The elegy began as an ancient Greek metrical form and is traditionally written in response to the death of a person or group. Though similar in function, the elegy is distinct from the epitaph, ode, and eulogy: the epitaph is very brief; the ode solely exalts; and the eulogy is most often written in formal prose.

Elegy

What is the best way to commemorate the dead?Does a poem or song make them live longer?Can a person die without passing away?

South African political activist, founder and leader of the Black Consciousness Movement, born in King William's Town, Eastern Cape province. He became involved in politics while studying medicine at Natal University, and was one of the founders (and first president) of the all-black South African Students Organization (1969). In 1972 he became honorary president of the Black People's Convention, a coalition of over 70 black organizations. The following year he was served with a banning order severely restricting his movements and freedom of speech and association, and in 1975 the restrictions were increased. He was detained four times in the last few years of his life, and died in police custody, allegedly as a result of beatings received. He was the subject of a film made by Richard Attenborough (Cry Freedom, 1987).

Stephen (Bantu) Biko (1946–77)

September '77Port Elizabeth weather fineIt was business as usualIn police room 619Oh Biko, Biko, because BikoOh Biko, Biko, because BikoYihla Moja, Yihla Moja-The man is dead

When I try to sleep at nightI can only dream in redThe outside world is black and whiteWith only one colour deadOh Biko, Biko, because BikoOh Biko, Biko, because BikoYihla Moja, Yihla Moja-The man is dead

You can blow out a candleBut you can't blow out a fireOnce the flames begin to catchThe wind will blow it higherOh Biko, Biko, because BikoYihla Moja, Yihla Moja-The man is dead

And the eyes of the world arewatching nowwatching now

“Biko” written by Peter GabrielFrom the album “Peter Gabriel” Epic EPC26770 ©1986

This is actually not Afrikaans but Xhosa. This phrase can also be found in the song Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika that is now part of the national anthem of South Africa. The Xhosa phrase “yihla moya”; (in Zulu it is: “woza moya”)means ”come spirit”.

He was born Michael Luther King, Jr., but later had his namechanged to Martin. In December, 1955, he lead the first greatNegro nonviolent demonstration of contemporary times in theUnited States, a bus boycott that lasted 382 days. During thedays of boycott, King was arrested, his home was bombed, hewas subjected to personal abuse, but at the same time he emerged as a Negro leader of the first rank. On December 21, 1956, the Supreme Court declaredunconstitutional the laws requiring segregation on buses, Negroes and whites rode the buses as equals.

In 1957 he was elected president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization formed to provide new leadership for the now burgeoning civil rights movement. The ideals for this organization he took from Christianity; its operational techniques from Gandhi. In the eleven-year period between 1957 and 1968, King traveled over six million miles and spoke over twenty-five hundred times, appearing wherever there was injustice, protest, and action.

At the age of thirty-five, he was the youngest man to have received the Nobel Peace Prize.

On the evening of April 4, 1968, while standing on the balcony of his motel room in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was to lead a protest march in sympathy with striking garbage workers of that city, he was assassinated.

Martin Luther King, Jr., (1929-1968)

One man come in the name of loveOne man come and goOne man come, he to justifyOne man to overthrow

In the name of loveWhat more in the name of loveIn the name of loveWhat more in the name of love

One man caught on a barbed wire fenceOne man he resistOne man washed on an empty beach.One man betrayed with a kiss

In the name of loveWhat more in the name of loveIn the name of loveWhat more in the name of love

(nobody like you...)

Early morning, April 4Shot rings out in the Memphis skyFree at last, they took your lifeThey could not take your pride

In the name of loveWhat more in the name of loveIn the name of loveWhat more in the name of loveIn the name of loveWhat more in the name of love.

“Pride” by U2Written by Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, Larry MullenFrom the album “The Unforgettable Fire” Island W1-23980 ©1984

Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890

Vincent van Gogh, for whom color was the chief symbol of expression, was born in Groot-Zundert, Holland. His nervous temperament made him a difficult companion and night-longdiscussions combined with painting all day undermined hishealth. He decided to go south to Arles where he hoped his friends would join him and help found a school of art. Gauguin did join him but with disastrous results. In a fit of epilepsy, van Gogh pursued his friend with an open razor, was stopped by Gauguin, but ended up cutting a portion of his ear lobe off. Van Gogh then began to alternate between fits of madness and lucidity and was sent to the asylum in Saint-Remy for treatment.

In May of 1890, he seemed much better and went to live in Auvers-sur-Oise under the watchful eye of Dr. Gachet. Two months later he was dead, having shot himself "for the good of all." During his brief career he had sold one painting. Van Gogh's finest works were produced in less than three years in a technique that grew more and more impassioned in brushstroke, in symbolic and intense color, in surface tension, and in the movement and vibration of form and line. Van Gogh's inimitable fusion of form and content is powerful; dramatic, lyrically rhythmic, imaginative, and emotional, for the artist was completely absorbed in the effort to explain either his struggle against madness or his comprehension of the spiritual essence of man and nature.

Starry starry night, paint your palette blue and greyLook out on a summer's day with eyes that know the darkness in my soulShadows on the hills, sketch the trees and the daffodilsCatch the breeze and the winter chills, in colors on the snowy linen land

Now I understand what you tried to say to meHow you suffered for you sanity How you tried to set them freeThey would not listen they did not know how, perhaps they'll listen now

Starry starry night, flaming flowers that brightly blazeSwirling clouds in violet haze reflect in Vincent's eyes of china blueColors changing hue, morning fields of amber grainWeathered faces lined in pain are soothed beneath the artist's loving hand

Chorus

For they could not love you, but still your love was true And when no hope was left in sight, on that starry starry nightYou took your life as lovers often do,But I could have told you, Vincent,This world was never meant for one as beautiful as you

Starry, starry night, portraits hung in empty hallsFrameless heads on nameless walls with eyes that watch the world and can't forget.Like the strangers that you've met, the ragged men in ragged clothesThe silver thorn of bloody rose, lie crushed and broken on the virgin snow

Now I think I know what you tried to say to meHow you suffered for you sanity How you tried to set them freeThey would not listen they're not listening still Perhaps they never will.

“Vincent” by Don McLeanFrom the album “American Pie” Liberty LN-10037 ©1980

Marilyn Monroe Timeline

1926 Born Norma Jeane Mortenson in Los Angeles, CA, June 1st. 1942 Marries neighbor and boyfriend of 6 months, Jimmy Dougherty

on June 19th. 1945 Begins modeling after being discovered by a photographer

while working at the Radioplane Corporation, a wartime factory. 1946 Divorces Jimmy Dougherty. Begins using Marilyn Monroe as a

stage name, but doesn't make it legal until 1956. 1947 Plays a small part in her first film, "The Shocking Miss Pilgrim", in 1947. 1954 Weds baseball player Joe DiMaggio on January 14th. Films the infamous skirt-blowing scene in "The Seven Year Itch" Divorces DiMaggio in October. 1955 Moves to New York City for a year to study under Lee Strasberg at the Actors' Studio.

Forms her own company, Marilyn Monroe Productions, with photographer Milton H. Greene, which produces "Bus Stop" (1956) and "The Prince and the Showgirl" (1957).

1956 Marries playwright Arthur Miller in a civil ceremony on June 29th, and again in a Jewish ceremony on July 1st.

1960 Awarded Golden Globe for Best Actress in a comedy for "Some Like it Hot". 1961 Divorces Arthur Miller. Admitted to the Payne Whitney Psychiatric Clinic for emotional and physical exhaustion. 1962 Awarded a Golden Globe for World Film Favorite. Dies from an overdose of sleeping pills at her Brentwood. California home on August 5th.

Goodbye Norma JeanThough I never knew you at allYou had the grace to hold yourselfWhile those around you crawledThey crawled out of the woodworkAnd they whispered into your brainThey set you on the treadmillAnd they made you change your name

And it seems to me you lived your lifeLike a candle in the windNever knowing who to cling toWhen the rain set inAnd I would have liked to have known youBut I was just a kidYour candle burned out long beforeYour legend ever did

Loneliness was toughThe toughest role you ever playedHollywood created a superstarAnd pain was the price you paidEven when you diedOh the press still hounded youAll the papers had to sayWas that Marilyn was found in the nude

Goodbye Norma JeanFrom the young man in the 22nd rowWho sees you as something as more than sexualMore than just our Marilyn Monroe

“Candle in the Wind” by Elton JohnWritten by Bernie TaupinFrom the album “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” MCA EPC26770 ©1986

The son of an Albanian immigrant restaurant owner, Adam Belushi, and his vivacious wife, Agnes, John Belushi was born in Chicago. John'sbig break came when he joined the ground-breaking TV variety series "Saturday Night Live" (1975) which made hima star. The unpredictable, aggressively physicalstyle of humor that he began on "Second City"flowered on SNL. Director John Landis noticedJohn and decided to cast him in his movieNational Lampoon's Animal House (1978). John's minor role as the notorious, beer-swilling"Bluto" made it a box-office smash and the year's top grossing comedy. John's love for blues and soul music inspired the "Blues Brothers". He and Aykroyd first appeared as Joliet Jake and Elwood Blues, a pair of white soul men dressed in black suits, skinny ties, fedora hats and Rayban sunglasses, as a warm-up act before the telecasts of "Saturday Night Live" (1975). Building on the success of their acts and the release of their album "A Briefcase Full of Blues", John and Dan Aykroyd starred in the movie On March 5, 1982, John Belushi was found dead in his hotel room at the age of 33. The local coroner gave the cause of death as a lethal injection of cocaine and heroin.

John Belushi (1949–82)

The boy was a genius when he played the guitarHe lost control of it and took it too farUntil one rainy night he never came homeShe waited in the front yard standing all aloneAll aloneStanding all alone

He was a fool, he overplayed his roleHe couldn't stop, he had to go man, goHe loved his whiskey and he loved his cocaineBut he really loved that girl and he'll never see her again

Passing by the graveyardIt's lonely and it's so hardShe never really goes farWhen she's standing at the graveyard

She knew the cops, she knew the doctor, tooThey tried to save him, there was nothing they could doDon't waste your life away like my long lost friendWhat happened to him can always happen againYes it can

“Passing by the Graveyard (Song for John B.)” by Eddie MoneyFrom the album “No Control”Columbia QC 38653 ©1984

You never have to go farIt's lonely and it's so hardWhen you're thinking about the graveyard

When the cold wind blowsAnd it sweeps across your shoulderNow the whole world knowsShe'll never let him goShe just can't let him go

Buried him deep in a piano boxMade sure he was lying with the lid facing upIt's cold and lonely and the wind sings his songRemember him when you're passing along

Passing by the graveyardIt's lonely and it's so hardYou never have to go farWhen you're thinking at the graveyard

Passing by the graveyardIt's lonely and it's so hardYou never have to go farWhen you're passing by the graveyard

Keith John Moon was born on August 23, 1946 in London. Frustrated by school work, Moon found an outlet for his energy and creativity in a drum kit purchased for him by his mother when he was 14 years old. Moon joined the local music scene and never looked back. He first emulated the style of American surf rock, such as the Beach Boys, and R&B drummers, and joined his first band, “The Escorts.”

Moon found his way to “The Who” in April 1964, when, at age 17, he replaced their original drummer, Doug Sandom. Moon flourished in the creative atmosphere. He developed his distinctive, hard-driving style which propelled drumming from merely background support to a lead instrument. He created an enormous drum kit by combining several individual drum kits. Moon had a larger-than-life personality and his onstage antics were legend. He earned the nickname Moon the Loon for pulling stunts such as filling a clear drum set with water and putting goldfish in the modified “tanks.” He proceeded to play the kit during a show. During an appearance on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour television show, he loaded his drums with explosives, which detonated during the band’s finale performance of “My Generation.” Moon was a very enthusiastic, although not very good, singer. The rest of the band members banned him from singing on their albums, which resulted in a game whereby Moon kept trying to sneak into recording sessions.

Keith Moon died tragically when he was just 32 years old. On September 7, 1978, after celebrating the release of The Buddy Holly Story at a party thrown by Paul and Linda McCartney, Moon returned home with his girlfriend, Annette Walter-Lax. He died later that night of an overdose of Clomethiazole (Heminevrin), a drug prescribed to help wean him off alcohol.

In the searchlightsyou could see us as we circled aroundDown below us you were screamingI could hear the soundI could see your armsReaching up to meLike a demon, I could feel the madnessRunning through the crowdWe were freedomFrom the moment that we hit the groundAnd the wild man he laid the thunder down

“Under a Raging Moon” by Roger DaltreyWritten by Jon Parr and Julia DownesPolyGram 422-B24 865-1 M-1 ©1985

Do you remember me?Like I remember youIn a sea of handsYou came shining throughIn the mist of timeI can see it nowAll my life I will remember this(Under a raging moon)For this moment I was born for it(Under a raging moon)Under a raging moonWe were flying thereUnder a raging moonWe saw Zion thereIt ended all too soonUnder a raging moon

We were out thereWhen they handed us the rebel's crownAll the headlines,All they tried to do was tear us downBut the wild man,He didn't fool around

Do you remember me?Cause I remember youYeah you won my loveWhen the dream came trueWhen my blood ran high--I can hear it nowAll my life I will remember it(Under a raging moon)For this moment I was born for it(Under a raging moon)

Under a raging moonWe were flying boyUnder a raging moonIt's worth dying forIt ended all too soonUnder a raging moon

Taking me back to better timesWe never read the danger signsWhy are the young,Why are the young so blind?

John Lennon Timeline

1940 •John Winston Lennon is born in Liverpool, England on October 9th

to Julia and Alfred Lennon.1957 •Meets Paul McCartney at a church function, who soon joins The Quarrymen.1958 •Meets George Harrison and allows him to join The Quarrymen at the insistence of Paul McCartney.•The Quarrymen make their first recording at Percy Phillips' studio in Liverpool in July.•Lennon's mother, Julia, is hit and killed by a car on July 15th.1960•The Beatles debut in Hamburg, where they also meet Richard "Ringo Starr" Starkey Jr.1963 •The Beatles first album "Please Please Me" is released. •Lennon and Cynthia's son, John Charles "Julian" Lennon, is born on April 8th in England.1964 •The Beatles make their American debut.1966 •Meets Yoko Ono at a preview of her art exhibition in London.1967 •Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is released on June 1 and is widely considered to be one of the most influential albums of all time. 1969 •Performs with the Beatles for the last time on the roof of the Apple Corporation building in London during the filming of "Let It Be" on January 30th.•Marries Yoko Ono on the island of Gibraltar on March 20th.•They celebrate their marriage with a "bed-in" at the Amsterdam Hilton for a week in March -to protest war and promote peace.•Lennon officially changes his name to John Ono Lennon in April.1970 •The Beatles, one of the most popular music groups in history, announces the band is breaking up.1971 •Lennon records and releases the album Imagine. The title track was named Rolling Stone magazine's 3rd greatest rock song of all time.1975 • Lennon and Yoko's son, Sean Ono Taro Lennon, is born in New York on October 9th, Lennon's 35th birthday. Lennon retires from music to care for his new son.1976• Lennon's application to remain in the U.S. as a permanent resident is approved.1980 •Begins working on the concept album "Double Fantasy" with Yoko Ono.•Lennon is shot and killed by disturbed fan, Mark David Chapman, outside of his apartment building, The Dakota, in New York City on December 8th.

What happened here,As the New York sunset disappeared?I found an empty garden among the flagstones there.Who lived here?He must have been a gardener that cared a lot,Who weeded out the tears and grew a good crop.And now it all looks strange.It's funny how one insect can damage so much grain.

And what's it for,This little empty garden by the brownstone door?And in the cracks along the sidewalk nothing grows no more.Who lived here?He must have been a gardener that cared a lot,Who weeded out the tears and grew a good crop.And we are so amazed! We're crippled and we're dazed....A gardener like that one, no one can replace.

And I've been knocking, but no one answers.And I've been knocking, most all the day.Oh and I've been calling ,oh hey, hey, Johnny!Can't you come out to play?

We hear, we hear your name.....

“Empty Garden” by Elton JohnWritten by Bernie Taupin and Elton Johnfrom the album “Jump Up”PolyGram 422-B24 865-1 M-1 ©1985

And through their tears,Some say he farmed his best in younger years.But he'd have said that roots grow stronger, if only he could hear.Who lived there?He must have been a gardener that cared a lot,Who weeded out the tears and grew a good crop.Now we pray for rain, and with every drop that falls.....

And I've been knocking, but no one answers.And I've been knocking, most all the day.Oh and I've been calling ,oh hey, hey, Johnny!Can't you come out to play,In your empty garden?Johnny?Can't you come out to play, in your empty garden?

Syd Barrett (1946-2006)

British singer/songwriter guitarist Syd Barrett was an art-school student in London when he founded and named Pink Floyd in 1964. He wrote "See Emily Play" and "Piper at the Gates of Dawn" for the group, and his acid-inspired lyrics were the quintessence of London's 1967 Summer of Love. Barrett was dismissed from the band in April 1968 because of his drug-induced personality problems; David Gilmour replaced him after covering for him when he began missing shows. Barrett released two intriguing but poor-selling solo albums in 1970. He appeared on John Peel's BBC radio show (released on album in 1987) and did a couple of gigs with a loose-knit band called Stars. He basically had been living in Cambridge as a recluse since 1972, and in recent years suffered from declining health. Pink Floyd dedicated a popular 1975 song, "Shine On, You Crazy Diamond," to its eccentric founder. Barrett's surreal songwriting and atmospheric sound has influenced such artists as Robyn Hitchcock and Julian Cope. Syd Barrett died at age sixty on July 7th, 2006 from complications due to diabetes.

“Shine on You Crazy Diamond (part 1)” by Pink FloydWritten by David Gilmour, Richard Wright, Roger WatersFrom the album “Wish You Were Here” CBS CK 33453 ©1975Remember when you were young, you shone like the

sun. Shine on you crazy diamond. Now there's a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky. Shine on you crazy diamond. You were caught on the cross fire of childhood and stardom, blown on the steel breeze. Come on you target for faraway laughter, come on you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine!

You reached for the secret too soon, you cried for the moon. Shine on you crazy diamond. Threatened by shadows at night, and exposed in the light. Shine on you crazy diamond. Well you wore out your welcome with random precision, rode on the steel breeze. Come on you raver, you seer of visions, come on you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine!

So, so you think you can tell Heaven from Hell, blue skies from pain. Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail? A smile from a veil? Do you think you can tell?

And did they get you trade your heroes for ghosts? Hot ashes for trees? Hot air for a cool breeze? Cold comfort for change? And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage?

How I wish, how I wish you were here. We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl, year after year, running over the same old ground. What have we found? The same old fears, wish you were here.

“Wish You Were Here” by Pink FloydWritten by Roger Waters, David GilmourFrom the album “Wish You Were Here” CBS CK 33453 ©1975

“Hole in the River” by Crowded HouseWritten by Neil FinnFrom the album “Crowded House” Capitol EPC26770 ©1986There's a hole in the river where my auntie lies

From the land of the living to the air and skyLeft her car by the river left her shoes besideThrough the thorns and the bushes I hope she was...

Dreaming of gloryMiles above the mountains and plainsFree at last

We were touched by a cold wind, my father and IThe sound of desperate breathing her fear inside us allShe was coming to see him but something changed her mindDrove her down to the riverThere is no return

There's a hole in the river where a memory liesFrom the land of the living to the air and skyShe was coming to see him but something changed her mind,Drove her down to the riverThere is no return

Would you know my nameIf I saw you in heaven?Would it be the sameIf I saw you in heaven?

I must be strongAnd carry on,'Cause I know I don't belongHere in heaven.

Would you hold my handIf I saw you in heaven?Would you help me standIf I saw you in heaven?

I'll find my wayThrough night and day,'Cause I know I just can't stayHere in heaven.

Time can bring you down,Time can bend your knees.Time can break your heart,Have you begging please, begging please.

Beyond the door,There's peace I'm sure,And I know there'll be no moreTears in heaven.

Would you know my nameIf I saw you in heaven?Would it be the sameIf I saw you in heaven?

I must be strongAnd carry on,'Cause I know I don't belongHere in heaven.

“Tears in Heaven” by Eric ClaptonWritten by Eric Clapton and Will JenningsFrom the album “Unplugged” Reprise W1-23980 ©1984

Leader Of The Band

An only child alone and wild, a cabinet maker's sonHis hands were meant for different workAnd his heart was known to noneHe left his home and went his lone and solitary wayAnd he gave to me a gift I know I never can repay

A quiet man of music denied a simpler fateHe tried to be a soldier once, but his music wouldn't waitHe earned his love through discipline-- a thundering, velvet handHis gentle means of sculpting souls took me years to understand

(Chorus)The leader of the band is tired and his eyes are growing oldBut his blood runs through my instrument and his song is in my soulMy life has been a poor attempt to imitate the manI'm just a living legacy to the leader of the band

“Leader of the Band” by Dan FogelbergFrom the album “The Innocent Age” Epic ©1981

My brothers' lives were different for they heard another callOne went to Chicago and the other to St PaulAnd I'm in Colorado when I'm not in some hotelLiving out this life I've chose and have come to know so well

I thank you for the music and your stories of the roadI thank you for the freedom when it came my time to goI thank you for the kindness and the times when you got toughAnd, papa, I don't think I said "I love you" near enough

(Chorus)I am a living legacy to the leader of the band

Here come those tears againJust when I was getting over youJust when I was going to make it throughAnother night without missing youThinking I might just be strong enough after allWhen I hear your footsteps echoing in the hall

Baby here we stand againLike we've been so many times beforeEven though you looked so sureAs I was watching you walking out my doorBut you always walk back in like you did todayActing like you never even went away

Well I don't know if I canOpen up and let you in babyHere come those tearsHere come those tears again

I can hear you telling meHow you needed to be freeAnd you had some things to work out aloneNow you're standing here telling meHow you have grown

“Here Come Those Tears Again” by Jackson Browne and Nancy FarnsworthFrom the album “The Pretender” Asylum 7E-1079 ©1976

Here come those tears againNow you'll tell me how to hold them inHere come those tearsHere come those tears again

Some other time babyWhen I'm strong and feeling fine maybeWhen I can look at you without cryingYou might look like a friend of mineBut I don't know if I canOpen up enough to let you inHere come those tearsHere come those tears againJust walk awayI'm going back inside and turning out those lightAnd I'll be in the dark but you'll be out of sight

Spend all your time waitingfor that second chancefor a break that would make it okaythere's always one reasonto feel not good enoughand it's hard at the end of the dayI need some distractionoh beautiful releasememory seeps from my veinslet me be emptyand weightless and maybeI'll find some peace tonight

in the arms of an angelfly away from herefrom this dark cold hotel roomand the endlessness that you fearyou are pulled from the wreckageof your silent reverieyou're in the arms of the angelmay you find some comfort there

“Angel” by Sarah McLachlanFrom the album “Surfacing” ©1997

so tired of the straight lineand everywhere you turnthere's vultures and thieves at your backand the storm keeps on twistingyou keep on building the liethat you make up for all that you lackit don't make no differenceescaping one last timeit's easier to believe in this sweet madness ohthis glorious sadness that brings me to my knees

in the arms of an angelfly away from herefrom this dark cold hotel roomand the endlessness that you fearyou are pulled from the wreckageof your silent reverieyou're in the arms of the angelmay you find some comfort thereyou're in the arms of the angelmay you find some comfort here

http://www.ndsn.org/summer96/musicare.html

Just yesterday morning they let me know you were goneSusan the plans they made put an end to youI walked out this morning and I wrote down this songI just can’t remember who to send it to

I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rainI’ve seen sunny days that I thought would never endI’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friendBut I always thought I’d see you again

Won’t you look down upon me Jesus you’ve got to help me make a standYou’ve just got to see me through another dayMy body’s aching and my time is at handAnd I won’t make it any other way

Now I’m walking my mind to an easy timeMy back turned towards the sunLord knows when the cold wind blowsIt’ll turn your head aroundThere’s hours of time on the telephone lineTo talk about things to comeSweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground

http://www.snopes.com/music/songs/firerain.asp“Fire and Rain” by James TaylorFrom the album “Sweet Baby James” ©1970