Some are moved by the words first, hear them,
read them, following along, are caught up attending
to meaning, to cadence, to line breaks, and the why.
That’s fine, but unless I’m moved by the music,
how it washes through me, feeling the catch of composition,
that breath that comes with inspiration, I’m out.
When and only then the music ties itself to my heart,
imprints itself on my soul, do I ever consider the words,
their meaning, the way they paint a picture, argue, or ask questions.
If it’s a poem alone, then any music should come from the words,
but a song, it’s music first, and failing to bond me to it as such,
words and their meaning are something I’ll never push myself to know.
So many songs place prime significance on lyrics reaching
for the rung of poetry and not grasping that they’re music first.
Lanning Lee 