SONG: “Kiss the Earth” (To download: double right-click & “Save As”)
ARTIST: grant.
SOURCE: Based on “World’s biggest dinosaur takes first steps in 94 million years – digitally, that is,” Digital Trends, 1 November 2013, as used in the post “World’s biggest dinosaur walks again.”
ABSTRACT: Can’t say exactly why, but I’d been thinking about obsessive forms of poetry this month. The ones that keep repeating lines in a set order.
This is a villanelle.
It scans pretty miserably, and it really should have more computers in the lyric, and all the “a” rhymes are slanted, and there’s an extra clause in the first “A” line, but there it is. A villanelle. More folk songs should be written in this form. It’s fun! As long as you’re not too careful about it.
Recording the rhythm and bass was easy – the beat was stolen from another obsessive form (for me), a Guided By Voices song, although they stole it from about half the garage rock recorded in the 1960s. The guitar sounds weird because I broke the D string and put it back on, but tuned an octave low so it wouldn’t break again (massive chunky fake baritone guitar!). Recording vocals was harder than usual this month – never any time at all alone in the house.
But it all got done.
Lyrics:
We reach up to the clouds for all that we’re worth
Where the distant lights are still glowing
Until our feet kiss the earth…We added miles of spine, living towers lurched
Our bones and sinews always growing
Reaching up for all we’re worthOne day I awoke, and something burst
Thunder roared – the skies were overflowing
Until our feet kiss the earth…Then we fell as if we’d been cursed
Tons of ash fell like it was snowing
Reaching up for all we’re worthPuzzle over our pieces surrendered to your search
Until the systems are showing
Until our feet kiss the earth…Our dust has dispersed
Examination is ongoing
We reach up to the clouds for all that we’re worth
Until our feet kiss the earth…