April 2019 Poetry Night of Songs & Stories
RBWG Poets: Choose one of the four original songs (lyrics) below to use as a prompt for creating an original poem. You can use specific lyrics as the prompt, specific lines or words, the overall idea, write a response to the lyrics, adopt the voice of one of the "characters" in the lyrics—anything you want. Once you decide on a lyric, please email Maribeth at fischer.maribeth@gmail.com to let her know which lyric you choose.
We will accept the first five "sign-ups" for each lyric—as we want to make sure that all of the lyrics have poems written for them.
For the April event, we will choose three poems to be read for each song.
Email Maribeth if you have questions or to "RSVP" for your lyrics.
We will accept the first five "sign-ups" for each lyric—as we want to make sure that all of the lyrics have poems written for them.
For the April event, we will choose three poems to be read for each song.
Email Maribeth if you have questions or to "RSVP" for your lyrics.
Song #1 "The Landlord Lives in His Car"
The Cobbler ain’t got no shoes
Lawman don’t know the rules
And the landlord lives in his car
When I look at this world today
I kinda wish I’d just blow away
Still ain’t peace in the Middle East
And there’s a fat cat who’s eating the feast
The weatherman pray for rain
And bride and groom do the same
Wall Street is full of frauds
And in gay Paris they’re wearing clogs - again
Bob says:
The therapist got the blues
The actor missed the cues
And the landlord lives in his car
The cook won’t eat the food
Miss Manners is acting rude
And the landlord is living in his car
solo
Machines they say took over the world
But my internet was down so I never heard
And out here in this universe
The gypsy says it could get worse
Meteors flying all over the place
And they could knock us out of this human race
And while I worked on my masterpiece
Time became a master thief - and I got old
Woody says:
The writers don’t like the words
The rancher set loose the herds
A politician spoke the truth
And the crow fell off the roof
The hangman’s at the end of his rope
The ant’s still high on hope
And the landlord lives in his car
(Sure hope the world don’t end today)
The landlord is living in his car
(Filled for Readers) Song #2 "The First State"
We ran wild those days
But we knew we would meet
Along some broken road
In the late summer heat
Two cars in the trees
Radio stations fading
Down this restless breeze
Someone always left waiting
But now these fields have changed
Our horizons have neared
All those silences
Which of us disappeared?
How we drift so far
Farther than we can measure
Lying that we’re alone
When we’re lying together
The first state I recall
Was a halo of sun
Around her tired face
On a cold afternoon
We wound ourselves in scarves
And crawled out through the drifting snow
She spread her arms
And she fell among angels
She fell down among angels
She fell in among angels
The first state I recall
The first state I recall
Song #3 "Middle of the Night"
She's a beauty you can see it in her eyes
but you'll never see her soul.
She always keeps 'em guessing
and she always ends up alone.
She works every day,
awake every night,
praying there's a way...
She can finally surrender,
so love will come her way,
And she says,
"There's nothing I won't give.
God grant me just one wish.
Please don't leave me here - living in my...
Lonely mind, reaching out with these
Lonely arms, tears falling from these
Lonely eyes... don't let me live with this
Lonely heart in the middle of the night."
Yeah, she's tough and she'll tell you
that love is never worth the cost.
But when lights go out at the end of the day,
who sleeps alone and lost?
Fire and passion, burning like a coal –
no one there to hold.
Oh, she gave up trying to find love,
so many years ago.
Still she says,
"There's nothing I won't give.
God grant me just one wish.
Please don't leave me here - living in my...
Lonely mind, reaching out with these
Lonely arms, tears falling from these
Lonely eyes... don't let me live with this
Lonely heart in the middle of the night."
Song #4 Paying My Dues
Down at Church Point the fire's burnin' bright
A lighthouse on the water there's love coming in the night.
Easy as summer, gentle as the dew
Never had a broken heart until I fell in love with you.
Payin' my dues from now on
Now that half my life is gone.
Payin' my dues from now on
Now that half my life is gone.
There's food in the pantry, a rusted bike is in the shed.
Clean sheets on the pill where I used to lay my head.
Everything is fine 'cause nothing ever is
Today is just another day of whatever's left to live.
Everything's been easy, a charmed life's what I've had
I worked hard and I played hard for everything I've grabbed.
Now everything is changed, the door just slammed again
I might get back to better but that doesn't change a thing.
The Cobbler ain’t got no shoes
Lawman don’t know the rules
And the landlord lives in his car
When I look at this world today
I kinda wish I’d just blow away
Still ain’t peace in the Middle East
And there’s a fat cat who’s eating the feast
The weatherman pray for rain
And bride and groom do the same
Wall Street is full of frauds
And in gay Paris they’re wearing clogs - again
Bob says:
The therapist got the blues
The actor missed the cues
And the landlord lives in his car
The cook won’t eat the food
Miss Manners is acting rude
And the landlord is living in his car
solo
Machines they say took over the world
But my internet was down so I never heard
And out here in this universe
The gypsy says it could get worse
Meteors flying all over the place
And they could knock us out of this human race
And while I worked on my masterpiece
Time became a master thief - and I got old
Woody says:
The writers don’t like the words
The rancher set loose the herds
A politician spoke the truth
And the crow fell off the roof
The hangman’s at the end of his rope
The ant’s still high on hope
And the landlord lives in his car
(Sure hope the world don’t end today)
The landlord is living in his car
(Filled for Readers) Song #2 "The First State"
We ran wild those days
But we knew we would meet
Along some broken road
In the late summer heat
Two cars in the trees
Radio stations fading
Down this restless breeze
Someone always left waiting
But now these fields have changed
Our horizons have neared
All those silences
Which of us disappeared?
How we drift so far
Farther than we can measure
Lying that we’re alone
When we’re lying together
The first state I recall
Was a halo of sun
Around her tired face
On a cold afternoon
We wound ourselves in scarves
And crawled out through the drifting snow
She spread her arms
And she fell among angels
She fell down among angels
She fell in among angels
The first state I recall
The first state I recall
Song #3 "Middle of the Night"
She's a beauty you can see it in her eyes
but you'll never see her soul.
She always keeps 'em guessing
and she always ends up alone.
She works every day,
awake every night,
praying there's a way...
She can finally surrender,
so love will come her way,
And she says,
"There's nothing I won't give.
God grant me just one wish.
Please don't leave me here - living in my...
Lonely mind, reaching out with these
Lonely arms, tears falling from these
Lonely eyes... don't let me live with this
Lonely heart in the middle of the night."
Yeah, she's tough and she'll tell you
that love is never worth the cost.
But when lights go out at the end of the day,
who sleeps alone and lost?
Fire and passion, burning like a coal –
no one there to hold.
Oh, she gave up trying to find love,
so many years ago.
Still she says,
"There's nothing I won't give.
God grant me just one wish.
Please don't leave me here - living in my...
Lonely mind, reaching out with these
Lonely arms, tears falling from these
Lonely eyes... don't let me live with this
Lonely heart in the middle of the night."
Song #4 Paying My Dues
Down at Church Point the fire's burnin' bright
A lighthouse on the water there's love coming in the night.
Easy as summer, gentle as the dew
Never had a broken heart until I fell in love with you.
Payin' my dues from now on
Now that half my life is gone.
Payin' my dues from now on
Now that half my life is gone.
There's food in the pantry, a rusted bike is in the shed.
Clean sheets on the pill where I used to lay my head.
Everything is fine 'cause nothing ever is
Today is just another day of whatever's left to live.
Everything's been easy, a charmed life's what I've had
I worked hard and I played hard for everything I've grabbed.
Now everything is changed, the door just slammed again
I might get back to better but that doesn't change a thing.
