We will roque you

As a child I was exposed to all kinds of music. My mother was typically Indian and enjoyed filmy Bollywood songs of love and romance while my dad had a very Western palette in almost just about everything. Conversely, he was insanely patriotic and my mum was rather neutral. My dad spent most of his fortune on trekking and travelling all across Western Europe. He fell in love with Switzerland in the 70s and almost settled there until… Anyway, he had a whole lot of Swiss friends who’d visit us every year in Mumbai who’d teach us some French words or sentences every time and get us a bit more exposed to accents and expand our horizons at a time when we didn’t even have cable T.V. We had a whole lot of awesome stuff like an insane amount of Caran D’ache stationery, really exceptional toys and Swiss chocolates. Today when I look at these things in fancy stores, my eyes pop out thinking ‘woah, we used really luxurious stuff and we weren’t even aware! There’s no way I’m buying that.’ So back to my dad’s Western taste in music. He loved English songs especially rock music and some old-time classic French songs that we’d play on cassettes. Every other weekend, the three of us would get together and jump around almost head banging to songs like Hotel California and this one. He had this huge book that he had carefully bound. It contained hand-written lyrics to many English songs of the 60s and 70s. Psst, my middle name happens to be a title from one of those songs! Would you like to take a guess? Oh,and yeah… I’m pretty certain most of you didn’t know that although Queens was a British band; Freddie Mercury, the lead singer …was born to Indian Parsi parents.

For those of you who aren’t acquainted with this song, I’m going to guess you’re probably extremely young because this was one of the most iconic songs of the 70’s, a controversial one too. Let me simplify it for you. This song is about a boy who’s had it rough all through his childhood. He’s described as a disheveled kid who appears rather optimistic to me. I feel the kid has high hopes and a twinkle in his eyes concerning his future. He’s still singing in the midst of his misery. When he grows up, his life does not change much. His dreams of taking on the world someday seem bleak as he is still a poor man with a hard life. The man is still extremely hopeful and never gives up. He’s still singing with enthusiasm. By the time he greys, he’s hoping to find peace and hasn’t fulfilled any of the things he desired. But, he’s still singing and savouring the moment. The singer is appalled at his resilience where he is attempting to convey to the old man that he is not special and needs to be put in place. But, the old man just refuses to succumb to depression and continues singing. Everyone loves a happy ending, because we like eating sugar, not medicine. But, that’s just how this tale ends. Irrespective of the outcome, I believe this poor man truly lived an exemplary life. That’s just my interpretation of this song. I wonder what the writer had in mind! My dad’s name was Roque. Let’s see if I can come up with a poem that will truly roque!

Let’s Just Roque – poem by Ruelha

Let's just rock,
until it rings, that alarm clock.
Life is just too short,
when you realize and take stock.

Let's just rock,
until it rings, that alarm clock.
Live carefree, like you're doing a sleepwalk.
Just ignore all the roadblocks.

Let's just rock,
until it rings, that alarm clock.
At all others, you can marvel and gawk.
Or you can choose to soar like a hawk.

Let's just rock,
until it rings, that alarm clock.
When integrity and passion interlock.
Joy and peace begin to flock.

Let's still rock,
until it rings, that alarm clock.
They say it's cheap, all this talk.
So let's promise to walk the walk!

-RUELHA 
www.ruelha.com 
© Copyright Protected. All Rights Reserved

Lyrics of ‘We will rock you’

Buddy, you're a boy, make a big noise
Playing in the street, gonna be a big man someday
You got mud on your face, you big disgrace
Kicking your can all over the place, singin'
We will, we will rock you
We will, we will rock you
Buddy, you're a young man, hard man
Shouting in the street, gonna take on the world someday
You got blood on your face, you big disgrace
Waving your banner all over the place
We will, we will rock you, sing it!
We will, we will rock you, yeah
Buddy, you're an old man, poor man
Pleading with your eyes, gonna get you some peace someday
You got mud on your face, big disgrace
Somebody better put you back into your place, do it!
We will, we will rock you, yeah, yeah, come on
We will, we will rock you, alright, louder!
We will, we will rock you, one more time
We will, we will rock you
Yeah