Charles Jensen | Writer

…a Rock Star.

Surprised? You might not be. I’ve always been interested in music and had the pleasure of studying it for most of my life, both in school and privately, and I continue to fiddle with the guitar whenever I get the chance. Unfortunately, I’ve had a real struggle trying to master any of the B-shape chords, making my capo and I very good friends.

Also, I can’t sing. I’ll do some poor karaoke after a cocktail or two, but I’d be on the American Idol gag reel in no time, probably for my heartfelt, if horrific, rendition of “…Baby One More Time.”

The life of a rock star isn’t really the life for me: the years on the road touring are a real turn-off, although I think I’d be at home in a studio. Can I write music? No. Can I write lyrics? No, much to my father’s chagrin—each time I see him, he drops a not-too-subtle reminder that if I could just take my poetic meanderings and set them to music, I could probably make a good living.

Easier said than done—really. Sarah McLachlan says that song lyrics are just bad poetry set to music. Well, Sarah, it turns out it’s really hard to write good bad poetry when your primary goal in life is even to write bad good poetry….