Monday, April 7, 2025

"It's Only Money, Pt. 1"

When I was looking at the lyrics of "It's Only Money, Pt. 1" recently in order to compare them to a line in "The Jester," I noticed that there's anaphora in the lines "Pay the butcher; pay the baker / Pay the taxman; pay me later."  This repetition illustrates the frequency and number of payments that must be made.  Additionally, the first three of these clauses are sung to nearly the same melody (the pitches are the same [D E G E], but the rhythm differs a bit), highlighting this effect.