With all due respect to Wes, Rob and Bob
Talking about lyrics one might change is absolutely nothing like defacing the Mona Lisa. If one modifies the lyrics of a song, the original still exists. Besides, we are not modifying anything. We are talking about lyrics we think could have been better.
For the record (no pun intended), I would be quite distraught if the original lyric would ever vanish completely, or be censored, or be repressed due to political correctness. What we are talking about is whether we like (or dislike) certain lines of the poetry. This is a perfectly valid exercise.
You are free to dislike this topic. You are free to feel that not a word should be changed. You are feel to free that Gord is a deity who only creates perfection. As much as I admire and love Gord's music, I do not ascribe perfection to him or his work.
It is inherently the nature of performance art that each performance is different. Particularly with live performances, one cannot hear the same song twice. Two different performers cannot perform the same song the same either.
If Gord can change the way he sings his songs, we certainly can talk about doing the same. It's no more disrespectful than fantasizing about who would play Gord in a movie. I think that the debate is healthy and that to stifle debate is Orwellian thought-control. Let's not limit this bulletin board to (politically) correct views of Gord's work.
Returning to my original point about "high steppin' strutters," although I like the imagery and the phrase, I believe it is somewhat out of place in the song RDP. The balance of the song addresses a personalized second-person listener (e.g., "always seem to know when you're feeling blue"). Out of nowhere, there's a reference to these "strutter" characters (third person) who "sometimes need one too." What about the youth in Ghetto black condemned to life upon the street? Does he need a RDP? What about the drunkard in the tavern? The "strutter" lyric bears more resemblance to these DonQ characters than it does to the balance of the RDP lyric. For that reason, I feel it is out of place and I would change it. Put it in a different song. Or perhaps create a whole new verse concerning the types of people who need RDPs.
A minor flaw in a gem, IMHO. Or not, IYHO.
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"And the laughter came too easy for life to pass me by." - SDYS
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