Songs to Free Up To
A Game.
In the spirit of creative wordplay, I offer you a game:
Spontaneously truncated lyrics to classic songs — ready-made poems, dragged from the essence of something familiar, freshly arranged.
Let me explain:
My son lives in Brazil. He is a musician, writer and sometimes Good Doctor on Tik-Tok!
Often, he lets off steam with a Live on Instagram. I am his number one fan and can be found dancing around the kitchen — always marveling at this connection through the waves with my boy and, as he strums guitar, I sing along, manically pressing the heart icon to let him know that I hear him.
Last night, his curated playlist was a classic. I found myself, pen in hand, noting words as I heard them — only writing down what I heard as I heard it.
Here is one example:
“Eyes on road. Wheel.
Eyes on road — hands upon.
Roadhouse — good times — back at Bungalows
Roadhouse — people slow.
Let it roll. Baby roll — oooooo,
All night long.
Gotta come on soul, fashion lady — give up your…
Save our city right now.
Woke — got a beer this morning.
A deal — futures uncertain.
Let it roll baby roll — all night long.”
It got me thinking of a game I used to run with my Creative Writing Students in Cambridge, UK, back in the day. Once in town, I would send them off armed with pad and pen, to eavesdrop on random conversations, obliquely. Only one rule: to note down words and phrases that jumped out whilst walking past — and under no circumstances to listen in to somebody’s conversation!
The resulting patchwork of phrases would be collectively stitched into Spoken Word Poetry, and we would end the exercise with a Rap-off — to much hilarity.
So — the game with the songs is a virtual version of this idea. All I do is transcribe the words that fall through the screen and transfer them from ear to page. In reality, as my handwriting is large and scrawly, the mechanics of transposing are led by intuitive detachment — leading to a satisfying synopsis of the words of the song being sung.
“But why would I do this — what for?”, I hear you ask.
Well — Play is my modus operando — part of a process that I use often in my art practice to keep myself current and interesting. Play encourages Curiosity, jerks me out of Complacency and leads to different and surprising outcomes (that may, or may not, work)
Because all Creatives copy, re-use and re-appropriate subject matter — don’t they?
It is part of the development of critical awareness — learning and growing — until, one day, having mastered their craft, they can add a pinch of their own original spice to the mix and realise their own work.
After all, David Bowie wrote lyrics composed from curated cut out pieces of newspaper, randomly arranged…
The Surrealists limbered up with games of “Corps Esquisses” — characters built from the imaginations of the artists around the table — a century ago…
Playtime!
Here is another song — the raw version — re-formatted through space and time:
“Never known a girl before.
Song of days of yore…
Hear them coming on my door — girl like you,
Before.
Just a taste — I want more — bleeding knees are raw.
Crawling on the never known before.
Floor knowledge metaphorically, allegorically — the way I feel, talking.
Never, never, never. Before.
This old town; don’t feel too many singers.
You come along, you — never met you before…
Never met a girl before.”
Cool huh? Try it sometime — it’s freeing nonsense!
If anyone knows the names of the two examples I have given here — and the artists — please let me know in the comments — because I haven’t a clue!
And, if you want to play some more, check out the following sites:
