The Long Notes

 

I did two long numbers tonight,

Unusual for me,

uncharacteristic you say,

well, quite.

 

Went well but as ever

I wanted more,

You know the score,

For expression, fame

and adulation,

We're sometimes

just tuppenny whores.

 

Yet still content

to be with like-minded souls,

Beatniks, blues and jazzmen

breathing the same rarified air,

Rich and overpowering

in a Cadillac with Kerouac

and lack of care

for anything

but the endless beat of time,

You know me, I know you,

this music is yours and mine,

The notes are short and long,

bright and blue,

And belong to us any time.

 

Such strange and vivid delights

can surprise when weary

from a poetry night.

 

And as I walked to the train,

giddy not from drink

But from the pulse and vibe

that were born and lived

in that room,

The thrill of the new,

feelings for you,

An Irish band played in a bar,

"Dance till dawn be in the sky,

What care you and what care I?",

A song that held my hand

through life,

But unheard since

Third Year Juniors,

till, that is, tonight.

 

My ears and heart

open again,

Is it time for the song

once more to begin?

If you're asking, I'm dancing,

play the intro,

Count me in.