Sunday, September 15, 2013

The Power of Song Lyrics

Even those who are shy to admit it have probably done it. Some of us have grown out of it. I have seen my own father doing it, and many of us love doing it when we get a bit tipsy, especially on holiday when nobody we know will see us.

Singing out loud, be it to yourself, in a mirror with a hairbrush, or a holiday karaoke (guilty of all charges) is something most of us have done at some point in our lives. You might have a song that is guaranteed to get you humming along in the car, singing in the shower, or, when on holiday with a bunch of girls up on the stage belting out Madonna's Vogue. I was a lot younger then, and now I tend to keep the singing between me, the family, and the neighbours. But the one common thread here is not the choice of outlet. It is music. Songs and their lyrics.

I am a member of a great facebook group, and Friday is poetry day. I am no poet, but I like checking in and seeing people's efforts. This week, I started reading one of the poems, and realised that I already knew the words. I couldn't remember from where, but the words were so ingrained in my mind that it took me straight back to my younger days when I was an angry teenager who listened to nothing but Guns and Roses. The song was Civil War, and even without the music the words themselves meant something to me, brought up memories of school camp, first boyfriends, and really bad dress sense.

Yes, the music counts, but now I am thirty two instead of thirteen, those words still take me back to a certain time, a certain feeling. All in the space of six words: Look at your young men fighting. When words are put together well they contain a certain kind of magic. 

But sometimes, even as a writer, there are other people that have already done it so well that it is their words that become a part of my life. Axl Rose's words are my youth, Sylvia Plath's poetry will always take me back to my A-Levels, and John Denver has been immortalised in the memories of my wedding.

So this time I will share another writer's words, and the video link is below if you want to see it exactly as it was intended. But it is not the music that has sunk itself into my life, rather it is the words of this song which will always take me back to an unforgettable moment in my history.

This one's for you bro xx

When you try your best, but you don't succeed
When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse

And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

And high up above or down below
When you're too in love to let it go
But if you never try you'll never know
Just what you're worth

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Tears stream down your face
When you lose something you cannot replace
Tears stream down your face
And I...

Tears stream down your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your face
And I...

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you
 
 

10 comments:

  1. I always find that song lyrics will stay in my head for decades...even the bad ones! I've never been a fan of poetry but there's something much more accessible about lyrics.

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    1. It's poetry for the masses! When the good lyrics stick around it's great, but the bad ones......I now have The Aga do song in my head!

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  2. Wonderful song!

    Poetry is hit and miss for a lot of people as are lyrics, but when they hit, it is an unforgetable smack-between-the-eyes moment.

    It is, during that "moment" in your life, that you find the emotional power from a poem or song.

    The nerve tingling sensation, goosebumps across your skin, mistiness in your eyes, melancholoy...whatever emotion you feel can and will be forever a part of you.

    It's kind of like how the smell of wet cement always takes me back to my childhood and the side of my house (the gated entrance I always used when I came home from school)... great memories are associated with it.

    This too, is how poetry and music make me feel. Love the post Michelle. Love the words to the song!

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    1. Thanks so much for your comments.

      I thik we all have those childhood memories. The senses are a wonderful thing for sparking memories. Sometimes I get certain smells (like your cement smell) and I know I have smelt it before yet have no recollection where, yet still get the impression is that it is from the distant past.

      I'm glad you enjoyed the post, and I'm so glad that you enjoyed the song/lyrics that mean so much to me.

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  3. Lyrics that resonate with me always remind me that the strong feelings they generate IS the meaning of the song. Often trite and ordinary expressions and far from what is considered good poetry, they are more catalysts to emotion than stimulants for the intellect. Lyrics WITH the music are a kind of universal magic which enriches us all.

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    1. Absolutely agree with you. Often lyrics do not offer a particularly novel or poetic concept alone, but when combined with the emotion of the music the overall composition works. This is why music reaches such a wide audience, but often poetry can feel out of reach to those who enjoy music. Thanks you for your comments on this!

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