I was in my local bar chatting about alsorts of rubbish as you do and a question arose that has me baffled to think...so perhaps the cool folks of FT can help dig out a few answers...

The question was

How many songs in the last 40 years have had a Shakespearean character in the lyrics?
I can only think of two in my limited knowledge of the music world

'Romeo and Juliet' by Dire Straits and a song by British Britpop band Arctic Monkeys called ' I bet you look good on the dancefloor' which has a lyric
"Oh, there ain't no love, no Montagues or Capulets
Are just banging tunes and DJ sets and...
Dirty dancefloors, and dreams of naughtiness!"

But.....i cannot for the life of me think of anymore.....

Any suggestions?

"Fire" - "Romeo and Juliet, Samson and Delilah..."

"Fever" - "Romeo loved Juliet
Juliet she felt the same
When he put his arms around her
He said Julie baby you're my flame..."

There's a place in the dark where the animals go
You can take off your skin in the cannibal glow
Juliet loves the beat and the lust it commands
Drop the dagger and lather the blood on your hands, Romeo

From The Sharpest Lives by My Chemical Romance. Probably not quite what you were thinking of...but the only I could think of.

No no both of your inputs are great thank you.

Anyone else?

"Romeo Had Juliet" by Lou Reed

This doesn't really count, but Sting quotes the first line of Sonnet 130 ("My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun") in "Sister Moon" - from the album Nothing Like the Sun

Oh - and of course, there's always the Spinal Tap piece, "Big Bottom".

And if you get that reference, you know you some Shakespeare!

Nick Cave had a song called "Hamlet (Pow Pow Pow)", which I think he wrote when he was still in the band The Birthday Party.

I can only remember one line from the song: "Where for art thou baby face?"
The song made absolutely no sense at all, but then I have immense difficulty understanding most of Nick Cave's work.

The Allman Brothers have "Desdemona" and the Band have "Ophelia". There's also the Romeo & Juliet reference in Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper"-

"Romeo and Juliet
Are together in eternity...Romeo and Juliet
40,000 men and women everyday...Like Romeo and Juliet"

Lots of references to Ophelia (Hamlet) here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/References_to_Ophelia#In_music

The Natalie Merchant and Bob Dylan tunes are probably your best bet.

Elvis Costello has a bunch of Midsummer Night's Dream stuff in one album - I'll look it up for you tomorrow.

A nice little list being developed and thank you all for your input, but surely there is more!!! lol

Elvis Costello also did "Miss Macbeth" on the album 'Spike'. As usual, I don't really understand what the lyrics are about, though...

Aussie band, Mental As Anything, had a bit hit with 'Just Like Romeo and Juliet'.

Madonna and 'Cherish'

Has a line with Romeo and Juliet in

Chris de Burgh - Fatal Hesitation:

Oh Romeo is standing in the rain,
And I know that I have let her slip away,
Fatal hesitation, fatal hesitation...

There's a hilarious song, called 'Flash, Bang, Wallop', in the musical 'Half a Sixpence'. One of the verses and its chorus goes:-

You've read it in a folio, or seen it in a Shakespeare play
How Juliet fell for Romeo in the merry month of May
And as he climbed the orchard wall to reach his lady fair
As he tumbled, she began to bawl as he floated through the air
Hold it, flash, bang, wallop, what a picture, what a picture, what a photograph
Poor young chap, what a night he spent
Tights all torn and his rapier bent
Clap hands, stamp your feet, bangin' on the big bass drum!
What a picture, what a picture
Um-tiddly-um-pum-um-pum-pum
Stick it in your family album!

Not character but title - 'Just another Winter's Tale' - David Essex and/or Moody Blues

Oh, and both 'I'm Henry VIII I am' - Herman's Hermits.

Taesma posted this on a duplicate thread [which I didn't notice until today - my apologies! I deleted now the duplicate]

Quote:

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There's a song from the '60s called Just Like Romeo and Juliet by the Reflections.
I get that durn thing stuck in my head sometimes and it just won't go away. Argh!

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The Scottish singer/songwriter BA Robertson had at least 2 songs with a lot of Shakespeare mentions, To Be Or Not To Be and Bang Bang, these lyrics from the latter:-

Tony and Cleo struck out for the freedom down Egypt's way
But Caesar had squeezed her in Rome on his quilt for a day
Hey hey

Now Anthony got really angry
About old Caesar's hanky panky
She told em she would use em
And boy did she abuse em
Fall in love and blew em away

Check Yes Juliet- By We The Kings

'Check yes Juliet
Kill the limbo
I'll keep tossing rocks at your window
There's no turning back for us tonight.'

though i love We The Kings,i dont know whether this song is meant to have a reference to Romeo and Juliet. but im thinking that the window reference is kinda like the balcony in Romeo and Juliet...anyone know?

Obviously not familiar to most people is Richard Thompson's song '(The story of) Hamlet' which starts with an introductory verse:
"This is the story of Hamlet
William Shakespear's most notable play
A magnificent, dignified work of art
But to you morons I think I'd better tell it this way"

He then summarizes the entire play in 4 minutes or so.

Shakespeare's Sister is an 80's group and also the name of a song by The Smiths.

Not Shakespearean characters but I couldn't think of anything else!

How about "Abdul and Cleopatra" from the woderful Jonathan Richman