Thursday, January 26, 2023

The Sound Of Silence

 The Sound Of Silence

 

In the early morning after the bombs fell through the night

In the burning distance a solitary gunshot in the fight

Hawks and doves make love selling out for the green

The theatre of the absurd war for greed the final scene

 

The sound of silence none dare to speak

The sound of silence the strong kill the weak

The sound of silence hear the brave

The sound of silence speaking through the grave

 

Millions of buffalo thunder on what remains of the plains

Memories of the ghosts of massive herds invisible stains

Lakota, Dakota, Nakota and other tribes hunt in vain

The Great Spirit is quiet a mystery none can explain

 

The sound of silence none dare to speak

The sound of silence the strong kill the weak

The sound of silence hear the brave

The sound of silence speaking through the grave

 

Pop singer singing a pop song the teenyboppers wail

Cosmetic photo shop can’t carry a tune so soon to fail

Fourteen minutes of fame all the same a whisp of air

Fading fast in the past nothing left but a broken prayer

 

The sound of silence none dare to speak

The sound of silence the strong kill the weak

The sound of silence hear the brave

The sound of silence speaking through the grave

 

Neil Young is a folk singer infused with electric juice

Neil Young is out of touch I ask “What’s the use?”

They did their best at Bob Fest they really tried

Jesus would be jamming if He wasn’t crucified

 

The super soldier walks hearing explosions and screams

Like a zombie always awake he can’t take these evil dreams

He sits on the park bench spittle runs down on his beard

Little children walk by and cry because they’re scared

 

The sound of silence none dare to speak

The sound of silence the strong kill the weak

The sound of silence hear the brave

The sound of silence speaking through the grave


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS

Tuesday, January 24, 2023

Words Of Boiling Iron

 Words Of Boiling Iron

 

THOSE GOD DAMN BANKERS!!!

 

BABYLON THE WHORE!!!

 

Endless war!!

 

Don’t you know?

For all our woe

We can give them thanks

 

Edgar’s spirit deflated

Gone his smile

He feels vile

And hated

 

They want to build a shopping mall

As I recall

Profits, profits, profits

We must stop it

Or our paradise

Will be destroyed

Take me advice

We must rise

For righteousness

Hunger and thirst

I must confess

I hold

Earth First!

 

The old man with hair white as snow

His skin raging red below

Edgar feels naked

Far from sacred

His dirty little secret

Can he keep it???

Or does the Ancient Of Days already know? 

CHECK OUT BELLS & WHSTLES, THORNS & THISTLES

 POET TO THE POOR, REVOLUTIONARY POETRY


Sunday, January 22, 2023

Riding For Freedom


Riding For Freedom

 

Living in a one-room shack with a bathroom out back

The world was divided between white and black

It seemed forever we were under attack

Living in a one-room shack with a bathroom out back

 

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

What else was there to do?

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

All I could do was think about you

 

Lead Belly sung the blues about Mississippi Rivers

One too many martyrs I’m missing Medgar Evers

Freedom is easy to say but it’s bought with blood

One day good sir these rivers are going to flood

 

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

What else was there to do?

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

All I could do was think about you

 

The good die young unless God got a special plan

Children can’t help to grow into a woman or man

Why do they always forget the life of the young?

Like signing a song forgetting the verses sung

 

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

What else was there to do?

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

All I could do was think about you

 

We fell in love against impossible odds

They’ll never make it so said the gods

But Love has a mind of its own

And Love is the finest thing known

 

So here the story ends but there’s much more to write

One day the darkness will be turned into light

Jesus was crucified but the tomb is empty today

I’m still riding and I’ll be riding no matter what they say

 

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

What else was there to do?

I was heading for Jackson riding for freedom

All I could do was think about you


 POET TO THE POOR, REVOLUTIONARY POETRY


Saturday, January 21, 2023

Please Song Lyric By John Kaniecki

 

Just wrote this! One of those inspirational moments where the song lyrics burst out! I was trying to capture the vibrant rebellion of youth with a hip-hop attitude. 


Please

 

Neon sign of the church blinks off and on

Where dear God has our Love gone?

I find what I need out on the street

I find my thrill in his car’s backseat

 

And all the boys with skinny knees

Sing please please please don’t tease

And all the boys they have this song

Please please please don’t do me wrong

 

Computer age television fluent in sin

Man on the corner screams be born again

High in math calculating a line’s slope

Only music class brings me some hope

 

And all the boys with skinny knees

Sing please please please don’t tease

And all the boys they have this song

Please please please don’t do me wrong

 

Late at night the moon on the prowl

Gonna see my lover make him growl

Daddy said I had to be in by ten

I guess he’s gonna get mad again

 

And all the boys with skinny knees

Sing please please please don’t tease

And all the boys they have this song

Please please please don’t do me wrong

 

Twenty-five seconds of fame I got my game

I played my cards I ain’t got nobody to blame

Tell me baby are you moving and grooving

I ain’t there yet but I’m improving

 

I’ll be dancing till the day that I die

I’ll be dancing with the angels on high

Takes two to dance are you free?

Takes two to dance are you with me?

 

And all the boys with skinny knees

Sing please please please don’t tease

And all the boys they have this song

Please please please don’t do me wrong

GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS

A Martian Stole My Blueberry Pie

A Martian Stole My Blueberry Pie

 

By John Kaniecki

 

I set out coveting Venus

But just between us

I had the concern

Of getting a red burn

From the sun’s glare

So great was the scare

That I turned tail toward Saturn

Oh the lesson I would learn

We were in the asteroid belt

When my legs felt

As if they were going to melt

So there in the midnight high

I baked a blueberry pie

It was sweet and complete

And looked great to eat

Well I had a skeleton crew

Numbering few

I did not have a second thought

And in my folly I was caught

For come passing Jupiter’s moon

I checked upon my pie

And sure as the sky

Somebody did consume far too soon

My delicious desert

And boy did it hurt

I examined the large man from Titan

He looked guilty as sin

But it didn’t make sense

And I could produce no evidence

Then I saw the Martian’s teeth

They were blue underneath

So we charged him with treason

And for no good reason

He was evicted into deep space

Where he vanished without a trace

The moral of this fable

Is don’t leave a blueberry pie

Unattended on a table



 

Friday, January 20, 2023

Skill Of Chill

 Skill Of Chill

 

On the road wild child the road never comes to an end           

Thousands of comrades but who to call friend?                       

Blood brothers an oath taken with sacred red                                    

Kicking back on the attack until you’re dead                             

 

Revving up the engines feel the thrill

The feature of the theatre score to kill

Riding high in the skill of chill

Ride till you die in the skill of chill

 

Hell has no angels the devil only speaks in lies

Blazing hot heat you’ve got your alibies

So many deals you can’t keep the money straight

Who’s pointing the finger there’s plenty of hate?

 

Revving up the engines feel the thrill

The feature of the theatre score to kill

Riding high in the skill of chill

Ride till you die in the skill of chill

 

Your babe holds on tight she’ll be riding you through the night

Rise and fall the primal call it don’t feel right

Two hearts beating you staring into the void

Sweetheart with a sinister smile you’re annoyed

 

Revving up the engines feel the thrill

The feature of the theatre score to kill

Riding high in the skill of chill

Ride till you die in the skill of chill

 

Gun shots fire whose shooting who?

Some in colors others wearing blue

Lords of anarchy you ain’t got a clue

Gun shots fire whose shooting who?

 

Your old lady she’s been talking with the FBI

Solid evidence that you can’t deny

You’re looking at life and maybe some more

Ain’t no bluff in handcuffs walking out the door

 

Revving up the engines feel the thrill

The feature of the theatre score to kill

Riding high in the skill of chill

Ride till you die in the skill of chill



GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS

Thursday, January 19, 2023

Sleep When I’m Dead

 Writing, writing, writing. Wrote this yesterday!


Sleep When I’m Dead

 

Cigarettes for nicotine ditto coffee and caffeine

Driving all night with no stops planned in between

Urgency escalated they won’t tell me what I’m hauling

I’ve got Federal papers this whole damn thing’s appalling

 

I’ll sleep when I’m dead the radio carries an ancient tune

Death’s sweet breath always comes too soon

I’ll sleep when I’m dead so the motto goes

I’ll sleep when I’m dead I guess nobody knows

 

Raindrops splattering on my windows glad it ain’t snow

Brain stops scattering thoughts I wish I didn’t even know

I’m hauling raw cocaine to outside New York City

Oh well what the hell druggies they deserve no pity

 

I’ll sleep when I’m dead the radio carries an ancient tune

Death’s sweet breath always comes too soon

I’ll sleep when I’m dead so the motto goes

I’ll sleep when I’m dead I guess nobody knows

 

I’m tempted to take an exit hook up with the old gang

We could grab what we could carry and have a big bang

My guess is I’m tracked with GPS and maybe more

I’ve seen a certain car following me but I ain’t sure

 

I’ll sleep when I’m dead the radio carries an ancient tune

Death’s sweet breath always comes too soon

I’ll sleep when I’m dead so the motto goes

I’ll sleep when I’m dead I guess nobody knows

 

I hear a rumbling noise as the truck veers off the road

I turn the wheel happy the tires didn’t explode

Mission impossible I sip my cold brew

I’m a man who’s owned so what can I do?

 

As a young hood I got busted with some of my friends

They pointed their fingers at me so all the good ends

Murder one and so my slavery begun owned by the state

Now I’m getting old I do as I’m told and simmer with hate

 

I’ll sleep when I’m dead the radio carries an ancient tune

Death’s sweet breath always comes too soon

I’ll sleep when I’m dead so the motto goes

I’ll sleep when I’m dead I guess nobody knows



GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS

Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Minds Melting In Madness

I have a lot of projects that are of various degrees. Some are completely finished, just waiting for birth into the public realm. Some have significant work. Others are barely started. This project only consists of two poems. I had forgotten that I wrote it, but upon reading it, I do recall writing it. Hope you enjoy it. 


 Minds Melting In Madness

 

Minds melting in madness

See me,

See thee,

                   Genius

Theoretical datum

Splicing the atom

Profits to maximize

Counterfeit lies

A hungry baby cries

A lonely nation dies

 

Lakota, Nakota, Dakota

In God we trust

They would sue

But the courts aren’t just

 

Minds melting in madness

Shifting the paradigm

Minds melting in madness

Declare the crime

 

Hatred is sacred

When you wear the uniform

Conform, conform, conform

Cosmonauts wrestling with astronauts

Out there where there is no air

Out there where there is no prayer

The battle is well fought

Of course,

We now have a space force

 

And these words fade on yellow pages

Poets ignored

Poets deplored

Seeking through the ages

For love to be restored

 

Minds melting in madness

Nine to five

Ain’t enough to survive

Medication or food

Ain’t you got it good

Living in the land of the free

Salute the flag

Boast and brag

Never mind reality

 

They frolic hand in hand in dance

Logic under demand dictates circumstance

Gain the world such is the goal

Gain the world lose you very soul

Sex, money, power, control

They frolic united in intercourse

They say things are getting better

But they are worse

 

Minds melting in madness

Have a cry over princess Di

In Stockholm they have a cell

Welcome to this cozy hell

Bread and water

Prostitute your daughter

Masses for the slaughter

 

I saw a crippled man missing an arm

Mumbling spital on his beard

Children eyes open in alarm

In green fatigues crazy weird

 

I Am my brother’s keeper


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

The Future Of Poetry

 The Future Of Poetry

 

By John Kaniecki

 

I believe strongly in poetry. It has worked before, and it will work again. It is infused in the culture of every civilization. Whether it's the Bible, the Odyssey, or Shakespeare, poetry has been extremely popular. Today poetry lacks the prestige it once held. There are no Robert Frosts in our time and age, let alone William Shakespeare. But that will all change with one simple formula. Let me share the secret.

 

Give the people what they want. Note I didn't say the editors, and I certainly didn't say, other poets. I said the people meaning the masses, the everyday man or woman who make up America. In fact, poetry in the form of musical song is both extremely popular and profitable.

 

A song lyric is a subgenre of poetry. It has an extremely tight format. There are strict rhyming and rhythm patterns. Also, there is a chorus that features a hook. All of this is done with a small number of lines.

 

What we have today in the poetry world are poems written for other poets. I heard a friend say that poetry is the only genre with more writers than readers. Why is that? I believe that poetry has lost its way—the exact reasons why this is I do not at this time care to elaborate. But let me say it doesn't matter how much education an engineer has if his invention is inferior to the man who never went to college. This principle applies to the world of poetry as well.

 

So what makes a great poem?

 

Number one, it has to communicate something. Why do so many people love the Beatles? I think the primary reason is that when they sing a song, people apply it to their personal life. That they recognize in the lyrics a situation very similar to what they have faced in their lives. This is evident in how the crowd sings along, sometimes word for word with the performer. The lyrics aren't archaic. Instead, the opposite is true; they are transparent; something is communicated.

 

Secondly, a poem must deliver something when it is read. That is, the language must tingle the ears in some pleasurable fashion. This is one of the primary differences between poetry and prose. Poetry is, or at least should be, the magical wording that entices the soul. Let's go back to an expert, William Shakespeare. How did he accomplish his success? His poetry is written with strict rhythm and rhyme. We poets would do well to note that. Of course, his presentations are enhanced with drama, metaphors, and imagery. But primarily, his words sing in a captivating way when uttered.

 

I went to the bookstore the other day and looked over the poetry section. As usual, it is tiny, especially when compared to the number of poetry books out there. I noticed an author I wasn't familiar with and picked up the book. I read one poem and placed it back down. I got nothing out of the poem.

 

Poems need to make people cry. Poems need to make people laugh. Poems need to make people think. Poems need to define life and give the words that others are searching for. All this needs to be done in a way where the words entice the mind. We need someone like Robert Frost, Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, T.S. Eliot, or Emily Dickenson. The community of poets needs to get back in touch with what poetry is really about.

 

 And now, in conclusion, I will tell you why poetry is not as successful as it was. Writing the poetry I'm talking about takes a whole host of talent. Look at great songwriters, and one would note that it is a very exclusive crowd. Am I saying no poets have ability today? Absolutely not! But they are developing themselves into writing in a complex format that, by nature, is cryptic. What they need is a K.I.S.S of keep it simple stupid.

 

With the world of publishing so wide open with self-publishing and small presses, a whole new generation of popular poets will arise. When I get a book review, and it says something to the effect of "I don't like poetry, but I liked this book," I smile and know I've done my job. It is only a matter of time before poetry books will once more be popular sellers.



POET TO THE POOR, REVOLUTIONARY POETRY


Monday, January 16, 2023

It’s about Money

A song lyric from Without The Music begging to be sung! 


 It’s about Money

 

You were at the wedding so I am led to believe

And you sat at the table with my good buddy Steve

In polite conversation you asked about me

You said is John the poor old dreamer is he still free

 

Well I ain’t no Mr. Young that’s for sure

But we got one Neal who could want more

See the critic smile Karen it’s so funny

But it ain’t about you it’s about money

 

Well my mind wanders remembering lost friends

So many good things I say that love never ends

Stronger than old Fort Knox is the castle of trust

But every now and then a winner will go bust

 

No I’m no longer the same the good Lord knows

Sometimes in a desert a flower grows

Steve said you looked like a playboy bunny

But it ain’t about you it’s about money

 

Rich corporations controlling art

Mister Mick please rip out your heart

That would satisfy me real real good

Rip out your heart like you said you would

We’d capture the event for all to see

And make it a special on cable t.v.

Jagger and Howdy both a true dummy

But it ain’t about you it’s about money

 

Steve told me you were married and that struck a blow

It’s been nine long years and I’ve got nothing to show

You’re the American dream that we all desire

And me I just got ashes from playing with fire

 

Somewhere some businessman hears my song

If you break all the rules you can’t go wrong

Karen with or without you the dawn’s still sunny

But it ain’t about you it’s about money



GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS


GREAT BOOK OF SONG LYRICS

Where’s Tupac? Words On MLK Day

I'm on a quest to post at least one blog post every day for this whole year. So far, so good.  Today is Martin Luther King Day. In all likelihood, his assassination was ordered by the United States government if not done by the CIA. One day I hope we learn the truth. Not only about the murder of the civil rights activist. But also about JFK, John Lennon, and even Tupac. 

You see, in the United States, we have freedom of speech to a point. I can post this blog, and the powers that be really don't care. Though more connected than most, I am, at this point, essentially insignificant. However, if people were to rally around my words and try to change things, the whole issue would be escalated.

The United States is a seedy place. We claim to be the greatest nation that ever existed. Yet if I walk Manhattan Streets, I pass lofty towers. In those buildings, warm and secure live the ultrarich. Sleeping in the bitter cold below those who are penniless. That is not great. Again, we can send billions to Ukraine to kill and Israel but can't fix the drinking water in Flint, Michigan.

I want to remind people that when MLK took his antiwar stance, he was met with stiff resistance from his fellows. Also, at the end of his life the, civil rights activist began to embrace socialism. But history wants to isolate the Dream Speech.

I wrote these song lyrics in the psychiatric ward of East Orange Hospital. It was there that I learned more about Tupac. Timothy was a fellow patient. We clicked and thought each other quite sane. Maybe somebody could put a melody to the words?

Where’s Tupac?

 

Timothy didn’t need a clue in pain

Clearly dearly together and both sane

Chaos in the crowd speaking much too loud

In comes the Hells Angels speaking you proud

 

Where’s Tupac when we need the truth?

Where’s Tupac when they betrayed our youth?

Hip Hop didn’t stop with Buddy Holly

Santa Clause was always red and jolly

 

Crazy lazy or just out of your minds

I have seen the light and boy how it blinds

Eastside Newark my eyes are watching you

Purple is red and of course much worse blue

 

Where’s Tupac when we need the truth?

Where’s Tupac when they betrayed our youth?

Hip Hop didn’t stop with Buddy Holly

Santa Clause was always red and jolly

 

All heroes fall recall Elvis Presley

Even Old Neil faces eternity

Quit the crime isn’t that now crystal clear

Nineteen Sylvan place drop by for some cheer

 

Jesus is my savior Jesus is my hero

Numbers are everything numbers are zero

Tupac shall return he’s got much to learn

The sky is high and the fire’s gonna burn

 

Where’s Tupac when we need the truth?

Where’s Tupac when they betrayed our youth?

Hip Hop didn’t stop with Buddy Holly

Santa Clause was always red and jolly



Take a tour into the world of mental illness and see a human being. Please check out my book “More ThanThe Madness.”

Sunday, January 15, 2023

The Institute

 The Institute

 

I was lost, lost as could be

A ship docked in the desert longing for the sea

I had not learned yet

The meaning getting wet


There were no shortages of guides

Self proclaimed godless gurus

Mindless messiahs of mania

Doctors sporting their grand degree

Arrogant asses of authority

 

I came wishing to forget my shame

Forsaking ‘Myron’ that awful name

What I sought I was unsure

All I knew was that I needed more
Something or someone I had not before

 

Enticed by the vice of paradise

Our innocence offered as sacrifice

Strangers the unknown did abound

No clue to what would be found
Or to where we were bound

But by nature of our tuition fee

We gave a salute

To the institute

And bowed our knee

 

These words are written in hindsight

Alas none can change the past

Not even if one had infinite might

We were the blind leading blind

Not knowing what we would find

But our task masters wicked and cruel

Knew we were naïve

Hope filled our sails

As they forecasted storms and gales

We were told to hang on

And simply believe

We sailed boldly trying to prove our worth

Headed for the edge of the Earth


Take a tour into the world of mental illness and see a human being. Please check out my book “More ThanThe Madness.”