But when we feel love all this can disappear. Love can become all powerful and everything else can fade to nothing. The world can be silenced by love.

“ She is all states, and all princes, I,
Nothing else is.
Princes do but play us; compared to this,
All honour’s mimic; all wealth alchemy.
Thou sun art half as happy as we,
In that the world’s contracted thus;
Thine age asks ease, and since duties be
To warm the world, that’s done warming us.
Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere;
This bed thy centre is, these walls, thy sphere.”

(From The Sun Rising by John Donne)

Love songs published or recorded become something more. More and less intimate. Love songs that work must transcend the personal context and become a comment on all love. They must summon up the power of love, its aching and glory. A love song that works makes you cry, whether through pain or through joy.

“Love likes me
Love takes it shoes off and sits on the couch
Love has an answer for everything
Love smiles gently and crosses its legs
well here we are well here we are”

(David Byrne)

Love songs must be simple and complicated. They must be felt in the stomach.

“We are old friends
I offer love a beer
Love watches Television
Love needs a bath
Love could use a shave
Love rolls out of the chair and wiggles
on the floor
Jumps up
I’m laughing at love.”

(David Byrne)

Love songs must show the darkness and pain of love. The loss of self. The need. The drive. The hunger. The lust.

“If you want a lover, I’ll do anything you ask me to.
And if you want another kind of love, I’ll wear a
mask for you. If you want a partner take my hand.
Or if you want to strike me down in anger, here I
stand. I’m your man.”

(Leonard Cohen.)

The responsibility of the writer is to be true to love. Not to their love but love. They must write transcendent words. If their words do not transcend then they should not trouble others with them (or at least anyone but their partner). At the same time to transcend you must have something that causes transition, so it is essential that writers use their own feelings as a spring board. But they must harness them and make them beautiful and deadly.

“Me, I’m a soul catcher for God. Here I come with my butterfly net of words. Here I catch the chrysalis. Here I blow life into bodies, and hurl them fluttering to the stars and the care of God.”

(Nick Cave)

Writing love songs is a responsibility but unfortunately love is the hardest subject to escape from. We cannot be objective about our love and our feelings will make us believe our work good. The search for effective love prayers is harsh but we can take comfort in this:

“For the residue cast off in the search, the songs themselves, my crooked brood of sad eyed children, rally round and in their way protect me, comfort me and keep me alive.”

Word Search

You can e-mail David here