6. Josh Ritter "Thin Blue Flame"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwVfMJnLWUE Once heralded as "The New Dylan," Idaho singer/songwriter Josh Ritter delivered his most stunning work of lyrical pastiche on this 2005 masterwork. Clocking in at 9:38, "Thin Blue Flame" represents such a mastery of lyrical poetry that anyone who had doubted the Dylan comparison before this song arrived - as a free pre-album download in the fall of 2005 - surely wasn't doubting it anymore. Throughout "Thin Blue Flame," Ritter spits literary devices like he's a poet laureate, bringing everything together for the song's exhaustive third verse. At 46 lines, the stanza bursts with allusion ("Where even Laurel begs Hardy for vengeance please"), alliteration ("Lead pellets peppering aluminium"), metaphor ("I became a thin blue stream"), simile ("The future descending like a bright chandelier"), and countless other poetic elements that render the song a stunning display of technical writerly finesse. As for what the song actually means, you guess is as good as anyone else. "Thin Blue Flame" is so dense that it's difficult to parse the significance of a single line or stanza, let alone of the song as a whole. But like all great poetry, this is a work that demands and deserves repeated readings, independent interpretations, and rife academic discussion. Here's hoping Ritter will one day get his due, not only as one of the best songwriters of his generation, but as one of the best writers, period.
Craig Manning
Contributor
Craig is a Chicago-based freelance writer who like to talk incessantly about music on AbsolutePunk.net. He also does writing for marketing companies to "pay the bills," but his true passion lies with the pop culture sphere.
See more from
Craig