I keep reading how song lyrics often don’t carry until they’re performed. The latest to make this claim is Julian Cope in Copendium (Tim bought it for me for my birthday) and he’s no slouch.

If this were not so, the whole term ‘songpoet’ would be meaningless. If David Lee Roth was a poet by virtue of singing songs then there’d be no grounds for singling out Jacques Brel. It is true that songs have different dictates to poems; that poetry does not always cede to song.

As our beloved Leonard turns eighty we remind ourselves that he was a published poet before he picked up the guitar.

So what is the difference between poetry and song? If some song lyrics now have more of a layout of a poem because they don’t follow the verse chorus verse pattern, does that makes them cross territories?

Instead of trying to see whether ‘No man is an island’ fits into a song or any of the songs with ‘perfect’ in them would be just as perfect in poetic form, let’s cut from whole cloth.

The biggest news in Sydney when I was working there (I still work there but am on Christmas break) was the siege. Now I don’t want to cover that, for a number of reasons, but we have the word and an associated phrase that makes good material for both a song and a poem.

First the poem

Siege Mentality

You resent the sentiment

as you close off all contacts

keep sharp objects hidden

behaviour guarded

I will be the first to confess that that has the makings of a song verse. Sometimes a set of words can do double duty. As long as you don’t confuse the two absolutely.

I sweat and I swoon

Will it all be over soon

I’ve got a siege mentality

I’m distressed and distraught

Afraid of being caught

With my siege mentality

Siege mentality

I’ve assumed as I’m ashamed

In the bloom of taken blame

For this siege mentality

[fade repeat]