Music That Tells A Tale

I recently recalled a time when one of my boys came home from school with what I thought was an interesting high school English assignment. Each student was to pick a song, from the pop music world or any lyrical form of song, that told a story. Then explain why they chose it.

There were some rules to the assignment as you might imagine with high schoolers who like to push the limits. It had to be obscenity-free and without suggestions of sex, violence and/or getting high. 

Something else…rapping songs didn’t work, nor did the country songs where the singer sort of talks through the music…you likely know the type. Just keep it simple. A song with a melody that tells a story.

My son and I talked about the different possibilities he could present to the class, because not every song tells an actual story. Songs expressing feelings of love, disappointment, fun, or joy are great, but they’re different from a story song.

So my son’s choice ended up being Hotel California by the Eagles. Where the guy drives to the posh hotel and checks in, but can never check out. The lyric interpretation is always up for debate, but the bottom line was it told a compelling tale in parable fashion. 

He asked me what I would present to the class. Being a Beatles fan for many years, I knew there was a huge library of work that could fit into that category. I picked the song “She’s Leaving Home” from the Sgt. Pepper album. 

It tells a story of a young girl who leaves the comfort and security of her parents’ home and silently walks out into the night to meet a man “from the motor trade,” leaving behind only a note for them to read. 

It was based on a 1967 news piece from The Daily Mail (the headline cracks me up…”A-Level Girl”…like they have their different levels of people importance) about a 17-year-old girl named Melanie who left her home in just that kind of manner with totally bewildered parents. 

You can read more about it from this website Ultimate Classic Rock.

A narrative that is set to music is a double dose of enjoyment for me. I have a deep appreciation for both.  

So what song would you choose if you had that same assignment? Let me know in comments.

Steve Linscomb is a former television news reporter with more than 25 years experience in a number of small and large U.S. TV markets. His focus is in the development of the craft of fiction writing, more specifically historical fiction in both reading and in his current personal writing efforts.

He lives in San Antonio, Texas.