Thursday, May 31, 2012

Poetry: Read More/Blog More – A Monthly Event! -Month 5

One of my favourite ways to experience poetry is through music. And, I am the sort that actually pays attention to what they are. There are some songs that are insanely popular and I just don't get how when you listen to the terrible things that the lyrics say. When I met the guy we went on a road trip and he was playing this band called Rush. I had heard of them, but never really paid a lot of attention to them before. Initially, I wasn't very impressed. But, we had my car and he left their CD in there. I am terrible about changing what I am listening to, so I wound up driving around listening to Rush and they slowly grew on me. Neil Peart, the drummer, has written many of the lyrics and he is also an author. I enjoy both and thought I would share some of the lyrics to my favourite Rush songs for my Poetry post this month.

"The Trees"

There is unrest in the forest
There is trouble with the trees
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas

The trouble with the maples
(And they're quite convinced they're right)
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light
But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade

There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream 'Oppression!'
And the oaks just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights
'The oaks are just too greedy
We will make them give us light'
Now there's no more oak oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe and saw


"Freewill"

There are those who think that life has nothing left to chance
A host of holy horrors to direct our aimless dance

A planet of play things
We dance on the strings
Of powers we cannot perceive
'The stars aren't aligned
Or the gods are malign...'
Blame is better to give than receive

[Chorus:]
You can choose a ready guide in some celestial voice
If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice
You can choose from phantom fears and kindness that can kill
I will choose a path that's clear
I will choose freewill

There are those who think
That they were dealt a losing hand
The cards were stacked against them
They weren't born in Lotusland

All preordained
A prisoner in chains
A victim of venomous fate
Kicked in the face
You can't pray for a place
In heaven's unearthly estate

[Chorus]

Each of us
A cell of awareness
Imperfect and incomplete
Genetic blends
With uncertain ends
On a fortune hunt that's far too fleet

[Chorus]


"Red Sector A"

All that we can do is just survive
All that we can do to help ourselves is stay alive

Ragged lines of ragged grey
Skeletons, they shuffle away
Shouting guards and smoking guns
Will cut down the unlucky ones

I clutch the wire fence until my fingers bleed
A wound that will not heal
A heart that cannot feel
Hoping that the horror will recede
Hoping that tomorrow we'll all be freed

Sickness to insanity
Prayer to profanity
Days and weeks and months go by
Don't feel the hunger
Too weak to cry

I hear the sound of gunfire at the prison gate
Are the liberators here?
Do I hope or do I fear?
For my father and my brother, it's too late
But I must help my mother stand up straight

Are we the last ones left alive?
Are we the only human beings to survive?


"Limelight"

Living on a lighted stage
Approaches the unreal
For those who think and feel
In touch with some reality
Beyond the gilded cage

Cast in this unlikely role
Ill-equipped to act
With insufficient tact
One must put up barriers
To keep oneself intact

[Chorus:]
Living in the limelight
The universal dream
For those who wish to seem
Those who wish to be
Must put aside the alienation
Get on with the fascination
The real relation
The underlying theme

Living in a fish eye lens
Caught in the camera eye
I have no heart to lie
I can't pretend a stranger
Is a long-awaited friend

All the world's indeed a stage
And we are merely players
Performers and portrayers
Each another's audience
Outside the gilded cage

[Chorus]

These are just some of my favourites. What are some of your favourite lyrics? Mr. Linky is up on Regular Ruminations. I hope people are joining in!

4 comments:

  1. I think lyrics are often underrated. Many times they are quite powerful.

    "The Trees" seems like it could actually be quite deep and meaningful.

    Although every time I say that, I'm reminded of the author (don't remember which) who when confronted by some deep truth his work was supposed to contain, said that it really meant nothing at all.

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  2. Anonymous6:27 PM

    There's a really interesting documentary on Rush that pops up on tv occasionally. I think on VH1. Of course, that's a US channel. :-(

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your poem about trees is very touching, it reminds me of the ideology of people from third world countries being oppressed and how unfair it is. It shouldn't matter where you live or what the people around you do you should be entitled to a good healthy life, like every tree used to until we started taking down forests.

    -Tony Salmeron

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  4. lol Rush reminds me hardcore of my undergrad. I hung out alot with two guys who were huge music aficionados, Rush was one of their go-to bands. I've always liked the song Freewill. :)

    ReplyDelete

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