This is not an angry post or anything, it's intended to invite discussion on it because I've gotten a number of comments on 'partial' rhymes etc, but when recorded they sound fine to the ear, and I was wondering what people's take was on it.

For the record, since I know Agri will see this, yes Agri, your recent comment sparked this debate--mainly cause you said it was extreme to rhyme anger with danger, which makes it sound like a fatal mistake (which your vote indicates that is how you view it too) however you are not the only person who has griped about similar sound rhymes in my recollection.

I am not one who has ever had a particular rule as to how I write as I've always tried to write more by ear than by technical perfection (to me humor and what it would sound like if recorded is more important than technical perfection) so I was wondering what other people's opinions are.

I'm with agri here...anger and danger do not rhyme in a recording context but I'm open to arguments explaining why they do besides that they look similar. The soft and hard gs are different sounds and changing one of those is grounds for points toward revocation of your poetic license.

A rhyme discussion! Yay!

"Anger" and "Danger" are eye rhymes, that is, words that look like they should, by spelling, perfectly rhyme but don't (like "love" and "move" or "slaughter" and "laughter").

Unlike "love" and "move", anger/danger are also half rhymes (the second syllables of each word are perfect rhymes) and they are also stressed the same way. I wouldn't say it's a fatal error (bsod?) to use eye rhymes (particularly that pair of rhymes), especially at the end of a line where TOS has a definite ABAB, AABB, etc. rhyme scheme, but they are about my least favorite type of rhyme due to the way one would conversationally say the words.

Eye rhymes like anger/danger would work perfectly with a song like tWotEF, which has, at best, half rhymes in the 'c/c' part of its rhyme scheme.

"Danger" does not have a plethora of perfect rhymes available either. Nothing rhymes with "anger".  Kinda like "woman" and "angel": parody authors are somewhat limited in making up 'close enough' rhymes for those very common words in songs.

Slanting of words or different pronunciations in a recording can make what looks unrhymable on paper (or screen) work fine. Tom Lehrer did this with great humor with "The Elements", where he rhymes "Harvard" with "discovered". Rap songs make near rhymes all the time, but there is a point where it goes from skilled and funny to ... fail. It's impossible to conclusively define that point.

Lots of great songs use very labored, eye or flat-out misrhymes and pull it off. If someone submitted the lyrics to Led Zep's "Ramble On", we'd probably all jump him for rhyming "way" with itself three times in the first verse, and trying to rhyme "dear/air/fair/yeah" in the last.

Here's the first verse for Faith No More's "Midlife Crisis":

"Go on and wring my neck
Like when a rag gets wet
A little discipline
For my pet genius
My head is like lettuce
Go on dig your thumbs in
I cannot stop givin'
I'm thirty-something"

That looks fairly misrhymed to me, but it works as a song. Mike Patton pronounces many of those end-line words completely ass backward from 'normal' as well.

In short (too late...), I think it depends on the original song, the perception of the reader/listener and the context of the rhyme pair (or scheme) as to whether or not it "works". It's quite subjective...

Ant

I hear the two different g's in danger and anger and wouldn't use for a rhyme where a rhyme would be in the OS. 

Whether anger/danger works depends on the performance.  When simply spoken, anger and danger do not rhyme.  Depending on the style and enunciation of the singer, and how accurate all other rhymes are in the song, it could work.  If every other rhyme in the performance is spot on, then anger/danger may stand out like an off-key note.  But if other rhymes are "close enough" (like/time, or dream/meet), it might not seem unusual.  Like Red Ant says, lots of talented and/or popular artists stretch on their rhymes.  Note that talent and popularity aren't always correctly paired.

I don't think there is a definitive answer.  As in most of life, it depends on the circumstances.  If this gets recorded, I'll reserve final judgement until then.

And yes, something does rhyme with anger.  Bangor, a city in Maine (and a town in the UK I think). I visit there often, be heading there in late July, and some pronounce it "bang-ger."  Not saying that would ever work in a song, but who knows.  Turn Saint Anger into 'Tain't Bangor

Whether anger/danger works depends on the performance.  When simply spoken, anger and danger do not rhyme.  Depending on the style and enunciation of the singer, and how accurate all other rhymes are in the song, it could work.  If every other rhyme in the performance is spot on, then anger/danger may stand out like an off-key note.  But if other rhymes are "close enough" (like/time, or dream/meet), it might not seem unusual.  Like Red Ant says, lots of talented and/or popular artists stretch on their rhymes.  Note that talent and popularity aren't always correctly paired.

I don't think there is a definitive answer.  As in most of life, it depends on the circumstances.  If this gets recorded, I'll reserve final judgement until then.

And yes, something does rhyme with anger.  Bangor, a city in Maine (and a town in the UK I think). I visit there often, be heading there in late July, and some pronounce it "bang-ger."  Not saying that would ever work in a song, but who knows.  Turn Saint Anger into 'Tain't Bangor


So does Hanger as in the kick-ass Megadeth song "Hanger 18"

Fair enough on the "anger" rhymes... I was thinking of the word "angry" ("shangri" doesn't really count as it's half a proper name). "Gangrene" is close though.

Speaking of Megadeth, "Gangrene Again" would make a good "Angry Again" parody.

Ant

Dave, this may sound like back pedaling, but take it for what it's worth...

I should have used quotes in the word "extreme" and a winking emoticon, to accentuate my attempted humor in reference to the parody's theme about Extreme Sports.

I used extreme words ;), and do apologize. I still stand by my overall critique of the parody.
Peace.

I voted Depends...purposeful bad rhymes are sometimes a good thing, as Tom Lerher and Allan Sherman's works can attest.  ;D

Dave, this may sound like back pedaling, but take it for what it's worth...

I should have used quotes in the word "extreme" and a winking emoticon, to accentuate my attempted humor in reference to the parody's theme about Extreme Sports.

I used extreme words ;), and do apologize. I still stand by my overall critique of the parody.
Peace.

I voted Depends...purposeful bad rhymes are sometimes a good thing, as Tom Lerher and Allan Sherman's works can attest.  ;D


Fair enough:)  I like healthy debate, and wouldn't ask you to back down--I tend to write for recording which (as I've proven with Dare and many others) tends to be more forgiving on rhyme schemes because you can control sound that way. . .and as a write I understand what you were saying. . .anyhow, thanks, I like this thread, healthy conversation:)

Absolutely, as long as it sounds good ("is close enough").  Happens in songs on the radio all the time.  The rules are there as a guideline meant to be stretched :)