When I sang the verses for the first time in the wee hours of Sunday night at ConAdian (52nd Worldcon), it fortuitously followed "The World Inside the Crystal", which is gumboed into Verse 1. This seems like a good omen.
CHORUS: You can sing it to the river, when you've drunk it down too low.
You can sing it to the gambler, but it only goes to show
That no matter just how full you are
Of faith, hope, love, and charity,...
Every act of creation is an act of parody.
When you play with words and music, and creation is the game,
Then your symbols have the power to replace the ones they maim.
From the structure, rhyme, and scansion, to each note and treble clef,
Every act of creation is an act of theft.
CHORUS
When we got the Ten Commandments that define what's right and wrong,
We were not told not to covet any friend or neighbor's song.
When you twist around their lyrics, or you take the tune you need,
Every act of creation is an act of greed.
CHORUS
When we're in a bardic circle, my creations may be crass,
But if you don't want to hear one, you can... always hope I'll pass.
Though when I filk Julia Ecklar, like Frank Hayes has done before,
Every act of creation is an act of war.
CHORUS
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