#Lyric Changes

[emergingghost]

julien baker live lyric changes masterpost

the many ways that julien changes her lyrics over time and seamlessly alters the lyrics and meanings of her songs to maintain a level of personal authenticity has become so fascinating to me and many others so i thought it'd be nice to do some research and compile as many as i can. enjoy! or cry! whichever!

the original lyrics are in parenthesis, changes are bolded, roughly in chronological order and i’ve added timestamped links to performances [x] where i can! i use mostly youtube because it's the most accessible. some of these seem to be permanent changes and others are just occasional, probably depending on how she's vibing with the song at the time (i'm assuming). let me know of any i’ve missed!

Rejoice: [x] [x] [x] pronoun change, does this lots! "i know there's a god and they hear either way" ("i think there's a god and he hears either way") [x] she uses the 'she' pronoun here this time! [x] she sings 'force' here and also in a version she performed pre-release "asking why did you let them leave and then force me to stay?" ("asking why did you let them leave and then make me stay?")

Good News: [x] [x] [x] these are not full lyric changes but rather some gut-wrenching repetition. side note she performs a cover of paul by big thief in the first clip here too! "it's less about you / it's all about how i ruin everything oh everything i do / everything i do / god i ruin everything oh everything / oh everything i think could be good news." ("it's less about you / it's more about how i ruin everything--- i think could be good news")

Distant Solar Systems: [x] pronoun change speaking of god, she also omits the second last verse. "I send postcards from the road and now and then she answers" ("and now and then he answers")

Turn Out the Lights: [x] [x] [x] this one hurts! a few times in late '18 and in '19 "maybe i'd do it but it's not a joke" ("i'd never do it but it's not a joke")

Sour Breath: [x] [x] another one that hurts!! "think all the liquors gonna keep me warm / burn everything down just to prove i could / leave you inside a body made of wood" ("think all the liquors gonna keep you warm / burn everything down just to prove you could / leave me inside a body made of wood") [x] audio only from 1:16 (same changes as above +) "i don't do too well when everyone's worried about me" ("i don't do too well when nobody's worried about me")

Appointments: [x] [x] [x] in lots of performances post-2018. she switches between using 'know' and 'think' occasionally “i know that i ruined this / but i think i can live with it / nothing turned out how pictured it ... i think that i failed again / but i know you’re still listening” ("i think if i ruin this / that i know i can live with it / nothing turns out like I pictured it ... i think if i fail again / then i know you’re still listening") [x] audio only - from 2:45 (same changes as above +) "i hope you're still listening" ("i know you're still listening")

Happy to Be Here: [x] tiny changes. not sure if she's done this more than once "different me would be inhabiting my body / have two cars, a garage, a dog..." ("different me would be inhabiting this body / have two cars, a garage, a job...")

Something: [x] [x] [x] [x] (she adds 'again' a lot, even since 2015) “asking aloud why you’re leaving again” (“asking aloud why you’re leaving--”) [x] (this was prior to release) "asking aloud why you're leaving again / i know you won't answer me" ("asking aloud why you're leaving --- / but the pavement won't answer me")

Red Door: [x] "beneath before you won't follow me down" ("beneath before you wont follow me there")

Shadowboxing: [x] [x audio only - from 3:09] "tell me that you love me / tell me you love me / i wanted so bad to believe you / so tell me you loved me / tell me you loved me / i wanted so bad to believe you" ) ("when you tell me you love me / tell me you loved me / i wanted so bad to believe it / so tell me you love me / tell me you loved me")

Ziptie: [x] [x] [x] [x] (side note the end of the second clip rules!!) “someone’s/somethings got my heart in a ziptie” (“someone’s got my head in a ziptie”)

Tokyo: [x] [x] [x audio only - from 1:30] in a few performances in 2022 “a seven-car pile-up of every disastrous thing that i am" (“a seven-car pile-up of every disastrous thing that i’ve been”) + also sings "accident" instead of "aftermath" in the audio clip

Relative Fiction: [x] [x] [x] [x] does this lots! "honey you're the only thing i'll wait around for" ("--you’re the only thing i’ll wait around for")

Highlight Reel: [x] [x audio only from 1:45 ] original chorus lyrics are 'you feel' but now in one chorus she sings 'to' and the other she sings 'you' "ooh it's a highlight reel / tell me how to feel" ("ooh it's a highlight reel / tell me how you feel")

Ringside: [x] [x] [x audio only from 3:50] two separate lyrics changes in these clips! "like a scratch-off ticket how i dig my nails into your skin" ("like a scratch-off ticket how you dig your nails into my skin")

(from final verse) “nobody deserves a second chance / so why do i keep getting them?” (“nobody deserves a second chance / but i keep giving them”) [x] [x] (from the second last verse) “nobody deserves a second chance / but somehow i keep fucking getting them” (“nobody deserves a second chance / but honey i keep getting them") Anti-Curse: [x] [x] [x] [x] [x] she doesn't always change 'foreign characters' "writing the words to the best love song you've ever heard" ...“sounding out familiar characters” ("writing the words to the worst love song you've ever heard"...“sounding out the foreign characters”)

Favor: [x] [x] [x] [x] first change - changing to 'why?' in most live performances “why couldn’t you make me do it?” (“well you couldn’t make me do it”) [x] [x] new change from MSG in 2023! “how did you make me do it?” (“well you couldn’t make me do it”)

HONOURABLE MENTIONS:

Funeral Pyre: [x] this is just a funny thing i found on my hunt. the audience accidentally corrected her grammar, theyre singing along and sing "needed so badly" instead of the original "needed so bad" and everyone took a lil' moment to laugh. Funeral Pyre: allegedly. i just read about it somewhere so have no proof!! “while i drank gasoline 'cause it's what i needed so bad” (“while you drank gasoline 'cause it's what you needed so bad”) Shadowboxing: [x] she doesn't really change any lyrics significantly but repeats the final verse for emphasis.

Good News: [x] (i think an early/demo version but i cant find any other recordings/videos of this version!) "how i fuck up everything i think could be good news" ("how i ruin everything i think could be good news") Rejoice: [x] house show performance from 2015 before official release. a few different lyrics! "ask you why did you let them leave and then force me to stay?" ("asking why did you let them leave and then make me stay?") (final verse) "i rejoice anyway / i rejoice either way" ("i rejoice i rejoice / i rejoice i rejoice") Sour Breath: [x] she added a new mini verse repeating "the harder i swim" where there are usually just instrumentals or 'oohs.' then she continued with the original final "the harder i swim the faster i sink" verse.

Sour Breath: [x] house show performance from 2015 before official release. there's an entire additional verse where the repeated 'the harder i swim the fast i sink' usually is. proceed with caution. "...too late to talk just go to sleep been up too long and you've been drinkin' all night it's almost a week and you haven't said a word been thinkin' it isn't worth the tryin' it takes to fix everything you hate about me all that you wouldn't wanna see

the harder i swim, the faster i sink and all i ever wanted was to pull you down with me was to pull you down with me don't you wanna sink with me? don't you wanna drown with me? just let me pull you down..."

[epicthemusicalstuff]

I'm so confused of the lyrics change from 'Done For'.

Yes! I’m so glad you reminded me of this! Several lyrics were changed from his earlier versions of most of the songs, to the saga album, but I think most of them were for clarification purposes. For instance,

“I just ate a flower, one that drains your power, so you better cower before me”

Changed to

“I just ate a flower, one that’s claims your power, so you better cower now and flee”

I think the change from drains to claims helps us to better understand that by eating this flower is does not render Circe powerless forever, rather it just helps to show that Moly just makes Odysseus temporarily immune to her powers. The change of words to cower before me to cower now and flee kind of helps to show that Odysseus has no malicious intent necessarily, and that he just wants to get his men back.

that’s the big lyric change I noticed in Done For, but I did notice there were a few other ones sprinkled through the songs. It’s gonna take me a bit to unlearn the old ones, but overall they are logical changes! Let me know if there are others that are tripping anyone else up!

[twopoppies]

Was going through juice lyrics and it's so funny that the og lyric goes "Louis down to my drawers" Which harry changed to "gucci down to my drawers" I love that a conscious thought had been made 😭

I love it when he makes little changes like that. My favorite was actually when he covered Sledgehammer, and he changed the lyric from "Open up your fruit cage" to "Open up your fruit cakes" jhkckljhcdjhds

[teenytinysandwiches]

How did I go years of watching/listening to this without noticing the lyric change?

[1ouis]

1D Throwback Tiiiime

Louis performed in Cardiff today and it's giving me emotional whiplash. Lmao 😵‍💫

It took me back to this day and this video is one of the reasons why it's been burned into the back of my mind for YEARS.

So yeah... A HUGE shout out to this vid in particular!!

Harry's famous Little Things lyric changes are especially clear here imo

PLUS!! It's a long haired Harry and hedgehog Louis centric video!! CLOSE UP!!! Need I say more??

[immaculate-benediction-batch]

Lazarus

Look up here, I'm in heaven

I've got scars that can't be seen

I've got drama, can't be stolen

Everybody knows me now

Look up here, man, I'm in danger

I've got nothing left to lose

I'm so high it makes my brain whirl

Dropped my cell phone down below

Ain't that just like me?

By the time I got the warning

I was losing everything

There I'd used up all my trust

I was looking for your love

This way or no way

You know, I'll be free

Just like that bluebird

Now, ain't that just like me?

Oh, I'll be free

Just like that bluebird

Oh, I'll be free

Ain't that just like me?

[fma03envy]

You should watch fma03; it's really good I promise

[breakbleheavens]

LONDON BOY The Eras Tour — London, UK (Night 5) | August 16, 2024

[lovely-abeille]

deaf republic, ilya kaminsky // sun bleached flies, ethel cain // mercy, yves olade // hannibal // foghorn, victoria chang // ? // it chooses you, miranda july

[hinamie]

truth is, I used to dream about boys like you

jjk atla!au with @philosophiums

[professorcalculusstanaccount]

Castafiore delivers an earth-shattering performance! Update to my story, the House of Glass! Follows directly from this. Drawing this part was intense - crowd shots, buildings, cars, guns - all things I'm not fond of drawing, but hopefully this was worth it!

If you're enjoying this comic, please consider donating to Youssef Helles. He moved to Belgium in 2019 and is trying to get his wife and five children to Egypt after his family was forced to flee on foot to Southern Gaza, then again to Rafah, where they are currently living in a tent.

His tumblr is @4-zien-yousef

[emergingghost]

in terms of (very small) lyric changes, she did sing “would that make it easier” instead of easy during even. but i don’t have a video or anything so idk if you can include that. i mean i’m sure someone took one but i haven’t seen one yet.

ooh thank you! noted ✍️ !! im sure some vids will surface soon. im so excited to see how she inevitably changes up these songs lyric-wise.

[mumpsetc]

My Mind Plays Tricks on Me

[twopoppies]

I've come to conclusion that sometimes people are tone deaf. It's very clear that harry sang 'you've got my devotion' yesterday but they are few who's saying 'he's got my devotion' and similarly were very sure that he sang 'hopelessly devoted to lou'🙆‍♀️🙆‍♀️🙆‍♀️ 😬

I heard “you’ve” last night, but I’ve only listened once. The Harryween 2022 one has been tough for me to decide on, to be honest. But I think the only one I’ve ever really been close to being certain on is Harryween night 2 from 2021 when he sang “imaginary baby” during Kiwi.

[vsotxbull]

"The fear is what keeps you insane..."

(Based off a couple of MCU scenes that center around Steve and Bucky lol)

Dr. Starline had a lot of potential beyond what was given to him in his run, as do most "deceased" villains. Hypnosis especially could offer some wild, high-risk storylines. I also just really want to see Sonic become a little unhinged when his friends' lives are toyed with.

[orville-peck]

Pink Pony Club (Live at the 6th Annual Rodeo) Fancy (Live at the 2nd Annual Rodeo)