What could be better than Shakespeare and Pink Floyd?

David Gilmour of Pink Floyd recorded his musical interpretation of William Shakespeare's 1595 Sonnet 18.



Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date; 
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd 
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st;
Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st: 
          So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
          So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Shakespeare is talking about poetry and immortality. The young man described in the sonnet will never lose his youthful beauty as long as this sonnet lives on.

How does the musical version affect your understanding or appreciation of the poem?  When you listen to music, do you appreciate the lyrics? What are your favorite musical lyrics?

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 25, 2019 at 4:16 PM

    I think that the musicality over this Shakespeare sonnet helps me appreciate it more by giving me more to work with. Pink Floyd is one of my favorite bands today and David Gilmour's musical rendition of this sonnet is thoroughly more enjoyable than just reading the poem to myself. When I listen to music, I listen for everything; from the musicianship to the lyricism. Growing up punk rock, I found myself appreciating the poetry behind music and building my interest with different and interesting music. Sometimes the music can enhance a mediocre set of lyrics and vice versa. I have like a lot of favorite lyrics, I don't know if I could focus in on one or two lines that hold particular importance to me right now. I find good songwriters inspiring.

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