If Memory Serves

[bnewman]

 A song about intellectual challenge and mastery, entirely driven by a terrible pun.

lyrics and music by Benjamin Newman

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/ D - G D / - - G A / 1st /[1. G - A - :/[2. G A D - /

 

This dance of the mind's like a strange, new sport

That's played on a strange kind of tennis court,

Where questions and answers fly back and forth

In zigs and zags and curves:

 

Curves I believe I might once have known —

They still look familiar, for all they've grown —

And I might be able to hold my own,

If Memory serves.

 

For when Memory's sharp and her serve is neat,

And Reason is light on her nimble feet —

Oh, we'll show the fans in the front-row seats

The game that they deserve!

 

For I knew this game once when I was small,

And, though it's now clear I don't know it all,

Those victories might not be past recall,

If Memory serves.

 

/ G - D - / G - D A / G - A Bm / G - A - /

 

But this isn't the game that I played before,

For the love of learning and nothing more —

For, in this game, love means there's still no score,

For all that vim and verve!

 

But it's question and answer and game and set —

A rhythm I never will quite forget —

Our side might be able to rally yet,

If Memory serves.

 

Some say that the mind is a tool you wield —

A sharpened sword or a polished shield —

In this game it's more like the team you field,

And there's no one in reserve!

 

So it's time once again to remind my crew:

Keep your eye on the ball, and follow through —

And, together, there's nothing that we can't do,

If Memory serves.