Will love win?

[Cornflake]

Several recent songs coalesced into this one.

It’s not really news that death struck again
That hatred is still burning on
The seers have said there’ll be cold nights ahead
The days that were golden are gone

Will love win? Tell me again
Make me believe that it's so
All we can do is stumble on through
And lend it a hand 'til we go

We’ve known for a while that our leaders must fail
They’re too much like me and you
But the liars do well for they’ve learned to sell
What glitters instead of what’s true

Will love win? Tell me again
Make me believe that it's so
All we can do is stumble on through
And lend it a hand 'til we go

We tried to do good whenever we could
So why is the darkness so deep?
The traffic and horns, the hunger and thorns
Make love a hard vow to keep

Will love win? Tell me again
Make me believe that it's so
All we can do is stumble on through
And lend it a hand 'til we go

[Deleted]

this is excellent cornflake. i have no suggestions on how to improve it. well done. more of the same please. i'm trying to write like this at the moment. it's not working. but you do it well. congrats

[loopysanchez]

'Flake, a warning to you: Don't post the chords or melody line to this one unless you want some hack from North Alabama to add it to his setlist and play it on a weekly basis.

Let me guess: This song flowed out of you in a half-hour or less? It seems to move so effortlessly, I just have a gut feeling there was no need for any rewrites or edits.

[Cornflake]

Thanks very much to both of you. I'm pleased with this one, lyrically and musically.

Loopy, I'm glad it sounds effortless. It wasn't. I'd written several songs recently that were all related to this theme. I wasn't happy with any of them, 'though some of these lyrics came from those earlier versions. Then I found the melody and chords that I knew went with the song I'd been after. It finally all clicked when the line "Will love win?" came to me. Even then it took several hours to fine-tune the lyrics.

[Marshall]

But the liars do well for they’ve learned to sell
What glitters instead of what’s true

Great lines (but maybe:)

But the liars do well for they’ve learned they can sell
What glitters instead of what’s true

[Cornflake]

Marshall, "to sell" is better metrically. Is it the sense of the words that's problematic?

[Deleted]

i think either works, really.

[dradtke]

It depends on how many syllables "liars" has.

But / the / liars / do / well (5)
for / they’ve / learned / to / sell (5)

But / the / li / ars / do / well (6)
for / they’ve / learned / they / can / sell (6)

[Cornflake]

David, I'm from Texas. "Liars" is a one-syllable word, albeit a long one. When I say it, it sounds like Sekhmet's significant other.