Haiku

Haiku
Written by	Rob Cantor
Appears on	Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum
Sung by	Rob Cantor, Joe Hawley
Genre	Rock
Language	English
Links:	Youtube Spotify Bandcamp

Haiku is a song by Rob Cantor. The song's lyrics are attempted to be in haiku format of poetry, which is categorized by it's syllabic structure of 5 / 7 / 5. Most of the verses fall one syllable over at 5 / 7 / 6. The line "Lah dah dee diddum / Lah dah dah dum doo diddle / Dum doo lah dee doh" is the only lyric in proper haiku format, as the writer struggles to write a haiku using actual words and resorts to gibberish out of frustration.

History

To our knowledge Haiku was never demoed, only being recorded for Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum.

The auditory scene set by the track in the beginning is that they're playing in a small bar with a jerky audience, with some talking going on at the beginning. There is also the sound of presumably a music box playing a motif from Hidden in the Sand before it is silenced and the song begins. At one point, Paul Mansoor (known as the guy who cannonballs into the pool in Joe Hawley's movie "The Other Way") yells out "PLAY THE BANANA SONG!" and at another time, Henry Birdseye (great-grandson of Clarence Birdseye, inventor of frozen food) is taking a phone call and says in a low, muffled voice: "Hey, what's going on." and "That depends on what kind of surfboard you wanna buy." then says he'll have to call back because the band starts to play. Joe is kind of the drunk guy that gets up on stage and starts singing without permission. He is booed off only to return later and sneak in the yelled line: "He wrote a haiku for you!"

Trivia

• Haiku is infrequently played during live performances because "doesn't translate well into a live performance."

Lyrics

I have been trying
To write a haiku for you
Some things I just can't do

Maybe you're beyond
Ancient Asian poetry
Or maybe it's just me

I have been trying
To get this haiku just right all night
For you; alright I'm through

Maybe this poem
Was lost in the sauce we spilled
That never got refilled

I've never thought much
Of formulaic verse anyway
And rhymes are not my fort(e)

I have been trying
To get this haiku just right all night
For you; alright I'm through

I'm trying not to try too hard
But you're hard to write down right
So I pen these tried attempts
At haikus for you tonight

Lah dah dee diddum
Lah dah dah dum doo ditto
Dum doo lah dee doh

There, that's sufficient
I wrote a haiku for you (He wrote a haiku for you)
Well I tried at least, and that's not so bad
I'm working here; can that be said for you?

I'm trying not to try too hard
But you're hard to write down right
So I pen these tried attempts
At haikus for you tonight

Words don't work like Webster says
They trip me up all night
I'm just trying to write for you
But you're hard to write down right 

Tabs/Chords

By: http://www.facebook.com/TheSushiPizza

NOTE: If you want the Am can be C but I like Am better)
(Added by Steamlord313: Alternate [and in my opinion better] chords have been added in parentheses.)

G
I have been trying
Am (C) D (F# dim) G
To write a haiku for you
Am (C) D (F# dim)
Some things I just cant do


G Am (C)
Maybe you're beyond
D (F# dim) G
Ancient Asian poetry
Am (C) D (F# dim)
Or maybe it's just me


G
I have been trying
Am (C) D (F# dim) Em A
To get this haiku just right all night
Em A D
For you; alright I'm through


G
Maybe this poem
Am (C) D (F# dim) G
Was lost in the sauce we spilled
Am (C) D (F# dim)
That never got refilled


G
I've never thought much
Am (C) D (F# dim) G
Of formulaic verse anyway
Am (C) D (F# dim)
And rhymes are not my forte


G
I have been trying
Am (C) D (F# dim) Em A
To get this haiku just right all night
Em A D
For you; alright I'm through


CHORUS:
F Dm G C
I'm trying not to try too hard
F G C

But you're hard to write down right
F Dm G C
So I pen these tried attempts
F G Am D
At haikus for you tonight


SOLO:
G Am (C) D (F# dim) (x2)


G
Lah dah dee diddum
Am (C) D (F# dim) G
Lah dah dee doom doo ditto
Am (C) D (F# dim)
Dum doo lah dee doh


G (N.C.)
There, that's sufficient
Am (C) D (F# dim) Em
I wrote a haiku for you
A Em
Well I tried at least, and that's not so bad
A D
I'm working here; can that be said for you


CHORUS:
F Dm G C
I'm trying not to try too hard
F G C
But you're hard to write down right
F Dm G C
So I pen these tried attempts
F G Am D
At haikus for you tonight


F Dm G C
Words dont work like Webster says
F G C
They trip me up all night
F Dm G C
I'm just trying to write for you
F G C
But you're hard to write down right

References

Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum

1. Good Day 2. Greener 3. Welcome To Tally Hall 4. Taken For A Ride 5. The Bidding 6. Be Born 7. Banana Man 8. Just Apathy 9. Spring And A Storm 10. Two Wuv 11. Haiku 12. The Whole World And You 13. 13 14. Ruler of Everything 15. Hidden In The Sand (hidden track) 16. Mucka Blucka* (bonus track) 17. Dream* (bonus track) 18. Just a Friend** (bonus track) Good Day (Simlish) (pre-gap bonus track, CD/digital only) * indicates tracks only available with 2008 digital downloads, a download code or with the 2021 non-vinyl releases ** indicates tracks only available with a download code or on the 2021 non-vinyl releases