Songs on The Tortured Poets Department
Introductory Poem, Summary Poem & Songs
Introductory Poem by Stevie Nicks
Written on Aug. 13, 2023. Austin, Texas.
For T – and me…
He was in love with her
Or at least she thought so
She was broken hearted
~ Maybe he was too ~
Neither of them knew.
She was way too hot to handle
He was way too high to try –
He couldn’t even see her
He wouldn’t open his eyes
She was on her way to the stars
He didn’t say goodbye
She looked back from her future
And shed a few tears
He looked into his past
And actually felt fear.
For both of them
The answers – would never be ~
Ever clear –
Don’t ask questions now
Do that later –
She brings joy
He brings Shakespeare –
It’s almost a tragedy –
Says she”
Don’t endanger me –
Pause –> Don’t endanger me
He really can’t answer her
He’s afraid of her –
He’s hiding from her
And he knows that he’s hurting her
She tells the truth
She writes about it
She’s an informer
He’s an X-lover
There’s nothing there for her
She’s already gone
There’s nothing that can stop her –
She was just flying –
thru the clouds ~
When he saw her…
She was just making her way –
To the stars ~
When he lost her…
For T – and me…
He was in love with her
Or at least she thought so
She was broken hearted
~ Maybe he was too ~
Neither of them knew.
She was way too hot to handle
He was way too high to try –
He couldn’t even see her
He wouldn’t open his eyes
She was on her way to the stars
He didn’t say goodbye
She looked back from her future
And shed a few tears
He looked into his past
And actually felt fear.
For both of them
The answers – would never be ~
Ever clear –
Don’t ask questions now
Do that later –
She brings joy
He brings Shakespeare –
It’s almost a tragedy –
Says she”
Don’t endanger me –
Pause –> Don’t endanger me
He really can’t answer her
He’s afraid of her –
He’s hiding from her
And he knows that he’s hurting her
She tells the truth
She writes about it
She’s an informer
He’s an X-lover
There’s nothing there for her
She’s already gone
There’s nothing that can stop her –
She was just flying –
thru the clouds ~
When he saw her…
She was just making her way –
To the stars ~
When he lost her…
Summary Poem by Taylor Swift
In Summation
At this hearing
I stand before my fellow members of the Tortured Poets Department
With a summary of my findings
A debrief, a detailed rewinding
For the purpose of warning
For the sake of reminding
As you might all unfortunately recall
I had been struck with a case of a restricted humanity
Which explains my plea here today of temporary i n s a n i t y
You see, the pendulum swings
Oh, the chaos it brings
Leads the caged beast to do the most curious things
Lovers spend years denying what’s ill fated
Resentment rotting away
galaxies we created
Stars placed and glued
meticulously by hand
next to the ceiling fan
Tried wishing on comets.
Tried dimming the shine.
Tried to orbit his planet.
Some stars never align.
And in one conversation, I tore down the whole sky
Spring sprung forth with dazzling freedom hues
Then a crash from the skylight bursting through
Something old, someone hallowed, who told me he could be brand new
And so I was out of the oven
and into the microwave
Out of the slammer and into a tidal wave
How gallant to save the empress from her gilded tower
Swinging a sword he could barely lift
But loneliness struck at that fateful hour
Low hanging fruit on his wine stained lips
He never even scratched the surface of me.
None of them did.
“In summation, it was not a love affair!”
I screamed while bringing my fists to my coffee ringed desk
It was a mutual manic phase.
It was self harm.
It was house and then cardiac arrest.
A smirk creeps onto this poet’s face
Because it’s the worst men that I write best.
And so I enter into evidence
My tarnished coat of arms
My muses, acquired like bruises
My talismans and charms
The tick, tick, tick of love bombs
My veins of pitch black ink
All’s fair in love and poetry
Sincerely,
The Chairman
of The Tortured Poets Department
At this hearing
I stand before my fellow members of the Tortured Poets Department
With a summary of my findings
A debrief, a detailed rewinding
For the purpose of warning
For the sake of reminding
As you might all unfortunately recall
I had been struck with a case of a restricted humanity
Which explains my plea here today of temporary i n s a n i t y
You see, the pendulum swings
Oh, the chaos it brings
Leads the caged beast to do the most curious things
Lovers spend years denying what’s ill fated
Resentment rotting away
galaxies we created
Stars placed and glued
meticulously by hand
next to the ceiling fan
Tried wishing on comets.
Tried dimming the shine.
Tried to orbit his planet.
Some stars never align.
And in one conversation, I tore down the whole sky
Spring sprung forth with dazzling freedom hues
Then a crash from the skylight bursting through
Something old, someone hallowed, who told me he could be brand new
And so I was out of the oven
and into the microwave
Out of the slammer and into a tidal wave
How gallant to save the empress from her gilded tower
Swinging a sword he could barely lift
But loneliness struck at that fateful hour
Low hanging fruit on his wine stained lips
He never even scratched the surface of me.
None of them did.
“In summation, it was not a love affair!”
I screamed while bringing my fists to my coffee ringed desk
It was a mutual manic phase.
It was self harm.
It was house and then cardiac arrest.
A smirk creeps onto this poet’s face
Because it’s the worst men that I write best.
And so I enter into evidence
My tarnished coat of arms
My muses, acquired like bruises
My talismans and charms
The tick, tick, tick of love bombs
My veins of pitch black ink
All’s fair in love and poetry
Sincerely,
The Chairman
of The Tortured Poets Department
- All Songs
- Standard Edition
- The Anthology
