Alcohol – English Lyrics

• By: Brad Paisley

Lyrics & Translation

Discover the playful side of country music with Brad Paisley's "Alcohol," a unique song that personifies alcohol and its effects. By exploring the lyrics, you'll gain insight into American drinking culture and the art of storytelling through song, all while enjoying a catchy tune.

[English]

(boots clicking)

(upbeat country music)

♪ I can make anybody pretty ♪

♪ I can make you believe any lie ♪

♪ I can make you pick a fight ♪

♪ With somebody twice your size ♪

♪ Well, I've been known to cause a few breakups ♪

♪ And I've been known to cause a few births ♪

♪ I can make you new friends ♪

♪ Or get you fired from work ♪

♪ And since the day I left Milwaukee ♪

♪ Lynchburg and Bordeaux, France ♪

♪ Been making the bars lots of big money ♪

♪ And helping white people dance ♪

♪ I got you in trouble in high school ♪

♪ But college, now that was a ball ♪

♪ You had some of the best times ♪

♪ You'll never remember with me ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ I got blamed at your wedding reception ♪

♪ For your best man's embarrassing speech ♪

♪ And also for those naked pictures of you at the beach ♪

♪ I've influenced kings and world leaders ♪

♪ I helped Hemingway write like he did ♪

♪ And I'll bet you a drink or two that I can make you ♪

♪ Put that lampshade on your head ♪

♪ 'Cause since the day I left Milwaukee ♪

♪ Lynchburg and Bordeaux, France ♪

♪ Been making a fool out of folks just like you ♪

♪ And helping white people dance ♪

♪ I am medicine and I am poison ♪

♪ I can help you up or make you fall ♪

♪ You had some of the best times ♪

♪ You'll never remember with me ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Yeah, since the day I left Milwaukee ♪

♪ Lynchburg and Bordeaux, France ♪

♪ Been making the bars lots of big money ♪

♪ And helping white people dance ♪

♪ Yeah, I got you in trouble in high school ♪

♪ But college, now that was a ball ♪

♪ You had some of the best times ♪

♪ You'll never remember with me ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Na, na, na, na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Na, na, na, na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Na, na, na, na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Na, na, na, na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Na, na, na, na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

♪ Na, na, na, na, na, na, na ♪

♪ Alcohol ♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
pretty /ˈprɪti/ A2	adjective - attractive in a delicate way
believe /bɪˈliːv/ A2	verb - accept something as true
fight /faɪt/ A2	verb - take part in a physical altercation noun - a physical altercation
breakup /ˈbreɪkʌp/ B1	noun - the end of a relationship
birth /bɜːθ/ B1	noun - the act of being born
fired /faɪərd/ B1	verb - dismissed from a job
trouble /ˈtrʌbl/ A2	noun - difficulty or problems
remember /rɪˈmembər/ B1	verb - recall to the mind
embarrassing /ɪmˈbærəsɪŋ/ B2	adjective - causing feelings of self-consciousness
influence /ˈɪnfluəns/ B2	verb - have an effect on noun - the power to affect
leaders /ˈliːdərz/ B1	noun - people who lead
medicine /ˈmedɪsn/ B2	noun - substances used to treat illness
poison /ˈpɔɪzn/ B2	noun - a substance that causes illness or death
fool /fuːl/ B1	noun - a person lacking good sense verb - to trick or deceive
fall /fɔːl/ A1	verb - to drop to the ground
money /ˈmʌni/ A2	noun - a medium of exchange

Key Grammar Structures

• I can make anybody pretty

  ➔ Modal verb *can* + base verb to express ability

  ➔ I "can" make anybody pretty

• I can make you pick a fight with somebody twice your size

  ➔ Comparative phrase *twice your size* (adverbial comparative)

  ➔ somebody "twice" your size

• I've been known to cause a few breakups

  ➔ Present perfect passive *have been known to* + infinitive

  ➔ I "have been" known to cause a few breakups

• I got you in trouble in high school

  ➔ Simple past of the phrasal verb *got* (meaning ‘caused’)

  ➔ "Got" you in trouble in high school

• But college, now that was a ball

  ➔ Past simple with demonstrative pronoun *that* + verb *was* for emphasis

  ➔ now "that was" a ball

• I helped Hemingway write like he did

  ➔ Causative verb *help* + bare infinitive *write*

  ➔ I "helped" Hemingway "write" like he did

• I bet you a drink or two that I can make you put that lampshade on your head

  ➔ First‑conditional structure with *bet* + that‑clause expressing a confident prediction

  ➔ "Bet" you a drink that I can "make" you put that lampshade on your head

• I am medicine and I am poison

  ➔ Simple present with linking verb *am* + noun complement (equative construction)

  ➔ I "am" medicine and I "am" poison

• Since the day I left Milwaukee, Lynchburg and Bordeaux, France, been making the bars lots of big money

  ➔ Present participle clause *been making* indicating ongoing result after a past event

  ➔ I left Milwaukee… "been making" the bars lots of big money