"Amplifier" - 1/2/20
I was never someone who inherently loved singing
I was electrified by sharing ideas, amplifying uplift
Until I revelled in the virtues of touring, the mystical
Repetition-redemption derived from doing more
Than the occasional one-off
I never really envisioned voicing my own stories
As a kid an early goal was hit songs on the radio
But the conundrum was I didn't trust anyone else
To deliver messages I was secretly encoding
Fact is I might not be doing what I'm doing but for a
Collision course with the infamous Jenny Hillis
Jenny was popular and I was a transfer from another
School where visciousness abounded. I'd begged for
Freedom from inane competition for quixotic status
In favor of somewhere I could start fresh as myself
Jenny liked my songs but was also honest
A non-musician she nonetheless had the A&R chops
At 11 to turn me on to a crucial pile of cassettes:
Carole King, James Taylor, Bread, The Doors, Cat Stevens
(She also supplied The Dead but that never stuck)
Until then my influences essentially spanned
Classical, Broadway, Hebrew School and Top 40
Suddenly I envisioned a potential scaling the walls
Of angstful youth's melodic insurrection
A mission encompassed by Jenny's collection
As for singing, I never got into chorus but I also
Never felt that should sway me from my newfound
Professional goal of expression-ambassador
Birds sing to give voice to the delight of life
Great voices abound and I've never been silent or still
In spite of my own questionable piloting potential
Tonight I witnessed gloriously gifted opera singers
Effortlessly emote their passions impromptu
At a soiree celebrating a loved-one's birthday
Tuchus-kicked, humbled, nonetheless I reflect
I'm still not someone who inherently loves singing
What electrifies me is sharing ideas, amplifying uplift
Still I revel in the virtues of touring, the mystical
Repetition-redemption derived from doing more
Than the occasional one-off
I have no idea what happened to my friend
Who embraced me as the nerdy new girl
Even though she was cool, and impossibly beautiful
But tonight it occurs to me that she deserves a lyric
Better than one I wrote for her at 11, "Jenny's Friendship"
