A day late for a Saturday song, but what’s the point of letting the calendar rule us, right?

I’m heading to Philadelphia in just a while to see Tori Amos in concert for the second time. I’ve had a few boyfriends who really loved her music, but Brian took the time to introduce me to her in-depth a few years back, and no, one does not have to be an angst ridden teen to adore her.

Her songs have always been moving, quietly sometimes, and powerfully others. I think I really fell in love with her on Scarlet’s Walk, 2002. I don’t know what it is about the song “Wednesday,” but I think that’s when I fully signed on to the Tori tour. And she’s only gotten more gorgeous with age, along with her music and lyrics.

Tuesday night at Cross Keys we were talking about the relationship between the cousins of song lyrics and poetry. And while I’ve heard Tori herself stress the differences (sorry, I cannot find the exact quote, but this link from NY Times is interesting), there is something about her lyrics that is so poetic that I often think they would fly on their own power, unlike many songs we love, without the wings of their music.

Here she is having a little fun with some serious issues–this culture’s history of oppression against women, stereotypes regarding gay men, assumptions about power. She personifies not just Satan, but Trouble herself, and sets about spritely stirring up a pot of it. Enjoy.