Back during my MFA grad school days on Enders Island, I tried sharing the idea of blending prose with infused lyrics while I was earning my degree, since I tended to write lyrics first, and then develop them into a full tale or adventure afterwards. Mostly I was told to pick one way to tell a story. For an idea what I’ve been striving for, a great example of a successful blend is Arlo Guthrie’s “Alice’s Restaurant” where his internal song supports the larger 18-minute narrative.
The evening of Friday October 2nd, 2015, I had so much fun at the ON MY OWN TIME awards ceremony reading my essay “On the 20th Floor” (with Cleveland Brown rocking the infused lyrics) at the Dallas AT&T Performing Arts Theater. This is an excerpt from my MFA thesis memoir: 13,760 Feet–My Personal Hole in the Sky. Here’s how it turned out:
Be sure to give it a thumbs-up on YouTube. This is only the 4th or 5th video I’ve ever made.
I co-wrote the original companion song with Matt Pierce, and he’s featured at the end of the video.
Cheers, Mark L. Berry