Apple Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 (edited) I have always said I don't "get" poetry or what defines good poetry. I have always been drawn towards the First World war poetry because of its subject matter more than anything and I have a deep love for it. However, in the past few months or so I have found songs which spoke to me on a level (possibly because of the way I was feeling at the time) and I wondered if they could be classified as poetry in their own right?I know there are many pretty dire songs out there, and some which don't mean anything and some which make you think what the hell were they smoking when they wrote that?! (I am the Walrus springs to mind!), but having said that I have found some songs which I think are pretty poetic, deep and meaningful. Some of which are of a genre not known for those qualities.When I was in a really dark place last summer I had this song on repeat on my phone and in my car.Fade To BlackLife, it seems, will fade awayDrifting further every dayGetting lost within myselfNothing matters, no one elseI have lost the will to liveSimply nothing more to giveThere is nothing more for meNeed the end to set me freeThings not what they used to beMissing one inside of meDeathly lost, this can't be realCannot stand this hell I feelEmptiness is filling meTo the point of agonyGrowing darkness taking dawnI was me, but now he's goneNo one but me can save myself, but it's too lateNow I can't think, think why I should even tryYesterday seems as though it never existedDeath greets me warm, now I will just say goodbyeThis is by Metallica from their 1984 Ride the Lightening Album. Now when I listen to it and it helps me fight and not return to that place I was in. But back to the subject - I think these lyrics could be almost classified as poetic, what does anyone else think? Edited February 16, 2015 by Apple Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lunababymoonchild Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 (edited) In answer to the question, yes I think that song lyrics can be classed as poetry in and of themselves. The one you chose to quote there is pretty dark but typical of Metallica (I have their Black Album) and if it reaches out to you then it's done it's job. Leonard Cohen has written some very dark things (I heard an album at a party - believe it or not! - that I was at as a teenager) and he's a very respected musician. Personally, I like Dio's work, specifically Holy Diver and The Last in Line. It's difficult to isolate just one song, and I'm always in the mood, but I like this, a song called Invisible from Holy Diver : If your circle stays unbrokenthen you're a lucky man'cause it never, never, never has for meIn the palace of the virginlies the chalice of the souland it's likely you might find the answer thereShe had thirteen years of teenage tearsnever a helping handShe had fourteen more of rain beforeshe saw the sight of landShe was a photograph just ripped in halfa smile inside a frownAnd then the lightthe answer right inside her coming downShe saidI can go away I can leave hereI can be invisibleI'll go awayHe was just eighteen and in betweena lady and a manHis daddy's girl in momma's worldthat was when he ranyou know the word "confused" has been abusedbut that's just what he wasAnd in the spark inside the darkthe answer came to call it said,You can go awayyou can leave hereyou can be be be invisibleWell, I grew up quick and I felt the kick of life upon a stageSo I bought the book and took a fast lookat just the very last pageIt was a single word that I'd just heardfrom the two that came beforeThe only way to really stayis to walk right out the doorSo you can go awayI'm gonna leave hereI can be invisible and go away againI can go away when I leave hereI can be invisibleI said when I've gone awaylord you know it's right to leave hereSo I just became invisibleI went away,I disappeared before your eyes.You never touch me you never feel meyou'll never see me againbecause I've just become unseenWell I'm a photograph that's been torn in halfwe're all eighteen and we're in betweenWe need a helping hand to the holy landto be invisibleto go away Dio never ever said what his lyrics meant, he always said that the listener was free to intrepret as they chose. No longer with us he made a vast contribution to Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. Good topic! Edited February 16, 2015 by lunababymoonchild Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Minxminnie Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 I have been studying some of the work of Kate Tempest with my senior pupils. She has both won the Ted Hughes Award for New Poetry and been nominated for the Mercury Prize, which would certainly suggest lyrics can be poetry! http://www.katetempest.co.uk/ After watching a taster, the kids were of the opinion that, if something sounded like rap, was performed by someone who looked like them, and didn't appear in The Big Book Of Poems You Might Study At School, then it wasn't "real" poetry. So I approached it from the other end. I handed out the lyrics of Roddy Frame's (Azec Camera's) song We Could Send Letters, as if it was a poem, and we discussed its meanings. Then I told them it was also a song, written by a 16 year old schoolboy from not very far away, albeit in ye olde 1980s. And I suggested that they wrote better songs back then. Predictably, they fought back with poetic lyrics of their own choice, which won them over to studying some poetry from someone not dead, white and male. So yes, I would have no problems with song lyrics being poetry. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tay Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 Great story MM, I wish I'd had such an enlightened teacher when I was at school. As for the lyrics as poetry I think many of them can cross over but a lot we might initially think as poetic lose their power without the musical backing. But does it really matter what we class them as, if they move us, challenge us, make us smile, ask questions etc then they're doing there job, with or without music. Here's one of my favourites that seems to work as both song and poetry - The Year of the Cat by Al Stewart On a morning from a Bogart movieIn a country where they turn back timeYou go strolling through the crowd like Peter LorreContemplating a crime She comes out of the sun in a silk dress runningLike a watercolor in the rainDon't bother asking for explanationsShe'll just tell you that she came In the year of the cat She doesn't give you time for questionsAs she locks up your arm in hersAnd you follow till your sense of which directionCompletely disappears By the blue tiled walls near the market stallsThere's a hidden door she leads you toThese days, she says, "I feel my lifeJust like a river running through" The year of the cat Why she looks at you so coolly?And her eyes shine like the moon in the seaShe comes in incense and patchouliSo you take her, to find what's waiting inside The year of the cat Well morning comes and you're still with herAnd the bus and the tourists are goneAnd you've thrown away your choice you've lost your ticketSo you have to stay on But the drumbeat strains of the night remainIn the rhythm of the new-born dayYou know sometime you're bound to leave herBut for now you're going to stay In the year of the catYear of the cat Read more: Al Stewart - The Year Of The Cat Lyrics | MetroLyrics Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Apple Posted February 16, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 I think that there are songs out there which as soon as I hear the music I get an emotional reaction of some description to them. However, there are songs where its definitely the words which provide the bigger impact (for me). I think sometimes its hard to distinguish whether its the music, or the words which draws you most or if sometimes its a combination of them both. These are songs which (for me) like the Metallica song Fade to Black its definitely the words which have the bigger impact, about various topics "Blowin' In The Wind" by Bob Dylan How many roads must a man walk downBefore you call him a man?How many seas must a white dove sailBefore she sleeps in the sand?Yes, how many times must the cannon balls flyBefore they're forever banned?The answer my friend is blowin' in the windThe answer is blowin' in the wind.Yes, how many years can a mountain existBefore it's washed to the sea?Yes, how many years can some people existBefore they're allowed to be free?Yes, how many times can a man turn his headPretending he just doesn't see?The answer my friend is blowin' in the windThe answer is blowin' in the wind.Yes, how many times must a man look upBefore he can really see the sky?Yes, how many ears must one man haveBefore he can hear people cry?Yes, how many deaths will it take till he knowsThat too many people have died?The answer my friend is blowin' in the windThe answer is blowin' in the wind. Another is a folk song by Terry Kelly called a Pittance of Time, which was brought to my attention after I had a rant on Facebook about a pig ignorant customer who refused to observe the 2 minute silence on Remembrance Sunday and after listening to it the words struck a cord. "A Pittance of Time" They fought and some died for their homeland.They fought and some died, now it's our land.Look at his little child; there's no fear in her eyes.Could he not show respect for other dads who have died?Take two minutes, would you mind?It's a pittance of time,For the boys and the girls who went over.In peace may they rest, may we neverForget why they died.It's a pittance of time.God forgive me for wanting to strike him.Give me strength so as not to be like him.My heart pounds in my breast, fingers pressed to my lips,My throat wants to call out, my tongue barely resists.But two minutes I will bide.It's a pittance of time,For the boys and the girls who went over.In peace may they rest.May we never forget why they died.It's a pittance of time.Read the letters and poems of the heroes at home.They have casualties, battles, and fears of their own.There's a price to be paid if you go, if you stay.Freedom's fought for and won in numerous ways.Take two minutes, would you mind?It's a pittance of time,For the boys and the girls all over.May we never forget, our young become vets.At the end of the line,It's a pittance of time.It takes courage to fight in your own war.It takes courage to fight someone else's war.Our peacekeepers tell of their own living hell.They bring hope to foreign lands that hate mongers can't kill.Take two minutes, would you mind?It's a pittance of time,For the boys and the girls who go over.In peacetime our best still don battle dressAnd lay their lives on the line.It's a pittance of timeIn peace may they rest,Lest we forget why they died,Take a pittance of time. "Anywhere But Here" Five Finger Death Punch (feat. Maria Brink)Some say a storm is coming,Some say the end is near,Some think it’s all so hazy,I think it's all so clear.If it all ends tomorrow,If it all disappearsWhere do you think you're going?Anywhere else but here!I don't claim to have the reasons!All I know isIf the world stops spinning tomorrowI'd never shed a tear!I'd rather be anywhere, anywhere, anywhere but here!Some say they have the answers,Some say they know the truth,Some people live in question,Some people have no clue.If there was no tomorrow,If there was just todayWould you make different choicesOr would you stay the same?I don't claim to have the reasons!All I know isIf the world stops spinning tomorrowI'd never shed a tear!I'd rather be anywhere, anywhere, anywhere but here!If there was no tomorrow,If there was no tomorrow,If there was no tomorrowWould you stay, would you stay the same?If there was no tomorrow,If there was no tomorrow,If there was no tomorrowWould you stay, would you stay the same?If the world stops spinning tomorrowI'd never shed a tear!I'd rather be anywhere, anywhere, anywhere!If the world stops spinning tomorrowI'd never shed a tear!I'd rather be anywhere, anywhere, anywhere but here! "Hurt" by Nine Inch Nails, but Johnny Cash made it his ownI hurt myself todayTo see if I still feelI focus on the painThe only thing that's realThe needle tears a holeThe old familiar stingTry to kill it all awayBut I remember everythingWhat have I become?My sweetest friendEveryone I knowGoes away in the endYou could have it allMy empire of dirtI will let you downI will make you hurtI wear this crown of thornsUpon my liar's chairFull of broken thoughtsI cannot repairBeneath the stains of timeThe feelings disappearYou are someone elseI am still right hereWhat have I become?My sweetest friendEveryone I knowGoes away in the endYou could have it allMy empire of dirtI will let you downI will make you hurtIf I could start againA million miles awayI would keep myselfI would find a way Quote Link to post Share on other sites
grasshopper Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 This is a lovely topic and so good to read the posts above, thank you all. MM, I do enjoy hearing about the way your classes react to various things, so good to know how such young people think as adults can't always get a response or get insight their minds as well as a trusted teacher. I am not musical, very tone deaf, so the words of songs always mean more to me than the sound. Like Apple, the words of some songs have had great emotional impact and still do. One that meant a lot in the past and is now a beloved friend is Bridge Over Troubled Water - Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel When you're weary, feeling small When tears are in your eyes I will dry them all I'm on your side Oh when times get rough And friends just can't be found Like a bridge over troubled water I will lay me down Like a bridge over troubled water I will lay me down When you're down and out When you're on the street When evening falls so hard, I will comfort you I'll take your part Oh, when darkness comes And pain is all around Like a bridge over troubled water I will lay me down Like a bridge over troubled water I will lay me down Sail on silver girl, sail on by Your time has come to shine All your dreams are on their way See how they shine Oh, if you need a friend I'm sailing right behind Like a bridge over troubled water I will ease your mind Like a bridge over troubled water I will ease your mind Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kerry Posted February 17, 2015 Report Share Posted February 17, 2015 Simon and Garfunkel wrote a lot of songs that sound like poetry. "The Sound Of Silence" Hello darkness, my old friend, I've come to talk with you again, Because a vision softly creeping, Left its seeds while I was sleeping, And the vision that was planted in my brain Still remains Within the sound of silence. In restless dreams I walked alone Narrow streets of cobblestone, 'Neath the halo of a street lamp, I turned my collar to the cold and damp When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light That split the night And touched the sound of silence. And in the naked light I saw Ten thousand people, maybe more. People talking without speaking, People hearing without listening, People writing songs that voices never share And no one dared Disturb the sound of silence. "Fools," said I, "You do not know – Silence like a cancer grows. Hear my words that I might teach you. Take my arms that I might reach you." But my words like silent raindrops fell And echoed in the wells of silence And the people bowed and prayed To the neon god they made. And the sign flashed out its warning In the words that it was forming. And the sign said, The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls And tenement halls And whispered in the sound of silence. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ting Mikyunyu Posted February 17, 2015 Report Share Posted February 17, 2015 I think I think sometimes its hard to distinguish whether its the music, or the words which draws you most or if sometimes its a combination of them both. Great topic, Apple. The Eagles are a recent discovery for me and I was attracted to "The Last Resort" initially through the melody. That's when I went looking for the lyrics: "The Last Resort" She came from Providence, the one in Rhode Island, where the old world shadows hang heavy in the air. She packed her hopes and dreams like a refugee, just as her father came across the sea She heard about a place people were smilin'. They spoke about the red man's way, and how they loved the land. And they came from everywhere to the Great Divide, seeking a place to stand or a place to hide Down in the crowded bars, out for a good time, Can't wait to tell you all what it's like up there And they called it paradise - I don't know why Somebody laid the mountains low while the town got high Then the chilly winds blew down across the desert, through the canyons of the coast, to the Malibu where the pretty people play, hungry for power to light their neon way and give them things to do Some rich men came and raped the land; nobody caught 'em. Put up a bunch of ugly boxes, and Jesus, people bought 'em, and they called it paradise, the place to be; They watched the hazy sun, sinking in the sea You can leave it all behind and sail to Lahaina just like the missionaries did, so many years ago. They even brought a neon sign: "Jesus is coming" Brought the white man's burden down, brought the white man's reign Who will provide the grand design? What is yours and what is mine? 'Cause there is no more new frontier We have got to make it here We satisfy our endless needs and justify our bloody deeds, in the name of destiny and the name of God. And you can see them there, on Sunday morning They stand up and sing about what it's like up there They call it paradise - I don't know why You call someplace paradise, kiss it goodbye Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Apple Posted February 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Simon and Garfunkel wrote a lot of songs that sound like poetry. "The Sound Of Silence" Hello darkness, my old friend, I've come to talk with you again, Because a vision softly creeping, Left its seeds while I was sleeping, And the vision that was planted in my brain Still remains Within the sound of silence. In restless dreams I walked alone Narrow streets of cobblestone, 'Neath the halo of a street lamp, I turned my collar to the cold and damp When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light That split the night And touched the sound of silence. And in the naked light I saw Ten thousand people, maybe more. People talking without speaking, People hearing without listening, People writing songs that voices never share And no one dared Disturb the sound of silence. "Fools," said I, "You do not know – Silence like a cancer grows. Hear my words that I might teach you. Take my arms that I might reach you." But my words like silent raindrops fell And echoed in the wells of silence And the people bowed and prayed To the neon god they made. And the sign flashed out its warning In the words that it was forming. And the sign said, The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls And tenement halls And whispered in the sound of silence. I was going to offer the sound of silence as an example - its one of my fav's, however I can't listen to it now without thinking of the Simpsons version! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Kerry Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 Sacrilege! But I admit I did laugh. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Clavain Posted February 19, 2015 Report Share Posted February 19, 2015 (edited) Linton Kwesi Johnson - Reggae Fi Peach Everywhere you go its the talk of the day, Everywhere you go you hear people say,That the Special Patrol them are murderers (murderers),We cant make them get no furtherer,The SPG them are murderers (murderers),We cant make them get no furtherer,Cos they killed Blair Peach the teacher,Them killed Blair Peach, the dirty bleeders.Blair Peach was an ordinary man,Blair Peach he took a simple stand,Against the fascists and their wicked plans,So them beat him till him life was done.Everywhere you go its the talk of the day,Everywhere you go you hear people say,That the Special Patrol them are murderers (murderers),We cant make them get no furtherer,The SPG them are murderers (murderers),We cant make them get no furtherer,Cos they killed Blair Peach the teacher,Them killed Blair Peach, the dirty bleeders.Blair Peach was not an English man,Him come from New Zealand,Now they kill him and him dead and gone,But his memory lingers on.Oh ye people of England,Great injustices are committed upon this land,How long will you permit them, to carry on?Is England becoming a fascist state?The answer lies at your own gate,And in the answer lies your fate. Edited February 19, 2015 by Clavain Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Heather Posted February 20, 2015 Report Share Posted February 20, 2015 (edited) 'Blowin' in the wind' has always meant a lot to me, but I don't think the words are so impressive by themselves. 'Sound of silence' is another matter. Many folk song lyrics are wonderful poetry: I know where I'm goingAnd I know who's going with meI know who I loveBut the dear knows who I'll marry.I have stockings of silkShoes of bright green leatherCombs to buckle my hairAnd a ring for every finger.Some say he's blackBut I say he's bonnieThe fairest of them allMy handsome winsome Johnny.Feather beds are softAnd painted rooms are bonnyBut I would leave them allTo go with my love Johnny.I know where I'm goingAnd I know who's going with meI know who I loveBut the dear knows who I'll marry. 'Black' here means black-haired or possibly swarthy-skinned, the opposite of 'fair' which meant both 'fair-haired' and 'beautiful'. Edited February 25, 2015 by Heather Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ammumalar Posted July 4, 2015 Report Share Posted July 4, 2015 The poem will be most popular and good when it has musical lyrics within it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
srisathvika Posted September 1, 2015 Report Share Posted September 1, 2015 This poem topic is perfect day, really super lryics i like this below poem, I wake upAnd the day feelsBrokenI tilt my headI'm trying to get an angle'Cause the eveningI've always longed forIt could still happenHow do I masterThe perfect daySix glasses of waterSeven phonecallsIf you leave it aloneIt might just happenAnywayIt's not up to youOh it never really wasIt's not up to youOh it never really wasIt's not up to youWell it never really wasIt's not up to youIf you wake upAnd the day feelsAh brokenJust lean into the crack(Just lean into the crack)And it will trembleEver so nicelyNoticeHow it sparklesDown thereI can decideWhat I giveBut it's not up to meWhat I get givenUnthinkable surprisesAbout to happenBut what they areIt's not up to youWell it never really wasIt's not up to youOh it never really wasIt's not up to youOh it never really wasIt's not up to youOh, me, shareIt's not up to youIt's not up to youOh, it never really wasIt's not up to youWell, it never really wasIt's not up to youIt's not up to youIt's not up to youIt's not up to youThere's too muchClingingTo peakThere's too muchPressure Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Clavain Posted September 1, 2015 Report Share Posted September 1, 2015 When I read those words srisathvika I found myself knowing the next line - Bjork Your from Chennai, I would love to hear about you and the region and we have a thread on the forum http://www.bookgrouponline.com/topic/7785-please-introduce-yourself/page-124?hl=+please%20+introduce%20+yourselfwhere you can do that Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Apple Posted November 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2015 (edited) I have been listening to Motorhead recently, my son reacquainted me with them I was never really into them back in the day as they were too punk influenced, but I found a couple of later songs which are incredibly poetic and I chose today to post them - it being Armistice Day or Remembrance day whatever you want to call it as I think they are quite apt. The first one is called March or Die and its from the 1992 Album of the same name. The beast behind our eyes is loose,The day has come, the day has come,We march to Armageddon, hungry for the warI see the hated enemy, I see what I was taught to seeAnd one of us will bend the kneeWe understand the lawThe blood lust jerks our legs to march,Fife and drum, fife and drumOur eyes are fixed and fearlessSearching for the warOur statesmen deal in blood and lies100 million stifled cries, 100 million wasted livesAlready gone beforeSo March or Die, March or DieThe stench of death is in the skyWe never fail to satisfyWe rend with tooth and clawSword and shield and jackboot heelWe love to kill, we love to killWe love to taste our own bloodSquirm in our own goreChildren weep and widows wail,Our education systems fail,To hide our guilt we build more jails,and we shall build still moreOur forests die, the strangleholdThat we put on the earth for goldWill yet increase ten thousand foldAnd no one knows what forMarch and die, March and dieDefecate, despoil and lieCheat, dissemble, preach & spyBuild your house of strawLaugh and cry, laugh and cryBloody sunset drowns the skyFor earth the heal then we must dieNo-one deserves it moreI tell you we are doomed my friendsOur time is come, our time is comeWe live within a charnel houseRotten to the coreWe glorify lust, greed & painWe drown our hope in poison rainWe point the finger, shift the blameAmbition makes us whoresMarch or croak, march or croakAll your lives a cosmic jokeFill your days with piss and smokeThe wolf waits at your doorBurn and dance, burn and danceSex, death, torture, false romanceWhoop and howl, you have no chanceBurn & rise no more The second is called 1916 from the album of the same name 16 years old when I went to the war,To fight for a land fit for heroes,God on my side, and a gun in my hand,Chasing my days down to zero,And I marched and I fought and I bledAnd I died & I never did get any older,But I knew at the time, That a year in the line,Was a long enough life for a soldier, We all volunteered,And we wrote down our names,And we added two years to our ages,Eager for life and ahead of the game,Ready for history's pages,And we brawled and we foughtAnd we whored 'til we stood,Ten thousand shoulder to shoulder,A thirst for the Hun,We were food for the gun, and that'sWhat you are when you're soldiers, I heard my friend cry,And he sank to his knees, coughing bloodAs he screamed for his motherAnd I fell by his side,And that's how we died,Clinging like kids to each other,And I lay in the mudAnd the guts and the blood,And I wept as his body grew colder,And I called for my motherAnd she never came,Though it wasn't my faultAnd I wasn't to blame,The day not half overAnd ten thousand slain, and nowThere's nobody remembers our namesAnd that's how it is for a soldier. Edited November 11, 2015 by Apple Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Dan Posted November 21, 2015 Report Share Posted November 21, 2015 I think Steve Forbert's Midsummer night's toast fits the bill here; Here's to all you all you lucky dogs, it’s heads or tails Here's to all you filthy rich, I wish you well Here's to all the pretty women made for cash And here's to dashing daddy's son he's such a flash Well, I been lookin' and walkin' 'round the sunset square Singin' and talkin' with my friends down there Sittin' and listenin' with a young man's ear To all the rainbow dreams Here's to all the shitty jobs that I despise Here's to two-bit guarantees and other lies Here's to roads of burning tar and hot cement Here's to money in my hand and where it went I… I got my fingers a-tapping on the hard, stone steps I'm waiting for lightning and the rains to fall Young lovers are loafin' with their sidewalk smiles And all their rainbow dreams Amy Alice, in the summer With a sack lunch and a punch card See my sister with a drag job Ah man, she feels like she's a hundred years ago Well here's to people living lives that they regret Work your fingers to the bone and sink in debt Here's to all the shaky tricks what hustlers try You know their easy money is oft-times hard You know they flash a grin and they wink their eye I… I been livin' an' breathin' in the rat trap town Try’na get over where the wall breaks down Holdin' my head up with my thin tired arms And all my rainbow dreams Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.