Now you listen to me for a minute.
I don’t know how many people love you.
Probably equals those millions of notes
you entranced us with as you danced from blues
and doo-wop to rock to soul to gospel
into jazz and beyond. How you caressed
each of us, alone in dark, casting spells,
forming memories and, yes, hope. You dressed
in silk and curled blond hair, rocking the house,
turning our heads and hearts. But your ballads,
most of all, mellow yet wrenching, meld us
even now into one spirit. You died
today. Fought booze and junk, won halls of fame.
We’re so sad you left, but so glad you came.
Roger Armbrust
January 20, 2012
