Non-rap examples of lyrics where the artist refers to him/herself by name

I truly apologize for dredging up traumatic memories that we've all so heroically learned to repress but I just have to ask:

Well

Are you Johnny Ray?
Are you Slim Ray?
Are you Paid Ray?
Who wants to know? Who wants to know?

Are you Sting Ray?
Are you Nick Ray?
Are you Jimmy Ray?
Who wants to know? Who wants to know?

I am not Jesus though I have the same initials - Jarvis Cocker/Pulp - Dishes

One more Leonard Cohen! On Coming Home:

I love to speak with Leonard
He’s a sportsman and a shepherd
He’s a lazy bastard
Living in a suit

Learned about this one from the "You Must Remember This" podcast -- second episode ever! (And this song is not a joke -- I'm only quoting the first part of it, it gets crazier from there.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCCw6gYEeKw

My name is Francis Albert (Francis Albert Sinatra)
And I sing love songs mostly after dark, mostly in saloons
I've had some very good years
I haven't missed a whole lot in those firecracker years
And I don't want to miss a thing when the future appears

I like to sit outside on a summer night with a drink in my hand
And a little moonlit music on the stereo
And look at the stars
Then I get an urge to travel through that fabulous sky
If they can do it in the movies, why can't I?

("Seats are now available on the Satellite Special leaving for Mercury, Venus, Pluto, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune.")

What time does the next miracle leave?
I want to be on board
Save me a seat by the window where I can see
All those marvelous things to be seen out there
(Will the trees be green out there, or bare?)

What time does the next miracle leave?
Let's get this show on the road
And when the satellite tours begin
Count me in, count me in , count me in
Count me in, count me in , count me in

Much later in the song -- and again, I swear to god, actual lyrics:

(And then) And then to Uranus (Uranus)
Uranus is heaven
(Heaven, heaven)
(How will you know, Francis, if it's really heaven?)
How will I know?
I will know
If they meet me at the station with a cheese and tomato pizza
Well done (well done), and a little red wine

Forgot the quote -- here we go:

My name is Francis Albert (Francis Albert Sinatra)
And I sing love songs mostly after dark, mostly in saloons
I've had some very good years
I haven't missed a whole lot in those firecracker years
And I don't want to miss a thing when the future appears

I like to sit outside on a summer night with a drink in my hand
And a little moonlit music on the stereo
And look at the stars
Then I get an urge to travel through that fabulous sky
If they can do it in the movies, why can't I?

("Seats are now available on the Satellite Special leaving for Mercury, Venus, Pluto, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, Neptune.")

What time does the next miracle leave?
I want to be on board
Save me a seat by the window where I can see
All those marvelous things to be seen out there
(Will the trees be green out there, or bare?)

What time does the next miracle leave?
Let's get this show on the road
And when the satellite tours begin
Count me in, count me in , count me in
Count me in, count me in , count me in

And much later in the song -- and swear to god, these are the real lyrics:

(And then) And then to Uranus (Uranus)
Uranus is heaven
(Heaven, heaven)
(How will you know, Francis, if it's really heaven?)
How will I know?
I will know
If they meet me at the station with a cheese and tomato pizza
Well done (well done), and a little red wine

Said podcast episode (worth a listen)

http://www.youmustrememberthispodcast.com/episodes/youmustrememberthispodcastblog/you-must-remember-this-episode-2-frank-sinatra-in

oh by the way
which one's pink

Ray Charles - "I Believe To My Soul": "Last night you were dreaming and I heard you say/"Oh, Johnny" when you know my name is Ray"

holy shit @ that Sinatra tune

It's something, isn't it.

(BTW, got an email from you, but resend that to ned at kuci dot org if you could.)

We should have a baby
And then I wouldn't feel quite so sad
Then I'd feel like Paul the Saint and not Jack the Lad

Beautiful South - "Have Fun"

I'm gonna put that Sinatra tune in my audition rep

"But that's how it's pronounced!"

Needed: a mashup of Ol' Blue Eyes and the Outhere Brothers

The Chills, "Dream By Dream"

Well they persuaded me I had to leave the band
The reasons given I didn't understand
They said, "Now Martin, if you really cared"
I felt I had to, I'm feeling really scared
They killed my best dream dead

Michael's nervous and the lights are bright

REM - "Strange"

Alice Cooper, "Hard Hearted Alice"

... I'm pretty sure this isn't the only one.

Positive it isn't the only one but I can't think of any specific others atm. 'Under My Wheels', I think?

kind of a grey area there given the confusion between Alice Cooper the BAND and the guy who fired that band and changed his name to Alice Cooper

xp

holy shit @ that Sinatra tune

Sinatra's discography features some very novel corners.

Also think this happens a lot in reggae.

Also add Bohannon to Bo Diddley and Bootsy, and that's just the B's.

Sinatra's discography features some very novel corners.

no doubt - I consider myself a fairly big fan, but my interest hasn't stretched past the mid-60s really. I should probably listen to Watertown...

Watertown is one of my favorite albums of all time (no doubt helped by the fact that it was a total flop)

I remember being surprised to learn there IS an actual Watertown in northern New York.

Sensational Alex Harvey Band, "Framed"

I'm walking down the street mindin' my own affair
when two policemen grabbed me and I'm unaware
They said "Is your name Alexander?" and I said "Why, sure!"
They said "You're the cat that we've been looking for."

Another Alex...

In bed this morning you called me Clyde
Alex is the name that I go by!

Lou Reed, "My Old Man"

When I was a young boy in Brooklyn
Going to public school
During recess in the concrete playground
They lined us up by twos
In alphabetical order, Reagan, Reed and Russo
I still remember the names
And stickball and stoopball were the only games
That we played

similarly: "I'd like to send this one out to Lou and Rachel" in Coney Island Baby

Wacky Women by Sparks

Hello, everybody, this is Russell
Right before I sing I'm gonna make a muscle

Ouija Board, Ouija Board by Morrissey has the "S.T.E.V.E.N P.U.S.H.O. double F" part

"We Love Girls" by Buster has the band all sign off by name at the end:

"With love from Buster"
"With love from Robbie"
"With love from Peter"
"With love from Kevin"
"With love... from Les"

I just looked at their wiki page to check I had their names correct and Les died last month

forgot an obvious one, "B-I-D Spells Bid" by the Monochrome Set

An even more obvious one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVGl4dPzJJM

I truly apologize for dredging up traumatic memories that we've all so heroically learned to repress but I just have to ask:

Well

Are you Johnny Ray?
Are you Slim Ray?
Are you Paid Ray?
Who wants to know? Who wants to know?

Are you Sting Ray?
Are you Nick Ray?
Are you Jimmy Ray?
Who wants to know? Who wants to know?

― i need microsoft installed on my desktop, can you help (Old Lunch)

thank god somebody mentioned jimmy ray; i was beginning to think you'd all gone barmy

in the original version of radiohead's "lift" from 1996 thom works his own name into the lyrics. don't think they ever released that one, though.

A warning from Wikipedia:

A November 2015 announcement on Jimmy Ray's official fan page stated that he is working on material for a comeback record. This was later confirmed in September 2016 on his Record label's website "La Rocka Records was created in 2016 as a launchpad for UK singer Jimmy Ray's 'comeback' album tentatively titled 'Live to Fight Another Day.'"

And now I'm a crushed credit card registered to Smith
Not the name that you call me with

Elliott Smith - The Biggest Lie

Robyn Hitchcock - my wife and my dead wife

My dead wife sits in a chair
Combing her hair
I know she's there
She wanders off to the bed
Shaking her head
"Robyn," she says
"You know I don't take sugar."

Bolan likes to rock now
Yes he does yes he does
Bolan likes to rock now
Yes he does, yes he does

Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band, "The Blimp"

Master master
This is recorded thru uh flies ear
'n you have t' have uh flies eye t' see it
It’s the thing that’s gonna make Captain Beefheart
And his magic band fat
Frank, it's the big hit
It's the blimp
It's the blimp, Frank
It's the blimp

The Roches - they'll tell you their names but they won't give out their phone numbers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ8MdYsgELs

Another Alexander O'Neal one, from In the middle:

Some people are satisfied
Living and loving on borrowed time
But if you can't be my own baby
All you have to do is say
Alex darling (doesn't?) play it that way

The Floaters - Float On

Almost every post-1975 Jonathan Richman song

Lambchop - "Kurt Wagner's Heart Attack"

Always loved this bit from "I Think She Likes Me" by Treat Her Right (Mark Sandman's pre-Morphine band)

"She listens to every word I say
I look at her she don't look away
I tell her that I play for "Treat Her Right"
She asks me if I'm gonna play tonight - Yeah!"

From Jarvis Cocker's lyrics/vocals for Barry Adamson's 'Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Pelvis'

Ahhh, can't you see what's on offer
Yeah babe it's going cheap today
I enter a room and all the girls say
C'mon Jarv, can I be the first?
Oh you make us so hot we feel we're gonna burst

She said Paul, you better look around
How long you think you can run that body down?
How many nights you think that you can do what you been doin'?
Who you foolin'?

--"Run That Body Down" (P. Simon)