February 7, 2008 14:40

Beck admits lyrics from classic songs were nonsense

Words from 'The New Pollution' and 'Devil's Haircut' were 'scratch' vocals

Beck has revealed that lyrics from some of his most famous tracks were nonsense.

The star admits that many songs - including 'The New Pollution' and 'Devil's Haircut' - featured "scratch" vocals – lines the star recorded during initial recordings of the songs to fill in blanks, that theoretically should have been replaced later on.

Speaking to Rolling Stone, the singer explained that most of the vocal parts on his 1996 album 'Odelay' were ad-libbed.

“Most of the vocals on the record were scratch vocals,” he said. “We just grew attached to them.”

The lyrics Beck referred to include the lines, "Heads are hanging from the garbage man trees/Mouthwash jukebox gasoline" from 'Devil's Haircut', and, “She’s got cigarette on each arm/She’s got the lily-white cavity crazes/She’s got a carburettor tied to the moon/Pink eyes looking to the food of the ages" from 'The New Pollution' .

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