This method was described by D.B. Wilson of Wilson & Alroy's Record Reviews in his essay "Toward A Technical Analysis of Song Lyrics". You do this by starting out with 75 points and then giving each line of a song's lyrics a score based on the following scoring table:
- +10: Complex idea or emotion
- +5: Social consciousness
- +5: Humour or satire
- +4: Simile, analog, metaphor -- if continued on multiple lines, each line doubles the score. However, not more than 20 points may be awarded to a single verse by this rule
- +4: Heavy contrast or paradox
- +3: Ambiguity
- +2: Complex or internal rhyme
- +2: Contrast
- -2: Imprecision
- -3: Rhyme scheme violation
- -4: Incoherence
- -4: Inappropriately offensive line
- -4: Obvious, anticipated rhyme
- -5: Awkwardness or scansion problem
- -5: Grammar violation, excluding appropriate slang
- -5: Unwarranted repetition, that is, repetition of a line with a negative score; doubles with each repetition
- -5: Triteness
- -5: Mawkish or sentimental line
- -7: Non sequitur
- -8: Cliché
- -10: Heavy incoherence
- -10: Heavily inappropriately offensive line
- -10: Very obvious, anticipated rhyme
- -10: Very mawkish or sentimental line
- -20: Plagiarism; a plagiated line always counts at -20 or less, no positive scores are to be applied -- unless the line is parody, but then it's not plagiarism
Example ratings by Mr Wilson include one verse each from Joni Mitchell's A Case Of You (105 points) and The Eurhythmics' Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (18 points). Let me present an example of my own:
The Mississippi Delta was shining
Simile, +4
Like a National guitar
Continued simile, +8
I am following the river
Down the highway
Through the cradle of the civil war
Metaphor, +4
Total: 91
I'm going to Graceland
Graceland
In Memphis Tennessee
I'm going to Graceland
Poorboys and Pilgrims with families
Social consciousness, metaphor, +9
And we are going to Graceland
Contrast, +2
My traveling companion is nine years old
He is the child of my first marriage
Complex emotion, +10
But I've reason to believe
Trite, -5
We both will be received
Trite, -5
In Graceland
Total: 86
In my opinion, for obvious reasons, verse scores should be averaged, not added, to compensate for songs of different length. Have fun playing with this strange little scheme.