To listen to O Sweetest Love, click here
The
couplet that forms the refrain of this song was in my head for years and years before I was even able to identify
it properly – it belongs to John Donne, the great metaphysical poet of the 17th
century, and one of the strangest paradoxes, a man who was Dean of St Paul’s
Cathedral but also the author of some of the most erotic poetry in the English
language. Leonard Cohen quoted it in his novel The Favourite Game, which I read
when I was seventeen, defining it as the essence of love poetry. I wasn't sure
if I agreed, but I knew immediately that I was going to make a poem of my own
from the lines one day. In the event it took two decades to germinate, and then,
perhaps by no coincidence, it was Leonard Cohen who again provided the
inspiration, through a rather indifferent song of his own entitled The Traitor.
The poem seeks to reconcile a paradox that is probably irreconcilable, the love between a man and a woman and the responsibility of any human being to the whole of the remainder of Humankind. It may
sound pretentious to call it a psalm, but really that is what it is; it should be sung
unaccompanied, with much passion in the crescendos.
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
But
in the cause of greater love beyond you or me
I'd
gladly lie here in your arms but it cannot be
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
Like
Cain of old my brother's blood cries from the ground
And
words of love and deeds of love rise with that sound
And
call me to my burden and to my duty
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
Now
people tell me to my face the treason I've done
Forsaking
all the human race by lying here with one
If
I would break my brother's chains I must be free
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
On
battlefields and barricades I'll take my stand
And
in the name of life and peace I'll kill any man
And
leave his soul and body torn in love's agony
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
The
slogan carved upon the wall says: In Love We Trust
Our
enemy - most hated - has been turned into dust
Now
love rules its kingdom through eternity
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
But
to create a kingdom of love and beauty
My
song shall rise up from the earth and turn back the sea
O
sweetest love I do not go for weariness of thee
You can find David Prashker at:
If
you would like to include "O Sweetest Love" in your repertoire,
either for paid public performance or to record for commercial
purposes, or if you would like to re-use the recording attached to this
blog-page for commercial purposes, contact
argaman@theargamanpress.com.
Use of this song, and/or this recording, for
non-commercial purposes, is not simply permitted but invited.
Words and music by David Prashker
Copyright © 2014 David Prashker
All rights reserved
The Argaman Press
No comments:
Post a Comment