06-04-2024, 01:48 AM
I think that there's a difference between lyrics and poetry - most lyrics I like don't read well as poems but I think are beautiful when combined with the melody and rhythm of a song.
Maybe some Leonard Cohen and Bill Callahan lyrics can work on their own as poems, but for the most part, I think the vast majority of lyrics need the music to work. Songs are about how the words fit and combine with the music imo. I sort of think about it like the music for lyrics equivalent of meter in poetry, the words have to fit the music.
Elliott Smith is my favourite songwriter and I think his songs are extremely poetic, but if I read the lyrics without the music, I would think they're pretty crappy poems. I love Bob Dylan as well, and it's the same thing with him.
I think it would be good to have a forum for lyrics. This is a poetry forum, though, and there are songwriting forums out there, so it could make sense to keep this site just focused on poetry?
I post songs here sometimes because I mostly write poems, and I like this website and I think they're close enough where you can get feedback on a song from people who write poems. I did vote yes because maybe having a song/lyrics section here would motivate me to make more songs.
Maybe some Leonard Cohen and Bill Callahan lyrics can work on their own as poems, but for the most part, I think the vast majority of lyrics need the music to work. Songs are about how the words fit and combine with the music imo. I sort of think about it like the music for lyrics equivalent of meter in poetry, the words have to fit the music.
Elliott Smith is my favourite songwriter and I think his songs are extremely poetic, but if I read the lyrics without the music, I would think they're pretty crappy poems. I love Bob Dylan as well, and it's the same thing with him.
I think it would be good to have a forum for lyrics. This is a poetry forum, though, and there are songwriting forums out there, so it could make sense to keep this site just focused on poetry?
I post songs here sometimes because I mostly write poems, and I like this website and I think they're close enough where you can get feedback on a song from people who write poems. I did vote yes because maybe having a song/lyrics section here would motivate me to make more songs.