SKATALITES

It was strangely primal,
swinging and swaying
to the low loud bass beat
and the intended, apparent freedom
of the horns' echo.
So many stories were told
withouth the tongue's aid;
drugs, violence, struggle,
freedom, joy, and celebration
with 200 people
dancing it all
right in from of them.
Their hair was going white
and their eyes were closed
but they didn't miss a note.
Could they?
Could any note be wrong there?
Even in those songs
that everyone knew so well,
this was a different time,
a new instance in song.
It wasn't sheet music
that they had memorized so long ago.
It was a mood,
and that is not forgotten.