Video lesson #23: Wherever I may roam (Metallica clip)

HI!

Today we are going to listen to a Metallica´s song from their most famous album, the so called black album released almost 20 years ago, in 1991.

Although this album includes hits like Enter Sandman, Sad but True or Nothing Else Matters, I have chosen another song called Wherever I May Roam for two reasons. 

On the one hand, it´s a song that talks about roaming, that is not exactly the same thing as travelling. When you travel you have a purpose, a goal, which might be relaxing on the beach, visiting a city or a touristic spot, gathering with friends and family, and so on. But when you roam you don´t have a specific purpose or goal, you travel without an idea of what you are going to do; therefore you are not a traveler or a tourist but a nomad, wanderer, rover or vagabond.

On the other hand I have always loved this song so it was about time to make an English lesson based on it.

At last, but not least, it also includes some common expressions that are quite useful in spoken English, like take my time or speak my mind. Both expressions are explained below so you can fully understand them.

As usual, follow these steps to take the lesson:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to pages 1-2 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 3 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

 

WORKSHEET Wherever I May Roam Worksheet

 

VOCABULARY

Bride: a woman who is getting married or has just been married.

To strip: to remove, pull, or tear the covering or outer layer from something.

Pride: your feelings of your own worth and respect for yourself.

To confide: to tell something secret or personal to someone whom you trust not to tell anyone else.

Dust: very small pieces of sand, earth and other substances.

To crave: to desire something strongly.

Slave: a person who is legally owned by someone else and has no personal freedom.

Rover, wanderer, nomad or vagabond: a person who spends their time travelling from place to place.

To take your time: expression that means that you can spend as much time as you need in doing something.

To speak your mind: to say what you think about something very directly.

To roam: to travel without a clear idea of what you are going to do.

Throne: a special chair used by a ruler, like a king or a queen.

Tie: a connection or relationship between people, or between a person and a place, interest or activity.

To sever: to end a connection with someone or something.

Off the beaten path: away from people and not known.

To reign: to be the king or queen of a country.

To carve: to cut into the surface of stone, wood, etc. In the song they use the expression carved upon my stone that means that something can´t be changed (for example a plan or a way of life).

To wander: to walk around slowly in a relaxed way or without any clear purpose or direction.

Video lesson#14: Don´t worry, be happy

It was about time to listen to this Bobby McFerrin’s classic hit from the late 80´s, that was the first a capella song to reach the number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1988.

I´m pretty sure that you have heard this song many times, especially if you were born in the 70´s-80´s but I also think that you may have not noticed the lack of any musical instruments on it. In fact, the only instrument used to record this song is Bobby´s McFerrin voice, as well as different sounds made by him with his fingers and mouth.

It has a quite simple and positive message, encouraging people to face their problems instead of worrying about them, and the chorus of the song is inspired in Meher Baba´s (an Indian mystic) words: “Don´t worry, be happy”.

The lyrics are quite easy to understand but I´m sure that you can learn some new vocabulary from this song.

As usual, follow these steps to take the lesson:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to pages 1-2 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 3 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

WORKSHEET Don´t worry, be happy work sheet

VOCABULARY

To worry: to think about problems or unpleasant things that might happen in a way that makes you feel unhappy and frightened.

Note: a single musical sound.

Trouble: problems

Ain´t: short informal form of am not, is not, is not, has not or have not.

To lay: to put something down somewhere. Sometimes is confused with to lie (to put your body flat on something) because lay is also the past simple form of to lie.

Landlord: a man who owns the house that you live in and who you pay rent to.

To litigate: to ask for a disagreement to be discussed in a court of law so that a judgment can be made that must be accepted by both sides in the argument.

Cash: money in form of coins and notes

Gal: a woman or a girl (in British informal English)

´Cause: short informal form of because. Sometimes it´s also written as cos or cuz.

To frown: to bring your eyebrows together so that there are lines on your face above your eyes showing that you are annoyed, worried, sad or thinking hard.

Video lesson#13: In the dark places

As the previous video lesson (Video lesson#11: Shy) had some difficult vocabulary, I´ve chosen an easy song this time, called In the dark places.

This PJ Harvey´s song was released in 2011 in her album Let´s England shake and it talks about the history of England, concretely about the First World War. It describes a day in the life of the young soldiers lost in Europe´s fields with their guns, fighting other young soldiers without a reason that anyone could understand.

One of the things I like most about it is that it has a very simple vocabulary, with many words about nature like fields, mountains, forests or dirt. I´m sure that most of you already know these words, so I hope you just enjoy listening to this music and maybe discovering one of the most interesting British artists of the last decades.

As you know, follow these steps to follow the lesson:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to page 1 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 2 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

 

WORK SHEET In the dark places work sheet

VOCABULARY

To get up: to get out of bed, or to stand up.

Field: an area of land used for growing crops or keeping animals.

Cross: a symbol formed by two lines placed across each other.

Damned: annoying, greatly disliked. The expression damn! It s commonly used to express anger with someone or something.

Hellwards: towards hell (the place where some people think bad people go when they die)

Forest: a large area of trees growing close together. Also known as woods

To pass before: to pass in front of someone or something.

To reveal: to tell someone a piece of secret information.

Hid: past simple of the verb to hide (to go to a place where no one can see you)

Dirt: any unclean substance such as mud, dust, etc, or just the soil in the ground.

Gun: a weapon that you fire bullets out of.

Dark: with no light or not much light.

Video lesson#11: Shy

I think is time to start learning some advanced English vocabulary, such as some particular adjectives or phrasal verbs.

For this purpose I have chosen one of my favorite songs, called Shy from the American songwriter Ani Difranco.

As you will see it´s a song about a road trip, a gas station, a motel but mostly is a song about a one-night affair. It includes many words related with hotels and accommodations like housekeeper, motel, pillow, sheet, mattress, etc. It also has a great rhythm and the singer´s voice is clear and easy to understand, so it´s a perfect song to get to the advanced English level.

I have made a huge list of new words below and, as always, I have created a work sheet to fill the lyrics gaps while listening to the song.

I´m sure you know these steps, but once again here they are:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to page 1 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 2 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

Work sheet Shy Work Sheet

Vocabulary

Shy: nervous and uncomfortable with other people.

Heat: the quality of being hot or warm.

Trick: an action that is intended to deceive someone. In this case is an effect caused by the light making something appear different.

Road: a long, hard surface made for vehicles to travel along.

Crack: a very narrow space between the parts of something.

Sink: a bowl that is attached to the wall in a kitchen or bathroom in which you wash dishes or your hands.

Gas station: a place where fuel is sold for road vehicles.

To bake: to cook inside an oven.

Trash: garbage, waste material or things that are no longer needed.

Curb: a raided edge along the side of a street, often forming part of a path for people to walk on.

Doorway: the space in a wall where door opens, or a covered area just outside a door.

Herd: a large group of animals of the same type that live and feed together.

To have a stake in something: to have personal interest in something.

To let off (someone): to fail to punish someone when the person expects to be punished.

To lead (someone) on: to persuade someone to believe something that is untrue.

Phone booth: a partly enclosed area where there is a public phone.

Veiled invitation: an invitation that is not direct or clearly expressed.

Machine: in this song refers to a device linked to the telephone that records the caller´s messages.

To show up: to arrive somewhere, especially late or unexpectedly.

Front door: the main entrance to a building or a house.

To wince: to show pain or embarrassment suddenly and for a short time in the face.

Housekeeper: a person, especially a woman, whose job is to organize another person´s house and deal with cooking, cleaning, etc. In hotels is the person in charge of cleaning the rooms.

To squint: to partly close your eyes in order to see more clearly.

Pillow: a rectangular cloth bag filled with soft materail, such as feathers or artificial materials, used for resting your head on a bed.

Grin: a wide smile.

Sheet: a large piece of thin cloth used on a bed for sleeping on or under.

Twisted: turned in an awkward way.

Damp: slightly wet, especially in a way that is not pleasant or comfortable.

Matress: the part of a bed, made of a strong cloth cover filled with firm material that makes the bed comfortable to lie on.

To sink: to make something go down below the surface of a liquid.

Fever: a medical condition in which the body temperature is higher than usual.

Bend: a curved part of something.

Video lesson#10: Hotel California

It was about time to listen to the most famous Hotel song, don´t you think?

Originally released in 1976 is the most iconic song of The Eagles, that sold over 16 million copies in the U.S. alone and won a Grammy award in 1978.

It has some enigmatic lyrics that have lead to many theories about the meaning of this song. Is it about dead? Is it a bad trip from LSD or other hallucinogenic drug? Or is it about a small hotel in Pueblo Mágico de Todos los Santos (California) where the author, Don Henley, stayed for some days?

The authors have stated many times that it´s a song about the materialism and excess of the American culture of the 70´s but also “a journey from innocence to experience”.

Anyway,  to learn English with this song follow the usual steps:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to page 1 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 2 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

Work sheet Hotel California Work Sheet

VOCABULARY

Desert: an area often covered with sand or rocks, where there is very little rain and not many plants. It´s different from the word Dessert which means “sweet food eaten at the end of the meal”

Highway: a public road, especially an important road that joins cities or towns together.

Colitas: in an interview the author, Don Felder, said that “is a plant that grows in the dessert that blooms at night, and it has a kind of pungent, almost funky smell”.  Actually, there is no plant by this name so it seems that it could be a cactus or an eucalyptus.

Shimmering light: a gentle light that seems to move slightly.

My head grew heavy: a way to say that someone is falling asleep so, in a figurative way his head is getting heavier.

My sight grew dim: when your eyes are dim you can´t see very well.

Doorway: the space in a wall where a door opens, or a covered area just outside a door.

Mission: similar to church.

Candle: a stick-shaped piece of wax with a string in the middle of it that produce light as it slowly burns.

Corridor: a long passage in a building or train, especially with rooms on either side.

Welcome: expression used to express that your are pleased that someone arrives to a place

Room: a place inside a building that is separated by walls, floor and ceiling. Also, the amount of space that someone or something needs.

Tiffany-twisted: game of words referred to Tiffany´s jewelry shop. It means that this woman loves luxury and wealth.

Courtyard: an area of flat ground outside that is partly or completely surrounded by the walls of a building

Captain: the leader of a sports team, or the person in charge of a ship or an aircraft. In this song it seems to be used as waiter.

Spirit: a particular way of thinking, feeling or behaving. Also the form of a death person similar to a ghost. And also a strong alcoholic drink. In this song it´s used with the three meanings at the same time.

To live it up: to have an exciting and very enjoyable time with parties, good food and drink, etc.

Alibis: an excuse for a failure, or a proof that someone hasn´t committed a crime.

Ceiling: the inside surface of a room that you can see when you look above you.

Device: an object or machine or a crafty scheme or trick. In this song it refers to how the people that live in this strange hotel they have tricked themselves to live in this prison.

Master´s chambers: a chamber is a room used for a special purpose or the office of someone in a important position. The master is a person who employs a servant or owns a slave. So in this song the master´s chamber is the most important room of the hotel where the master is.

To gather: to come together in a group.

Feast: a special meal with very good food for many people

Passage: a long and narrow part of a building with rooms on one or both sides, or a covered path that connects places

Night man: an overnight guard

To check out: to leave a hotel after paying and returning your room key.

Video Lesson # 5: Down under

Today we are going to take a look at some Australian slang vocabulary with the famous song Down under from the Australian band Men at work.

This song was released in 1981 on their first LP Business As Usual and was their greatest hit, reaching number 1 in American Top 40 chart.

As you will see while you listen to it, it´s a song about an Australian traveler who is bothered by the stereotype image that people around the world have about Australia: a land of beautiful women, big muscled men that drink lot of beer and plenty of wellness everywhere. But it´s also a great song to learn some Australian vocabulary, so this is a lesson that you must follow if you are planning to visit Australia or New Zealand.

As always, follow the usual steps:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to page 1 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 2 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

 

WORK SHEET  Down under work sheet 

VOCABULARY

Fried out: overheated. In this song is referred to the overheated engine of the van.

Kombi: (Australian slang) a van, specifically an old VW that was the typical hippie van in the 70´s and 80´s.

Hippie trail: referred to a way of traveling in the 60´s and 70´s where the goal was to travel as long as possible without spending too much money. Many of those trips were in a kombi where you could travel, spend the night and cook.

Zombie (Australian slang) weed, marihuana.

Land down under: other way to say Australia, as it´s a country that is in the southern hemisphere so it´s down under other countries.

To glow: to shine, or to look attractive because you are happy or healthy, especially with eyes that are shining.

To plunder: to steal goods violently from a place, especially during a war.

Vegemite: a brand name for a soft, dark brown, salty-tasting food for spreading on bread, made from yeast, that is popular in Australia and New Zealand.

To chunder: (Australian slang) to vomit, to puke, especially after drinking alcohol.

Den: a room in a house or apartment, used for activities not involving work such as reading, watching T.V. Also is a place where people secretly plan or take part in dishonest or illegal activities such as consuming drugs.

Slack jaw: mouth in an open position with the jaw hanging loosely, especially indicating astonishment. Normally is used as an adjective slack jawed.

To tempt: to make someone want to have or do something, especially something that is unnecessary or wrong.

The land of plenty: referred to Australia, as it´s a country with plenty of natural resources.

Video Lesson # 4: Destination: Anywhere

In today´s video lesson we are going to study a classic song from The Marvelettes released in 1968 called Destination: Anywhere. It´s a heartbreak song about someone who wants to run away from an ex, starting a journey without any destination in mind.

Even though it wasn´t a success like their number one single Please, Mr Postman with the time it became a classic song, especially after a cover was recorded by The Commitments for their homonymous film in 1991.

In fact, for this lesson I propose listening to this stunning cover, following the usual steps:

 

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to page 1 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 2 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

 

WORKSHEET: Destination: Anywhere work sheet

VOCABULARY

Destination: the place where someone is going. Sometimes it is confused by Spanish students with destiny (the things that will happen in the future), as both words have the same translation to Spanish: Destino.

Railroad station: a place with one or more buildings and platforms where trains stop for people to get on or off. Also known as railway station.

Wanna: short informal form of want to or want a. Very common in spoken American English but considered incorrect in written English.

Miss: a title used before the family name or full name of a single woman who has no other title. When used without a name it´s a polite way to address a woman.

Ain´t: short informal form of am not, is not, is not, has not or have not.

Back door: a door in the back of a building. Figuratively is used to refer to an indirect way of achieving something like in this song.

A funny face: a surprising face that shows amazement.

Anyplace: synonym of anywhere.

´Cause: short informal form of because. Sometimes it´s also written as cos or cuz.

Tenderly: in a gentle, loving, or kind way.

Conductor: someone whose job is to sell tickets on a bus, train or other public vehicle. Also a railway official who travels on and is responsible for a train. This word is a false friend for Spanish student as it sounds like Conductor which means driver in Spanish.

Video Lesson #2: Holes to heaven

In today´s lesson we are going to listen to a beautiful song from the Hawaiian musician and songwriter Jack Johnson.

As the author explained in 2012, it´s about a surf trip that he took with his father to some Indian islands. It talks about travelling, meeting different people and different cultures and feeling, in a way, like in heaven.

To follow this lesson:

1- Download the work sheet, and go to page 1 where you will find the song lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click the video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening to the song at least twice.

3- Check your results going to page 2 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen to the song again, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

WORK SHEET: Holes to heaven work sheet

VOCABULARY

 

To spit: to force out the contents of the mouth, especially saliva. In this song it is used figuratively as the cars spit diesel fumes by their tailpipe.

Mean: frightening and likely to become violent. It can be used as to describe a person or, in this case, an animal.

To be stuck: to be unable to move, or set in a particular position, place or way of thinking.

To stare: to look for a long time with the eyes wide open, especially when surprised, frightened or thinking.

To disembark: to leave a ship, aircraft, etc. after a journey.

To run smooth (To run smoothly): to work well.

To drown: to cover or be covered, especially with liquid. Here it´s used figuratively to explain how officials were seduced by the travelers´ sweet talk.

Sweet talk: a way of talking to someone in a pleasing or funny way in order to persuade them to do or believe something.

To bribe: to try to make someone do something for you by giving them money, presents, or something else that they want.

Booze: an informal way to refer to alcohol.