Poetry and Song

..a song is like a piece of stardust, we hold gently in the palm of our hand before blowing it to the wind….

‘It maintains a connection with the lyrical beat at the heart of the tribe.’ AA Gill. I asked an editor what poetry was. She said, ‘It’s that which can’t be edited.’

At times of celebration, or of great sadness, it is poetry that connects us all – enables reflection, sorrow, joy or hopes. ‘Poems reflect up our shared past, let us know who we were and where we came from, and they still do.’

My father could recite Shakespeare ( Hamlet, Merchant of Venice) or Gilbert and Sullivan ( Pirates of Penzance, Mikado) Gilberts lyrics are so memorable, full of alliteration and fun by comparison to the dramatic depth of Shakespeare. These poems seemed to bring him pleasure in the remembering of them, along with the poetry of songs. In my twenties I first heard Richard Thompson and was struck with his drawing of characters in words. More recently I can't hear enough of one of our greatest living poets Bob Dylan and I never tire of his words - they move from anger to questioning to joy of the human spirit. When my grandfather died, I was around 8 and I wrote my first poem that I recall, and I can still remember it.

Poets often put their words to music, and this is what this blog is about. Why is the song so powerful? There are songs that when I hear them take me time travelling through space and time and I’m back dancing to Massachusetts by the BeeGees with my first love, in a circle dancing in long skirts to American Pie or at my best friends house listening to the Beatles. More than narrative or a Van Gogh painting – music and songs trigger all our senses so powerfully. Perhaps there is a scientific explanation… I simply know that it is. We have had a rich periods of poets; Auden, Graves, Masefield, Larkin, Thomas, Day-Lewis, Spender, Betjeman, Heaney, Hughes, Logue, Adrian Mitchell. Who’ve written about our hopes, dreams, and fears.

LYRICS by Bob Dylan

Forever Young – Bob Dylan

May God bless and keep you always,
May your wishes all come true,
May you always do for others
And let others do for you.
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous,
May you grow up to be true,
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you.
May you always be courageous,
Stand upright and be strong,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy,
May your feet always be swift,
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift.
May your heart always be joyful,
May your song always be sung,
May you stay forever young,
Forever young, forever young,
May you stay forever young.