Lolita - Ian Lilburne

In the corner of an afternoon
Settle down and listen
In a back bar room
To a three piece band
With worn and sassy shoes
And a lady named Lolita singing blues

The times are strange
But the cause is true
Sure, there’s always better things to do
But the music’s sweet
And you’ve nothing left to lose
And you love the way Lolita sings the blues

And as the afternoon
Slips away
A bleary drunkenness
Seduces you
You stay
You ride her syncopation
You pick the clues
She’s lived it all
She knows her muse

A tripping tongue
A sullen titillation
The ragged grin of a tart insinuation…
A limpid light appears between the lines
Where thought
And art
And luck
Intertwine

Through the hollow of an afternoon
Lolita sings a doleful tune
In a honeyed voice
Of dark and scumbled hue
From the dearth of love
Lolita sings the blues