Anthem

Don't know if this has been mentioned before but the 'I sing, I sing' and 'I'm free, I'm free' parts of Brooklyn Baby are divine, along with the last verse.

I'm a firm believer that if you look good neck up i.e hair/makeup etc your clothes will look great. Lana always looks polished in terms of her hair and makeup and this is a good example of that, she looks great even in a racing jacket.

I have a confession that I thought she was talking about STDs when I first heard "You got nothing / I got tested".    Awkward/TMI.

I love you forever, I really love you forever for posting the rose sweater because I love it 
 
EDIT: It just occurred to me that she is wearing it in my profile picture as well. Yep, I should give up now and just buy this thing already.   

I mean, I generally like UV way more than BTD, but some of the lyrics, especially the choruses, get so tedious.
 
 
 
This is from looking at UV on its own. Born to Die certainly has its moments (Summertime Sadness,  there's another big one but I can't think of it) and Paradise has even more (Body Electric, Burning Desire, Ride, bits of others). Not all the songs are like this (Brooklyn Baby, West Coast, Flipside - some of the best songs she has officially released among a few others) and the versus typically make up for the choruses but it gets tiresome when you think of how repetitive some of the songs can be. Some of them could have been even more amazing if their choruses did more than repeat the title endlessly and its kind of sad to see the missed potential.
 
Born to Die has some terrible lyrics, worse than the worst ones on UV, but it had some awesome lyrics too. Born to Die, Video Games, Blue Jeans.. just as mature and good as anything on UV. Its just songs like Dark Paradise and Diet Mountain Dew that bring the album down, along with the lack of a central "feel" and "atmosphere" like what UV has.

Probably a good idea if you're fucking your way to the top.

I have a confession that I thought she was talking about STDs when I first heard "You got nothing / I got tested".    Awkward/TMI.

I admit that I'm a snob about music quality, so likely my first listen to this song I turned it off immediately and never thought twice about it. But your comment sparked my interest and I'll be danged if this song isn't one of my favorites now too. You are so right, it is so perfect in every way. I wish there was a nicer quality of it but its no less amazing. And now I've gotten motivated to back through all her stuff I never gave a chance to and give it another listen. 
 
As a side thought "Baby you know mama never had much money, but I plan on using this face to pay honey" basically sums up Lana in two lines imo  

I voted that I liked them equally.
 
There is nothing I can say about UV that hasn't been said already. I can listen to it all the way through, in fact it took many, many listens before I was comfortable listening to the non-single songs without hearing the whole thing. There isn't a song on there that I just can't to listen to, unlike BTD (and Paradise because I think it is significant enough to be in this discussion as well). 
 
But with that said, some of the songs on BTD are just magical. Born to Die (song), Video Games, Blue Jeans, National Anthem, Summertime Sadness.. those songs are just legendary on their own and all have beautiful videos (I more prefer Lana's original BJ video though). I just don't feel like there are any songs on UV that stand out so much (maybe Brooklyn Baby/West Coast/Old Money). I'm a fan of the string instruments in BTD too, but the guitars in UV were nice because I like those as well.
 
But since this question is about which album is better, I'd say UV. But the strength of the songs on BTD keep my answer to liking them both the same. 
 
One thing I seem to disagree with the masses on is that I don't feel like UV is closer to her Lizzy Grant work, minus Florida Kilos maybe. UV sounds like she is growing more into the character (or whatever) of Lana Del Rey. She is slowing down and maturing up and neither of those words come to mind when I think of Lizzy Grant. Another thing that I don't agree with most people on is that UV is darker than BTD. I don't know why, but I feel like Born to Die is darker, I always imagine her voice floating coming to me from the dark. I could be just weird though. 

I voted that I liked them equally.
 
There is nothing I can say about UV that hasn't been said already. I can listen to it all the way through, in fact it took many, many listens before I was comfortable listening to the non-single songs without hearing the whole thing. There isn't a song on there that I just can't to listen to, unlike BTD (and Paradise because I think it is significant enough to be in this discussion as well). 
 
But with that said, some of the songs on BTD are just magical. Born to Die (song), Video Games, Blue Jeans, National Anthem, Summertime Sadness.. those songs are just legendary on their own and all have beautiful videos (I more prefer Lana's original BJ video though). I just don't feel like there are any songs on UV that stand out so much (maybe Brooklyn Baby/West Coast/Old Money). I'm a fan of the string instruments in BTD too, but the guitars in UV were nice because I like those as well.
 
But since this question is about which album is better, I'd say UV. But the strength of the songs on BTD keep my answer to liking them both the same. 
 
One thing I seem to disagree with the masses on is that I don't feel like UV is closer to her Lizzy Grant work, minus Florida Kilos maybe. UV sounds like she is growing more into the character (or whatever) of Lana Del Rey. She is slowing down and maturing up and neither of those words come to mind when I think of Lizzy Grant. Another thing that I don't agree with most people on is that UV is darker than BTD. I don't know why, but I feel like Born to Die is darker, I always imagine her voice floating coming to me from the dark. I could be just weird though. 

First off all, this song is most definitely connected to Young and Beautiful. If I recall correctly, Young and Beautiful was not wrote for Gatsby, another song was but they wanted Young and Beautiful instead, and I believe this was that song.
 
She loves imagery in her music, so the references to the hydrangeas and cars are likely to paint a picture for the listener. They are relics of an old time, much the same ways that "old money" represents an older generation. She talks about a love long lost, and her own identity which she can't get back - she'll never be "The Queen of New York City" in the same way that she was with the man a long time ago, she has moved on and evolved in a way that she can't reverse. I think she believes that the end of their love can't be reversed either, because even though she sings "if you call I'll run" and "if you change your mind I'll come", I always got the feeling in her tone that she knows its in vain because nothing will ever change, he will never come back, just like the glory days of "old money" are long gone.
 
Talking about her parents shows an example of a love that is strong and everlasting - the love she wants but will never get. That is why she feels alone, because she will never have what they do with each other with the man she is fixed on.
 
The repetition of the first verse as the final verse shows the cyclical nature of life and love. Kids grow up to be adults, much like Lana and her lover. Love grows, but it fades away with time. The kids don't realize how much their relationships will mean to them until they are older, like her. They are naive but in a beautiful, innocent, free kind of way. This is what she means by the "power of youth". This youthful ignorance is also something that, once lost, cannot be gotten back.