Lines and tunes from an aussie girl

  Fredagarna kommer under tio veckor att innehålla texter från tio olika låtskrivare. De har det gemensamt att de även har skrivit lyrik. Det blir fem kvinnor och fem män. Jag börjar med den relativt okända australiensiska jazzrösten, Meryl Leppard.

  Hennes intressantaste verk är den drygt sju minuter långa "In Manhattan" från 2005. Det finns inget videoklipp med sången men den är tillgänglig på Spotify. Den inleds med Meryl Leppard's berättarröst innan verserna går igång. Första tredjedelen av själva låttexten får ni här:

In Manhattan, performed by Meryl Leppard
(Published in merylleppard.com)

In Manhattan
you can say hello
to the man in the moon.
He is smiling,
buying a line
from a girl with a silver spoon .
In Manhattan,
anything you want can be brought to your door.
If you’ve got the money in your pocket.

In Manhattan
there’s a naked cowboy
playing guitar.
When it’s snowing,
he struts around
like a goddam movie star.
In Manhattan,
every second face
comes from a foreign shore,
with schemes and dreams
of money in their pockets.

When you’re tired of walking,
there’s a bar on Bleeker Street
to blow the blues away.
...

***

  När det gäller poesin så har hon spelat in flera videor med "Spoken Word". Jag gillar dem. Jag har valt dikten Irises som påminner om ett "hemma hos-reportage". Den kunde även passa in under en annan bloggrubrik, "Veckans blomma". Efter texten finns videon.

Irises, by Meryl Leppard
(Published in merylleppard.com)

The irises have opened.
Paper-thin petals beckon,
and as I gaze down their velvety throats
I marvel at such an elegant gift.

I have arranged them just so.
Stalks thrusting into the morning air,
lovingly held in a jug of amber glass.
Each perfect bloom humming its purple and yellow tune.

I like them more than the candle holders.
More than the T-towel with fish on it.
More than the tiny toe ring
and more than the box of courage,
though god knows I’m going to need that.
Their quiet virtue speaks and I listen,
willing them to stay alive a few days more.

The irises have opened.
I wish you could see them.
They take pride of place on my old polished table.
I have cleared the decks
for I want nothing cluttering up the space,
nothing distracting my eyes from their delicate charm.

The roses, though flash in their silver dressing 
and surrounded by baby’s breath,
can’t compete.
Their effort of wooing me is wasted.
I avert my eyes as I pass their corner of the room.
For I am a faithful lover,
and I have pledged my allegiance
to the irises.

***

  Meryl Leppard har bott på åtskilliga ställen i världen, bland annat i Sydney, New York och Paris. Jag avslutar med hennes sång från 1996 om den franska huvudstaden. Det finns en dålig videoinspelning med den låten på Youtube, så jag hänvisar istället till Spotify.

Paris, performed by Meryl Leppard
(Published in merylleppard.com)

There's a room in Paris
with a view of the Seine
through a window that is grimy
with sleet on the pane.
There's a place in Paris
on the poor side of town
with no light on the stairwell
and paint peeling down.

I've a dream of Paris
that I keep in my head.
There, when you come to me willingly
I'm dressed in red.
And the weight of your kisses
and the love on your breath
do capture completely
this bird in my chest.

Flowers spring back to life
though it's snowing
and the romance of one candle glowing
will light me and fill me forever.

Only in Paris
Only in Paris
Only in Paris
Only in Paris.

Boxes of flowers
have faded for winter.
They're waiting for love
to come back and win her.

Only in Paris
Only in Paris
Only in Paris
Only in Paris.