Still Life
Canvas of Life: Bart Davenport's Musical Allegory
Lyrics
Once I had a box of paints
Reflecting on a past time when the singer possessed a set of paints.
A pair of painter's hands
Describing hands skilled in painting.
I painted flowers
The act of creating painted representations of flowers.
For hours and hours
Engaging in this artistic activity for an extended period.
A world of everyday things
Depicting a world filled with both ordinary and unchanging elements.
And things that never change
Reference to subjects that remain constant.
A bunch of grapes
Creating an image of grapes.
But none to taste
No opportunity to taste the depicted grapes, suggesting unfulfilled desires.
And an old guitar
Introducing an old guitar with a broken string.
With a broken string
Never having heard the guitar play due to the broken string.
That I never heard
Emphasizing the lack of experience with the guitar.
I had yet to see
Expressing a need to witness certain things.
A still life painting ever-changing
Describing a dynamic still life painting, suggesting constant change within it.
Portraits talking, statues walking
Depicting lively scenes within portraits and animated statues.
Once I opened up a box
Introducing a box of unused words.
Of words I never used
Words that were never put to use or expressed.
They sang banzai
Words singing "banzai," suggesting celebratory expressions.
They sang salut
Words singing "salut," indicating a toast or greeting.
There in my studio
Setting the scene in the studio where flowers form a musical band.
The flowers formed a band
Emphasizing the floral composition forming a band.
A band of flowers
The flowers playing music for an extended period.
They played for hours
Specifically, a band of flowers playing for hours.
And the slide trombones
Reference to slide trombones without microphones, suggesting simplicity.
With no microphones
Players contributing to the still life scene.
All blowing in
All elements blending into the artistic creation.
A still life painting ever-changing
Reiteration of the dynamic nature of the still life painting.
Portraits talking, statues walking away
Portraying animated scenes where portraits talk and statues walk away.
And now my days and nights
Reflecting on a change in the singer's days and nights.
Will never be the same
Emphasizing a profound alteration in the singer's life.
The fruit was sliced
Metaphorically slicing fruit with true love's knife.
By true love's knife
Indicating a transformative and possibly painful experience related to love.
Then the season changed
Noting a change in seasons and the subsequent death of flowers.
And the flowers died
Describing the drying of petals, symbolizing the end of a vibrant phase.
All their petals dried
Emphasizing the desolation of the once lively flowers.
But I still believe
Retaining belief in the vision of a dynamically changing still life.
In the vision of
Expressing a continued faith in the artistic vision despite life's changes.
A still life painting ever-changing
Reiteration of the dynamic and ever-changing nature of the still life painting.
Portraits talking, statues walking away
Depicting scenes where portraits talk and statues walk away, possibly signifying departure or change.
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