"Jesu, Jesu, the mad days that I have spent!"
"Jesus, the days that we have seen!"
Justice Shallow
I wrote "Jesus The Days We Have Seen" sometime in the 90s. The title was inspired by a line from Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 2. It is an expression of exasperated incredulity, and possibly desperation. Or not. I don't remember. I haven't read any Shakespeare since the 90s. It used to be required reading to get an English degree, and I think it should be required reading to graduate from high school. Last I heard, a bunch of racists were trying to kick Shakespeare out of school for being white, though I think it's possible it's because he raised the bar to a height that no one will ever reach again. Excellence and beauty are anathema to the woke priesthood.
I remember something John Lennon said about hating Shakespeare, and I know what he means. The dialogue and poetry in Shakespeare overlap so that they're indistinguishable from each other, and it can be hard to understand. It's an acquired taste, like Frank Zappa, or green olives. The first time I heard it, I thought Zappa was unlistenable baby music for glueheads who dropped out of clown school, and I hated green olives when I was a kid. Now, I like both green olives and Frank Zappa very much. I chose not to stay on the childish plantation of boxed mac & cheese and heavy metal. I forced myself to listen to and eat things I didn't understand, so that I wouldn't grow up to be a moron.
30 years ago, Shakespeare might have been a rapper, but no more. Rap and hip-hop used to be the poetry of the street, but they've devolved into something anyone with an app can "create" on the proverbial fly. The app people can't really write or rap, of course, but because our culture is dipped in idiocy and powdered cheese from the dollar store, they don't know any better. I'm not blaming them for being on the plantation, but I might blame them for staying there, even if there are no obvious means of egress or escape. This is the future. You can find John Coltrane and Rachmaninoff if you want to. You can marinate your brain in Shakespeare and Chaucer with the click of a rodent, if you please. You don't have to understand it. In fact, not understanding it should be a major incentive for seeking it out. Just throw it on and let it play. Like a sauce, or a candle, slowly melting on the stove. If you grew up on indie pop with minimalist, sea green album covers, listen to some Tupac. If you grew up on Tupac, listen to some Mozart. If you have a yacht, and spend the holidays sailing in the Mediterranean, don't forget to bring the Sex Pistols. Discover what is great about things you're supposed to hate. Unless it's metal.
Metal is for high school kids.
"Jesus The Days We Have Seen" isn't a gospel song, but it is a song in search of a gospel. It isn't a particularly seaworthy vessel, and will be likely to capsize at the slightest temptation, or keel over into the waters of sin and despair if confronted by anything stronger than a mild summer breeze. The captain is the kind of person who believes silly string is an adhesive, and he applies it copiously to anything that can't be tied down with a basic shoelace knot. One way or another, eventually, the ship is going down. But if he survives (which remains to be seen), he will be a little wiser for the wear, and after the mad days have been spent, he will perhaps come full circle back to Shakespeare and Justice Shallow, in the deep end of the existential kiddie pool.
At which point Shakespeare, Justice Shallow, and the captain will make an exclamation of exasperated incredulity (in 3-part harmony), before putting on some heavy metal, and heading out to sea.
Thanks for listening.
Jesus The Days We Have Seen
Jesus, Jesus,
the days we have seen
if only you could see this
a girl I met
on my way home
asked me to make a wish
I wished for sleep
but the night
it was steep,
she gave me a bottle of dreams
and I dreamt all night long
for right
or for wrong
if you know what I mean
Jesus, Jesus,
what have I done?
Jesus,
I didn't know
and if I did,
then take what you want
but please don't ever go
Jesus, Jesus,
the things we have seen
if only you could have seen her
her name was Eden
but where she was from
I was never quite sure
She had a smile
she had a wink
she had places to go
she had people to see
but none-a them,
they weren't me,
well what did I know?
I didn't,
but I wanted to
I did it,
cuz I wanted to
I didn't,
but I wanted to
oh yeah
Jesus, Jesus,
for all that you've done
have you ever done this?
You meet a girl
who don't like your name
but she likes
the way you kiss
sometimes you look like my father
sometimes you look like my dad
sometimes I can't tell the difference
cuz it's something I never had
Jesus, Jesus,
of the places you've been
I only wish you were here
cuz if I'm all alone tonight,
I won't make it
to the morning light
hear me Lord,
please won't you hear?
©Nathan Payne
