Notes About The Poem

For Dylan Song Tribute Poetry Contest sponsored by Oliver Mckeithan

Subterranean Homesick Blues - Archimedean Homesick Blues

This poem, which is loaded with math terms, is to be sung to the tune of Subterranean Homesick Blues.  What was I thinking?  

Johnny’s in the basement
Working on geometry
You’ll see my intent
A theorem in development
Presh is on the website 
Hit pause, scratch head
Trick problem, misled 
Try another approach instead
Look out kid
Better check it again
God knows man
Another paper in the trash can
You better try trigonometry 
Lookin’ for a new way 
The man with an isomorphic map 
and a toupee 
Wants eleven equations    
You only got ten 

Maggie writes chicken scratch
Paper full of cross hatch 
Says she wants to attach
You better detach
You can’t find the hypotenuse
Maggie says you gotta use 
Pythagoras or you lose
But the angle is obtuse 
Look out mate
This spheroid’s oblate 
Get on the rack
This nut won’t crack
Better get back from the ledge
With a compass and a straight edge
No primes, God knows,
Can decompose 
You don’t need Terrence Tao
Can’t square a circle nohow 

Add y, add x
See the roots are complex 
Closed loop, subgroup
You need to jump through another hoop
Let’s see, try three
Take five, relax
Eat snacks, do tax
If you should fail, take an ax
Look out bub
Surely you’ll flub
By blunders, errors
Five-choose-two-sers 
And logical abusers
Girl with a slide rule 
Lookin’ like an old fool
Don’t copy Euler 
Get yourself a lawyer

Ah add four, add five
It rhymes, it’s prime, then derive 
One two, buckle your shoe
It’s one-to-one and onto 
Square here, cube there, eggs poach
Twenty years of schoolin’
And you’re workin’ on a roach coach
Look here Jack
This nut still won’t crack
Break your hands accidental
Use a tail prehensile 
Be inferential
You’ll find it’s exponential 
You’re gonna have a fit 
You’ll never solve it 
Ken Chesebro says
‘Cause Mike Pence’ll take your pencil
Copyright © | Year Posted 2024


Post Comments

Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.

Please Login to post a comment

Date: 6/19/2025 7:32:00 PM
I read this before Dave and enjoyed it the first time as well. Like the way you tied in math and the song. Well done and congrats on your placement in my contest
Login to Reply
Crandall Avatar
David Crandall
Date: 6/19/2025 7:35:00 PM
Thanks Oliver. There were a lot of great poems coming out of this contest!
Date: 1/14/2025 9:38:00 PM
I also wrote a poem A Tribute to Robert Zimmerman a pantoum earlier on this site.
Login to Reply
Crandall Avatar
David Crandall
Date: 1/14/2025 9:53:00 PM
I'll check it out
Date: 1/14/2025 8:55:00 PM
Excellent!!! Am a big Dylan fan!!! This is great. I was singing right along although math wasnt big for me in school. I was lost in geometry especially, trying to do proofs. I am a retired pharmacist, perhaps I will try a Dylan song or maybe Mothers Little Helper by the Stones.
Login to Reply
Crandall Avatar
David Crandall
Date: 1/14/2025 9:53:00 PM
It was a lot of fun to try to match the rhyme patterns, somewhat, but hard. I love listening to music, but I don't know how to make it.
Date: 5/2/2024 3:46:00 AM
That’s a classic. Dylan would be proud of that and you should be too. What I know about maths you could write on a stamp but I know a good piece of writing when I see it. Cheers.
Login to Reply
Crandall Avatar
David Crandall
Date: 5/2/2024 7:51:00 AM
Thanks Keith, great song. Writing alternate words made me appreciate it even more.
Get a Premium Membership
Get more exposure for your poetry and more features with a Premium Membership.
Book: Reflection on the Important Things

Member Area

My Admin
Profile and Settings
Edit My Poems
Edit My Quotes
Edit My Short Stories
Edit My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder

Soup Social

Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us

Member Poems

Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New (All)
Poems - New (PM)
Poems - New by Poet
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread

Member Poets

Poets - Best New
Poets - New
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems
Poets - Top 100 Most Poems Recent
Poets - Top 100 Community
Poets - Top 100 Contest

Famous Poems

Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100

Famous Poets

Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - Most Popular
Famous Poets - Top 100
Famous Poets - Best
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War

Poetry Resources

Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Spell Checker
What is Good Poetry?
Word Counter