CLICK HERE TO HEAR AUTHOR READ
CLICK HERE FOR THE MUSICAL VERSION
I learn to play harmonica
To my wife's eternal dismay,
But play the harmonica I will
Whatever she may say.
She hates the crying racket
The piercing whiny whine,
But that's not how I hear it
To me it sounds sublime.
She says she can't be near it
Yells take it somewhere far,
Where nobody can hear it
'Play it in your car'.
Me and my harmonica
We're both made to roam,
The one place I can't play it
Is when I'm in my home.
Me and my harmonica
We both sing the blues,
Anything that you can have
Is something you can lose.
I blow a tune in four-time
Pressed up against my lips,
And when my tune is done
Back in my pocket it slips.
I move on down the road
A wanderer alone,
With nothing but a song to sing
Far away from home.
Out and in, in and out
My body and my breath,
Shapes a sound into a song
From silence and from death.
Me and my harmonica
Go out for a long walk,
Try the door on my return
But she done changed the lock.
Me and my harmonica
We both sing the blues,
With every tune I learn to play
I also pay my dues.
3 comments:
Hilarious!
I wasn't expecting "she done changed the lock"! (Reminds me of Jimi Hendrix's "Red House".)
I also love that you take on the persona of the instrument ... making sounds -- together -- that no one wants to hear, unwelcome at home, you and your harmonica are forced to take your sounds "on the road". The harmonica becomes an emblem for the lonesome, misunderstood artist. You and the harmonica suffer together. The harmonica ... your only pal on the lonesome journey through life.
I was hoping to hear some harmonica playing on the audio ... a sign-off after the recital of the poem. Or even better, an accompaniment between the verses! That would have been cool.
What a good idea. Thanks. I hadn’t even considered playing harmonica in between verses. Probably because I record the reading at home… and like the poem says… Also because I have to learn how to play the harmonica first. Still, it’s a great idea. If you play, I’d love to hear your version of this. Send it along and I’ll post it.
Lyrics are soulful and I can hear the harmonica music in it, see the movement as it is sung. The voices of the characters can be heard in their soulfulness and in their annoyance. The only line that bothers: “In silence and in death.” Death seems out of place in this song. Otherwise the words are a perfect match with each other. Can’t wait to hear the song on radio!
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