Well, this was going to be a nostalgic song about my early life...then it took a 180 degree turn and ended up as something else entirely! Oh well, you have to go where the muse takes you.... I'm thinking of channeling John Fogerty for this one, was listening to "Centerfield" late last night, and that's where the inspiration for the music / chords came from.
Thirst For Knowledge.
"He's a good kid," the teachers said, "but he needs to concentrate,
Work a little harder, and pay attention,"
But the kid didn't listen to good advice, went off the straight,
More often than not ended up in detention.
Well you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink,
That's a cliched phrase they use in college,
And you can lead a child to books, but you can't make him think,
Unless of course he's got a thirst for knowledge.
The child grew up, became a man, there was always something missing,
Everything he tried to do somehow went wrong,
Lookin' back at his schooldays, and reminiscing,
He tried to put his feelings into a song.
Well you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink,
That's an over-worked phrase they use in college,
And you can lead a child to books, but you can't make him think,
Unless of course he's got a thirst for knowledge.
The man grew old, but never got wiser, for all the books he read,
Kept making over again the same mistakes,
The little voices kept insisting, inside his head,
"You could be so good if you gave yourself a break."
Well you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink,
That's a cliched phrase they use in college,
And you can lead a child to books, but you can't make him think,
Unless of course he's got a thirst for knowledge.
You can point a man to learning, but you can't make him think,
That's something he's got to learn on his own,
You can tell a man to wake up, 'fore it's too late,
But you've got to catch the man before he's grown,
Yes you've got to catch the man before he's grown.
:D :D :D
Vic
"Sometimes the beauty of music can help us all find strength to deal with all the curves life can throw us." (D. Hodge.)
Hi Vic,
I like the philosophical direction you've taken this. I especially like the chorus, the last line is perfect :D .
Well you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink,
That's a cliched phrase they use in college,
And you can lead a child to books, but you can't make him think,
Unless of course he's got a thirst for knowledge.
Not so sure about this verse though.
The man grew old, but never got wiser, for all the books he read,
Kept making over again the same mistakes,
The little voices kept insisting, inside his head,
"You could be so good if you gave yourself a break."
For me the first and last line contradict, the last line is what I think a wise man would say.
Maybe a variation of this line would work better in there
Work a little harder, and pay attention,"
cheers
Paul
Hi Vic,
Good start :D Thanks for the musical reference. It fit well as I was reading through the lyrics.
The story kept me interested....I was waiting to see what would happen in the end. I was a bit disappointed for the guy never having figured things out, but the song has to end somewhere.
I was wondering if this other twist on the cliché could fit since the title is thirst for knowledge.....You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink, but you can feed it salt.
I'll leave it with you to take or toss.
Thanks for sharing.
James
Currently sitting at #1 on the "Wish I'd Written That" list:
And you can lead a child to books, but you can't make him think
That is amazing! Well done, Vic!
And I really like the last take on the chorus as well.
Both Paul and James have brought up the points worth a possible tweak or two. Hopefully you'll have this one set to music soon.
Looking forward to more.
Peace
