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The Poetics of Pop

Posted at 12:10 PM on April 2, 2007 by Jacquie Fuller (18 Comments)

As a creative writer and music lover, I'm always thinking of ways to consolidate my passions. Last night, I wrote a proposal for my "dream" course (I moonlight as an adjunct instructor): "Lyrics and Music: The Poetics of Pop." My dream is to teach an intro to creative writing course that uses song lyrics and stories/poems about music for inspiration. Imagine this reading list: Greil Marcus, Chuck Klosterman, Nick Hornby, and David Berman's (Silver Jews) book of poetry, Actual Air. And that's just for starters! Would you sign up for that kind of class? And what would you add to the reading list? (Sleaze alert! Anything you post is fair game for my course proposal.)

On a related note: This morning, Michael Wells - the Current's Web producer - sent us a link to The Onion. Their A.V. Club complied a list of 26 songs that are "just as good as short stories." When you think of the wealth of great narrative songs out there, you can imagine that boiling it down to 26 must have been a daunting task! How many didn't make the cut? For instance--not one Elvis Costello song in the bunch! What about songs like "A Kinder Murder," with its Larry McMurtry-esque narrative of small-town drama? Or "Watching the Detectives," a song whose bare-bones feel has always reminded me of Raymond Carver's spare short stories? This leads me to my next question for you: What songs did the A.V. Club miss? Like The Onion writers did, back it up with a good reason. Whose writing do the lyrics remind you of? What, in your opinion, makes that song as good as a short story? Please write in complete sentences. Be prepared to share your answers with the class.

Then repeat after me: I've got it bad, so bad, I'm hot for teacher.

You're so sweet. A+.

Comments (18)

Copacabana?!
The Homecoming Queen's Got A Gun?!?

[Head in hands] What were they thinking?

Well, at least “A Boy Named Sue”, "1952 Vincent Black Lightening" and “Cats in the Cradle” made it.

Anyway, my current favorite story-tellers are the Hold Steady. “Your Little Hoodrat Friend” and “Chillout Tent” get me every time. It never ceases to amaze me how much Craig Finn’s songwriting always reminds me of all my crazy-a$$ friends from college and the wild times we had.

P.S. Jacquie, I'll take your class. Where do I sign up?

Posted by Auntie | April 2, 2007 2:03 PM

OK, Where is Marty Robbins' "El Paso"? That one certainly deserves more credit than that stupid "Homecoming Queen" song, even though there's already a lot of country music on the list. Still, "El Paso" was a HUGE hit and features such a wonderfully compelling story, along with Robbins' wonderful, smooth vocals. It should be there, dadburn it!

Posted by Auntie | April 2, 2007 2:08 PM

I grew up on a pretty steady diet of Marty Robbins, as he was a favorite of my Dad's. (My Dad also had this really unrealistic, romantic notion of the West, which might have been part of the reason he fell for my Mom, a Mexican, and why he still weeps when he hears mariachi music. God love him.) Marty Robbins is like the Cormac McCarthy of country music.

Posted by Jacquie Fuller | April 2, 2007 2:28 PM

[Outraged] Johnny Horton should be represented, too! Who can possibly refrain from singing along with "The Battle of New Orleans". "Springtime in Alaska"! "Sink the Bismarck"!

Jacquie, I grew up with that kind of music, too. My father loved Frankie Laine, Marty Robbins, Johnny Cash, Johnny Horton and Jim Reeves. In fact, the gunfighter/western ballad type stuff is the only music my father listens to. These were all great storytellers, and I had a fantastic opportunity to re-acquaint myself with their work last year. Dad is IMPOSSIBLE to buy for - doesn't want anything, doesn't need anything. Last year I had a brainstorm for Christmas, and gave him a homemade "gift certificate" for mix CDs containing all of his favorite music. It took me several months, but the final result was a set of 5 Gunfighter/Western CDs and 1 50s novelty/pop music CD. He went nuts - I have never seen him so excited over any gift, ever. He takes them everywhere with him! He even brought them to bowling to show them off to his teammates, and they even went with him to the hospital a couple of times last year. I honestly think it was the best gift any of us kids have ever given him.

What an amazing thing, the gift of song.

Posted by Auntie | April 2, 2007 2:44 PM

Auntie, you're gonna make me cry ... I'm callin' the old man tonight.

Posted by Jacquie Fuller | April 2, 2007 3:19 PM

Velvet Underground - The Gift, from White Light/White Heat. This song should be required listening in your proposed class.

Posted by Matt | April 2, 2007 8:55 PM

I was just glad to see "Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts" get props. Maybe this weekend's blog entry got me in a Blood on the Tracks mood, but that song has really grown on me over the years.

Posted by Mac Wilson | April 2, 2007 11:15 PM

what about Teddy Bear by Red Sovine?

Posted by eunice | April 3, 2007 8:18 AM

Jacquie:

As for required reading for your class I recommend "Songwriters on Songwriting" by Paul Zollo. It is a book culled from hundreds of interviews of songwriters that helps get to the heart of how these people go about their work. There's a 4th edition out now, but the edition I have includes people like Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Leonard Cohen, Townes Van Zandt, Yoko Ono, Suzanne Vega, Neil YOung, Randy Newman, Frank Zappa, Pete Seeger, and dozens of others. It's a fascinating look into these amazing songwriters' processes and inspirations for their songs.

Posted by Frick | April 3, 2007 8:46 AM

I'm disturbed by the lack of Escape (The Pina Colada Song).

Posted by Michael Wells | April 3, 2007 9:59 AM

I think it was Flannery O'Connor who talked about the inevitability of characters colliding. Could you apply that concept to "Escape," The Pina Colada Song? I dare say yes.

Frick, that book sounds awesome! I am totally going to track a copy down!

Posted by Jacquie Fuller | April 3, 2007 10:12 AM

I am disturbed that M. Wells would even consider bringing up "Escape" in this context.

Posted by Auntie | April 3, 2007 10:44 AM

Too bad only 2 hip-hop tracks made the cut of 26. Better than nothing...I guess. Even if one is Eminem.
But what about the work of KRS-One and Chuck D. just to name two.

Posted by Tony Lopez | April 3, 2007 1:59 PM

Good call, Tony. Chuck D. does spoken word, so you've killed two birds with one stone there! Ooh! That reminds me--I should add Saul Williams and Regie Gibson to my reading/listening list.

I think the list has leaned toward pop music because the discussion is about short story, and pop music tends to lend itself to narrative. Though there are LOTS of narrative hip hop songs out there, I'd probably find them more useful in teaching the poetry component of my "dream class", for their rythym and lyrical freedom.

God, this is a fun discussion!

Posted by Jacquie Fuller | April 3, 2007 4:45 PM

If you want to add a component of poetry/hip hop/theater to the mix, check out Carl Hancock Rux

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Hancock_Rux

He's a playright, musician, author. He's very interesting. His music is amazing, he has an incredibly deep voice, which cuts right through you.

I had the pleasure of spending some time with him when he was in town many years ago for a Penumbra Theatre production of "Geneva Cattrell" on of his one act plays. I accompanied him to KFAI for an interview and he saw the Riverside Towers apartments and inquired about them. I told him they were used to depict where Mary Tyler Moore moved to in one of her shows. I also told him that it is sometimes known as "The Ghetto In The Sky"... which he thought was brilliant.

Posted by Frick | April 3, 2007 5:01 PM

Nice one Frick! Hey fellow DJ's, we've got Rux's latest album "Good Bread Alley" in the library. I'll bet it's been awhile since he's been played. Let's get on this! :)

Posted by Tony Lopez | April 3, 2007 5:37 PM

They also missed Pulp's awesome tale of economic disparity "Common People".

Posted by Auntie | April 3, 2007 6:39 PM

I'd love to hear some Rux on the Radio. Thanks, Tony!

Posted by Frick | April 4, 2007 9:44 AM

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