Like the Lake of Serbonia

LIKE THE LAKE SERBONIA

©Trev Teasdel April 1971 Coventry.

Like the lake of Serbonia

“Where armies whole have sunk”

Myrtle hath withered and died

Now rides the stormy seas and a sateless junk.

Oh my Ruth, lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa la

Turtle dove bewitched by a nova

Verdant pastures doth seek

I, now bewept in a sable cloud

To espy she with her Wassermann coming cleek.

Oh my Ruth, lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa la

Night prowler ploughed the blue ground of your heart

Delighted by the lustre of what he found

Truly chameleon thou art.

Oh my Ruth, lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa la

Deeply dreaming dreams of the Phoenix,

As the pigs fly by.

High lone and betwixt the pits and the snarling sky.

Oh my Ruth, lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa

Oh my Ruth lala la laa la

........................

A version by Mira and the Magnetic Ghosts 2025

 

The same version but on Revernbnation.

....
A song about love in a T Rex style and using an archaic diction, triggered by reading about the Serbonian bog where, according to Milton "“Where armies whole have sunk”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serbonian_Bog

Myrtle is symbolic of eternal love, 'Ruth' is an archaic word for sorrow - rather than a female name in this use.

'Blue Ground' refers to
"Rough, natural diamonds are often hidden in dark grey or black volcanic rock, named 'kimberlite', which is also known as ‘blue ground’. Because the rock is located in an unlimited depth and comes with a great speed towards the earth’s crust, it forms crater pipes. The name 'kimberlite' is derived from Kimberley, a town in South Africa, named after Lord Kimberley, at the time, the British Colonial Secretary, where diamond discovery was enormously high. Australia and Russia are also known as prominent sites for diamonds." https://www.baunat.com/en/faq/blue-ground