The Power of Music, Again

 Growing up I was exposed to a lot of different styles of music. I have listed them in a previous post so if you wanna know then go look 😎

And for many years in my teenage hood and "Adulthood" I was strictly Loud Rock and Roll. Especially the angry and rebellious type.

Later on life, once I started getting my life together, my musical taste began to evolve. And I began to enjoy many different styles.

And, as always, this was all set up by individual songs, songs that told me a story, and it no longer had to be a dark story. I fact a lot of the stories began to be much lighter. Not all of them however.

One of those songs that tell a story that I adore is by The Verve and is called Bittersweet Symphony. And to me this tells the story of modern life.

There are two versions that I Love. One is the Verve doing the song at the Glastonbury Festival in 2008. That can be found HERE. And the other is done by an organization called The Rockin' 1,000. And I love this one because it is a story and the field full of musicians that they have playing are A) Loving what they are doing and obviously having a blast and B) The cross section of ages is amazing. That version can be found HERE.

And today I want to break down this song line by line and tell you the story that it tells me. The lyrics are in Italics. My words are not. So here we go.

'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, that's life
This to me this is pretty self explanatory. A bitter sweet symphony is the bitter and sweet that is life. I believe that on cannot really experience LIFE without that contrast. And in the end, I hope my life is a symphony.
Tryna make ends meet, you're a slave to money then you die
I do not know anyone who cannot identify with this. We all must make a living. And we are so conditioned to this that we live to work instead of work to live. We are slaves to the almighty dollar.
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
I am not sure what to make of this line. The only way it makes sense is in the context of the next line. And that says the "only road that I've ever been down" is the road to the Heart.
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet, yeah
Because "the places where the veins meet" is, of course, the Heart. And I do not believe that they are talking only about it as the muscle that pumps blood either. To me it as the reference to the Heart that represents Love, Compassion, etc. 
No change, I can changeI can change, I can changeBut I'm here in my moldI am here in my mold
No change yet, but I can really. The problem is I a stuck in this way of being and not sure that I can get out of it. But I want to really.
But I'm a million different peopleFrom one day to the next
And the many faces we wear one after the other. I know that I was a different person for each person, group, etc. I had no clue about how to be myself. Or who that self was.
I can't change my moldNo, no, no, no, no(Have you ever been down?)
And the ultimate resignation, I can't. I just can't. No matter how much I want to I am stuck here. (And who cannot identify with that at some point in their Lives?)
Well, I've never prayed but tonight I'm on my knees, yeah
I do not pray. Tried it for a while at the suggestion of a sponsor. For me, that is fraudulent. I do understand the want to be able to however. And I know that, at times, the wish for something outside myself to handle things can be very powerful.
I need to hear some sounds that recognize the pain in me, yeah
And I get that at every meeting I go to. People who have felt my pain and can recognize mine. And let me know, not by telling me, by sharing THIER Experience around it.
I let the melody shine, let it cleanse my mind, I feel free now
And that is often what music does for me these days. I used to listen to a lot of dark and nasty stuff that reinforced my dark and nasty life. Today music uplifts me instead.
But the airwaves are clean and there's nobody singin' to me now
And sometimes the loneliness still creeps in. And that is how it feels.
No change, I can changeI can change, I can changeBut I'm here in my moldI am here in my moldAnd I'm a million different peopleFrom one day to the nextI can't change my moldNo, no, no, no, no(Have you ever been down?)I can't change, oh, noI can't change, oh
See above for my thoughts on the chorus 😊
'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony, that's life
And the reinforcing of the idea that I need the Bitter and the Sweet in order to truly LIVE.
Tryna make ends meet, tryna find somebody then you die
And just trying to live in a world where financial ruin is just around the corner while trying to find that someone that says "I want to spend eternity with you". And then it is all over.
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
And the offer to let You see into ME. Which is true Intimacy.
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet, yeah
The Journey of the Heart. The only Journey that truly matters.
You know I can change, I can changeI can change, I can changeBut I'm here in my moldI am here in my moldAnd I'm a million different peopleFrom one day to the nextI can't change my moldNo, no, no, no, no
I can't change my moldNo, no, no, no, no,I can't change my mold, no, no, no, noIt's just sex and violence, melody and silenceIt's just sex and violence, melody and silenceI'll take you down the only road I've ever been downI'll take you down the only road I've ever been downBeen downEver been downEver been downEver been downEver been down

My thoughts on the chorus can be seen above in two places

Have you ever been down?Have you ever been down?Have you ever been down?

Have you ever been down the road to the Heart? Ever?

If not, then maybe it is time. For it is the only road and journey that make a difference in the Human Experience. It is the only Journey that helps us to truly unlock our Humanity.

And if we, as the Human Community/Family do not all unlock our Humanity thru the Journey to the Heart then we are collectively doomed.

For we will continue this journey of Tribalism and Hatred of the Other that is truly Mad and Destructive. It is only through our Shared Humanity that we can Survive and even Thrive.

So that is the Power of Music in my life today. It is a tool to help me Find who I am and then share it with you.

What do you listen to?

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