In memory of Les Paul

The night's music above the starry amphitheaters
Time held all our whispers. . . .and tonal cries
Golden in the heydays of His eyes

And honored among the parking lots and locked bedroom doors, you were prince among sheet music and barely working amps
And once below a time you lordly had the ears and tears
Trailed with people waiting to audition . . . or waiting to get in . . . or in line just waiting for beer
Down along the rivers of rock and roll light

And as you were gentle and carefree, famous among the stars
Around the garages & studios and inventing new depths of sound, wood, and strings
The leads did magic on solos with the majesty of your gifts

In the sun that is young once only
Golden in the mercy of His means,
You were quiet and kind, master and servant, the virtuoso listened and the stars sang to your strings while the foxes on stilettos screamed clear with joy
And the lighters lit the universe like the moon gleans poetically on the cactus blossoms and desert roses
In the bonfires of music aflame in rhythm and heartache

Nothing we ever cared for, in the youthful search of identity and community, that time would take us
To the shattering epochs which were hidden in the shadows of your hands

In the moon that is always rising under a simple light of night
When singing ourselves to sleep
We might be lucky to hear you fly with the high fields and angels
And wake to the songs forever born from men & women,
Lilted in dreams, loss and redemption

Time held us all, but it held you gracefully and immortal
As we will sing, for you and with you
In our chains, like the sea!

Rest in Peace Les Paul