Great American Songbook lyrics can bring inspiration

If you prize simplicity as a tool to achieve clarity in language, take inspiration in lyrics from the Great American Songbook, with tunes from the 1920s through 1940s by greats like Irving Berlin and Cole Porter and duos like George and Ira Gershwin and Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein.

For almost two years I have had a great time every Wednesday afternoon on Zoom with a dozen or so friends — some old, some new — talking about those lyrics. Our host, Michael Lasser, author of several books on the topic, points out that lyric writers love one-syllable words because they so easily match the beat of the melody, and because they so sparingly express meaning.

Remember the playwright August Wilson's approach to writing: "I just stop trying to sound important. I just say it. The simpler you say it, the more eloquent it is."

That does not mean sticking to one-syllable words; it does mean that, in choosing words, we can create rhythm and music. As Ira Gershwin wrote:

"It's very clear, our love is here to stay.

Not for a year, but ever and a day ...

In time the Rockies may crumble,

They're only made of clay, but

Our love is here to stay."

You don't have to know the melody to feel the music, reading the lyrics either silently or aloud. As we write, we can strive for that feeling. Readers will love us for it.

Now, to the Zoom Boom: Despite all the discontent about distance learning, one benefit of virtual meetings shows up in intimate gatherings of friends to share in mutual enthusiasms and to bond. Our Wednesday gatherings of people from all parts of the country produce joy.

Why not form a Zoom group that shares the love of great sentences from contemporary writing? Send me your discoveries, and I will relay them to readers of this column.

"You are the promised kiss of springtime

That makes the lonely winter seem long."

You do remember springtime, don't you?