3 Songs From 1969 That Secretly Feature Mind-Blowing Lyrics

In the mood for some gorgeous tunes from the late 1960s? These three tunes are gorgeous songs from 1969, and their lyrics might be even more incredible than you remember. Reading between the lines is fundamental. Let’s take a look!

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“Lay Lady Lay” by Bob Dylan

This Nashville Skyline track is a tender and sweet little country-rock ditty on the surface. Heck, there was even a rumor at the time that Bob Dylan sang this one for The Everly Brothers, but they allegedly rejected it because they thought the song had too many sexual innuendos in it.

However, the lyrics hide an emotional intensity that you might have missed if you didn’t listen to them very closely. Dylan allegedly wrote this song for his ex-wife, Sarah. Though, Dylan would later say he wrote it for Barbra Streisand for a potential duet. Either way, the lyrics do boast some anticipatory romantic and sexual allusions that come straight from the heart, but the song is actually much more emotionally vulnerable than overtly sexual when you really listen.

Whatever colors you have in your mind
I’ll show them to you and you’ll see them shine.

“Wooden Ships” by Crosby, Stills & Nash

When you first listened to the classic “Wooden Ships” by Crosby, Stills & Nash, you might have just thought it was an ahead-of-its-time, almost sci-fi sort of tune about a post-apocalyptic world. That’s definitely what this song is about on the surface. Under the surface, though, this song boasts some serious anti-war themes that were topical at the time. Which makes sense, as this song dropped during the Vietnam War.

And it’s a fair wind blowin’ warm
Out of the south over my shoulder
Guess I’ll set a course and go.

“Space Oddity” by David Bowie

Any David Bowie fan has probably listened to this song from 1969 a million times. But not everyone has really picked apart the lyrics of this fantastic psychedelic folk rock tune. This song is obviously very topical for its time, as it was released around the same time as the Apollo 11 moon landing. A lot of listeners just thought it was a fun space song. However, this tune gets deep in the paint when it comes to existentialism and the feeling of isolation felt by many listeners at the time.

For here, am I sitting in a tin can
Far, above the world
Planet Earth is blue
And there’s nothing I can do.

Photo by Debi Doss/Hulton Archive/Getty Images