Sail to Me

“The night seemed suddenly defiled by the absence of music, as if the silence itself was injecting a sickness that only another song could cure.”
~Jake Vander Ark, The Accidental Siren

In Greek mythology, sirens are irresistible, treacherous creatures who lure sailors to their doom with their songs. The concept of a "siren song" has been fodder for poets and songwriters alike.

siren on a fountain in Madrid, photo by Marki

A siren song sung by Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, and Alison Krauss:


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Siren Song
By Margaret Atwood

This is the one song everyone
would like to learn: the song
that is irresistible:

the song that forces men
to leap overboard in squadrons
even though they see the beached skulls...

read the rest here

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Song to the Siren, a song written by Tim Buckley and covered by David Gray:


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excerpt from The Sirens
by James Russell Lowell

Look how the gray old Ocean
From the depth of his heart rejoices,
Heaving with a gentle motion,
When he hears our restful voices;

read the rest here

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Another quote: "Now the Sirens have a still more fatal weapon than their song, namely their silence. And though admittedly such a thing never happened, it is still conceivable that someone might possibly have escaped from their singing; but from their silence certainly never."
~Franz Kafka

Margaret is our Poetry Friday host today at Reflections on the Teche.