Shirley Collins is the Best

              Shirley Collins is the best

It’s a fair chance you’ve never heard of her

But she’s the best.

Her voice is like white linen rags

Blowing in the sunny breeze

Clean and rough and raggy and soft

Fluttering and trembling somewhere near the tune

But not quite

And not quite not

She captures the peasant’s heart and sings it free

And she’s the best.

Why am I telling you  this ?

Just that life is like this;

Learn the tune and you’ll sing it perfectly

But there’ll be something missing

And you’ll probably sing alone;

Dig your way into the heart of things

And it will sound wrong, but not wrong

Neither in nor out of tune ,different

Something better, inside the tune

Awaking brave and noble dreams in all who hear

As it carries with it another song

Blowing in from another world

And Shirley Collins is the best

Because she made me think of this

                                                        Wilf  02 2008