When High Brow Meets Low Brow
by Michael Doyle

Boundaries of jazz smashed into neoclassical rock
And the people who listened began with the talk
Trying to be impressive though they couldn't define it
Listening harder, the intellectuals began to refine it

There it was in the sonic bursts that became an intensity 
Forging forward labeled as progressive rock as its identity
Complicated in its threshold that was implausible to know
Suddenly the highbrow was twisted into meeting the lowbrow

It has been an embrace of odd instruments and extravagance
Constantly revealed in fantastic lyrics whispering of eloquence
Searching for the sacred chord strummed into an higher art
Seemingly the goal was to become closer to the soul and heart

Pictured at an exhibition of the intellectually unadorned
When the art form was believed to have died, nobody mourned
Pretension kept alive the ballast of this ship of fools 
The music was floating on patterns created by the least cool

Lonely in each other's company we sought for substance to nurture
As we dredged the notes we felt were reaching toward the future
The tomorrow came only to become lost on its way to yesterday
In desperation we grabbed up our kazoos and began to play

(c) December 21, 2023  Michael Doyle
All Rights Reserved