Modern song combines the lyric (an expression of intense personal emotion) with a tune or melody.  Although these two songs weren’t written by George Michael, they have been adapted by him (“re-mixed” if you like) to create the album of classic Songs from the Last Century (2000).

“brother, can you spare a dime” by E.Y. Yarburg and Jay Gorney

This song was written in the 1930’s but the message is still as relevant today as it was perhaps in the year 32.  It seems to be the story of how a popular and successful person loses his fortune and is now forced to beg money from people who perhaps used to know him, but who perhaps don’t want to remember him.  The idea is that fame and fortune are fleeting and what other people think and feel about us is often linked to how much money and fame we have. 

The lyrics start off with the ambiguity we saw in the word dream in Dover Beach: a dream as something beautiful and full of hope, but also as a misleading illusion.  He is the businessman of the “Roaring ‘Twenties” who is making money wherever he can.  He also seems to have believed the illusions that other people were feeding him that he was doing something wonderful (for “peace and glory”) by supplying weapons (“guns to bare”).  His mania runs deep: he seems to believe he can cheat death (Old Father Time) “race against time” and build a “tower to the sun”.  This is a clear reference to the people of Babel who built a tower to the sun in order to demonstrate their progress and power.  Without falling into the trap of saying that this poem shows how God has punished him, it seems safer to say that he has followed the cycle of all humanity.

George Michael has kept the melody full of the “Big Band swing” sounds of the roaring twenties in America, a time of rapid industrial expansion and vast wealth for investors and industrialists.  This seems to fit well with the American expressions like “Buddy”, “Gee, it looked swell,” the American custom of using nicknames (“Al”) right from the first, and the essentially American emphasis that everything bigger is better (e.g. the tower and the railroad).  However, there is a vaguely sad quality to the music, especially at the start, which fits in quite well with the overall message.  This is soon lost as “Al” gets into his story, repeating details over and over as if trying to convince himself as well as us, and at the same time the big band kicks in to reach a crescendo at the end.  This recovered confidence is all the more sad as we realise he is perhaps still standing in a “Great Depression breadline” looking for a dime.

Another possible interpretation is that this is just some poor bum trying to get some money out of the listener by telling him an enchanting tale.  You decide.

Questions:

1.                  How does the melody reinforce the message of the poem?

2.                  What tone does “Al” adopt in trying to obtain his “dime”?  Is it effective?

3.                  What supporting details “Al” include to reinforce his “down-and-out” story?

4.                  Why does “Al” call the listener his “buddy” and “brother”?  What does he intend the listener to feel by doing this?

5.                  How do you actually feel about “Al” and his present condition?  Explain.

6.                  What forms of love and loss are we dealing with here?

“where or when” by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart

In typical post-modern style, George Michael has left part of the original lyrics off and succeeded in changing the message entirely.  In the George Michael version, the speaker is confronted by someone he has known intimately before: perhaps a spouse, or simply a dear friend – after they have not seen each other for many years, the tone is a sweet nostalgia.

When we include the original first verse, the message changes.  It starts by pointing out that our dreams turn to thoughts that have wings, i.e. “are free, fleeting and soaring,” then that we sometimes experience our dreams, and we get what we deserve.  In the second stanza he moves on to talk about how his dream has become reality when he meets the person he has dreamed about.  When he meets the person, all the normal ways of knowing a person are deeply familiar: their smile, clothes, eye-contact, speech, etc.  Notice how the style of music in this song is softer, silkier, more upbeat, refined, and suggestive of a memory, although it is also the swing style of the previous song.  Notice, however, that by adding cellos to the musical arrangement George Michael adds a deeper, more thoughtful note to the music.

In studying these two songs, I hope you have realised that we can use the same techniques to analyse songs as we use to analyse poetry and other literature.  Some people even argue that there is no difference between the poetry we usually study and the songs we listen to on the radio or films we watch on television, etc.  What do you think?

Questions or problems regarding this web site should be directed to disenglish@hotmail.com.
There is no copyright on any material here if used for academic purposes.  In all other cases please contact me.
Last modified: Saturday March 01, 2003.