Waiting for the Renaissance, Poem
Waiting For The Renaissance
“Take it from me. Heaven was
Detroit, Michigan. Who woulda
thunk it?”
– Lester Bangs
From your cloud
on high, you look down
onto a world full
of new music.
I never dreamed
it could get so bad
Half of what you hear
is synthesized
and none of the old bands
are around anymore.
What’s this thing
called MTV?
You don’t want to know.
It seems to have ruined
all that you remember.
And this rap
the kids listen to?
It’s like they’re trying to
master the beat poetry
of your day
with failing results.
I’m patiently waiting
for the renaissance!
There was Sinatra in the 40s,
you had Elvis in the 50s.
The Beatles ruled the
sound waves in the 60s,
and Led Zeppelin
called the shots in the 70s.
Since then, no one has been
listening to your advice.
No one plays like
Lou Reed anymore.
Why doesn’t anyone
put some soul into
their songs?
You long for sounds
like The Yardbirds,
The Faces, Iggy Pop,
The Guess Who.
In the days of Creem Magazine
and Hunter Thompson, you were
a man ahead of the rest.
Wenner at Rolling Stone
can stick it where the
sun don’t shine.
But now tell me,
do they play “Stairway”
Non-stop up there?
Don’t even get me started.
