sample(d) I: Moon Men pt. 1

“The reader is the space on which all the quotations that make up a writing are inscribed without any of them being lost; a text's unity lies not in its origin but in its destination.” 

-Roland Barthes, The Death of the Author 

The beauty of music — to me — is within the lyrics. But would this mean that the magic of songs lie within the songwriter? I’d beg to differ. The true power of a song — of a chorus or a bridge or a hook— lies within the listener. More specifically, how listeners can actively take apart lyrics and interlace a chorus, a hook, or a bridge into a tapestry of their own creation. It is the way a listener weaves their own lived experiences, imagination, and imagery to songs that make it last; make it mean something. This poem-based series is my way of exemplifying how magical songs are to me. 

I’d like to invite you to bask in the magic too… 

Sample(d) I: Moon Men

“two drifters off to see the world”

In this first installment, I “sample” a myriad of artists but primarily the various artists that have covered the iconic song “moon river” (popularized by Audrey Hepburn’s version in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s).

moon river

from breakfast at tiffany’s and beyond

“Moon river, wider than a mile

I'm crossing you in style someday

Oh, dream maker

You heartbreaker

Wherever you're going I'm going your way

Two drifters off to see the world

There's such a lot of world to see

We're after the same rainbow's end

Waiting round the bend

My huckleberry friend

Moon river and me” 

-Performed by Audrey Hepburn, and Frank Sinatra, and Frank Ocean… 

… my turn-ish

moon landing

A love on a lie

is a castle on a glass cloud 

but not this love 

for it is different 

As if here on worn-in sheets under dim motel lighting

On a cross-bred cocaine high  

Nothing else matters 

And as your body curves into mine 

you confess, “this love is made of something out of this world”                                                         

— something I already know

… 

Let the crashing comets collide against the earth

Let it catapult me into the clouds

   into space 

So far from earth

So far from matter

Where I can lay in moon dust

with you forever

Where I can lay here in moon dust 

with you forever

A future with you

is a future worth dreaming of

A love on a lie

is a love good enough

for me

… 

And as the stars in your eyes dim into a deep sleep 

I’m mesmerized that somehow I’ve landed you 

and

I solemnly swear 

a secret

“I promise you 

I’ll stay here forever

and whatever comes after 

doesn’t matter”

Check out part 2 to this series debut…