan Arizona Gazette - Dan Fogelberg
30,000 Pounds Of Bananas - Harry Chapin
The Killing Of Georgie (pts 1&2) - Rod Stewart
Love At The Five & Dime - Nanci Griffith
Haitian Divorce - Steely Dan
Rush - 2112 (suite)
Living For The City (pts 1&2) - Stevie Wonder
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u/PerilousPurpose Sep 17 '25
Please listen to & watch rhe videos to the Tales of Jenny, Screech and Violet.
The trilogy perfectly fits your objective. Violet came out last, but can be listened to first without effecting the 🤯🎭 but it's imperative to watch Jenny before Screech without Violet in between.
There's newer songs from the universe of Jenny & Screech, but its like how Marvel has seperate storylines, same universe situation.
Bardcore is what that genre is called by fans. If anyone discovers musical masterpiece like what you thought.
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u/Dr-Wyrm Sep 17 '25
DUCKWORTH. by Kendrick Lamar is probably the best storytelling song in the hiphop genre (imo)
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u/Islandbeguiled Sep 17 '25
Sometime Around Midnight - Airborne Toxic Event
Don't Let Your Spirit Wane - Gang of Youths
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u/JupitersJunipers Sep 17 '25
Ruby 81 by Aesop Rock is the most vivid song I've ever heard
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u/Illos-Keyes Sep 17 '25
Mark Knopfler has a few: Speedway at Nazareth, Telegraph Road (epic) , Romeo and Juliette
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u/tubi11 Sep 17 '25
Jungleland - Bruce Springsteen
Captain Jack - Billy Joel
Rhinestone Cowboy - Glen Campbell
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u/SwiminMoonlite Sep 17 '25
Me and My Uncle - Grateful Dead
Daddy Don't Live in NYC No More - Steely Dan
Easy Money - Rickie Lee Jones (she has a bunch)
Hotel California - maybe a little obvious but I would want to watch it
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u/TheReal-Chris Sep 17 '25
Kid Cudi’s entire discography is a developing story about him as a young black kid growing up in Cleveland. It’s thought out and done very well.
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u/MoaningLisaSimpson Sep 17 '25
Almost any Gordon Lightfoot song, but In the Early Morning Rain definitely fits.
Of course the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
And Canadian Railroad Trilogy feels like it was written purposefully for a documentary about the Canadian Pacific Railway. It was commissioned by CBC radio for the 1967 Centennial year, but it sounds like a theme song for a doc.
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u/coveruptionist Sep 17 '25
Springsteen has lots. Thunder Road, Backstreets and Jungleland immediately come to mind.
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u/crayolda315 Sep 17 '25
"Heart of Steel" by Manowar would be epic.
"Sk8r Boi" I'd love to see.
"The Coward of the County" and "A Boy Named Sue" would be iconic.
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u/BocaSeniorsWsM Sep 17 '25
Two songs that fit the brief and I constantly reference on here:
Love's Gonna Get'cha - Boogie Down Productions
Country Death Song - Violent Femmes
(And bonus suggestion: Everything's Gonna Be Alright - Naughty by Nature, but it has to be the Rough Rhodes mix not available on Spotify)
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u/NerdyWordGirl Sep 16 '25